Here’s Karl Malone:
I wasn’t going to just write a check, and I didn’t want to go to New Orleans where all the celebrities were going (to grandstand). I wanted to go where no one was, and that’s why we went to Pascagoula [MS]. We took six million dollars of equipment and most of the guys from my company (Malone Properties). But when we got there, they (federal officials) told us that because we wanted to work for free, we had to go home. That we needed a government ID number or a contract to haul out debris. I said to them, ‘bullsh–‘, we took 30 pieces of equipment and traveled nine hours and we’re going to clean up some lots before we leave. So I told them ‘I’m getting on my truck, now try to get me off.’ I had my security guys there and they tried to stop us but they couldn’t – and we cleared 115 houses.
More here. Not only are the feds squashing voluntarism, they’re getting in the way of a guy 1) who is enormous; 2) whose fame gives him much opportunity to publicize their infuriating by-the-bookism; 3) who spent his 18-year career giving positive pub to fed workers [He’s “The Mailman” because “he delivers.” ] For more government bullying of volunteers, go here and here.
