Thursday, September 15, 2005

$2000 Free-For-All

Reports from numerous sources are claiming that individuals are calling in and lodging complaints about the use of the now-defunct $2000 FEMA debit cards. Shopkeepers and storeowners are finding the FEMA cards to being misused in a variety of settings. One clerk called and complained that disaster-stricken individuals in Atlanta are buying premier Louis Vuitton purses with their cards as opposed to necessities like… food, water, and diapers.

Another store-clerk called in a radio show to explain that her Game Stop video game store received correspondence from their Home Office that the cards should be taken with no hesitation. Thank God the evacuees can now purchase their X-Box 360 without being criticized! Granted, it is hard to delineate what is appropriate in some situations, I think we can all agree that $800 purses and $400 gaming systems aren’t necessary. We donated that money to the cause. We pay the taxes that assisted in the relief efforts. We should dictate, to an extent, what the money should be used for. The current policy: no alcohol, tobacco, or firearms. That would be my first three purchases.

It’s definitely not hard to decide what is appropriate for the funds but if the evacuees can’t delineate acceptable versus non-acceptable purchases, we should do it for them. A lot of the victims decided not to evacuate and supposedly we should have made that decision for them – so is there a difference between the two? Not in my book.

4 comments:

Disgruntled Car Salesman said...

Wow, where's my free Xbox 360??

Just goes to show that those not smart enough to heed advice on evacuating pre hurricane aren't smart enough to take the small amount of money they have and invest it to GTFO the shelters.

Big surprise btw... BIG surprise.

Anonymous said...

I'm not surprised. The only thing missing is Celine Dion saying, "awwwwww! Let them have their X-Box! They've never had one before!"

Dad29 said...

Today's news: the cards are also being accepted at strip-clubs in Houston.

Wonder if they work inside the g-string, like dollar bills?

Ken said...

I guess the homeless feel they have been given the bums rush in other cities. "Why are they getting money when we have been begging for years" one homeless man said in the Washington area.

Hey remember the parody on Cindy Sheehan I did last week in my blog of her calling for the withdrawal of troops out of occupied New Orleans? Well she has accually gone and done it. I am just in stitches. Michael Moore too. They are both parodies of themselves!