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www.heavieroctaves.org: Rosie O'Donnell's- For All Kids Foundation-Help for Katrina Survivors
I thought I'd top the above blog post from the Heavier Octaves blog dated December 12,2006. Here's why:
Recently Rosie O'Donnell has been in one battle after the other with fellow "View"talk show hosts and business magnate Donald Trump.The story has been all over the news and in gossip driven media like TMZ. Both have made less than charming references to one another.In fact,the hostile and mostly vitriolic "back and forth" would seemingly have come to blows, if the two were in close proximity to one another when making the provoking exchange of remarks.
All in all, it seems the whole matter has taken public discourse down a few notches,if that is at all possible in today's age. But seriously, if adults can't communicate with civility towards one another, choosing to make spectacles of themselves "playing the dozens" , as the old folks call it, and for whatever reasons,before millions of viewers, how can the kids be expected to behave differently? Do some public figures even care anymore? Or, has the ratings game and the obsession with the kind of popularity and viewership such dialogue potentially generates taken priority?
The Rosie controversy escalated and put a strain on relationship with View honcho Barbara Walters, which eventually led to her departure from the popular morning television program. Incidentally,I can't help but imagine how "Star" is taking all this in.
I've followed the breaking news reports,the gossip spins on the story and I have also reflected on the immense popularity and huge success Rosie enjoyed with her TV talk show a few years back. A lot of that was a result of the wonderful things she did for guests on the show and the kindnesses she extended to others in general.She was even dubbed the "Queen of Nice".
Well, let not your hopes be dashed.She still appears to be continuing her reign in the world of "niceness" and continues to"help others". She has a special fondness for assisting children and they are those needing the most care and attention.
Recently,Electronic Arts,Inc.'s casual gaming destination Pogo.com™ has teamed up with Rosie O’Donnell to launch their newest charitable program ‘Pogo Cares Benefiting Rosie’s For All Kids Foundation’. This two month program raises awareness within the vibrant Pogo.com community of 11 million players. Rosie’s For All Kids Foundation helps bring child care, education and happiness to America’s kids. With the help of its players, Pogo.com will donate $30K to the foundation.
I, then, recalled a blog that posted on Heavier Octaves last year reporting Rosie's generosity to the children of New Orleans in the aftermath of the Hurricane Katrina disaster. And, I thought to myself "someone should be talking about the good things she does and has done with as much zeal as this brouhaha with Trump has been reported".
So,click on the link above,if you have not already done so and be further enlightened.You may also visit her foundation's website here.
Enjoy reading it. As you do,wonder what is going on in New Orleans. I hear reports of progress. But it is, from what I gather, very slow. Also, and perhaps as important,wonder what is happening to our media and interpersonal communication standards. There seems to be a lot of "upheaval" taking place in that arena, whether for the good or the bad.
One thing that has become clearer to me throughout my observation of this whole thing,is that it is not always "what you say,but how you say it". In addition, you can't always judge a person by what they say. While that is important,their broader body of work should be taken into consideration as well i.e.,the kinds of contributions they've made to their communities,the quality of person they have demonstrated themselves to be over the long run,etc.
What is in a person's heart is ultimately more important than what they say. And,we can only hear it if we listen with ours. Admittedly,this is not always the case. But ,I think it is very applicable here.
Keep Rosie, the children, the people of New Orleans and "respectful dialogue" lifted up in your thoughts today.
Peace,
Cynthia
