As we get used to the fact that the city of New Orleansis no more or now, people shift their tone. Trying to put things in perspective. And 9/11 comes to mind, not only because it will be four years in a week.
People compare Katrina with 9/11. I did so here as well.
It is just now that I realized that it does not work like that. Essentially there was one rather huge city block in NYC that was hit in 2001. Now it is an entire city. The rest of the city and country was paralysed. By shock and surprise. Given the details of this event nor a surprise at all. But 5 miles upward the houses still worked. McDonnalds could feed people quickly what they apparently like to eat. Drug dealers where delivering their goods to their clients.
Kartina is different. It is a real catastrophy. For four years now everything has been justified and aligned against the tragedy that 9/11 undoubtfully was.
But it is haunting us and the Bush administration now:
Many people put up with allot of bull just because theIf y thought it would keep the US save. Those claims of safety in regards to Terror are as false as they are in regards to nature.
If 9/11 would have not been made the ‘mother of all tragedies’ maybe there would be more grieving potential for a catastrophy that really is one.
And then, when you hit the nail on the head, people will read it.
This kind of extreme view and language is not new to the discussion. But it used to be the right wing side, or that outer fringe there off. Those sketchy attack dogs.
The other side grew some teeth. And as long as the rap flows like in what Steve wrote I must admit: I think it is the right way to say these things.
Otherwise it won’t get heard. We tried and failed: Bush is in his second term.
Department of Homeland Security
They certainly doing their job.
From day one.
addition:
Their Budget is 38 billion dollars for 2005.
Let’s say that 200,000 people are stuck in New Orleans.
In the last five days the Department of Homeland Security Budget divided on those 200,000 people would have been 2,600 US$. Enough for a bus ride. But he money went probably elsewhere.
this Government always had trouble dealing with realities.
Now that the grim realities are not on the other side of the globe
it is starting to hurt.
New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson offered Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Blanco help from his state's National Guard last Sunday, the day before Hurricane Katrina hit Louisiana. Blanco accepted, but paperwork needed to get the troops en route didn't come from Washington until late Thursday.
from here
Trent Lott says here: “It is hard to put a positive spin on this”.
Poor guy. He certainly has problems.
don’t make you happy. At least not if you are Uncle Fester.
National Geographics writes about New Orleans eleven months ago.
The only thing they did not predict is the apparent incompetence of this administration. I am glad Condy has a good time.
two years ago I read an article on the web in some engineering paper. Something littled “What is that sucking noise”. The way I remember it it said that most gadgets would get sucked into the phone. You have that one with you all the time. It has a CPU and a battery and a display. The PhoneCos have a huge need to get you to sign up again. New phones with more “features” do that. I would call this more “Freactures”.
First the phone killed the PDA, then it took a healthy slice out of the digicam market. Now mp3 players. And next there will be players for moving images.
With those phones there is always a money connection. The PhoneCos already get paid by the user. Big freaking difference
to the internet.
So all that boring mainstream content will try to get sold on those little devices.
We remember: In a tight selection Mr B. became President.
His first months were so/so. At best. No big approval, compassionate conservatism was not really anywhere in sight.
Then came that day in September. A national disaster. Caused by some fucked up/crazy Saudis. But there were human culprits:
Bush vowed to “smoke them out”, and everybody started loving him.
Flags where everywhere. And the country was behind his leader.
So much, that during the ’04 election all he needed to get back in the oval office is to repeat his mantra of “September the eleventh”. OK, running against Hermann Munster made things easier as well.
Wiith the “War on Terror” you could get basically everything done.
OK, getting your bodies hands on Social Security funds didn’t work. But almost everything else you can justify with that.
With Katrina disaster did strike again. This time there are no arabic culprits. Some people claim that this storm is part of the
global warming thing. Unproofable. Let’s forget about that.
But what is there is the fact that much of the National Guard is in Iraq, and not in the US.
Levee’s broke. And money that should have used on them was not there. Again going to that conflict in Iraq.
And, the solution is more complex: You could declare a “War on Nature” now. But I think nature will be unimpressed.
This is how Mr B. and reality lined up yesterday.
this article starts
"I admit it. Like anyone else with a decent-speed connection to the Internet, I collect a lot of images. For example, a few months ago, I described a program that looks through Yahoo! news images for pictures of Oregon and some of my favorite singing stars.
Oregon ?
Singing stars?
yeah, right. please!