(no subject)
And here's my response to that editorial:
It's a fact that New Orleans is one of the poorest cities in the US
in terms of inner city and black communities. It's not the citizens that were
stuck in nursing homes, stuck downtown cuz they had no personal vehicles, or
drowning in the streets who failed to build up the levees.
President Bush directly cut the funding for the levees to finance his war in Iraq. The
levees were a federal program. Private citizens cannot raise money to build
federal programs. Furthermore, Bush gave businesses the go-ahead to drain the
wetlands around New Orleans to build more casinos and other attractions for rich
tourists. The wetlands are a natural barrier against hurricanes, and I bet it
wasn't New Orleans residents and authors building the casinos there, nor
supporting them.
The mayor did fail. The governor did fail. But most of all, the federal government failed. In a country where Congress can convene a special session in one day to decide the fate of one white woman, but takes almost a week to decide to send in help for poor blacks, I'd say we have our priorities a bit mixed. Personally, I'm tired of everyone pointing fingers, and everyone blaming everyone else. I'm tired of the press conferences, and the
meetings and interviews. Most of all, I find it deplorable that this journalist would find it okay to slam the residents of New Orleans for their losses and setbacks.
Maybe I'm corny, maybe I'm idealistic, but I don't think that's the basis this country was founded on. Any man who would find the ability in himself to write "a noticeable number of your neighbors saw this disaster as an opportunity to smash a window and run away with a television, an act that reveals much about the inadequacies of the local school system, since that thief won't be enjoying that television with any electricity anytime soon," is nothing more trash. Also, to quote this man who calls himself a journalist, " I would also note that this is one hell of a police force your local officials hired and that you and your neighbors tolerated. 50 percent turned in their badges during the crisis and quit."
I know for a fact, since I've been to New Orleans on a number of occassions, that people have complained about the police force. Black people. Poor black people. The same kind of poor black people that populate areas of New York and Los Angeles. Except that, over there, those people are just called hoodlums, gangsters, thugs, or racists.
As I recall, New York and New Jersey has been home to some hate crimes in which convenience stores have been burned, and the word "terrorist" and "sand nigger" scrawled across the facades - funny, many of those same stores were not owned by Arabs, but by Hindus and Indians. Says a lot, not about the education level of
these people, but about their moral standards. And they don't just live in one area, they live everywhere.
I also recall that New Orleans was built in 1718 by... the FRENCH. Not the current residents of that city. So don't blame them for building a city below sea level. And don't blame them for living there, either. As I recall, Los Angeles has been around since 1769, and has been devastated by fires and earthquakes since it's founding.
Did this "journalist" write about the stupidity of L.A. residents and how he felt no compassion towards them for building their city on an earthquake fault line, when that city was devastated by that last major earthquake?
I don't know who this guy thinks he is, but I think instead of blaming other politicians, or leveling blame at VICTIMS of a disaster, we should simply ban together, show a little kindness in our hearts, and help our fellow Americans, no matter what our differences may be. And yes... I think we can all chip in some cash to help rebuild New Orleans, the same way we've done with New York, with Los Angeles, with San Francisco, with Galveston, with Houston, and many other American cities struck by disaster.
~ C.
It's a fact that New Orleans is one of the poorest cities in the US
in terms of inner city and black communities. It's not the citizens that were
stuck in nursing homes, stuck downtown cuz they had no personal vehicles, or
drowning in the streets who failed to build up the levees.
President Bush directly cut the funding for the levees to finance his war in Iraq. The
levees were a federal program. Private citizens cannot raise money to build
federal programs. Furthermore, Bush gave businesses the go-ahead to drain the
wetlands around New Orleans to build more casinos and other attractions for rich
tourists. The wetlands are a natural barrier against hurricanes, and I bet it
wasn't New Orleans residents and authors building the casinos there, nor
supporting them.
The mayor did fail. The governor did fail. But most of all, the federal government failed. In a country where Congress can convene a special session in one day to decide the fate of one white woman, but takes almost a week to decide to send in help for poor blacks, I'd say we have our priorities a bit mixed. Personally, I'm tired of everyone pointing fingers, and everyone blaming everyone else. I'm tired of the press conferences, and the
meetings and interviews. Most of all, I find it deplorable that this journalist would find it okay to slam the residents of New Orleans for their losses and setbacks.
Maybe I'm corny, maybe I'm idealistic, but I don't think that's the basis this country was founded on. Any man who would find the ability in himself to write "a noticeable number of your neighbors saw this disaster as an opportunity to smash a window and run away with a television, an act that reveals much about the inadequacies of the local school system, since that thief won't be enjoying that television with any electricity anytime soon," is nothing more trash. Also, to quote this man who calls himself a journalist, " I would also note that this is one hell of a police force your local officials hired and that you and your neighbors tolerated. 50 percent turned in their badges during the crisis and quit."
I know for a fact, since I've been to New Orleans on a number of occassions, that people have complained about the police force. Black people. Poor black people. The same kind of poor black people that populate areas of New York and Los Angeles. Except that, over there, those people are just called hoodlums, gangsters, thugs, or racists.
As I recall, New York and New Jersey has been home to some hate crimes in which convenience stores have been burned, and the word "terrorist" and "sand nigger" scrawled across the facades - funny, many of those same stores were not owned by Arabs, but by Hindus and Indians. Says a lot, not about the education level of
these people, but about their moral standards. And they don't just live in one area, they live everywhere.
I also recall that New Orleans was built in 1718 by... the FRENCH. Not the current residents of that city. So don't blame them for building a city below sea level. And don't blame them for living there, either. As I recall, Los Angeles has been around since 1769, and has been devastated by fires and earthquakes since it's founding.
Did this "journalist" write about the stupidity of L.A. residents and how he felt no compassion towards them for building their city on an earthquake fault line, when that city was devastated by that last major earthquake?
I don't know who this guy thinks he is, but I think instead of blaming other politicians, or leveling blame at VICTIMS of a disaster, we should simply ban together, show a little kindness in our hearts, and help our fellow Americans, no matter what our differences may be. And yes... I think we can all chip in some cash to help rebuild New Orleans, the same way we've done with New York, with Los Angeles, with San Francisco, with Galveston, with Houston, and many other American cities struck by disaster.
~ C.