Lost in Translation

Do you remember the time when people said what they meant and meant what they said?

Maybe I am getting old but I am beginning to lose things in translation.

Here are a few examples.


Transparency in Government

Vice President Biden is holding hearings on transparency in government.

Sounds good right?

But he is holding them behind closed doors with no media access.

Am I missing something?


Disaster Relief for Haiti

Hundreds of millions have been donated to support the relief effort in Haiti.

Sounds good right?

Unfortunately only a fraction of this money will actually make it to Haiti.

Even though they advertise these appeals as Haiti Relief efforts if you read the fine print all the money goes into the organization’s general fund and is distributed or not at the discretion of the organization.

There is one organization that has collected over $40 million but has only allocated a little over $10 million to Haiti Relief.

The same thing happened after 9/11 and Katrina.

Whatever happened to truth in advertising?


We Got You Covered

In the ongoing battle between wireless providers they keep attacking each other’s coverage.

In a recent advertisement Luke Wilson shows a map of coverage in New York.

The ad boasts coverage from Bridgeport to Hempstead to Princeton.

Isn’t Bridgeport in Connecticut and the last time I checked wasn’t Princeton in New Jersey?

Maybe that’s why they are having problems or am I missing something.


Hi I Just Moved Here and Want to Be Your Senator

More and more you see candidates who can’t win in their home states moving to other states to run for office.

Wasn’t the government set up so that states would have people that represent them not political parties?

Am I the only one who thinks this is wrong?


The Edward M Kennedy Institute for the United States Senate

I heard on the radio that there is a $20 million earmark in the current Health Care Bill for the Edward M. Kennedy Institute for the United States Senate at the University of Massachusetts campus in Boston.

I tried to research this but despite claims of transparency (see item 1) it is still almost impossible to know what is in or not in the bill.

I did find out that an earmark for this was originally placed in a Defense Bill.

Either way what does this institute which will include an exact replica of the Senate floor to be built on the college campus have to do with health care or defense?

Maybe I am just lost in translation