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September 1, 2005
What the fuck is going on down there? +
What the fuck is going on down there?
You mean to tell me the United States cannot get it together to save these people, feed these people, and have some semblance of law and order? We need to have dead people in the parking lot of the Convention Center, with no one around to tend to them? People need to break into the food stores in the Superdome?
Jesus. What is wrong with us. -ADM
A few selections from an AP article about what's going on in New Orleans:
"'Hospitals are trying to evacuate," said Coast Guard Lt. Cmdr. Cheri Ben-Iesan, spokesman at the city emergency operations center. 'At every one of them, there are reports that as the helicopters come in people are shooting at them. There are people just taking potshots at police and at helicopters, telling them, `You better come get my family.'"
This because there IS NO ONE coming to get these families. FEMA has been in New Orleans for three days, and this shit is still going on. Why is this happening in our own country, in a city that everybody knew was going to be hit by a massively destructive storm? Why is no one in charge?
"Mayor Nagin called for a total evacuation of New Orleans, saying the city had become uninhabitable for the 50,000 to 100,000 who remained behind after the city of nearly a half-million people was ordered cleared out over the weekend."
So there is still 10-20% of the city's population in the city? An effective emergency evacuation operated by the National Guard would not have left 100,000 people behind.
"Some Federal Emergency Management rescue operations were suspended in areas where gunfire has broken out, Homeland Security spokesman Russ Knocke said in Washington. 'In areas where our employees have been determined to potentially be in danger, we have pulled back,' he said."
If FEMA staff get to leave areas where there is gunfire, then where is Homeland Security? Isn't it their job to work in the problem areas? Where is the National Guard?
"Outside the Convention Center, the sidewalks were packed with people without food, water or medical care, and with no sign of law enforcement. Thousands of storm refugees had been assembling outside for days, waiting for buses that did not come.
"47-year-old Daniel Edwards said, 'You can do everything for other countries but you can't do nothing for your own people. You can go overseas with the military but you can't get them down here.'"
Guess what? The Navy is finally sending an aircraft carrier to the Gulf of Mexico. Like NOW they send an aircraft carrier.
Cities like New York have learned to have a coordinated response to disaster. Maybe one problem is New Orleans' bad infrastructure and bad city management. But the national response has been disgraceful. The message to U.S. cities from the federal government seems to be "You're on your own."
And what do you want to bet that after it's all over, Bush comes out and says all this feel-good garbage about how inspiring it is that regular American citizens reached out to help their neighbors, all because all our public services completely fucked up?
Here's what Bush is saying about the looting and violence going on now: "I think there ought to be zero tolerance of people breaking the law during an emergency such as this — whether it be looting, or price gouging at the gasoline pump, or taking advantage of charitable giving or insurance fraud. And I've made that clear to our attorney general. The citizens ought to be working together."
Right. How about zero tolerance of leaving a large sector of a poor and largely non-mobile population behind to fend for themselves in a destroyed city? -Amy
According to our friend Mike: at the Bush-Bush-Clinton press conference right now, Bush is spending a lot of time talking about oil. Meanwhile, a sniper is shooting at the hospital. -ADM
categories:
Crime, Economics, Politics, Race, War and Security
posted by adm at 2:12 PM | #
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Comments
I guess the policy of the Louisiana gov't (Republicans, White Christians) is that the market will provide. Oh wait, the market didn't provide good jobs for these people so that they could pay for their way out of an impending disaster area. Oh well, I guess Jesus hates poor black people in New Orleans and Mississippi. Hey Joe, let's go to church and pray that I can afford to fill my SUV at $4/ gallon because that's the only thing that matters to me. God Bless the Red USA.
Posted by: Agent 0019 at September 1, 2005 2:29 PM
Interesting news piece (http://www.alternet.org/story/24871/) on the fact that "federal funding for Louisiana flood control projects was diverted to pay for the war in Iraq".
Posted by: pamsterdam at September 1, 2005 2:31 PM
I think this might be a new and potentially innovative kind of eugenics.
Posted by: cushie at September 1, 2005 4:32 PM
THANK YOU.
RIGHT THE FUCK ON THE MONEY.
Truly unbelieveable.
Posted by: ashbloem at September 1, 2005 4:44 PM
Louisiana's governor is a Democrat, Kathleen Blanco, and the Mayor of New Orleans, Ray Nagin, is a Democrat, too.
It's partially LA's fault for not evacuating people more efficiently, but certainly FEMA and the National Guard could have been in there faster. Bush declared LA a disaster area before the hurricane hit, but was playing the piano in Texas on Tuesday.
Posted by: T-Rock at September 1, 2005 4:53 PM
You got it exactly right. Bush (and cabinet) and the FEMA honchos should be marched into the NOLA convention center, forced to drink floodwater, and covered in fire ants. Then turn the looters loose on them.
Posted by: Sarah at September 1, 2005 6:13 PM
who to look up to? where is the leaders of today? Does everyone have too much to loose? Too much freedom can be paralyzing. Lets pray for people down there...
Posted by: utw at September 1, 2005 6:50 PM
Anyone, like myself, who has spent a significant amount of time in New Orleans is not surprised at the ineptitude of the city's (and state's) response to the disaster. It's just prominently on display now with horrific consequences.
Posted by: jvs at September 1, 2005 7:31 PM
Okay, my fearless leader....you obviously think you could do a better job...and by the way democrats have a worse record than republicans for handling such situations.
Posted by: Jon at September 1, 2005 8:32 PM
These people never should have been living in a BOWL that everyone knew was unsustainable from a major hurricane. Bush is doing way too MUCH to help. A real help would be to say, we're NOT going to rebuild this artificial city BELOW sea level that can NEVER be sustained against the surrounding waters. You dumb leftwing fucks!
Posted by: Nelson Fartzenkraps at September 1, 2005 8:33 PM
The United States is a disgrace. In Iraq, we blame the unecessary death on the "cost" of rebuilding a democratic nation.
What can we blame the unnecessary death in New Orleans on?
Is this an example of being "pro life"? Letting our own people die a slow death?
What about no child left behind? Who's going to bury the dead babies?
The U.S is no different than Al Qaeda tonight. We let our own people die as the rich sit high & dry counting their money.
I am not proud to be an American tonight.
Posted by: Commentator at September 1, 2005 8:36 PM
I am getting more and more angry at the politicians on both sides of the aisle. If Bush hadn't gone to war with Iraq on manufactured evidence, 80% of the money that was earmarked to be spent on updating the levee system wouldn't have been taken up by the black hole that is the Defense Department.
A democratic Louisiana Congresswoman took her moment in front of the cameras not to plead for the people WHO GAVE HER THE JOB IN THE FIRST PLACE but instead used it to thank the other politicians and further her own career. As Anderson Cooper said, it's cold comfort to the family of the woman who's been lying in a street in Waveland, Mississippi for two days and is now being EATEN BY RATS!
And the Governor of Louisiana should be ashamed of herself. Prayer may help comfort the afflicted, but it doesn't stop little girls getting raped in a pool of feces in the Convention Center! Go over Bush's head, woman, and accept the help that the world is offering!
There were forces as far away as Germany who were ready to come to our aid with supplies, people and equipment EVEN BEFORE THE HURRICANE STRUCK! And now the sheer arrogance of Bush demands that we don't take that help other than in a monetary sense, instead allowing his vanity to condemn even more people to death.
Don't even get me started on Condi Rice- she needs to get off Madison Ave., shopping for thousand dollar pairs of shoes, and get our people out of there!
I have defended Bush and his cabinet in the past, but no more. Now I fervently wish that we had a mechanism similar to Britain's Vote of No Confidence, so we could get rid of this dangerous fool and his so called advisors.
Posted by: Suzie at September 1, 2005 8:40 PM
I think this is an example of how we all have been able to ignore the depths of poverty in which many people in this country live. When I say all, I mean us. We who have computers to complain on about it. Or sit around nice restaurants, criticizing the other party's handling of this. They are all white men who think they made it on their own. I mean me, too. We will always have a lower tier of society that we must take care of. That is what society means. We have plenty of money to do it. But many (privileged) people resent sharing that wealth.
You can pay for these people with your taxes, or you can pay for them on your doorstep. I'll take the taxes, anyday. I am so grateful that an accident of birth put me here.
Posted by: hiram at September 1, 2005 9:59 PM
Re: statement by nelson etc....once again, some Fox loving ass knows nothing and is proud of it. The biggest reason that the New Orleans 'bowl' exists, is because the Army Corp of Engineers has been 'straightening' the Mississippi for decades. The wetlands that used to be there that helped prevent these kinds of floods have virtually disappeared. I'm sure Hannity hasn't mentioned that you dumb rightwing fuck. And I pray to god that you don't live where there's tornados, earthquakes, fires, blizzards, cold waves, heatwaves, or any other kind of nature.
Posted by: Mike at September 1, 2005 10:27 PM
Perhaps after all of these years of listening to Bush, God is finally getting around to His reply.
Meanwhile, every one of those "settlers" who stole land from the Palestinians in Gaza is getting $250,000 of AMERICAN TAXPAYER dollars to evacuate. Do you think any of our refugees from The Big Easy are ever going to see anything like that?
God bless New Orleans and her people.
Posted by: Alan Cabal at September 1, 2005 11:11 PM
Amen, sister. Are you fucking kidding me? This country can't do better?
Posted by: Susan at September 2, 2005 12:30 AM
Amen. News about the disaster waiting to happen in New Orleans was given out many years ago. For US government officials to blame residents for their own fate is beyond disgraceful. Had no one a plan for helping the poor, sick, and disenfranchised?
For Bush to talk the idiot talk about rebuilding the city yesterday and how this will create a stronger America while corpses are rotting on streets and more people close to death because of no water, is grounds for trial. I'm more ashamed at our government than ever before. And I didn't like it before this happened. Here's your freedom.
Posted by: Nicole at September 2, 2005 1:53 AM
To all the hypocrite left-wingers trying to blame an act of God on Bush...how many of you have even sent a single thin dime, or donated your personal time, to help anyone, let alone N.O.? You sit there and tell us nobody knows what they are doing, and most of you probably never even give to charity...or if you do, it's only when the need is hyped, instead of consistently.
Interesting to note studies clearly show Republicans are more generous to charities than Dems...but we are so bad, aren't we?
Posted by: Darryl at September 2, 2005 8:58 AM
This is UNREAL - it really couldn't have been F-ED up more by both local gov't & Federal Gov't. FEMA is a joke. Shameful.
Posted by: debvil at September 2, 2005 12:12 PM
I think it's justifiable to blame the Bush administration for the botched relief efforts and mayhem in New Orleans because state and local governments simply do not have the resources required for an operation like this. The ONLY way to save everyone is to rely on the federal government to do something. And they didn't do anything. For four days. And that's why people are starving, dying, and rotting.
Darryl, your argument that Republicans are more generous than Democrats is absurd. I give 100% of my day, every day, to a community organization. I've done so for the last 4 years. Guess how many Republicans I work with?
Posted by: adm at September 2, 2005 1:18 PM
Personally, I am a super liberal Democrat, as is my mother, and we both give lots of our income to charity. Darryl, I'm not sure what your point is. Private charities are a wonderful thing, but we should be able to count on our government to help poor, sick, and homeless people in times of need. As a Christian, I'm sure you can see the necessity of helping those less fortunate. If Bush is so interested in creating a truly Christian government, he should be prioritizing helping the poor and the sick, rather than helping rich people and corporations. I'm obviously not blaming the hurricane on Bush, but I am very disappointed that our federal government's response has been one of chaos and indifference, while local governments in Louisiana and Mississippi are stretched to the breaking point and desperate. Why is Bush out at a charity dinner in San Diego while people are dying on the streets? A true Christian would not be feasting with the rich and turning his head away from suffering.
Posted by: alice at September 2, 2005 1:30 PM
I thought jesus and christianity was meant to help poor people.
How Christian can Bush be if he lets the poor die and drown in New Orleans, denies them funding to fix a problem, and flat out doesnt give a shit? Declaring a disaster then playing a piano really shows a lack of care.
I believe Karl Rove said something about there being an evangelical base to take advantage of.
It looks like you bible thumpers got played. It's ok, more and more are starting to see it. Did you have fun having someone take advantage of your personal beliefs?
Posted by: SdLvX at September 13, 2005 4:53 PM
none of you have a fucking clue about how the world is run. THEY WANT YOU DEAD. don't you get it ?
ps aliens are coming soon
Posted by: asdfasdf at October 19, 2009 9:08 PM
» great blog from great blog
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