[Real Life] Tsunami Donations

I posed this question/rant to a friend this morning: Am I the only one who finds the news headlines that report how much "celebrities" are donating to the Tsunami victims tacky? Also, the apparent race the media has made with how much countries have donated in loans and grants? "We've got Australia in the lead, followed by Japan. USA is trailing..." I think it would be better, for celebrities to step back and just give money without the recognition. But that's obviously asking too much, since they all crave their names in the headlines. He responded: Oddly enough Matt Lauer is covering this currently on “Today.” Apparently Sandra B. made the donation of 1M before and did so quietly, and didn’t do it for recognition. The others like Leo DiCaprio did a movie in Thailand, and he donated to UNICEF. I say, let it be known. Let’s shame everyone into donating. The $350M that the US has pledged equals to $1.19 per American. I think of all things my tax dollars should go for helping people instead of building a B1B Stealth bomber. My response: Your point is taken however your optimism surprises me. To think the US would divert funds from building war crafts to help the victims surrounding the Indian Ocean is, well, naïve. I think it’s proven, over time, that the US will cut funding to beneficial programs that help its citizens, like education, before it delays the production another Stealth bomber.