Best Intentions

Clooney says, “Do you know why Aberham Lincoln was the funniest president?”  So I say, no, and he says, “Because he has ham in his name.”

The city I live in has this great program for the needy.  In addition to giving free breakfasts and lunches in the schools, during the summer they give out breakfasts and lunches in the city parks.  Trouble is, they only give them out in parks that are deemed safe by a certain set of standards.  One of those parks is near my house, and we spend almost every day there.  Of all the lunches the city distributes, perhaps six to ten a day actually go to the needy here.  The needy, for various reasons, I am sure, don’t make it here.  The meals are taken by the patrons of the park, which mostly draws from the surrounding area, and all of those people can afford to buy their own food by the SUV-load.  After spending many days in the park, I estimate that 40% of the meals are going to neighborhood kids who don’t really need it, 20% are going to people who do, (those who are able to bus or drive to the location), and the rest are spoiling, sitting out in the hot summer sun with no ice or refrigeration.

I’m not saying the neighbors shouldn’t take the meals.  Their tax dollars bought them, and they would certainly spoil anyway.  You can’t leave milk or turkey sandwiches out for hours like that. It’s just another example of our tax dollars at work.  It’s a wonderful idea to feed the needy, but why not distribute the food in an area where the needy can get to it easily?