The Road To Hell...
...Is paved with GOOD intentions.
At least that's how the saying goes.
Yet, how many times do we actually SEE those intentions manifested into good ACTIONS?
Take for example the recent rescue of those 33 miners trapped nearly a half-mile beneath the Chilean earth.
Good intentions turned INTO good actions by many nations, and we have seen a lot of the BETTER side of humankind.
Not a bad start, is it?



Kinda reminds you of the Miracle on the Hudson...








But in Haiti, where many thousands were left homeless and relatively destitute, we are seeing VERY little progress.
Money that was slated to go there is being "retained" by our OWN State Department...and who the hell knows why?
I mean, our government can quite easily toss about hundreds of BILLIONS of bucks for stuff "we" don't need OR want (such as a stinks-on-ice healthcare plan), or our government can decide to bailout any company that has made some mistakes with poor management or investment skills.
I suppose the easiest thing our government could do would be to "adopt" Haiti as our FIFTY-FIRST state and then bail THEM out...
(ahem)
Nah, that dog ain't gonna hunt, and we all know that, right?
Well, the good news is that the moratorium of off-shore oil drilling has been lifted, and that means jobs that went away when the moratorium was initiated will be BACK...(yay). The bad news is that we never needed to HAVE the moratorium in the first place.
That only paved the way for OTHER nations (that we ALSO sent scads of millions of dollars to) to go ahead and drill for oil in many of the same places WE were drilling in...I mean WTF is up with that?
At least NATURAL GAS is plentiful in America, and should result in LOWER prices for home heating (crosses fingers).
Hmm, I wonder why natural gas was never really considered for an alternative fuel source for vehicles?
That IS curious, don'cha think?
Using natural gas to generate electricity...whatta concept! (that's been around for HOW many decades, languishing in limbo?)
This is just another one of those nasty "double-standards" we seem to have in as MUCH abundance AS natural gas (in this nation) these days.
We 've already come to the conclusion that the current administration is fostering CLASS-warfare (like we don't have enough issues), and pushing progressive agendas (that we also know NEVER work out to anyone's benefit in the long run). There is another old saying that goes:
"Too many cooks spoil the broth."
Seems we're now hip-deep in spoiled broth THESE days, aren't we?
We've got too many cooks in the damn kitchen, and what we need is a GORDON RAMSEY to sort it all the hell out.
And we've such GOOD intentions....but lacking in the "good actions" department.
Sure,. we've got LOTS of words regarding HOW we might proceed to rectify the current state of affairs, but since actions have ALWAYS spoken louder than words, wouldn't it be nice to see SOMETHING being done, instead of talking ourselves to death?
And here is another perfect (if local) example of this:
(( Tenants moved as city to raze apartments / Holly Abrams The Journal Gazette
FORT WAYNE – Residents of The Cottages at McMillen Park, a south-side apartment complex the city bought this year, have been relocated, officials announced Wednesday.
The city, meanwhile, is seeking the public’s input on how the property should be redeveloped.
The city of Fort Wayne bought the 214-unit complex this year with $1.1 million in federal Neighborhood Stabilization Program money. Tenants living in 52 apartments were moved in mid-September, according to Joe Fox, spokesman for Mayor Tom Henry.
Those tenants were provided relocation assistance and moved into comparable units elsewhere, Fox said.
City officials said the property was mostly vacant at the time the remaining tenants were relocated. The units were built just after World War II.
City Councilman Glynn Hines, D-6th, said he supported the city’s purchase and future redevelopment of the property at 4209 Plaza Drive just off McKinnie Avenue.
"We don’t want to see a blighted area – which is what it was," he said.
The Fort Wayne Housing Authority took over management of the property in 2003, renaming the property. Previously the units were called McMillen Park Apartments.
Despite renovations to the property, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development cited the property as having deficiencies as recently as 2008. At that time, the property was rated a "C," meaning immediate attention or remedy should be made to the units.
Fort Wayne firefighters and Fort Wayne police have both expressed interest in using the property for training, the mayor’s office said.
Hines said preliminary ideas include demolishing the buildings after police and fire training are finished and turning the property into green space.
Later, city officials want to encourage developers to turn the property into housing or a commercial development, Hines said.
The public’s input was sought during a meeting last week. Another meeting will be in November, although no date has been set.
"I think the process is to engage a consultant and engage the community and hear ideas of what we’d like to see there," Hines said.
The $1.1 million was part of $7.2 million the city received from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to stabilize existing neighborhoods and fix up older homes.
The Neighborhood Stabilization Program requires that the property be redeveloped within 10 years. ))
Again, we've LOTS of TALK, but NO action.
TEN frigging years?
Are you kidding me?
You know how far down the crapper this part of town can GO in TEN years?
Apparently not...(nice blinders, BTW).
Definitely, an abundance of GOOD INTENTIONS...to be sure.
Hines doesn't want to see a "blighted area"...well, you're gonna be lookin' at one, Bub...
TWELVE years ago, my ghettohood was a LOT different from the blighted area you see today...and it was because of irresponsible people (and lack of city intervention). The FWHA and HUD stuck a bunch of low-lifes into a once nice area, steering all the decent folks away with the help from the Realtors in the area, and the result was typical of ANY neighborhood that suffers a similar fate - it was all but TRASHED.
And it didn't trash ITSELF.
It had (a lot of) help.
The road to hell was nicely paved, and even got some sidewalks (that are rarely used).
Not bad for a colossal waste of tax money and a lack of accountability by both the city AND the "new" residents.
Don't see any Chilean RESCUE effort coming soon to a neighborhood near me, that's for sure.
If you look back AT the Chilean rescue, it was NOT done by ONE person alone.
It was a UNIFIED effort by several nations. There was CONSENSUS. There was PARITY.
In neighborhoods like mine across THIS nation, we're not seeing all that much "unification" these days.
We're pretty much left the hell ALONE...in the WRONG way, mind you.
And being a lone operative in such a "battle zone" is a daunting challenge.
You constantly struggle to TRY to make the difference you feel is right and just...and everyone around you couldn't give a rat's ass.
Wonder how THAT mindset by the masses would have shaken out in Chile over the last 70 days, hmm?
I've always believed that good INTENTIONS beget good IDEAS which become good ACTIONS...it's a simple enough equation to figure out, and I was certainly NO math major in school...just a guy that knew what PRACTICALITY meant when it comes to dealing with numbers.
There has to be a few others that feel likewise...this city can't have THAT many apathetic bodies roaming about.
Good intentions...we ALL have them.
How we decide to act UPON those intentions will determine a LOT.
We CAN become better than we were yesterday, and we CAN do something when something needs doing.
THAT is what this nation has always been about.
We can talk ANY problem to death...and wind up with the same results...
OR, we CAN act to do what is required, even if it's the hard thing to do, simply because it will most likely be the RIGHT thing to do.
It's OUR choice...always has been...always will be.
Something to ponder, perhaps.
Be well, make a difference to someone, and...
Stay safe out there, America.