On the way home, 'This American Life' came on, across People's Republic Radio (NPR, yes I know it doesn't seem to have the same initials but you have to translate from Liberal).
After folks took that bus ride form the Superdome to the Astrodome, there were people with offers from private charities to relocate refugees to various places. Free housing, insurance, even cars being offered. Jobs, etc. Better deals than the federal government was offering (okay, the feds were only offering excuses, hopefully Rita won't show both the state and federal boobs for what they are because people die to prove politicans are still IDIOTS and MENACES TO MANKIND).
Anyway, this chick was offering a three bedroom, two bath house in Colorado, a car, insurance, a job at Coca Cola, a job at Wal-Mart, all in a package to anyone who wanted it. It took her three days to get a single person willing to consider it and she was still losing people to inferior offers out of Florida.
Why? Because Florida does not have a reputation among New Orleans refugees as being prone to freezing. People were convinced that Colorado was full of Eskimos who survived the bitter cold with some sort of witchcraft taht eluded Southerners. They told the girl, 'Colorado? I'd freeze to death!'
What the fuck? Are people who couldn't afford the more desirable modes of evacuation educated in geography solely by Coors Light commercials? Apparently.
I mean shit, I live in Kansas, have a good job and a three bedroom two bath house, but I'd take the offer. It came with some perks I don't presently get, and I have not been ravaged by any storm; if anything my primary sources of misery are me, the asshole who built my house the way he did, and the contractor I paid to fix it who made everything worse. Still, it's no 9th Ward situation...
3 comments:
What the fuck? Are people who couldn't afford the more desirable modes of evacuation educated in geography solely by Coors Light commercials? Apparently.
When are you going to just bite the Reality bullet and come to terms with the fact that at least 85% (I’m feeling generous this morning) of people are fucking stupid and entirely useless?
Hell of a package deal though…generosity or a hell of a tax write-off?
Shit, I’d take it too.
Methinks it took 3 days to get an offer because, aside from the “where’s Colorado?” factor, others were thinking, “um, we’d have to work?”
Residing in Switzerland I _still_ get emails in July from the geography impaired of, “send us some snow, nyuck, nyuck”. The temperatures here are generally around the same as the New England area of the US and Boston will typically get more snow in 1 day than we will all winter. And this is 500 metres higher up (am I closer to gawd?)…
Is *anything* actually being taught in “school” these days or is it just some form of day care so mom can watch Oprah?
I'm sure it was tax write-off stuff (not that a tax deduction necessarily negates generosity), these were churches and other private charities offering these deals. They came to Houston from all over America to offer these six to twelve month relocation deals. No doubt a lot of the housing was vacant rental properties (low interest rates have created a lot of new home owners and landlords I know are desperate for tennants). A lot of these deals included groceries, presumably donated by member of the congregation who owns a grocery store or whatever.
In fairness, people who evacuated to the Superdome and then were taken to the Astrodome are for the most part poor and uneducated. The well-to-do got out early and quick, about 80% of the population.
So it's a skewed pool. But still, the idea that they'd freeze to death if they went to Colorado, you'd think that just watching football they'd have noticed that Denver has a football team that plays outdoors. Hell, even if the offer was to go to Alaska, I'd think even a poor and uneducated person would know that they sell coats in Alaska.
Hell, even if the offer was to go to Alaska, I'd think even a poor and uneducated person would know that they sell coats in Alaska.
See, them thar rose-coloured glasses impair vision…no matter what social class one is, we all have the same brain. And if that brain can’t be used to fire neurons into thinking, no matter area of geography, “Wow, a job at Coca-Cola! One of the largest corporations in the world, I bet I could then afford heat/air conditioning!”…then I question if this person is not just completely wasting our water and oxygen supply.
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