Americans Open Their Wallets........

..........(via Tim Blair)

And when we do it for our own, jeebus do we come together.....

Donations at $500 Million, and Climbing
Americans' giving for hurricane relief dwarfs first week's tallies for 9/11 and the tsunami.

By Sharon Bernstein and Amanda Covarrubias, Times Staff Writers

Americans are opening their pocketbooks so fast and so wide in the wake of Hurricane Katrina that donations have already dwarfed the first week's efforts to help victims of last year's Asian tsunami and the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

By Tuesday evening, U.S. charities had raised more than $500 million in cash and pledges — more than twice the $239 million donated in the 10 days after Sept. 11, and more than three times the $163 million raised in the nine days after the tsunami that hit countries along the Indian Ocean last Dec. 26.

The American Red Cross had raised $409 million by Tuesday afternoon — five times the $79 million that came in during the first week after the tsunami, the agency said.

The Salvation Army had raised $51 million — six times the amount the charity took in for tsunami relief and more than it collected over the last five years combined.


I always give to the Red Cross because years ago I woke up to flames lapping at my window and ended the morning watching my apartment almost burn to the ground. Most of my stuff was ruined, minus some musical gear and some clothes. The Red Cross was there within hours after the fire started and made sure I had clothes and a voucher for a hotel to stay at for a few days while I got things together. They also made sure I was mentally ok and offered to pay for any type of consultation I might need. I had family in town so I didn't need the vouchers and I was already crazy so the consultations would be pointless, but the offer was appreciated. Ironically enough the next day was the day that tornadoes ripped through downtown Nashville and pretty much gutted the place I would have stayed at. This was also when I was engaged to a girl that would eventually cheat on me. I think it was God or Vishnu or Allah or whatever trying to say something, like, don't marry this psycho. Or maybe it was just bad luck. Who knows.

Either way, head on over to the Red Cross and fork over some deneiros. The Red Cross kicks ass.