My 15 minutes of fame.... or was it 2?????

I was reminded recently of the connection to 9/11 that my 2 minutes of TV time had.... NO not in being accused of terrorism! (97 virgins is NOT my version of heaven...)

It seems so long ago that the towers came down and charitable giving took center stage. Everywhere you went, firemen with empty boots were asking for donations, and the people gave, and gave, and gave.... I looked at this and asked myself the obvious question and wrote the local paper.....


Letter to the Editor of The Patriot News:

I feel like Scrooge in this vast giving mood of America.

What I don't understand is why. Why do people give to the families of victims from 9/11? Sure. it is a tragedy. It always is whenever someone loses a loved one. Was it more deserving than the poor family down the street?

Should the kids be entitled to a free college education? If the victim didn't care enough to take care of his/her family if they weren't around, through savings or insurance, why should it be important to us? If the family prepared for something bad to happen (like the rest of us have to do!), should they ALSO get benefits from the charity? If not, then why?

Since almost everyone involved was at work, and I'm sure benefits are being paid, what else are we, as a society, expected to do? Where does the responsibility for taking care of your own problems end?

It's not that I'm a heartless, soulless human being. I just want to ask the questions that I haven't heard anyone else ask. I feel for the families and friends of the victims. I also feel for the people around here that lose someone and no one notices or seems to care. Those families are the ones who could truly USE the help, but won't get it because it isn't the THING TO DO right now. I think that people just do it because people are doing it. They are not thinking or debating, which is sad.

If they want to give support or just money, they have no further to look than their local neighborhood. Folks are in need on every street, in every town, and every state in the U.S.. I wonder if those who donated would have given to something else if 9/11 never happened.

I hope this giving mood continues long after the rebuilding is done. I hope that the problems arising from having so much money for the victims families doesn't affect the spirit of America.

While greed grabs the headlines, the basic good from human beings will always win in the end.


The feedback I received was all positive and thought-provoking. Everyone was happy to see the outpouring of compassion, even if it WAS misdirected. One of those who contacted me was a local TV reporter who was looking for an angle that was similar. He claimed to be working on a spot and wanted to use ME! huh...... He showed up at work and we spent 30 minutes or so talking about the letter and ultimately ended up with the best 12 seconds ever put on television! It was quite an interesting experience for sure....