THEY WILL NOT BE MISSED – AT 7:05 P.M. ET:  Bypassed in all the commotion over the passage of Obamacare, which will insure that all of us live to 120 with no aches and pains, is the fact that a less-than-venerable organization is shutting down.  Again, from Fox:

CHICAGO — The once mighty community activist group ACORN announced Monday it is folding amid falling revenues — six months after video footage emerged showing some of its workers giving tax tips to conservative activists posing as a pimp and prostitute.

"It's really declining revenue in the face of a series of attacks from partisan operatives and right-wing activist that have taken away our ability to raise the resources we need," ACORN spokesman Kevin Whelan said.

Sure.  It has nothing to do with the corruption within the organization.

Several of its largest affiliates, including ACORN New York and ACORN California, broke away this year and changed their names in a bid to ditch the tarnished image of their parent organization and restore revenue that ran dry in the wake of the video scandal. They will continue to operate under their new names and aren't affected by ACORN's decision to shut down.

Translated:  They will continue to do what ACORN did.

ACORN's financial situation and reputation went into free fall within days of the videos' release in September. Congress reacted by yanking ACORN's federal funding, private donors held back cash and scores of ACORN offices closed.

Earlier this month, a U.S. judge reiterated an earlier ruling that the federal law blacklisting ACORN and groups allied with it was unconstitutional because it singled them out. But that didn't mean any money would be automatically be restored.

COMMENT:  Look, there is absolutely nothing wrong with organizations that wish to service and represent the poor.  Organizations like that are a great part of the American tradition.  But the groups have to be honest, capable, and uphold the law.  And they actually have to provide real services.  The poor are among the most vulnerable in our society, and easy scammed.  The scams are often carried out by those claiming to be helping them. 

March 22, 2010