The Million Can March!

Les Enragés.org has an interesting challenge up for both the left and right:

Million Can March: Yes We Can!

Welcome to the Unruly Mob and the launching of our Million Can March! This all started with a vague notion that we should do something more than just have a good laugh at the next round of tea parties scheduled for July 4th. I thought that if teabaggers are so afraid of socialism, maybe we could show 'em socialism on a national scale. And what is more socialistic than sharing our food with others. Food banks across the nation are struggling with shortages as increasing demands meet head on with decreasing donations. But bloggers also reach across the nation - and the world - and we could make a real difference for our neighbors and make this a memorable 4th of July.

THE CHALLENGE: To collect one million cans of food for our nation's food banks, food pantries and shelters by July 4, 2009.

WHO: Progressive bloggers with a special invite to conservative bloggers.

HOW: Act locally. Here are some examples:

• Take a bag of food to a local pantry
• Organize a food drive where you work or play, your church or motorcycle club, etc.
• Organize some friendly competition amongst a group of blogs
• Challenge your Facebook & Myspace friends and your twitter followers
• There's no one right way to get involved. Look around you, see the need and do something about it.

They have more information on what you can do over there. I have lots of experience with can drives from doing this for Cubs Scouts with my son. Also, our family regularly donates to our local food bank so I already have a good idea of what they need. The best way to be sure is to call your local food bank and ask them what they need at this time. Often, they have a list of their shortages already.

Please consider joining in on this effort. I have always loved the motto: "Give what you can and take what you need." Right now, there are a lot of families that are in need.

If anyone wants to post this at their own Blog and has trouble with the flashplayer embed of marching cans, Tengrain made a whole bunch of images to match most Blog color schemes like this fine badge here:

Darien Veteran Group Fails the Charity Test

So says the Blotter:

Failing to Serve America's
Heroes on the Home Front

In the last two years, generous Americans answering appeals to help wounded and paralyzed veterans have given more than $464 million to charities that have been given an F in a new report card from a leading charity watchdog group.

Those failing charities include the National Veterans Services Fund, of Darien, Connecticut, which took in more than $6 million in contributions last year supposedly to help veterans' families.

It got a report grade of F from the American Institute of Philanthropy, which says the charity gave out only two percent of its money for charity.

I would like to hear the National Veterans Services Fund explanations for this... Same for the other 13 veterans groups that got an F. (h/t Buzzflash)

Meanwhile, in other veterans groups news, some veterans are labeled as not veteranny enough to march in veterans parades:

Iraq veteran Jason Lemieux might not be marching in the 11th annual Long Beach Veterans Day Parade on Saturday.

The Marine, who served three tours of duty in Iraq and is now against the war, was hoping to march as a member of Iraq Veterans Against the War, a national organization that calls for immediate withdrawal of troops in Iraq.

The group's application, however, was rejected last month because of its political views, parade coordinators said.

"I wanted to march like the rest of the Iraq veterans," said Lemieux, a 24-year-old Anaheim resident. "I served my country. I'm a veteran of a foreign war. I think I deserve that respect."

Iraq Veterans, along with the groups Veterans for Peace and Military Families Speak Out, applied to march together in the parade this year under the entry "Military Patriots."

While parade organizers claim "We're not allowed to take a political stance" that is exactly what they have just done. They should be ashamed.