Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Well they were victims but since when does the media tell the truth. They played up New Orleans as if it's been forever flooded and wiped out forever and ever.
I tell you what, what happened here in terms of having dead bodies floating in filth for weeks while people like Brownie sits back and plays with himself better not ever happen again. It's one thing to say what people should have or could have done but it was a national embarrassment, and terrible especially considering what is being spent on non Americans in Iraq dwarfs the costs of New Orleans and the Gulf Coast.
Well they were victims but since when does the media tell the truth. They played up New Orleans as if it's been forever flooded and wiped out forever and ever.
I tell you what, what happened here in terms of having dead bodies floating in filth for weeks while people like Brownie sits back and plays with himself better not ever happen again. It's one thing to say what people should have or could have done but it was a national embarrassment, and terrible especially considering what is being spent on non Americans in Iraq dwarfs the costs of New Orleans and the Gulf Coast.
HOLD THE PHONE. I personally believe the Federal government, and Bush in particular have a great deal of responsibility in the matter. But it defies reason that you don't place the majority of blame on your incompetent mayor and governor.
Katrina hit on a Monday. On Saturday morning, I remember reading the Weather Service bulletin. It was predicting nothing short of total catastrophe for New Orleans and the surrounding area.
What's more, everybody knew that New Orleans was extremely vulnerable. Heck, I remember reading articles and documentaries on the very subject. In fact, New Orleans had a brush with a hurricane the year before, and everybody talked about how the city had dodged the bullet.
So, with all this awareness, there were disaster plans, evacuation plans, and every other kind of plan imaginable sitting on the shelf in every police station, fire station, and municipal building in the area. Every scenario had been explored. Every contingency had been discussed.
So what happened when it came down to nut cutting time? I remember the Saturday press conference. The mayor and governor stood there with a deer-in-the-headlights look and didn't order a mandatory evacuation. In fact, the two waited 24 hours before they began getting serious about matters. And those million dollar emergency plans were never opened.
Meanwhile, Alabama had suffered a direct hit from Category 4 Ivan the year before. While Alabama does not have large tracts of below-sea-level area, there was still an imminent danger. The Alabama government and local governments went to their emergency plans, and followed them to the letter. The entire region was evacuated in what was a model of efficiency and order compared to New Orleans.
So, yeah. Blame the President and FEMA. They deserve a good bit of it. But don't single them out when the chief buffoons in this melodrama were the politicians of Louisiana, not to mention the people who voted them into office time and time again.
Nagin sucks, I'm not arguing that. He has GOT to go.
Blank-o is gone, we elected Bobby Jindal, the young rising star of the GOP, and Blanco couldn't get elected dog catcher in this state.
But when you have FEMA stopping aid caravans, and Jefferson Parish had to go restore their comm lines to the open world, after FEMA had cut them on purpose...the sheriff had to station guards at a central nexus for communications with the order to engage the Feds if they tried to do it again.
And as for the Mayor, this is a racially divided city which hasn't had a white mayor since the 70s, and to get re elected they bussed people back here who won't live here again, while Mayor Jackass runs around telling people, see the white people are trying to take over. This isn't unlike the net result of white flight in many other cities in the United States.
However almost no one would defend Nagone and Blank-o...and good people are lining up at the gate to gain a shot at the Mayor's office, chomping at the bit for the Nagin era to end. Believe me on that.
They were citizens who experienced a hurricane, similar to many other citizens who experience a natural disaster such as flooding, tornadoes, earthquakes, and fires (or volanic eruptions if you live in Hawaii).
Yes, they were citizens, citizens that were victims of a natural disaster. Oh, and by the way, volcanic eruptions don't only happen in Hawaii...
collections on katrina. sorry it was not relief it was a loan. that does not sound like a good encouragement to get the hard core unemployed working does it?
that rates with student loan program huh?
Last edited by Huckleberry3911948; 04-29-2008 at 11:27 PM..
Seattle, thank goodness you're here...without you I would be forever lost in a world without knowledge. I am fully aware of the volcanoes in the West of this country...
Seattle, thank goodness you're here...without you I would be forever lost in a world without knowledge. I am fully aware of the volcanoes in the West of this country...
I have a divided mind regarding Katrina and the people of New Orleans.
First, most of New Orleans is in a flood zone. What's more the vulnerability of the area to hurricanes has been worsened by flood control.
Second, when it was all said and done, Hurricane Katrina was a Category 3. It was by no means the monster it could have been. Of course, saying that a hurricane was milder than one thought is a relative term. But if the damage was this bad in New Orleans on what was actually the safer side of a Category 3 hurricane, then what happens to place when it receives a direct hit from a Category 4 or 5? It's inevitable, and no levee will be able to protect the city and property owners like the one in the article.
Sure I want to help people get their lives back together. But why are we pouring hundreds of millions, even billions of dollars into helping people rebuild houses that will almost certainly be destroyed again?
Because its our people and our country, its about time we " helped" our own. by god we spend that and more rebuilding/helping other countries.
As for the feds wanting their monies back, tell them sure you will pay it; when other countries pay them/us back!
Huh? Where was I when Mississippi recovered? Last time I checked, they still haven't recovered. Not even close.
No, Mississippi is not recovered, but they did take the brunt of the storm.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
