Georgia Governor Prays for Rain

From an AP report: "Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue stepped up to a podium outside the state Capitol on Tuesday and led a solemn crowd of several hundred people in a prayer for rain on his drought-stricken state.

'We've come together here simply for one reason and one reason only: To very reverently and respectfully pray up a storm," Perdue said after a choir provided a hymn.

Georgia and its neighboring states are caught in a drought that threatens public water supplies. Perdue has ordered water restrictions, launched a legal battle against the release of water from federal reservoirs and appealed to President Bush. It's time to appeal to him who can and will make a difference,' Perdue told the crowd."

Another paper reported: "Despite months of warnings, golf courses across the region have remained watered and lush. Only in September did Georgia ban outdoor water use. In October, Perdue declared Take a Shorter Shower Month, although in summer, a year after the drought began, prisoners were still getting two showers a day.Last month, Perdue finally declared a state of emergency and asked the Bush administration for federal help. But he has not asked companies to cut back on water use — in particular Coca-Cola, which has its headquarters in Atlanta and whose main ingredient is water."

So our government is reduced to praying for solutions to long threatening problems of the environment. We can't actually think our way out this or cut back consumption or reign in the corporate use of public resources. Faith is surely called for here. Maybe we should also pray our way to health care, peace and safe toys because the people who are running the government clearly have no faith in the ability of that government to govern.