The one thing my husband and I would agree on...

Little more than three years ago, we were married in New Orleans. The first six months, it felt like we weren't married, I guess because technically we weren't.

You see, we had no marriage license, try to change your name, cash checks, or even buy a house in your new name, and you'll quickly understand the difficulty. But for us, this was a small inconvenience compared to the over 1,000 that lost their lives in the hurricane. We didn't lose our belongings, we didn't need medical attention, we were fine. We had jobs to go back to, we got our wedding photos, and life, although a little dramatic, went on.

Obviously, the events of hurricane Katrina were exacerbated by the lack of response in New Orleans. Which brings me to the one thing my husband and I would agree upon:
"George Bush does not care about black people."

Sure he's canceling his appearance at the RNC, now. Where was he three years ago? He finally decided to cancel his vacation short after people were dying at the Superdome. It's very generous, the leader of the free world even gets a vacation, in my opinion. That was days after the hurricane. For days when people were waiting for food, water, medical attention. He was out in Texas hunting, golfing, or doing God only knows what silver spoon Texans do.

So after the fiasco, the republicans certainly do not want to appear to be the party that cares only for the rich, the white, or the WASP-y. With the prospects of Hurricane Gustav being a category 4 and making landfall on Labor day, all eyes will be on the reactions of those same republicans. My bet is, they will find a way to spin this convention, to show that republicans are all-loving, all-caring. They will most likely put in a phone bank, to accept donations for the Red Cross. They will have live satellite feed to Louisiana, to show the outpouring of support. You better believe they will be helping a whole lot of black people.

Which, I don't want to undermine the effort. I appreciate everyone chipping in for those in need. These people will need all of our support. Whether we are black or white or hispanic or asian. We are all Americans, and even though maybe we've been lucky to be blessed with so much, we can empathize with those that have lost everything. I just want to make sure the motive of the effort is also sound. I'm afraid of the republican party using this tragedy to further move along a more destructive agenda. Keeping people in poverty, by keeping higher education unaccessible and unaffordable. Not tapping into the current energy of our youth that is so smart, and creating a way to ease dependence on foreign oil. Global warming is causing more severe hurricanes to occur, do I really want to support a party that wants to solve our current energy crisis with more drilling, and more oil? No, of course not. I'd much rather see the "haves" of the republican party, actually give something bigger of themselves. To see them downsize to a reasonable house (not "homes" where they forget about how many they actually have, homes that are heated/cooled with carbon emitting technologies). How about personally investing in alternative energy sources? How about next time a tragedy strikes, tapping into the citizens of this country for more than just money. Am I the only one that finds it sick that after 9/11, the only thing our government asked us to do is shop?

So my prayers go out to all those who may lose what little they have been able to reclaim in the past three years. I hope that you are kept safe, and that you have a home to return to.