And I Like Boxing

Thousands have lost their lives in Nepal as a result of the earthquake.
So much suffering. So much loss. So much sorrow.
Thousands of women, men, and children are sleeping outside there tonight and will have to do so for many weeks.
Thousands are hoping and praying for rescue, for food, for water, for medical aid.
Today on NPR, someone mentioned the fact that human traffickers take advantage of the chaos and separation of family members to kidnap and traffic people into sexual slavery.

Help is on the way - airplanes loaded with supplies and personnel are jockeying for space to land nearby and provide aid and assistance. Much more is needed. So much more.

There are many aid agencies asking for donations and sending donations.
Millions of dollars are needed. Thousands of flights.
Hundreds of organizations. Ceaseless, countless prayers.

Earlier today, I turned on the television and watched about three minutes of an episode of a show called Fast N Loud. The guys on the show buy old cars and repair them, refurbish them, rebuild them. Today they were working on two old Firebirds. They said they had a budget of $365,000 to refurbish the two cars. WHAT?!?!?!? To refurbish TWO CARS!???!

This coming Saturday, Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather will box. In Las Vegas. At a casino. The plan is that millions of people will watch from their homes and from bars - at the ridiculous price of $99 each on Pay Per View. I cannot imagine what they charged for tickets to attend the fight. It has been suggested that they will split $300,000,000 between them. Three hundred million dollars.

While thousands sleep outside in Nepal without food or water or safe shelter.
In New York. In North Carolina. In Las Vegas. In Los Angeles. In Boston. In Chicago.
In Spain. In England. In France. In Italy. In India.
In tents. In cars. In doorways. In the homes and on the couches of friends and family.
I remember hearing that there are entire generations of people born in certain places that never sleep indoors. They weren't talking about people who live in remote villages or in the outback. They were talking about people living in big cities, babies born on the street, raised on the street, become adults. have children of their own, and never live in a house, never sleep under a roof.

I am rendered almost speechless about the injustice and imbalance of such radical misuse of money. Nearly four hundred thousand dollars to work on two cars - more money than many people spent on houses they were then foreclosed out of.
Three hundred million dollars for two men to punch each other in the face as hard as they can without being knocked unconscious by the opponent.
Preposterous. Outrageous. Brutal. Unfair.
And I like boxing - at least I used to.