Internet Geek Girl

It’s Blog Action Day! Today thousands of bloggers united to discuss a single issue – poverty. The goal of this campaign is to raise awareness, initiate action and to shake the web! One blogger who I know and respect tremendously did just that – Brian Clark of copyblogger

Brian shared the story of Jessie - a young girl who is trapped in the vicious cycle of poverty. As I pointed out in Brian’s comment section (which is filled with thoughtful responses), it is easy to discuss “issues” (especially in our current political environment) and forget about the people who live the reality of those issues every day. I do not know the answer to the complicated problem of poverty, but I do know 2 things:

1. Give to Receive: Giving of your time, energy, love and yes, financial support will bring you the greatest riches you can ever imagine! Brian put up a generous offer to match every donation of $10+ to Save the Children – with a $25 donation.  Please donate!! And let Brian know in his comments section and he will match you! Twitter and Facebook friends – I implore you to give $10! If anyone out there feels scared in this current economic environment, I especially encourage you to give $10 to Save the Children today!! You will feel better about everything in life, trust me.
2. Support the Creation of Opportunity: Lots of people are quick to point out the many people that have pulled themselves up by their bootstraps, as a comparison to all those ‘lazy’ people who are content to live off charity. I must remind you, that no one does it alone. I had the support of great teachers in high school, and a kind, safe community where I grew up in NJ. I also took out student loans to pay for college and graduate school. The political solutions I support are not about government taking from the haves to give to the have nots – but rather creating the greatest amount of opportunity so that as many citizens as possible have the chance to help themselves. More affordable health care, more accessible after-school programs, increased pay for teachers, safer communities and a higher minimum wage are just a few examples of public policies that might give Jessie a fighting chance.

Hang in there Jessie. I’m sending you a huge karmic hug! (which helps too)!

Big shout out to my Twitter community that posted for @blogactionday

@trishussey

@deliciousbaby

@snoebiz

@affpros

@heymilly

Don’t forget to use the hashtag #bad08!

Thanks to everyone that contributed. You all rule!