The infants, elderly and sick who have died should have taken some personal responsibility and not been infants, elderly and sick so they could have left the city before Katrina hit.
On the other had, if the Bush Administration takes money out of the "fixing the levee" budget to put it into the "Damn, we really kinda thought Iraq had WMDs -- except for the times we knew we were lying" budget, there is no personal responsibility there.
It's so simple, really.
(And rats are eating bodies on the streets of New Orleans.)
6 comments:
Yup, all of America's problems are George Bush's fault. And I mean EVERY ONE.
Even natural disasters. So what that hundreds of millions of dollars have been sunk into that levee for FORTY years.
The budget (passed by Congress, by the way, signed by Bush)was reduced, not elimanted, for that levee, AND ITS ALL BUSH'S FAULT.
And another thing, that hurricane, and the sunamee, yeah that's the ticket, were Bush's fault too! BECAUSE HE DIDN'T SIGN KOYOTO!
And you know what, I bet he was behind the steel mills leaving here 25 years ago, and........
A city of nearly half a million people needed to be evacuated...a city that is one of the poorest in the nation where almost half did not have a car. That requires help beyond local authorities. Those who couldn't get out needed the basics of life: water, food, medicine and shelter. That is beyond the capabilities of the local authorites when 80% of that city is under water. And, it wasn't the only city or state affected. This type of NATIONAL emergency requires a NATIONAL response and you know it.
You need to learn how the system works:
The Prez cannot send in active military in the continental US whenever he wants - its in the Constitution.
The real failure started at the local level - the worthless mayor, crying governor showed no capacity to lead or understand the problem.
The governor must ask for federal help. This falls back on states rights.When this occured, the feds did not act swiftly enough.
What's my point? You're too busy blaming W for every problem in the world that you can't see anything clearly.
Federal troops may not help in terms of LAW ENFORCEMENT without a request from the state -- that does nt ean that they cannot say, drop in water or food.
Additonally:
From the Department of Homeland Security Website:
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.
Moreover:
1) The delay in federal aid in the form of food, water and meds for the displaced within NO, especially at the Superdome and Convention Center, in air drops or any other form, has been implausibly long, as the media, Ray Nagin, etc., have more or less screamed to anyone who'd listen.The military was well-prepared beforehand -- they started planning as the storm went over Florida, and had 9 million MREs ready to deliver. But protocol requires they await orders from FEMA or the president (via Terre on DKos).New Mexico offered its National Guard on Sunday, again, before the storm hit, and Louisiana accepted, but "paperwork needed to get the troops en route didn't come from Washington until late Thursday" (Yahoo via Atrios.)FEMA director Mike Brown claimed that FEMA didn't know about the Convention Centre situation until Thursday (CNN) -- here we have an example of a). This simply cannot be true; even for purely partisan operatives, duties include following the networks.All through, the victims were promised supplies and transportation to safety -- c). Likewise Ray Nagin was stalled by promises of help from FEMA/Homeland Security: "I keep hearing that it's coming. This is coming, that is coming, and my answer to that today is: B.S." (his kickbutt interview on WWL, quoted everywhere)
2) Before the hurricane hit, Gov. Kathleen Blanco requested Washington provide disaster relief aid, including military personnel and $5 million for evacuation. No military personnel showed up until Sept. 2; as far as I can tell, the $5 million was not received in time to aid with the evacuation. No reason given. The governor now knows to make sure the media sees her requests as well as the president, demands his "personal involvement" viz her presser of yesterday.
3) Rescue operations were suspended by FEMA due to shots being taken at helicopter -- a) -- as many DKos commenters have pointed out, National Guard rescuers shouldn't be discouraged by this. There's some doubt it happened at all, as at the bottom of this ABC story. In the vast majority of cases this was likely not to be a danger at all.
4) Offers of help were refused:
Canadian rescue teams -- held up by Homeland Security (DKos diary)
air-boat volunteers required by FEMA to pay for their own gasoline, couldn't afford to (DKos diary), turned down even if they could (South Florida Sun-Sentinel)
Al Gore - airplanes -- refused by FEMA (CNN) because he was going to evacuate a private hospital, and FEMA mandate only allows aid to public hospitals
Chicago mayor Richard Daley -- via espo111 on DKos, from Chicago Sun-Times: "Mayor of Chicago Richard Daley offered 36 firefighters and technical rescue teams, 8 emergency medical techs, search-and-rescue equipment, 100 police officers, 2 boats, a mobile clinic and 140 streets and sanitation workers with 29 trucks. All self-sufficient. And the FEMA response? 'Just send one truck.' "That they accepted one truck rather than turning down all shows a clear intent to appear to be accepting the offer while in effect refusing it -- which is deceptive.FEMA's refusal to pay for airboat gas came solely through DKos -- suggesting that FEMA isn't saying these things where the media will hear -- b).
More individual cases in this Help Offered-Rejected/Delayed diary by SarahLee.
5) Offers of desperately-needed equipment/supplies were also turned down by FEMA in Slidell, supposedly due to bureaucratic regulations -- a). Slidell mayor Ben Morris (audio, transcript): "They have turned generators away from us. They´ve turned fuel away from us because they determine, or the driver determined, that it wasn´t the correct spot to put it. The generators ... oh, the site hadn´t been inspected yet. We´ve gotta bring an inspector to see where the thing is going. ...We have heard that FEMA or some federal agencies are going around seizing equipment from our contractors..."
6) Private relief agencies (Red Cross, Salvation Army) are prevented from working in NO, by FEMA. Reason given -- a) -- this would keep people from leaving the city. The idea, apparently, was to make conditions so unbearable people would be forced to leave or face death. But at the same time, no transportation was being provided them. This came via Kossack SteveRose who writes that he was cagily asked by his source if he was a member of the media -- b). Red Cross website confirms they aren't allowed to go in.
7) The military is now disallowing people to leave the city on their own via the only way out, at the same time that no transportation is being provided (Shepard Smith and Geraldo Rivera -- Fox News). In these situations the military is directed by FEMA.
And:
Date: 9/2/2005
Contact:Denise Bottcher or Roderick Hawkins at 225-342-9037
Letter from Governor Blanco to President Bush
September 2, 2005
The President
The White House
Washington, D.C.
Dear Mr. President:
Let me first thank you for your leadership during this unprecedented natural disaster. Your pledge of assistance for the initial and long-term recovery efforts is reflective of the tremendous outpouring of support by the citizens of our great country. Although we have been dealt a devastating blow, I can assure you Louisiana will recover, rebuild, and restore our communities.
Based on our initial assessment, I have previously requested significant federal support to include: an additional 40,000 troops; trailers of water, ice and food; commercial buses; base camps; staging areas; amphibious personnel carriers; deployable morgues; urban search and rescue teams; airlift; temporary housing; and communications systems. Even if these initial requests had been fully honored, these assets would not be sufficient to address our critical, immediate needs. Additional assistance requirements for the federal government are outlined below. As we continue to assess our needs, I will ensure you receive our updated requirements.
I request the expeditious return of the Headquarters of the 256th Brigade Combat Team as they have completed their mission in the Iraqi theatre of operations and they are urgently needed here at home. I request that you remission this unit to Louisiana where they will become part of the recovery efforts in their home state. As the remainder of the Brigade returns, I request that they be missioned by the Department of Defense to assist civil authorities in Hurricane Katrina recovery operations in Louisiana.
To increase the responsiveness of our humanitarian relief operations, FEMA should establish a second Operational Staging Base (OSB) in Baton Rouge. Currently we have only one OSB in Pineville. Establishment of a second OSB will cut in half the response time to our most affected parishes. This will raise our local distribution points from 21 to 35, significantly increasing our support to the neediest citizens. Our current requirement for water, ice and MREs is 100 trucks of each per day; our requirement will increase to 200 trucks of each per day when we increase local distribution points.
Our communications grid was devastated and we need significant assistance in restoring governmental communications. The reestablishment of cell phone coverage and public safety networks is necessary to establish communications among governmental officials at all levels and among response agencies. The radio system that is currently operational in the greater New Orleans area was designed to support 800 users; there are currently 2500 users. To address the radio communications requirements, we need additional frequencies: 25 800-MHz trunking repeaters, tower crews, 1000 portable radios, three hundred-foot tower trailers, and additional BellSouth and Motorola staff. I also require additional staffed mobile command centers that provide satellite uplink to support additional voice and data needs at public safety and governmental sites.
I want aerial and ground firefighting support to address the growing danger of fire. This support should include both equipment and trained personnel.
A critical element of our military response is equipment, particularly vehicles. As military units are flown in to assist us in our recovery efforts, I request a fleet of military vehicles that will remain in the affected areas. Therefore, I am requesting access to military trucks, HMMWVs and other vehicles. Fort Polk, Louisiana, has a prepositioned fleet of military vehicles that could be accessed very quickly; however, there may be other sources that may be available quicker.
I request 175 generators to enable the parishes to provide electricity for critical local operations and state offices to better support affected citizens. As I review this requirement with our parishes, this number will undoubtedly increase. I need additional diesel fuel supplies.
Preventative health is a priority to prevent the spread of disease. Our state medical team is currently assessing these requirements; I need considerable personnel, equipment, drugs, vaccines and other medical supplies.
We have experienced a significant loss of life and as we transition from our initial emphasis on search and rescue, we require assistance with mortuary affairs. It is my pledge to the citizens of Louisiana that we will conduct this task with as much dignity as possible; to accomplish this I need federal assets to work closely with state and local officials.
Livestock and other animals were also victims of this tragic storm. I need assistance to deal with injured animals and also with animal remains.
Mr. President, only your personal involvement will ensure the immediate delivery of federal assets needed to save lives that are in jeopardy hour by hour. I know you will take the actions necessary to make this happen. As the recovery efforts continue, I will provide you a reassessment of needs. Again, thank you for your support of the citizens of Louisiana.
Sincerely,
Kathleen Babineaux Blanco
Governor
State of Louisiana
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