Sunday's Internet Edition, 07:12 PM, May 11, 2008.
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It seems everything is more expensive while the amount of money people make has stayed the same, meaning we actually make less because what we have doesn’t go as far. America has its problems. Whether it’s the War on Terror, gas prices or high health insurance, people in this country have plenty to complain about. There is perhaps no country in the world based more on the “haves” and “have nots” than the United States. A small percentage of the population controls most of money, leaving the rest to fend for scraps.
In this election year, citizens have been given every reason for the problems by aspiring politicians with no real explanation of a solution. Sure, long-term ideas paint a rosy picture of what could be, but no one offers anything to help the here and now. One would find it easy to second guess a government that is supposed to “of the people, for the people and by the people”.
As bad as the overall scheme make look, one of things Americans, for the most part, don’t have to worry about is starvation. Our country is renowned for being over weight and gluttonous, based on golden arches, pony-tailed red-heads and the king. Our country offers food stamps and soup kitchens, we have the Red Cross and the Salvation Army, and an overall opposition to anyone going hungry. In this, we have it made.
I am no different than anyone else reading this column. My ends meet about as much as Congress, and I can’t stand having to pay for something I already own. Every time I put gas in my car I ask why, why, why? I wonder who could possibly be looking out for the people with gas prices nearing $4 a gallon and milk following hot on its heels.
Then you see something like I saw on the news last week that puts life in new perspective. Forgive me if I don’t remember the channel, but the story was about the country of Haiti. Haiti is a small South American, downtrodden country run by selfish people with no regard for their citizens. Conditions are so poor that people have resorted to eating dirt cakes.
That’s right. Human beings eating dirt. Haitians take the dirt, mix it with salt and vegetable shortening, flatten it out like a cake and then let the sun bake it hard. The result is a thin, round dirt cake that resembles a skeet used in shooting. Considering 80-percent of all Haitians live on less than $2 a day, at five cents each, you can see why.
Sen. Hillary Rodham-Clinton has made a big deal during her campaign about her universal health care plan, saying everybody should be covered and have access to medical care. What about everybody having access to food?
Out of all the problems in the world, hunger seems the most correctable. There is no reason why entire countries go hungry and starve. When a Haitian can’t afford a plate of rice, it is not Haiti’s problem, it’s everybody’s problem. Money is not a concern in this world no matter how governments try to spin it. When two guys from Google can make a couple of billions dollars in day, some money can find its way to a country like Haiti or anywhere else that has children starving and eating the very ground they walk on.
Measures can be taken, and I would like to salute Sir Pizza on National Highway. Today, Sir Pizza in donating 10-percent of its gross sales to fight hunger in Davidson County, a move that should not go unnoticed. I encourage everybody to stop by Sir Pizza today and get a pie or a salad or even just a drink because you are making a difference in this horrible struggle against hunger.
Regardless of one’s political beliefs or social stature, we are all humans with very basic needs. One of those needs is food and that is something no one should be without.
Staff Writer Eliot Duke can be reached at 472-9500, ext. 233, or at eliotduke@hotmail.com.
