rant.
i've been watching/listening to coverage of what's going on in New Orleans (and all of the Gulf coast, for that matter) consistently for the last few days. at first it was just my somewhat obsessive interest in natural disasters, but then as more and more stories came out, it became an interest in the people stuck there, and ultimately their survival.
the fact that so little is being done to help and/or rescue these people is absolutely appalling. this happened on sunday, and national guard troops were just deployed today, and won't arrive until sunday. a navy medical ship won't even leave Norfolk until sunday. how is this acceptable? even George Bush, grand idiot that he is, said that this sort of response is unacceptable.
well here's a little bit of information, George. these are your organizations. this is your military. FEMA operates under your watch. and the Marine Corps of Engineers that's been asking for money to reinforce those levees in New Orleans since the 60's and 70's? you continued to cut their budget.
how could more protection not be allowed for a city that sits right on the Gulf of Mexico, one of the more prolific areas for hurricane occurrence? add to that the fact that New Orleans lay below sea level. i'm not suggesting anything ridiculous like putting a bubble around the city or anything, but the money should have been there to reinforce those levees. congress is in the process of approving $10.5 billion for a relief fund, which by all accounts and estimates, will be just the first of many allotments for such.
don't you think reinforcing those levees would have been a lot cheaper? not to say that would have completely spared New Orleans, but it sure as hell would have helped. now all of New Orleans is, for lack of a better word, fucked. and that's just based on what we see on TV, mostly the Convention Center. there's still countless numbers of people stuck in countless neighborhoods that are still dealing with 10 feet of water. people that are still stuck on rooftops, or in their houses, or wherever they can find refuge.
why is this government so incapable of helping it's own people? when the September 11th attacks occurred, it didn't seem to be a problem to get to Manhattan. but when there's a disaster in New Orleans, this time mostly affecting lower class black families, there's no help. does this seem a little strange to anyone else?
there are claims by the government and law enforcement that they "can't get to the Convention Center", yet all of the major news stations have had no problem getting their vans and crews there. hell, Harry Connick Jr had no problem getting in there, and emerged unharmed, despite law enforcement claims that it's "too violent" to go in without the 30,000 national guard troops that are supposed to arrive on sunday.
there are New Orleans police officers turning in their badges because they're afraid to face looters. what the hell is wrong with you?!? your job is to protect and to serve, that's what you signed on for, not to turn and run like a bitch! i know New Orleans is known for a somewhat lax police force (ask anyone who's been to Mardi Gras), but jesus christ, step up and do your job. these people, whom you're supposed to protect and to serve, need your help. they're sick, they're dying, they're completely hopeless. you need to do what you can to give them, at the very least, some hope.
i've seen images of people laying dead on the streets of New Orleans; a woman dead in her wheelchair, covered up with a blanket; bodies floating around in the water, which at this point is the only water these people could possibly drink. there are babies on the verge of death from dehydration. kids picking through the trash just to try to find something to eat. New Orleans right now looks like Somalia.
the horror stories i've heard over the past few days make me realize how much we take for granted the fact that we live in an area that, barring something truly bizarre, will never have to deal with such an emergency. the rest of the country (myself included, initially) was spending too much time bitching about how gas prices are going up because of damage done to refineries in the Gulf, but there are thousands and thousands of people down there that have far worse problems, people that are trapped because they don't even have a car to worry about getting gas for.
on that subject, why wasn't more done to evacuate New Orleans? they knew the hurricane was coming their way. granted, some people chose to stay to try and ride it out, but from what i understand, there was nothing done to assist people without cars or the money to rent a car/take a bus to get out of the city. it's like they were completely overlooked, "sorry, you're poor. you'll just have to deal with what comes to you".
the mayor of New Orleans has been openly critical of the president and the government in general for not coming in to help, but he ran to Baton Rouge! why aren't you in there doing you part to help your citizens? i realize that the mayor, of course, doesn't have nearly the ability to help that the federal government does, but the last thing you should do is run from your city.
at this point, almost all faith i had left in our government (which wasn't much to begin with), is lost. 28 people combined from the Loudoun County sheriff's department and the rescue squad left yesterday for New Orleans in trucks loaded with food, water, and other supplies. stepping up to do something. but they never got word from FEMA that they were allowed, so they had to turn around and come back. the government is refusing help to the people of New Orleans!
so seriously, if you can afford to donate to the Red Cross, do it. all the people in New Orleans, and all over the Gulf coast, need as much help as possible. at the very least, keep them in your thoughts and prayers.
(update - i just found out that the 28 people from Loudoun County are waiting at the Virginia border for the ok to go in to New Orleans. the problem is, the ok has to come from the emergency management officials in New Orleans, and as we all know, they don't exactly have working phones or even electricity there. i also found out that in the areas effected by the hurricane, a $5 purchase limit has been set on gasoline, so any trucks that are going in to try and help bring supplies are having a hell of a time getting out.)
the fact that so little is being done to help and/or rescue these people is absolutely appalling. this happened on sunday, and national guard troops were just deployed today, and won't arrive until sunday. a navy medical ship won't even leave Norfolk until sunday. how is this acceptable? even George Bush, grand idiot that he is, said that this sort of response is unacceptable.
well here's a little bit of information, George. these are your organizations. this is your military. FEMA operates under your watch. and the Marine Corps of Engineers that's been asking for money to reinforce those levees in New Orleans since the 60's and 70's? you continued to cut their budget.
how could more protection not be allowed for a city that sits right on the Gulf of Mexico, one of the more prolific areas for hurricane occurrence? add to that the fact that New Orleans lay below sea level. i'm not suggesting anything ridiculous like putting a bubble around the city or anything, but the money should have been there to reinforce those levees. congress is in the process of approving $10.5 billion for a relief fund, which by all accounts and estimates, will be just the first of many allotments for such.
don't you think reinforcing those levees would have been a lot cheaper? not to say that would have completely spared New Orleans, but it sure as hell would have helped. now all of New Orleans is, for lack of a better word, fucked. and that's just based on what we see on TV, mostly the Convention Center. there's still countless numbers of people stuck in countless neighborhoods that are still dealing with 10 feet of water. people that are still stuck on rooftops, or in their houses, or wherever they can find refuge.
why is this government so incapable of helping it's own people? when the September 11th attacks occurred, it didn't seem to be a problem to get to Manhattan. but when there's a disaster in New Orleans, this time mostly affecting lower class black families, there's no help. does this seem a little strange to anyone else?
there are claims by the government and law enforcement that they "can't get to the Convention Center", yet all of the major news stations have had no problem getting their vans and crews there. hell, Harry Connick Jr had no problem getting in there, and emerged unharmed, despite law enforcement claims that it's "too violent" to go in without the 30,000 national guard troops that are supposed to arrive on sunday.
there are New Orleans police officers turning in their badges because they're afraid to face looters. what the hell is wrong with you?!? your job is to protect and to serve, that's what you signed on for, not to turn and run like a bitch! i know New Orleans is known for a somewhat lax police force (ask anyone who's been to Mardi Gras), but jesus christ, step up and do your job. these people, whom you're supposed to protect and to serve, need your help. they're sick, they're dying, they're completely hopeless. you need to do what you can to give them, at the very least, some hope.
i've seen images of people laying dead on the streets of New Orleans; a woman dead in her wheelchair, covered up with a blanket; bodies floating around in the water, which at this point is the only water these people could possibly drink. there are babies on the verge of death from dehydration. kids picking through the trash just to try to find something to eat. New Orleans right now looks like Somalia.
the horror stories i've heard over the past few days make me realize how much we take for granted the fact that we live in an area that, barring something truly bizarre, will never have to deal with such an emergency. the rest of the country (myself included, initially) was spending too much time bitching about how gas prices are going up because of damage done to refineries in the Gulf, but there are thousands and thousands of people down there that have far worse problems, people that are trapped because they don't even have a car to worry about getting gas for.
on that subject, why wasn't more done to evacuate New Orleans? they knew the hurricane was coming their way. granted, some people chose to stay to try and ride it out, but from what i understand, there was nothing done to assist people without cars or the money to rent a car/take a bus to get out of the city. it's like they were completely overlooked, "sorry, you're poor. you'll just have to deal with what comes to you".
the mayor of New Orleans has been openly critical of the president and the government in general for not coming in to help, but he ran to Baton Rouge! why aren't you in there doing you part to help your citizens? i realize that the mayor, of course, doesn't have nearly the ability to help that the federal government does, but the last thing you should do is run from your city.
at this point, almost all faith i had left in our government (which wasn't much to begin with), is lost. 28 people combined from the Loudoun County sheriff's department and the rescue squad left yesterday for New Orleans in trucks loaded with food, water, and other supplies. stepping up to do something. but they never got word from FEMA that they were allowed, so they had to turn around and come back. the government is refusing help to the people of New Orleans!
so seriously, if you can afford to donate to the Red Cross, do it. all the people in New Orleans, and all over the Gulf coast, need as much help as possible. at the very least, keep them in your thoughts and prayers.
(update - i just found out that the 28 people from Loudoun County are waiting at the Virginia border for the ok to go in to New Orleans. the problem is, the ok has to come from the emergency management officials in New Orleans, and as we all know, they don't exactly have working phones or even electricity there. i also found out that in the areas effected by the hurricane, a $5 purchase limit has been set on gasoline, so any trucks that are going in to try and help bring supplies are having a hell of a time getting out.)