Become a Republicrat

Oh, the arguments.  Oh, the politics.  Can't we stop worrying about WHO is right, and just start leaning toward WHAT is right?

I recently read a blog that suggested hunger in America is not a problem we should address collectively. Now before you put on your yellow Democrat hat and start pointing fingers, they did make the distinction between starvation and hunger.  Starvation, we should worry about.  Hunger, not so much.

Bob Lupton's article Chronic or Crisis? Learning to Tell the Difference, wrapped up with the sentence, "Never do for others what they have the capacity to do for themselves."  This is supposed to be some Golden Rule of empowerment, but if you add two words to it, it becomes the edict from the Republican business model, "Never do for others, for free, what they have the capacity to do for themselves."  Case in point, Charles Schwab.

Back to the starvation vs. hunger fight, malnutrition deaths in America occur more frequently than in Italy, Kyrgyzstan, Belgium, Portugal, Serbia, Costa Rica, Japan, Viet Nam, Cuba, Canada, Spain, Kuwait, Bosnia, Bulgaria, Iceland, Hungary (gotta love that one), Australia, Malta, Norway, Ireland, South Korea, and a dozen other countries.  I know it's only 1 in 100,000, but that's almost as many people who drown in America each year, and look at all we do to prevent drowning. Additionally, more people starve to death in America than are killed in fires each year. The people who try to prevent that are called heroes. (Data source: WHO)

Hunger in America has been reduced to the new political buzz term, "Chronic Food Insecurity."  Give me a break.  Being hungry in America is a crisis.  Distributing free food helps.  I agree with our aforementioned blogger, that it doesn't do enough.  However, children who do not eat well do not learn well.  This is a research-based statement, so don't tell your friends I made it up.

Here's where all this needs to go.  The Republicans who believe that poverty is an evil plot to destroy the government need to sit down with the Democrats who know where all the skeletons are buried.  Come up with a solution that engages churches if you want, but rich churches need to help poor people, not rich people who are down on their luck for a minute.

Get your tail out in the community and meet the people who work at the convenience store.  If they have worked there for more than a year, maybe that's the best they can do.  If you think getting them a better job will make their children healthier, then help them get a better job.  If it disgusts you that you see that same convenience store employee standing in a line for free food, strike up a conversation with them, and they will give you an education.

We are living in a day of 'situational' poverty.  People are poor because of their situations, and in some places, the situations are so dire, people starve, not just go hungry.

Come to Texas, and I will take you to places that are worse than third-world countries, but is there a big church or a corporation that wants to help?  Nope.  I know of a church that has over 15,000 (maybe more, by now) members that is less than 150 miles from 50,000 people who don't have running water or electricity. How about a little help, Joel Osteen.  I knew your father, and I think he would want you to do more.

Okay, I'm done.  Get your Reps and your Dems together and work this out.  Government can help, but politicians all know corporate people who got them elected.  Those are the folks we want to talk to about this.  Create Republicrat stew and I think we can feed everyone.  At the same time we can create REAL capacity for them, and make a real difference.

LB