I cannot even imagine having to ASK people to help with a problem during a natural disaster. The very idea that "officials" have to ASK people to pick up a snow shovel and help is sad beyond belief. Having to offer to PAY them is even worse.
What ever happened to pitching in for the common good? I highlighted a line that is very telling. It would seem that government is responsible for GIVING people a sense of "community" and "pride".
I have often lived in small towns. We provided our own fire and ambulance services. When there were storms just about every able bodied person chipped in to help with the clean up.
What is it with "urban dwellers"? Are they really as lazy, stupid or as useless as many appear? Why wait to be asked? Get off your sorry butts and do it yourself. Are they that conditioned to being cared for by government? If so, how sad is that?
On top of it all, just how many people are on welfare I or II in that area? For those who don't understand welfare II it's known to some as "extended unemployment". Why are not all able bodies people on those programs being handed an shovel and put to work for the money they are given?
Please don't insult me by saying there is just too much snow to move by hand. I have spent far too many hours on the fire line cutting lines. Each person, one swipe with a tool, one step to the side, repeat. Miles of line can be cut that way in very short order by very few people.
Please don't insult me by saying that they don't have time. Bull hockey. What makes THEIR time any more or less valuable than those country folks who handle it on their own. They all have families and jobs. They, however, take responsibility for their own communities.
Snow-buried communities seek help from residents
BOSTON (AP) -- With schools still closed, cars still buried and streets still blocked by the widespread weekend snowstorm, officials around southern New England are asking people to pick up a shovel and help out.
In Boston, a "snow angel" campaign is using social media to encourage neighbors and friends to be an angel and help dig out the stranded.
Hundreds of volunteers carried shovels to downtown Waterbury, Conn., after the mayor promised to pay minimum wage to anyone who helped clear the City Hall area and the schools Tuesday.
In Rhode Island, dozens of volunteers responded to a call by the volunteer advocacy group Serve Rhode Island to help clear snow.
Pedro Gonzalez of Cranston, R.I., had done three shoveling jobs for elderly residents by mid-afternoon Tuesday, fueled only by a few sports drinks and the satisfaction he said the work gives him.
"You feel full, you know?" he said, speaking after his most recent job in Providence. "You feel real good and you sleep better."
The snowfall Friday and Saturday buried the region in 1 to 3 feet of snow, and communities still are struggling to get back to normal.
The storm, blamed for at least 18 deaths across the U.S. and Canada, caused flooding that forced coastal evacuations in Massahusetts and carried high winds that downed trees and power lines.
By early Wednesday, more than 6,800 utility customers still were without power, including 5,539 in Massachusetts, which was hardest hit with outages. More than 650,000 homes and businesses in eight states were without electricity at one point.
Boston Mayor Thomas Menino's office has encouraged neighbors to help out neighbors after other storms, but this time it's using social media to create a "buzz" and spread the word more broadly, said Emily Shea, the city's Elderly Affairs commissioner.
Shea said most people who call the mayor's hotline for help clearing snow end up figuring things out themselves. But others don't, and the snow angel campaign aims to make sure they aren't forgotten.
"We're still just a couple days after the storm, and we still want to make sure folks are looking out for each other," she said.
The new workforce in Waterbury was formed after Mayor Neil O'Leary took a friend's suggestion to hire kids who are off from school — and possibly getting bored — to clear out City Hall and the schools, which are closed at least until Wednesday.
O'Leary put the word out, offering Connecticut's $8.25 hourly minimum wage. He said about 500 people, most between ages 14 and 18 with some adults mixed in, showed up at City Hall at noon Tuesday.
The offer is good again Wednesday, and O'Leary figures the workers will cost the city about $50,000. But he hopes the teens will get more than money in return, he said.
"We're giving them a little sense of community, a sense of pride," O'Leary said.
The Providence volunteers were rounded up by Serve Rhode Island in partnership with the United Way. The group recently deployed hundreds of people to help with Rhode Island's Superstorm Sandy cleanup, so it had a list of possible volunteers to alert. It also requested snow-clearing volunteers on its website.
Share Rhode Island Executive Director Bernie Beaudreau said the group has had some worries over whether people would pose as volunteers and victimize those they were supposed to help. But he said the much larger Sandy operation went well and he expected no problems this time.
"We're banking on the good will of others," he said,
Gonzalez, 40, said he's anticipating some aches for his efforts, but added he's glad to offer his time.
"Personally, I really love it," said Gonzalez, who helps manage his family's convenience store. "I believe that a blessing is useless if you don't share it."
Snow-buried communities seek help from residents - Yahoo! News
What ever happened to pitching in for the common good? I highlighted a line that is very telling. It would seem that government is responsible for GIVING people a sense of "community" and "pride".
I have often lived in small towns. We provided our own fire and ambulance services. When there were storms just about every able bodied person chipped in to help with the clean up.
What is it with "urban dwellers"? Are they really as lazy, stupid or as useless as many appear? Why wait to be asked? Get off your sorry butts and do it yourself. Are they that conditioned to being cared for by government? If so, how sad is that?
On top of it all, just how many people are on welfare I or II in that area? For those who don't understand welfare II it's known to some as "extended unemployment". Why are not all able bodies people on those programs being handed an shovel and put to work for the money they are given?
Please don't insult me by saying there is just too much snow to move by hand. I have spent far too many hours on the fire line cutting lines. Each person, one swipe with a tool, one step to the side, repeat. Miles of line can be cut that way in very short order by very few people.
Please don't insult me by saying that they don't have time. Bull hockey. What makes THEIR time any more or less valuable than those country folks who handle it on their own. They all have families and jobs. They, however, take responsibility for their own communities.
Snow-buried communities seek help from residents
BOSTON (AP) -- With schools still closed, cars still buried and streets still blocked by the widespread weekend snowstorm, officials around southern New England are asking people to pick up a shovel and help out.
In Boston, a "snow angel" campaign is using social media to encourage neighbors and friends to be an angel and help dig out the stranded.
Hundreds of volunteers carried shovels to downtown Waterbury, Conn., after the mayor promised to pay minimum wage to anyone who helped clear the City Hall area and the schools Tuesday.
In Rhode Island, dozens of volunteers responded to a call by the volunteer advocacy group Serve Rhode Island to help clear snow.
Pedro Gonzalez of Cranston, R.I., had done three shoveling jobs for elderly residents by mid-afternoon Tuesday, fueled only by a few sports drinks and the satisfaction he said the work gives him.
"You feel full, you know?" he said, speaking after his most recent job in Providence. "You feel real good and you sleep better."
The snowfall Friday and Saturday buried the region in 1 to 3 feet of snow, and communities still are struggling to get back to normal.
The storm, blamed for at least 18 deaths across the U.S. and Canada, caused flooding that forced coastal evacuations in Massahusetts and carried high winds that downed trees and power lines.
By early Wednesday, more than 6,800 utility customers still were without power, including 5,539 in Massachusetts, which was hardest hit with outages. More than 650,000 homes and businesses in eight states were without electricity at one point.
Boston Mayor Thomas Menino's office has encouraged neighbors to help out neighbors after other storms, but this time it's using social media to create a "buzz" and spread the word more broadly, said Emily Shea, the city's Elderly Affairs commissioner.
Shea said most people who call the mayor's hotline for help clearing snow end up figuring things out themselves. But others don't, and the snow angel campaign aims to make sure they aren't forgotten.
"We're still just a couple days after the storm, and we still want to make sure folks are looking out for each other," she said.
The new workforce in Waterbury was formed after Mayor Neil O'Leary took a friend's suggestion to hire kids who are off from school — and possibly getting bored — to clear out City Hall and the schools, which are closed at least until Wednesday.
O'Leary put the word out, offering Connecticut's $8.25 hourly minimum wage. He said about 500 people, most between ages 14 and 18 with some adults mixed in, showed up at City Hall at noon Tuesday.
The offer is good again Wednesday, and O'Leary figures the workers will cost the city about $50,000. But he hopes the teens will get more than money in return, he said.
"We're giving them a little sense of community, a sense of pride," O'Leary said.
The Providence volunteers were rounded up by Serve Rhode Island in partnership with the United Way. The group recently deployed hundreds of people to help with Rhode Island's Superstorm Sandy cleanup, so it had a list of possible volunteers to alert. It also requested snow-clearing volunteers on its website.
Share Rhode Island Executive Director Bernie Beaudreau said the group has had some worries over whether people would pose as volunteers and victimize those they were supposed to help. But he said the much larger Sandy operation went well and he expected no problems this time.
"We're banking on the good will of others," he said,
Gonzalez, 40, said he's anticipating some aches for his efforts, but added he's glad to offer his time.
"Personally, I really love it," said Gonzalez, who helps manage his family's convenience store. "I believe that a blessing is useless if you don't share it."
Snow-buried communities seek help from residents - Yahoo! News
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