Thursday, October 27, 2005

My Kind of Government Handout

This link goes to a blurb about a recent Oprah show that featured a 9/11 widow who was "stuck in her grief" to the point that she impulse-spent a good deal of the $4 million she was given after her husband was killed in the Twin Towers.

I don't want to kick someone when she is down, but doesn't anyone think she ought to pay that back?! People sent money and the government allocated money to help people whose wage earners were murdered on 9/11. Isn't it horrifying that she spent it on plastic surgery and cars and houses--and now wants sympathy because she was "grieving"? Did this woman feel NOT ONE SHRED of responsibility for that money? If not on behalf of our country, at least on behalf of her husband's memory?! And now she's on Oprah to say "poor me."

I don't mean to be a jerk, but this just seems like a uniquely post-9/11 American thing to do: to squander any and all goodwill generated by the tragedy by acting like a jackass and then pretending its not your fault.

On a different but related topic, I think it's disgusting in the first place that she got $4 million to begin with, since the families of people who died in the earlier WTC attack, people killed on the Achille Lauro cruise ship, people blown up over Lockerbie, etc didn't get such a payout. Did the conservative, fiscally-oriented Republican administration REALLY set a precedent that it would pay enormous sums of money to grieving relatives of victims of terrorism? All I can say is that if it happens to my family, I'm going to make sure I'm first in line for my $4 million dollar handout from the government. And all I'll have to do is promise to not sue the airline/cruise line/mall owner? Sounds like a deal, since there is no way in hell they'd be able to pay little old me anything close to $4 million. Thank you, George Bush! I've been mulling over building a new deck and buying a boat, so I appreciate the precedent you've allowed to be set.


Oprah

2 comments:

Just Vegas said...

Bleh, I watched this show and I really, really tried to be sympathetic...After all, I spent 7K one summer after an ugly breakup...but COME ON. There has to come a time when you are blowing through that much money that you think, this isn't healthy, maybe I should seek therapy. Compounding the problem is the fact that she has kids but she can't step out of her self-pity long enough to hold it together for their sake.

Integrated Systems said...

Yeah! We need break these Welfare Queens free of their dependency on government and get them back on the payrolls. Enough of the free ride, enough spending government handouts on unnecessary luxury items. Force 'em back to work in the service industry! It'll give them a sense of purpose and dignity, and trough trickle-down economics and thrifty ways, they'll eventually become part of the Ownership Class....oh wait -- these are rich, white ladies! My mistake. Clearly it's understandlable grief! Anyone in this situation would do the same. All is forgiven!