Shlog Section-f

This past week, American Idol put on a huge telethon to raise money for those less fortunate.  Mostly children in Africa and here in the States. 

It was a really bizarre viewing experience.  Strange short clips of celebrities accompanied videos of orphaned children and mothers losing their children to malaria. 

In the end, they raised over 60 million dollars.  WOW!! Seems like a lot of money, huh? 

I’m interested in what others think of this form of fundraising and the amount that they raised and what’s the best way to help the poor and where does our greatest responbility lie and all of those things....

(I will probably think of more to say in the future, but this is what comes off of the top of my head)

As far as the way I feel about this type of fundraising, I am impressed and, as long as all of that money is distributed responsibly, I think it is an amazing way to reach out to the public and get them aware about how devastating poverty is, as well as an excellent way to raise money.

I think that there are many ways to reach the poor; I have yet to see a perfect way to take care of all of the world’s poor. I think that there is something to be said for both a one-one interaction and an interaction where a person donates money to an organization to take care of people far away and/or in that person’s own proverbial ‘backyard’ (in their own city, state, country, etc.). There is also definitely something to be said for the power of popular media to raise awareness on a given topic, and to provide a way to donate resources to help with that topic, such as what American Idol did.

As far as where ‘our greatest responsibility lies’, I would appreciate a little bit more elaboration as to what you mean.