By Guest F to the Soong, August 25, 2005 in The Lounge
And not only the residents of NO couldn't get out, the tourists couldn't get out either. So today Michael Chertoff, head of homeland security, saying essentially that the people who stayed brought this on themselves, well, that's what's known as horseshit.
From my favorite writer, Digby:
"I don't know if all of you have seen the footage today from the convention center in New Orleans, but it is shocking. There are dead bodies lying all over the place. People are waiting for help and the only people who've come in there are news crews and Harry Connick Jr...It's a living hell.
An MSNBC reporter just said that he counted 82 buses lined up outside the city waiting to go in to evacuate people from the convention center but they won't go because they've been told it isn't safe."
Which is where the lack of National Guardsmen comes in...
Guest fredcamino
the fact remains that this is a city 12 feet under sea level surrounded by the ocean and a giant lake in a hurricane zone. we can politicize natures fury all we want, but i think it's useless. they've been talking about "the big one" forever, and it finally came. it's just like los angeles, a city on a fucking fault line. the oft talked about "big one" could actually happen, and send us all back to the stone age just as quickly and effectively. we could put all the money in the world in earthquake preparedness and make our buildings super sturdy blah blah blah, but in the end we can only do so much. if we want to blame, maybe we should blame people for building major cities on fault lines and below sea level bowls in hurricane zones. definately not global warming. like this is the first major hurricane to ever hit the gulf coast in the history of the world.
Er, no. It's not politics to demand competence from our leaders. It's asking them to do their jobs.
But okay, to take the heat off our idiot president and go more local... My brother was in the casino business as I've said before. His job was all about those barge and riverboat casinos that you now see having been thrown around like toys. He was in Tunica, MS and a little in NOLA, but mostly Kansas City.
He came back with stories of how corrupt the government of NO was. It was mob everywhere, worse than Vegas or New Jersey, especially the casinos, no surprise. As usual he didn't want to go into specifics (he's like that about that part of his job, like he won't talk about Steve Wynn's personal checking account that he used to manage). All he'd do was shake his head when I asked him about New Orleans. And anyone who remembers that 1992 or so governor's race with the blinged-up corrupt womanizing democrat going against the corrupt republican knows what I'm talking about. There's politics, and there's New Orleans politics.
Having grown up in Vegas, which was corrupt as you can imagine in the 70s, and didn't put in place any kind of good flood control until after a disaster hit, I can see how people taking their money off the top of federal contracts might lead to basic things not getting done.
I don't have any specifics, just hearsay from the brother and having seen the same thing in Vegas during the mob years (we had a flood in '77 or so that killed like 20 people).
Guest parallax
Watching those people camping on roofs for days certainly was an eyeopener. I guess NO will also not be inhabitable for months, if not years?
Guest Beaver
You keep hearing stories of people firing guns at choppers and ambulances... What the hell is their problem?
Guest atslopes
Only god can save them now, im praying right now. People are dying on tv, wow this is crazy what happened to all the homeland security god forbid it could have been much worse, this is so pathetic didnt they spend billions of dollars on homeland sequrity now we have a crisis and people are dying,stealing, fighting, killing, etc/--this isnt funny, people are living like animals/
Guest bandito
9/11 is starting to feel minor in comparison. That was 2 buildings. This was multiple cities.
41266[/snapback]
oh this is way worse than 9/11. these people, if they live, are now all homeless. 9/11 didn't do that kind of damage.
Yeah, worse. Sounds controversial to say, but today it became officially true. Like a lot of mograph members I was there for 9/11. It only hit those people in the towers. I lived just above Houston, and I could walk around without problem, nobody was without food, no looting, no corpses on the streets. The cops were like 20 to a corner on every single intersection. There was so much heat you didn't even want to drop a gum wrapper. Cops in NOLA have a hard time even getting to the places they have to protect.
Btw, turns out that the police presence right after 9/11 deterred a terrorist who was planning to blow the Brooklyn Bridge. I just learned that from an article. Maybe it was common knowledge. Having all those cops for all those weeks after 9/11 had him emailing back to Pakistan saying 'it's too hot now.'
This makes you appreciate how great the NYC cops were, and how good the NYers themselves were. Oh, except Bernie Kerik of course, that dick.
Guest alvinseah
Well, I believe everything happenned for a reason.
There was Southern Decadence, Girls Gone Wild and many more.
Let's not push it anymore shall we?
Guest scottgfx
But okay, to take the heat off our idiot president and go more local...
The man went to an ivy league school and flew fighter jets. Yeah, some idiot. Can we possibly get past the petty, trivial, political shit and focus on the important issues?
Homeland Security has been focused on what... anyone? 9/11? Terrorist threats? Is the government now supposed to go after Mother Nature? This nation has been struck by natural disasters before, and we will get though this. Did any of you here foresee how bad Katrina would be? I care not to trivialize this event, but horrible things like earthquakes and tsunamis have occurred all over the world in the past few years with similar consequences. Things were not magically better the next day there either. There has to be time to assess the damage and formulate a strategy on how to fix things.
...nobody was without food, no looting, no corpses on the streets. The cops were like 20 to a corner on every single intersection...
Yeah, cause the entire island of Manhatten wasn't under water.
Guest borax
Uh... hoo.... guys I think we should stay out of this one...
In my work environment I work with people on both sides of the political fence. Today, I had to get up and walk out of my office after listening to a small group nearby, talk about Bush being behind the rise in gas prices. It's one thing to blame the President and express ones views, but another when the discussion is full of childish rants and vulgarities. Rather than get in their face, I calmly got up and walked out of the area. There is only so much I can take. Thousands of lives are in the balance, and my esteemed coworkers can only see what affects them directly. Sure, blame Bush; While your at it, blame the French for building the F-ing city in the first place. You can take any argument to the nth degree of absurdity. Why don't we just stop it now and focus.
You can't ignore the total anarchy that seems to be present at this time, and there is more to this then mother nature. It seems there are at least some problems with the local authorities, blaiming it all on Bush might be a bit much.
It seems the National guard is even shooting people at this moment.
http://www.cnn.com/2005/WEATHER/09/02/katr...pact/index.html
You can't ignore the total anarchy that seems to be present at this time, and there is more to this then mother nature. It seems there are at least some problems with the local authorities, blaming it all on Bush might be a bit much.
Very true, and very sad. I know a designer who was working in NO. I haven't dared to ask how he is, nor do I have any contact info other than his business. I know he has family in Florida, so I hope he is with them. I haven't seen Amydot here lately and like everyone else, I am worried. I'm not a religious person by any stretch of the imagination, but a prayer wouldn't hurt.
I was just now thinking about your report on the local police. Yeah, I've heard similar stories. I would imagine that the local police are in the same state of shock that the citizens are and a certain amount of paranoia and fear permeate every thought and decision. It's frightening to imagine yourself in such a situation and realize that you might not react any differently.
Edited September 2, 2005 by scottgfx
Guest ai
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hurricane_Katrina
local tv via yahoo (wmv)
http://playlist.yahoo.com/makeplaylist.dll?id=1377930
Edited September 2, 2005 by ai
Sorry, Scott, but there's a stiff in a chaise who's trying to tell us something--that president codpiece really screwed the pooch.
But good news today: Fats Domino lives!
Major Ray Nagin of NO speaks (WMV)
And he been talkin to the president.
CNN has a transcript
Edited September 3, 2005 by borax
Guest nextseason
Most of our resources and national guard are in Iraq, all of our money is in Iraq.
It's no wonder things are going down the way they are.
The Bush administration and their supporters sicken me to the core of my soul.
Bush administration? How about the entire federal government. This is a monumental collapse that our government, republicans and democrats alike is responsible for.
Bush's zero tolerance comments towards looting is a joke. Better for people to die of hunger and thirst than steal what's necessary. I don't condone people taking TV's and stuff like that, but the essentials? Come on. We can drop food from helicopters in Baghdad but we can't do the same here? And he calls himself a Christian?
The National Guard, which should never have left the country in the first place, won't be called back to help their home states?
The average american should make sacrifices, but big corporations can jack up gas prices and make a huge profit, since they'll donate a small chunk of change to relief?
The head of FEMA should be fired today, and anyone in charge of getting food, water and medical supplies to New Orleans should be brought up on criminal charges.
Does anyone think if this was a bunch of white, middle-class people, the response would have been the same? No way. And don't talk about how tough it is to get to the places where help is needed. I don't see reporters having any problems getting around.
It's sad when Bush is more concerned about the looters than the people dying. These are our fellow Americans in desperate need .. and the response has been underwhelming to say the least. I'm ashamed and outraged at our government and its callous attitude. I've seen officials blame the people for staying .. as if some had any choice or means to escape.
The cold-heartedness of this is frightening. And I blame Bush and every other government official, republican or democrat who's done dick so far.
Guest paccollective
...looks like i'm living with my crappy linoleum kitchen floor for while longer; a small thing.
God be with them.