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Appointing Roland Burris as the next Senator of Illinois was the most selfish thing Governor Rod Blagojevich could have done, so it should come as no surprise that he did it.
As a former Illinois attorney general and comptroller, Roland Burris was a standout politician. He was a trailblazer, the first African-American elected to statewide office. It happened in the ancient history of 1991.
That’s right, the state that is home to the first African-American elected to the White House did not elect one to statewide office until 1991. Burris served four years as comptroller and then four years as attorney general. He has run for governor three times since then unsuccessfully including a primary run against Rod Blagojevich six years ago.
As a fervent supporter of the Illinois Democratic Party, Burris has contributed about $3,000 to Rod’s campaign funds over the years, but hasn’t had any close ties to the governor. He is, by the assessment of most Illinoisans, a decent public servant.
That is why it is so awful to have his name sullied by being nominated to the Senate at this time. I’m sure that old Rod thought he was pulling a fast one. By appointing someone not tied to his federal corruption charges, Rod clearly thought he would make himself seem less corrupt.
By not naming one of the candidates alleged to have been part of the corruption investigation, Blagojevich and his lawyer will likely claim that the appointment of a scandal free politician is additional evidence that the governor never had any ill intentions.
BS!
I think everyone with eyes can see that the governor is attempting to use Burris to give himself more credibility. Under any other circumstances, I would support the appointment of Roland Burris. He is an intelligent man with the best interest of the people of Illinois at heart.
Unfortunately, I’m afraid the quality of the appointment might lead some to believe it’s all right for Governor Blagojevich to name the next Illinois senator. The governor makes the argument that the people of Illinois deserve to have two Senators from the beginning of the legislative session and not be forced to wait until the state can hold a special election.
Again, BS!
The governor has absolutely no concern about the people of the state of Illinois and what we deserve. If he cared at all, he would have found a way to work with his fellow Democrats to pay the state’s bills and take care of the basic needs of the state, without closing historical sites and cutting social services. He would know that the safety of Illinois prison guards is more important than his perceived insult from the guards at the Pontiac Correctional Center (which almost shot his helicopter down more than a year ago when he failed to notify them he was coming there).
And, he would know that a disgraced, indicted governor does more harm to Illinois than could ever be levied by virtue of waiting for an election for our new Senator..

My dear friend Emily has a daughter serving in Iraq. She’s been there about a month. And, Emily called today to tell me that Bekkah had been “wounded.”

Now, the quotes around the word wounded should have let you in on the secret that it took me a bit longer to grasp. Emily called and told me that she thought she should let me know that she had just gotten a call from Bekkah.

Since I am writing a series of articles about Bekkah for a local newspaper, I wasn’t all that surprised. I get emails and updates regarding Bekkah on a regular basis.

“She’s been wounded..”

Emily didn’t stop talking, but I did interupt with a huge gasp and “Oh my god, is she alright?”

“…she forgot to duck.”

Okay, my brain was addled with the thought that this lovely young Army Reservist had been injured in Iraq, but still I caught the Reagan refernce. For those of you up past your bedtime, that’s what Ronald Reagan said after he was shot. “Honey, I forgot to duck.”

So I began to get a bit suspicious, but was still primarily concerned about Bekkah. I should have heard in Emily’s voice that Bekkah was fine.

In the interest of full disclosure, Emily never actually lied to me. As I pointed out to her, it’s just that the connotation of what she said and the dennotation of what she said are fairly different.

What she meant is that Bekkah, who is a heavy equipment operator, had a run-in with a dump truck. She forgot to duck, well, raised up too soon, and got hit in the head. She may need stitches.

 So she was technically wounded in Iraq–a head wound even–technically.

After I gave Emily a hard time for her trick, she said she and her husband had chosen me to play this dirty trick on because they knew I would forgive them.

I will. Eventually.

Actually, I find it gratifying to know that these people who are working hard to raise their grandson while his Mommy is in Iraq can joke and play. Hopefully, it helps them get through the day just a little bit easier while they worry about their little girl who is “over there.”

But, I may still kill them.

For some, the call of duty is grand and involves sacrificing their lives to make sure that the rest of us remain free. For others, the call of duty comes in a much smaller way serving on a community improvement committee, running for public office or even jury duty.

Today, I am stuck in my local courthouse awaiting the presence of the judge to determine if I will be called to sit on a jury ot allowed to go home and get some work done as I prefer. I would sincerely like to not have to spend my day in the basement of the courthouse. On the other hand, I understand the importance of the job that is set before me today and will do it well, if begrudgingly, if I am selected.

I know that jury service is a fundamental part of the American justice system. We need people to willingly participate if the 230+ year old American justice system is going to continue to work. On the other hand, it’s hard to justify giving up my normal salary and personal goals for the day for the $15 plus gas money that I get for showing up. With the gas money and the $15, the court has effectively paid what I would normally earn in about an hour. Not quite, but well, close enough.

The problem is that it’s 10 minutes to the courthouse and I’ve already been here for an hour and all that has been accomplished was the roll call and a 15 year old video about the importance of jury service. And, I agree that it’s important, really I do. But the gentleman behind me, who comes from a law enforcement family and has two sons who are state troopers, is probably just wasting him time.

As a professional reporter, I am probably wasting my time. I am willing to serve, but the likelihood that the attorneys could agree to put me on a jury is small. There are three or four other people in the same boat, unlikely to be selected, but wasting a Tuesday anyway.

And then there are the people who need to be excluded. Too many people think that this is Law & Order or some other cop drama. They had to be told that they cannot conduct their own investigations or try to discover the truth on their own. While that makes for great television and fun John Grisham novels, it is not the way the system really works.

The other amusing irony is that the baliff has turned on CNN to pass the time until the judge is available. Just after warning us that we may need to avoid media exposure, we are locked in a room with CNN. Does anyone in the courthouse see the irony?

Like many people, I would avoid jury duty if I could, but I am willing to be here because I believe int eh American justice system. I just wish there was a more expedient way of doing it.

When I was a teenager in the mid-1980s, the American media was enthralled by the idea of homelessness. It seemed you couldn’t watch the news or see a movie without some reference to the homeless.

Movies from ‘Trading Places’ to ‘Rambo’ addressed the issue and comedians united to create “Comic Relief” to fight the crisis. And, we as Americans got bored with the continuing “crisis”.

A decade later, when they revisited the issue, most of the news programs did so to expose the fraud of homelessness. To hear that decade’s version, everyone who ever held up a “Will Work For Food” sign was actually a millionaire, preying on the soft hearts of hard-working people.

Everyone seemed to have a story about someone they tried to help only to be rebuffed or have the food thrown away. Personally, I only offered help once. My husband warned me against it most of the time, saying that I would become a target for every panhandler around if I gave to one. He was probably right.

However, just once, I saw a man and his dog near the interstate claiming to be broken down and hungry. I was going to the burger joint anway, so I got an extra burger and fries and took them and a cold soda to the man. He was gracious and thankful and immediately gave the burger to the dog, though he ate the bun and fries himself. Maybe I found the one truly needy person or maybe the fraud was as overblown as the original crisis.

When I tell that story, people invariably ask what a homeless person was doing with a pet. Maybe at one time I thought the same way, but I now find it hard to deny anyone the right to companionship. His dog was thin, but not unhealthily so, and obviously well-cared for, with a clean, shiny coat. I have seen pets of the well-to-do that look less loved.

In 2005, the idea of homelessness came roaring back to America with Hurricane Katrina. For the first time, we had Mother Nature, and the Army Corps of Engineers, to blame for the homeless problem. Ten thousand people fled to Houston and sought refuge in the AstroDome. Thousands more were left homeless or jobless because of the hurricanes that season.

For a short time, homelessness regained its popularity as a crisis worth paying attention too. But as news of the hurricanes grew old and people began to cynically ask what these people were doing for themselves, it faded from view again.

Recently, with the mortgage crisis, every aspect of the loss of homes has been exploited by the media from the things that are left behind to the long-term credit damage, but no ones talks about where these people are living. many have gone to live with friends and family members, the classic definition of homelessness. Others are living in their cars and some can afford a home, but it is inadequate based on their family size.

In my community, despite the national glut of housing and a number of empty homes here, rental expenses continue to rise. The average two bedroom apartment is $500 to $600 depending on the neighborhood. Nice places are even more. And yet, that is 30 percent less than the national average cost for housing.

Even though housing here is considerably cheaper than in the rest of the country, it is hard for many people to make ends meet. One friend rents a room from married friends rather than find his own apartment because any decent single bedroom apartment is $500 a month. As a single man working as a mall security guard, he brings home just over a $1000 a month after taxes. He cannot afford to pay more than half of that each month for rent and another $150-200 for water and electricity. So, he rents room.

Another young man I know broke up with his girlfriend and, obviously, they couldn’t live together anymore. Now, he is living in his car until he can get together the money for a security deposit and first and last months’ rent. He shows up almost daily at another friend’s home, conveniently at meal time, knowing she will not turn him away.

As if the American housing crisis is not enough to remind people of the dire consequences of homelessness, one need only to look at Myanmar and China to see the depth of need we currently have. Estimates indicate the two natural disasters have left more than 5 million people homeless. China has asked anyone around the world with spare tents to send them for temporary living quarters.

But while living in a tent can be a fun weekend activity, imagine the horror facing these people. Tents provide little protection against torrential rain or windstorms, against summer heat or winter’s chill. There is no bathroom, no cooking facilities, no refrigeration. Today, the Chinese said the death toll in China exceeds 80,000 and the long-term health effects of the quake are just starting.

Sadly, the simple reality is that China must grab the headlines and get whatever assistance it can for its people now, or like the plight of the American homeless, it will be yesterday’s news and no one’s concern.

About a month ago, I saw a news article telling me that Sam’s Club and Costco were limiting the number of 25 pounds bags of rice that custoemrs could buy. Until then, the world rice shortage had been backpage news at best. As a 30-something woman, I have never known food rationing in my lifetime, though I’ve read that it was extensive during World War II.

Still, cutting our rice intake to one 25 pound bag per trip to the warehouse store shouldn’t be too difficult. Last year, one 25-pound bag lasted us 11 months and thankfully, I had purchased a new bag of jasmine rice in March before this rice panic came to light.

Now, for those who don’t read the back pages of the newspaper, the problem is pretty simple. In the poorest parts of the world, rice is a staple food of life and they don’t have enough of it. Rice harvests have been smaller, impacted by natural disasters, and the demand keeps growing. In some places (like Haiti), the cost of rice has risen so quickly that the local people are resorting to eating dirt cookies to fill their empty bellies. The cookies don’t do much of anything to stave off malnutrition, but they let people feel a little less hungry.

Just after Sam’s and Costco announced their buyign restriction, Brazil announced it would not be exporting any rice in 2008, because the entire crop was needed to feed its own people. Okay, I’m good with that. Feed your own people before you feed the world. That’s a lesson America could take to heart.

But even knowing all this, I was shocked when it actually affected my life. I figured I had my bag of rice for the next year, so the price increase wouldn’t affect me, right? WRONG!

On Saturday, my husband and i decided to order take out from our favorite local Chinese restaraunt. He gets sesame beef and I get chicken friend rice. We have ordered the same meals there for years and for at least the last two years, the total has been $9.02. I expect it.

But on Saturday, the total was $12.07. Okay, I wasn’t expecting that. Turns out, when I talked to the owner, that New Kahala had raised prices about a month ago to deal with the overall rising prices of food. Okay, we’ve all seen it. Milk and eggs are outrageous these days, when compared to what we are used to paying. The most obvious and simple example for me: Last summer, I paid $1for a bag of sunflower seeds. Last week, that same bag was on sale at the local grocer for 1.29. A twenty-nine percent increase in less than a year.

But the overall jump in food prices was just the beginning. William Lo, one of the owners of the restaraunt, said they had also had to add a surcharge to all their fried rice dishes beginning last week. “When I went to buy a 100-pound bag of rice three weeks ago, it was $15. Yesterday, it was $49,” he said.

For the record, I’m not sure that the worldwide rice shortage occurred in just three weeks, but American awareness of the shortage did. So now, the price of rice has tripled (at least in some places). That’s a 300 percent increase instead of that 30 percent increase that shocked me for other foods.

One friend says she will substitute quinoa, a rice-like grain, as a side dish when she used to use rice. I still have that supply of jasmine rice, so I’ll be using it. But there is a great temptation to start hoarding rice. I can still buy it relatively cheaply in some places and rice stores well for years.

Add that to the fact that the Myanmar cyclone destroyed rice reserves and rice fields there and worldwide demand is going to continue to rise. For me, it’s a shocker and an inconvenience, an expense that I would rather not have. But as I look around me, I see a great many people where tripling the cost of food will make a difference on how much they have to eat or if, as in Haiti, they have food to eat at all.

Somehow, it just doesn’t feel right to let them eat dirt.