Injustices Of The World - Money or Compassion??

In the early hours of the Thursday morning, with the sound of some stupid, American sitcom show playing on the tv in the background, I am currently reading the newspaper online. As always, it is filled with so many stories about death, car accidents, legal cases, political uproars and un-interesting Entertainment gossip. But every now and then, you come across a couple of news articles that really make you think about how others suffer in life.

I have just read two news article about two separate cases of perhaps, homelessness causing criminal activity. One of the cases might actually pull at your heart-strings a bit more than the other, however both cases leave you asking the question "is this really justice being served or is there something more that should've been done to prevent the crime from occurring?" My answer to this is simply "Yes. Something more should've been done..."

Case 1 - A homeless man in the US walked into a Woolworths supermarket. Security were alerted to the man was he was caught on camera placing three limes into his trousers. He then walked to the meat aisle and also placed a beef tongue down his trousers (I could insert a sick joke here, but I'll refrain due to the seriousness of this article). When he was eventually stopped and taken into the office for an interview, he was asked to take out all the items in his trousers. He took out three trays of rump steaks and a packet of lamb forequarter chops. Then he was asked for the limes, so he took out the limes and the tongue (the beef tongue, not his!). He was then asked if he had any other items and he pulled out two onions from his trousers as well (would you like any more packaging with that?).

Now in Court over the issue, he was asked why he committed this crime. His Lawyer stated that the man has been living on the streets and was hungry. The man was HOMELESS!! He was sentenced for this crime and was fined US$91 (AUS$101) for this crime where the Judge later stated that if he can't pay for that fine, then he can make up for it by doing community service.

Fair enough, the guy broke the law, but the reason why is pretty valid and it could be considered as a desperate cry for help. The Judge could've helped the man by referring him to one of the organisations that are all about helping those on the streets. It's probably a good thing that he offered him the Community Service option, however the decision still lacks empathy and compassion in regards to seeing the larger picture. This really is a case of kicking a man whilst he's down.

Case 2 - A woman, also in the US has also recently gone through the justice system in regards to a case that concerns her homeless situation. She was boyfriend has been placed in jail for a long time in regards to striking their child. Meanwhile, the woman still had custody of their child despite the fact her boyfriend has been convicted of a child abuse felony and she's also living on the streets.

The child has unfortunately ended up being deceased after being beaten by his mother as well as living a life full of poverty and starvation. It's a horrible tragedy! It's also a circumstance that should never have happened. It could've easily been prevented.

Surely, at the time of birth of the child, the authorities would've been able to see that the environment the woman was in at the time (homeless) was not going to be an appropriate environment for her to bring up a child. If that didn't alert them to it, then why didn't they take the child from her when the boyfriend was convicted of striking the child? Wasn't the mere fact that she is homeless enough for the Social Justice and Welfare Authorities to see that the child's life was in danger? That anything could happen to that child and that the likelihood of that child living a rich & meaningful life was about as low as that of a dangerously premature new-born child? The poor child never stood a chance...

The mother should've taken some responsibility on herself to think about the best interests of her child and perhaps placed the child into foster care or up for adoption. At the same time, the Authorities should've also taken some responsibility by taking the case to the courts and having the child placed into Foster care whilst waiting for the mother to get herself together again. I wouldn't be at all surprised that the homelessness factor would've added a monumental amount of stress on her emotionally and that may have also contributed to the violent episode(s) she had in regards to her child.

I also can't help but wonder how many other people have walked by these two cases, who are in a position to help them out in someway. Whether it be by buying them a meal or by offering them a chance to start again. Someone to offer them a job, to learn a trade, with basic uniform and tools provided. It's a pretty big chance to take, for sure, but there's plenty of people in this world who could help them out. Offer these people a wage so they can live in a house and get their lives back on track. Some people have nothing left to spare. Some people waste their money on needless pieces of pleasure. Some people have so much money that they can afford to take a chance on someone who has nothing. As you can see by this blog, that simple chance, can equate to saving a life. Unfortunately though, it seems like the western world is more concerned about the things they own, rather than helping each other out.

We're extremely generous when natural disasters hit, but we seem to be less generous when it concerns those who've hid a rough patch or made an easy mistake in their life. We can all still make that difference and what a difference it makes!


I'm not religious or anything, but it's with cases like these that you really do start to wonder where we are going wrong in regards to practicing the art of compassion and humanity. How can some people live a life rich in material goods, whilst others live with even less than the bare minimums? How can a child so young die so brutally, whilst others live their lives poisoning their systems and still die a natural death? Why can we hear the cries of those whose major worry is the fact an ex-boyfriend has placed a reasonably tasteful nude pic in the media, but we completely neglect and disregard the cries of attention from someone who is so desperate and needy?

Clay Aiken summed it up in his song: "A Few Questions" - "I wasn't there the day that you filled up the ocean. I didn't get to see you hang the stars in the sky. So I don't mean to second guess you, or criticise what I don't understand. These are just a few questions I have..."

Brooks & Dunn also finished it by singing "God Must Be Busy". Maybe he is. Maybe there's something more to the cruelty we see over and over again. It just seems really unfair in the mean time.

However, this song by Tommy Shane Steiner sums it all up in the one song. I recommend that everyone listens to this song at least once and I dare you to think about the message in the song and how it applies or can apply to your life. "What If She's An Angel".

Also please go on youtube.com and search for Phil Collins' "Another Day In Paradise" and 'just think about it...'.

Those songs have a real meaning that everyone needs to hear!!! Let's help one another. Let's add meaning to each other's lives. For god's sake, let's save people's lives!!