Re: Politics, society, & New Orleans


"dyrewlf" <dyrewlf@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:04qSe.12766$B34.1178@xxxxxxxxxxx
> After reading and digesting all that is going on and being said. I think
> that many don't fully understand the scope of the problem and also that
> there is plenty of blame to be tossed around on all sides of the politcal
> fences. First of all the size of the area destroyed is immense.
> 93,000SqMiles. This is a huge swath of land. Bigger than New York, bigger
> than Oklahoma, bigger than Washington, and bigger than all but 11 of the
> states in this country. The amount of infrastructure destroyed was
> immense. Roads and bridges demolished along major routes. All
> communications gone. Each and every leader of the major relief agencies
> both federal and non profits have all been astounded by the amount of
> damage and each has said this is the worst they have ever witnessed. This
> was an amazing storm that thankfully weakened somewhat before landfall,
> and that it wasn't a direct hit on NO, otherwise who's to say that the
> Superdome wouldn't have been completely demolished and that would be
> anyone left to rescue.
>
> That being said there is a lot of blame that can be attributed to many for
> the calamity in NO that has followed the hurricane. IMO they fall in this
> order.
>
> 1. The Mayor and city gov't of New Orleans. People have been talking
> about the potential for this storm for years. Why wasn't there a better
> evacuation plan in place. If you order a mandatory evacuation you have to
> make sure that people have the means to get out. Utilize the city's buses
> to evacuate the poor and elderly. If you tell people who can't get out
> that there are 10 places to go to be safe, provide food and water at those
> places.
>
> 2. The state government for not adequately assisting in the evacuation of
> a half million people. Why weren't the National Guard called in to assist
> before the storm. It was declared a State of Emergency 2 days before it
> hit.
>
> 3. FEMA director Mike Brown. Everytime this man was interviewed on TV he
> just seemed lost. He didn't know about what was going on. He kept saying
> the aid would get there, and typically from what I've seen in response to
> worldwide disasters it takes 4-5days for the bulk of help to arrive, but
> this is our country and it should have happened sooner.
>
> 4. The nasty people of New Orleans, not to be confused with the rest of
> NO, the people who felt it necessary to steal TVs, DVD players, Stereos,
> where ya gonna plug it in? Dumbass. The people who were firing upon
> rescuers. This bad element although thankfully small did hamper
> operations.
>
> 5. The Media. How the media could drive by these people filming them in
> such despair and not help is beyond me. They obviously had access in/out
> of New Orleans. They didn't look like they were in distress yet day after
> day go in and offer no support to their fellow man.
>
> There are also many other factors that are indirectly related to how much
> destruction there was. Ranging from budget cuts to the Army Corps of
> Engineers going back over the last 40yrs, to the destruction of wetlands
> along the coast, to the arrogance of the Army Corps of Engineers thinking
> it can control Mother nature in the first place.
>
> This devastation is going to take years, if ever, to recover. I was down
> in FL on the panhandle from the time it formed until it was a Cat 4. The
> devastation that the panhandle experience after their last pales in
> comparison and they were no where near being close to rebuilding. And
> Florida has tourism to help pay for and is an incentive to rebuild. The MS
> coast though beautiful doesn't have that. Steve

>From the Department of Homeland Security web site:

> "In the event of a terrorist attack, natural disaster or other large-scale
> emergency, the Department of Homeland Security will assume primary
> responsibility on March 1st for ensuring that emergency response
> professionals are prepared for any situation. This will entail providing a
> coordinated, comprehensive federal response to any large-scale crisis and
> mounting a swift and effective recovery effort. The new Department will
> also prioritize the important issue of citizen preparedness. Educating
> America's families on how best to prepare their homes for a disaster and
> tips for citizens on how to respond in a crisis will be given special
> attention at DHS."

Richard


.

Relevant Pages

  • Re: More stuff to blame on Bush!!!!!
    ... > exactly *what* he feels was wrong about the federal response, ... > implementing disaster plans. ... > control officially over to the federal government (the president could ... > the evacuation, and could not have been unless asked in by the governor. ...
    (soc.culture.filipino)
  • Re: Politics, society, & New Orleans
    ... Bigger than New York, bigger ... The Mayor and city gov't of New Orleans. ... the potential for this storm for years. ... If you order a mandatory evacuation you have to make sure ...
    (rec.music.gdead)
  • Re: White House Shifts Blame to State and Local Officials
    ... > evacuation from this ruined city, as Bush administration officials ... > called a failure of the country's emergency management. ... > response professionals are prepared for any situation. ...
    (alt.true-crime)
  • Re: FEMA overpays Carnival
    ... Nope, they can override via proclamation of a "national incident", it's ... > evacuation, it hadn't been. ... I was in NOLA/Biloxi and I watched not only the lack of response from the ... tactics and you can spin this inside your tiny, GOP indoctrinated mind ...
    (rec.travel.cruises)
  • Re: World Appeal for Help, Support and Assistance - Save the Living in New Orleans
    ... No water, no food and no evacuation. ... The US response has not been shining I agree. ...
    (uk.business.agriculture)