Katrina Kills... but will it wake anyone up?

Anyone reading the news will know by now the terrible ravages that hurricane Katrina has laid upon the Gulf Coast. Many will ignore what they read or see or hear. Many will consider it not their problem, especially those of us on the west coast. Worse still, many will look at this monster hurricane and say, "Oh that? They happen all the time. It's just part of nature. Those people should have known better when they moved there."

Ah, but it's not "part of nature", my friends. Weather-related disasters get worse and worse with no one admitting to any correlation between that and man's rape of the environment. What do CO2 levels and depleted ozone have to do with extreme weather? Everything. You don't have to be a genius to know it. You don't have to do more than watch the Discovery Channel. We are destroying our atmosphere and, while people 20 years ago were talking about saving our planet, it's about damned time we start talking about saving ourselves!

Today, I listened in horror to a man in Tennessee who lost his whole family and all of his belongings to the devastation. He was only one. They're having to mark the homes of the dead because they can't bury them and they can't store them. About 100 have died so far. There will be many more. (And, let me add, this is but a fraction of those killed in Iraq. Think of the horror we are inflicting there. Their storm is called USA.)

Now, those who know me know that I am by no means a rich man. Still, I could see that there are plenty of people worse off than I. These aren't people in a far off country, speaking another language. These are Americans, our fellow Americans, and they need our help. (Not only that, but these are people who voted for Bush - and what has done so far? Not a damn thing. However, I do hear he's planning on flying Air Force One over there and shitting on them.)

Well, I decided I could do a little something. I donated $100 to the Red Cross. Not much. Still, I figure if I can do it, a few of you can give $50, $25, or even $10. That's just a couple packs of smokes... for those who indulge. Go to www.redcross.org. Their site is very busy, which is a good thing. Just be patient. Remember, your wait means more donations from someone else.