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Of course, Arthur is right to insist that a low cost plan to get those stragglers
and car-less people out, and those who were turned back because the roads were
clogged, should have been attempted.
And Lawry is right to remind us that compared to other natural disasters
around the world, as well as the man-made ones, we should not focus too long on
ourselves. But that will happen for awhile, and indeed, some will question our
patriotism if we criticize our leadership at a time of crises. But I’m still expecting him to get it right the second time facing a
national emergency. He’s run out of political capital – and trust. Naturally, much of what I’m writing and/or reporting now is for the
benefit of those who haven’t been inundated with 24/7 news in the US. I’ve watched
the evening news now, leaving MSNBC where an irate reporter concentrated on
looting at Wal Mart store – including a uniformed police officer – to stay with
CBS showing people stranded on overpasses, without food and water for 2 days, a
dead man still at his wife’s feet, another who jumped over the edge to end his distress.
People with babies, nowhere to go asking why the police didn’t stop to help
them, asking why when hurricanes hit Florida there was immediate help and not
for them? (really, I didn’t make that up to reinforce my earlier political
barb). The LSU hospital spokesman
said they were desperate to remove patients who would die soon. There were
Guard trucks rolling through – empty of any gear, caravans of trucks arriving
from other agencies but no water trucks, no food trucks. Reporters remarked
this was the sort of disaster scene Americans are used to seeing from overseas,
and they expected better here.
Hopefully, daylight will show emergency relief has arrived and those
abandoned will not feel as desperate. By the way, as of 1pm PDT today, the day New Orleans became a national emergency
(via Cherthoff, Homeland Security), the RNC website still showed Pres. Bush in
a photo op from his San Diego appearance yesterday. The DNC site had already
been reloaded with comprehensive Katrina relief information and links. By 4:30
PDT, Bush’s visage from the Rose Garden was up on the RNC site but it still
included mostly business as usual items.
See for yourself. DNC
http://www.democrats.org/ RNC http://www.rnc.org/ Since Katrina’s landfall Monday, Bush has kept his scheduled commitments,
seen mugging
for the cameras, cutting a cake for McCain, playing the guitar for a country
western singer, delivering an address about V-J day trying to link the war in
Iraq to WW2. Today, when he finally got around to speaking to the country, it was
a stale “laundry list” speech delivered flatly. More resolve, still defensive. The one “good
feeling” moment in my evening news was that a fire department squad in NYC that
received a new fire truck from citizens of Louisiana after 9/11 was loading up
gear and heading south to help with rescue efforts, returning the kindness. A
welcome moment. The 80% of NO underwater is equivalent to the Portland, Oregon city
limits – 145 sq miles. Lake Pontchartrain is half the size of Rhode
Island. 78,000 are now in
shelters. Perhaps 1 million are homeless. Can you imagine what city and state
officials everywhere are thinking about since we are midway through hurricane
season? kwc |
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