That's what happens when mother hen is elected. You would think they would have emergency personnel already mobilized instead of waiting until after the storm. I guess they assumed it wouldn't be that. Nagin definitely knew how bad it was going to be, but that is about it. It seems it is like the blind leading the blind.
Everyone is saying how things are being handled wrong. Besides the police chief in N.O., I don't believe anyone is in the 'trenches'. A fine job it is not, brother. I'm glad you made it out. Good luck and I'm sorry for your loss. http://www.suntimes.com/output/hurricane/31loot.html
I don't blame Bush, Blanco, Nagin, or anybody for not being perfect at a time like this. A friggin' hurricane is responsible for all of this and armchair governors like us looking to find a scapegoat to blame at this time is just sad and misguided. Tirk, I imagine the people in charge are having a hard time simply wishing things into existence like you can there at your keyboard. Poof! let there be 10 Kentwood trucks everywhere we need them! I hear what you are saying, but the real world is more difficult. Especially right now with no communications, few passable roads, and nowhere near the logistical support that is still on the way. Not to mention people are still in the water. Some of them are dying in the water. That has to remain the immediate priority. George Bush made a lot of key promises today and offered much valuable assistance but they will not be instantly available. Every day more resources arrive, in the meantime some serious decisions are being made to allocate the slim resources available right now. Immediately there must be many parallel efforts going on to get everybody addressing problems. But the Louisiana Office of Emergency Preparedness is doing most of the coordinating because they have a well-equipped center designed for dealing with emergencies like this. They are used to working with their federal and parish counterparts as well as the police and military. As the situation improves, so will the assistance and so will the coordination. LSU employees returned to work today and my department sent clerical help over to OEP to help out people who have been working 16-hour shifts. FEMA has established a local emergency headquarters and miltary headquarters are coming in which will greatly improve coordination. The restoration of telephone cellphone communication will help immensely.
Not really. I've never blamed him for things that were beyond his control. Only for his actions. So far his actions in this Katrina crisis have been quite good. Just talk so far, of course, but like the tsunami, federal aid will likely start slowly yet gain steam and eventually meet all the goals. But it won't be cheap.
Someone on tv earlier today stated it better than anyone: "Get Rudolph Giuliani on a plane down to Louisiana as soon as possible!"
no way you can say that with all the resources at hand they did not have access to bottled water and a means to get there before noon today. our stupid 15 mile road marches were more organized than this dude. Im not gonna allow this to be spun as its hard since we are playing armchair qb. these are simple things in this circumstance and whether its a lack of hierarchy control with power transferring to a federal level or what it remains a serious blunder amongst others. some things you just have to call it like it is. I even tried to give edith credit in spite of all this today as well as Mary Landrieu...though its not always easy.
Hurricane Katrina: The good, the bad, the let's-shoot-them-now. A great article on leadership in the current crisis by Peggy Noonan. ( A former Ronald Reagan speechwriter) Excerpt- Louisiana's Gov. Kathleen Blanco was shakier, but she can recover. She wore her heart on her face, not always helpful in a leader in crisis. Excerpt- As for the tragic piggism that is taking place on the streets of New Orleans, it is not unbelievable but it is unforgivable, and I hope the looters are shot. A hurricane cannot rob a great city of its spirit, but a vicious citizenry can. A bad time with Mother Nature can leave you digging out for a long time, but a bad turn in human behavior frays and tears all the ties that truly bind human being--trust, confidence, mutual regard, belief in the essential goodness of one's fellow citizens. LINK http://www.opinionjournal.com/columnists/pnoonan/
my 2¢.................while the current leaders may not be doing a satisfactory job, the majority of the blame must go on those idiots that decided to only build the levee to contain cat3 storms. im not an engineer, but i damn well know that if you need a cable to hold a 1000 lb load you dont use a cable rated to hold 1000 lbs. and you damn well dont use a cable rated to hold 600 lbs. you use a cable rated to carry MORE weight (probably 2000 lbs). that levee should be built to contain cat5+. whoever made that decision just killed a lot of people.
Those idiots extend all the way up to Washington D.C. They have sucked oil & gas from this state for 50 plus years and have put little or nothing back. The US Army Corps is responsible for these levees. LA including those singled out in this post, have been screaming for action ALL UPON DEAF FEDERAL EARS. Emergency relief, Coastal erosion & Flood protection ARE NOW THE #1 TOPIC IN DC, and LA will get some attention, MAYBE.
