3 Days
For the past 3 days, we've seen absolute devastation and death from Hurricane Katrina. Bush was on Good Morning America this morning to answer why it took him 3 days to respond to this disaster, knowing when and where the hurricane would strike, days before. His answer: "I fully understand people wanting things to have happened yesterday" NO. They wanted things to happen BEFORE the disaster happened. The thug went on to say: "I understand the anxiety of people on the ground. … So there is frustration. But I want people to know there's a lot of help coming." You hear that New Orleans residents? Help is coming. Hang on to your rooftop a little longer. Stay in your floating car another day. You haven't showered or changed your clothes since Monday, but help is coming. You lost everything you've ever owned, get over it.
Hurricane Katrina hit Louisiana and Mississippi on Monday, while Bush hit some golf balls. On Tuesday, we find out that another 1.1 million Americans have entered poverty, bringing the total to 37 million Americans living in poverty today. The poverty rate rose for only white Americans. Also on Tuesday, Bush had cake with McCain in Arizona. Wednesday the flood waters continued to rise with the dead floating in the water alongside cars. Dubya decided to cut his vacation short by a couple of days. WHAT A SACRIFICE. No more traveling the country, staying at exclusive resorts and facing the American public (a prescreened American public). So, Dubya supposedly flies over the areas ravaged by Katrina to survey the damage like a President should. Was it in a helicopter? No, it was in Air Force One- the airplane. They never went below 27,000 feet. Now he's doling out funds, soldiers, buses, and supplies... THREE DAYS LATE. Thousands may have died, horrible deaths. Hundreds of thousands have lost everything. And Dubya takes THREE days to ACT. Where were the buses the days before Katrina hit, to take the poor and disadvantaged to higher ground? The poor and disadvantaged who can't afford cars, let alone a train ticket out of town. Where was this Christian president? Golfing, biking, napping, and selling.
IRAQ COMES FIRST- LEVEES LAST
Well, Iraq comes first. The Bush donor jackpot. That bill is close to $200 billion dollars and set to exceed the cost of the Vietnam War. Bush cut $71,2 million dollars from the Army Corps of Engineers- the group in charge of building and maintaining the levees that protect New Orleans from flooding. Walter Maestri, the Emergency Management Chief for Jefferson Parish, LA was quoted in the New Orleans Times on 06/08/04: "It appears that the money has been moved in the president’s budget to handle homeland security and the war in Iraq, and I suppose that’s the price we pay. Nobody locally is happy that the levees can’t be finished, and we are doing everything we can to make the case that this is a security issue for us." What's that? The ACE was not able to FINISH THE LEVEES? Because of why? BECAUSE OF IRAQ? That was a record $71.2 million reduction in federal funding for the ACE. The cuts meant major hurricane and flood protection projects will not be awarded to local engineering firms. Also, a study to determine ways to protect the region from a Category 5 hurricane were also shelved due to the cuts. Back in 2004, Louisiana Senator Mary Landrieu said the Bush administration is not making Corps of Engineers funding a priority. “I think it’s extremely shortsighted,” Landrieu said. “When the Corps of Engineers’ budget is cut, Louisiana bleeds. These projects are literally life-and-death projects to the people of south Louisiana.” For years, engineers up and down the Mississippi River have warned about the disaster that would result if New Orleans' bulwark of levees and flood walls were hit by a hurricane like Katrina. But when it was time to find money to strengthen them, the city's defenses ended up far down the federal government's priority list.
IRAQ COMES FIRST-WHERE'S THE NATIONAL GUARD
"Missing the personnel is the big thing in this particular event. We need our people," said Lt. Andy Thaggard, a spokesman for the Mississippi National Guard, which has a brigade of more than 4,000 troops in central Iraq. Louisiana also has about 3,000 Guard troops in Baghdad. Bush ended his interview this morning by feigning compassion again: "I just can't imagine waving a sign that says `Come and get me now.'" Oh, no sir, I can only hope that becomes a reality for you.
Does anyone remember how fast Bush ended his last vacation? In fact, it took him minutes to jump on a plane out of Crawford to rape our Constitution by signing a bill for ONE PERSON, the one person the Republicans used and regurgitated to appeal to the evangelical voters, Terri Schiavo. Our founding fathers must have rolled in their graves. This man will whore himself and a brain dead woman to gain votes for the Republicans. These thugs only care about the almighty, powerful, DOLLAR. They seek power, wealth, and oil. They give tax cuts to energy corporations, millionaires and big business- those who don't need a hand out. These thugs have come to Washington to rape our constitution for votes, steal our tax dollars and hand them over to their big corporate donors with contracts in Iraq. Billions of dollars that we need here at home for our Hurricane victims and the 37 million Americans in poverty.
posted by Lisa @ 7:59 AM
3 comments
3 Comments:
TWO WEEKS!
Back in 1999, your hero, Mr. Chavez, stood by and did nothing while rain poured into Venezuela causing rampant flooding, for two weeks. Why? He had two whole weeks to do something about it. Why didn't he act? Tens of thousands of people died. An estimated 1/4 million people, out of work. He had two weeks. Why didn't he do something then? Because...it was an unprecedented natural disater type of event. No one could have predicted the outcome. Hindsight is twenty-twenty, except if its Bush and except if its America. Link to the original CNN story, including all the help we gave Mr. Chavez
http://edition.cnn.com/1999/WORLD/americas/12/28/venezeula.floods/
Keep trying to get me some facts to meet up with...:-)
Are you mentally insane or just stupid? You think that Hurricane Katrina was a SURPRISE? An 'unprecedented' natural disaster? Do you watch television news? If a Hurricane was expected within days to hit a particular set of states on a particular date, you should be able to PREPARE. We had days to get most or all of the citizens evacuated. We had days to get supplies and personnel ready. Once again your argument is pathetic. STICK TO THE TOPIC. This post is about AMERICA and Bush's failure as a leader. I don't give a shit about what Chavez did or didn't to. Bush CUT the funding to finish and maintain the levees and to study further. All for the hell in Iraq. This post concerns YOUR wonderful, Christian, compassionate president. Stick to the topic or give it up. I'm embarrassed to be an American this week. Aside from the adults who died outside in chairs, the ground and in wheelchairs, 2 babies also died outside of the convention center from dehydration. They showed someone using a dolly to drag the dead body of their loved one on the sidewalk. IN AMERICA. Our brothers and sisters in New Orleans are starving to death, dying of thirst, being raped at gunpoint, no showers, no plumbing. Some are left dead in the street. How would you like it if your father or mother was left dead in the street because no one could retrieve them. THIS IS AMERICA not some third world country. As you lay in your comfortable bed tonight think of the AMERICANS who are STILL sleeping on their rooftops. No electricity, in the dark of night, laying on top of a roof, no medical attention, no water, no food. FOUR DAYS LATER!!!!We are the United States of America - and we should be disgraced.
Well, if you can't come up with cogent arguments, name-calling and snarky sarcasm always provides good filler...:-) Rest assured Anon, I won't degrade the discussion with such. It serves no good purpose.
As to whose fault this is, you might well spend some time understanding more fully how emergencies from natural disasters are dealt with. As Louisiana is a sovereign state, the federal government can't come in unless they ask. Emergency preparedness and planning is again mainly a function of state and local governments, with the Feds coming in when its too much for the state to handle AFTER they ask for the help.
As to funding for levees and the like. The Corp of Engineers had developed a ten year plan back in 1965, which has never been completed. So, where shall we start? Johnson, Nixon, Ford, Carter, Reagan, Bush, Clinton, Bush II. Who gets the blame? We had three Democratic Presidents that could have done something, assuming that Democrats care about poor people more than Republicans generally, and Bush in particular.
As to the levees themselves...the head of the Corps of Engineers indicate that the main levee that failed was actually one that had been fully upgraded. Of course, the decicion to upgrade to handle only up to a category 3 storm was made decades ago. Somebody made a caluculated cost/benefit analysis. Shall we blame them?
Long story short, these blame mongering, political attacks serve no purpose other than try to create some political advantage. There's no real basis in fact for laser beaming the blame. There's too much to go around for that. If you want to continue, be my guest.
As for me, I've already sent cash to the appropriate help organizations and plan to send more.
What are you guys doing? Hmmm?
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