Mary Laney, Chicago Sun-Times:
Let me tell you the good news. Not much time is being spent on it these days but there is plenty of it in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. In recent days, this country has mobilized like no other to care for its own.The Democrat's disgusting attempt to profit from the misery of others shows a lack of character.
Wal-Mart, a company that employs thousands of workers in the devastated area, has given $20 million in cash to the Red Cross to help the stricken. It is offering a job to each displaced Wal-Mart worker, it has sent 1,500 truckloads of merchandise to Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama, including water, fuel, toilet paper and enough meals to feed 100,00 people.
Food Lion is sending truckloads of ice, water, food and needed supplies.
Lowe's is giving $5 million to the Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund.
Federated Department stores (including Filene's and Kaufman's) has sent $3 million to the Red Cross and is appealing to all shoppers that it will match, dollar for dollar, any donations they make at Macy's, Bloomingdale's, Famous-Barr, Foley's, Hecht's, Lord & Taylor, L.S. Ayres, Marshall Field's, Meir & Frank, Robinsons-May, Strawbridges, The Jones Store, David's Bridal and Priscilla of Boston. On top of this, Federated is providing food, water and transitional assistance to its employees and their families in the affected areas. It is also holding clothing-collection drives in its stores.
You've seen the celebrities who have arrived in New Orleans. What you may not have seen are the firemen, police officers and retired members of the military who have already arrived in the coastal states to do what they can for the unfortunate victims. Doctors and nurses are volunteering their services, drug companies are donating supplies of medicines and equipment, a cruise line has sent one of its biggest ships to house volunteers. And that's just the tip of the generosity coming from Americans.
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Here in Chicago an attorney friend just told me about one of her young lawyers who has asked for a leave of absence to go to New Orleans, live in a tent, and aid the Red Cross in caring for families in need for as long as it takes. He's just at the start of his career, but he's putting his personal success on hold to go to the aid of others. When he gets there, he will find he is not alone.
The strong volunteer spirit shows the heart of this nation is alive and well and pumping life into areas in need. Churches, synagogues and ordinary citizens are banding together to give what they can to those who have been stripped of all they ever owned.
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In a speech to the nation, President Bush laid out a plan to rebuild New Orleans. Democratic Rep. Nancy Pelosi and Sen. Harry Reid called his plan a "laboratory for political opportunism or ideological experimentation." That's their politics at work.
I call the Bush plan hope. It's a plan to help residents build and own their homes, put workers back on payrolls, and create a Gulf opportunity zone for businesses willing to locate there. It's an all-encompassing plan that has the public and private sectors working together to rebuild America's Gulf Coast.
To me -- and the millions left devastated by Katrina -- that's good news.
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