Today in Congress- Lott's Railroad: $700million / Darfur: $173million

[Rose Siding]

Congressional Priorities: $700 Million for ‘Railroad to Nowhere,’ $173 Million for Stopping Mass Murder

The Senate is expected to approve a nearly $109 billion spending bill today. The legislation provides some useful insight into the priorities of our current Congress.

The bill includes $700 million for the “railroad to nowhere“:

The project, which was added to a $106.5 billion emergency defense spending bill in the Senate, would relocate a Gulf Coast rail line inland, to higher ground. Never mind that the hurricane-battered line was just repaired at a cost of at least $250 million. Or that at $700 million, the project championed by Mississippi’s two US senators is being called the largest “earmark” ever.

Meanwhile, a paltry $173 million has been appropriated for peacekeeping efforts in Darfur, where violence is “horrendously bad and worsening” according to the U.N.’s top humanitarian official.

After three years of genocide — 400,000 dead, 2.5 million driven from their homes, razed villages, rape campaigns, and mass starvation — our government still doesn’t get it. So much for “Never Again.”

http://thinkprogress.org/2006/05/03/darfur-spending/

[Midlodemocrat]

1. They don't get it because they don't care.

The only reason they gave Darfur that amount is because it is becoming a big story a la Ethiopia starvation in the 80's.

They didn't care then and they don't care now.

[dipsydoodle]

2. Meanwhile, back at the ranch

everyone is still wondering how the Chinese keep creeping in through the backdoors of African nations

[Rose Siding]

3. That'd be the ranch where they're drooling over extended tax cuts

[Rose Siding]

4. kick

[Initech]

5. OK, so we have a government that doesnt care about genocide...

but downloading a CD is the crime of the century. :argh:

But then again, this is the same party of assholes who thinks that the UN doesnt exist.

[Rose Siding]

6. Throw in the media

Our local news just announced a noon teaser: "One woman's desperate search for her stolen Chihuahua"

[SoCalDem]

7. People in Darfur are not registered voters and they don't vote for Lott

:(

[Rose Siding]

8. again

[Rose Siding]

9. And again at the risk of your ire

Just want to make sure as many see this as possible.