New Orleans

[The Notorious LOL]

I like how no ones even mentioning this on the board. Utter fucking chaos.


When all is said and done, we will see a recession. Mark my words.

[TurdBerglar]

there's threads about it

[Echewta]

recession with stagnation. The next president who will be a dem will have goodtimes.

[Qdrop]

i actually remember listening to AirAmerica...almost a year ago.

they actually had a guy on talking about how New Orleans was a catastrophe waiting to happen...that the first big hurricane was going to level the city and cause massive flooding....he went on and on.

i got the impression that most of the people (and listeners such as myself) thought he just another eco-greeny-doomsayer....and kinda dismissed him.


fuckin A.

everything he said came true.

[The Notorious LOL]

there was an article in National Geographic about it in October 2004 and how it would cause a chain reaction of shit to happen economically.

[Echewta]

links on the above would be great.

[Qdrop]

and yet we learn nothing!

[DandyFop]

There's something happening in New orleans? Wow I was so caught up in my own life that I didn't make a thread about it! OMG!

[g-mile7]

yea I'm from Baton Rouge orgianlly and my fam down there says its chaos, Baton Rouge is packed with people from New ORelans and power is out all cross the city...damn I was just down south in March, poor New Orelans thats a cool spot indeed them people too, the have nots arent going have nothing even more now. I never thought something like this would impact all america (New Orleans getting hit so bad) but it has as well as Miss. as well lets not foregt them, but shit looting, shooting and I love how every person the media shows doing it is black, I find that hard to believe, New Orleans isnt all black people

[YoungRemy]

this is very depressing...
its a very catastrophic series of events which will affect our entire country....


we are losing a city that has been around for 300 years...


and my family is losing their entire lives :(

no one is allowed back in, why would anyone want back in? there are people shooting at the hospitals, drug addicts trying to get their hands on medicine, disease and death spreading as fast as the water...

[cookiepuss]

well I think it's kinda shite that they didn't do something to establish order in the first place. In a castastrophe of this size it's a given that people are going to be scared, tried, hungry and taking matters into thier own hands. most of them have lost everything and many of them had very little to begin with so of course they are looting and shit is going down. It doesn't take a genius to realize that they needed stablization the day after the hurricane hit to avoid this kinda thing. :mad:

for what I've read officals in New Orleans have always known that something like this could happen. and there were apparently some budget cuts that took money away from planning a solution to the problem. so really none of what is happening should be a surprise to anyone in charge. And I don't think our administration has responded quickly enough.

One hurricane victum made a statement about how we'll send help immediately to anywhere in the world, but now that there's a serious problem at home, they aren't offering enough assistance, (or at least not quickly enough) and I have to say I kinda agree with them.

[redhead]

but shit looting, shooting and I love how every person the media shows doing it is black, I find that hard to believe, New Orleans isnt all black people

apparently, according to the AP, white people find things (http://news.yahoo.com/photo/050830/photos_ts_afp/050830071810_shxwaoma_photo1)
black people loot (http://news.yahoo.com/photo/050830/480/ladm10208301530)

[kll]

I donated to the Red Cross last night - the pictures and interviews are heartbreaking...

[cookiepuss]

apparently, according to the AP, white people find things (http://news.yahoo.com/photo/050830/photos_ts_afp/050830071810_shxwaoma_photo1)
black people loot (http://news.yahoo.com/photo/050830/480/ladm10208301530)

fucking sad that criminalization still comes down to the color of ones skin.

[YoungRemy]

g-mile you have to understand, New Orleans inner city is 67 % black... have you ever been to New Orleans anytime NOT DURING MARDI GRAS...

heres the bottom line- those being affected most are the poor minority residents of New Orleans- the African Americans- those are the ones who had nowhere to go, no cars to take them, once they were trapped it has literally become every citizen for themselves.


the truth of the matter is the white people live in the suburbs and EVACUATED WHEN THEY WERE GIVEN A CHANCE....


anyone else simply had no choice, or no chance to leave, and now they feel neglected-which they should.

the FEDS are fucking up a humanitarian rescue mission, but meanwhile when someone comes out of the hospital they could be shot raped or murdered because of the mentality in the streets...

from cnn.com
"We're going to talk about something else before the show's over, too. And that's the big elephant in the room. The race and economic class of most of the victims, which the media hasn't discussed much at all, but we will a bit later."

[Dr Deaf]

the situation in new orleans illustrates to the rest of the world America's current level of vulnerabilty. FEMA and the bush administration really dropped the ball on this.

imagine a terr orist attack on the anniversary of 911 this year? we'd be fucked. the ss harry truman ac carrier is only now leaving norfolk VA. it'll take 5 days to reach new orleans, where it'll serve as a mobile command post.

i sympathize with all the stranded people affected by katrina and the relief workers. with insufficient manpower, it's impossible to properly coordinate and conduct EVAC plans. i can imagine how frustrating it must be working with inadequate manpower and resources.

what happens, when there is no outside (http://www.interventionmag.com/cms/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=1158) help to summon?

[enree erzweglle]

It kills me to see the thousands of people at the Superdome clustering around one school bus (which, presumably, will make trips between New Orleans and Houston...?). Is the fact that there aren't convoys of trucks to get people out of there ecause the major highways around New Orleans are out? I hope that's the reason because anything else would be criminal.

[ToucanSpam]

I said it in the other thread, this is the end of New Orleans as we know it. :(


I've seen a couple images of the poor souls trapped in their houses. :(

[cookiepuss]

the ss harry truman ac carrier is only now leaving norfolk VA. it'll take 5 days to reach new orleans, where it'll serve as a mobile command post.

yeah, it feels like too little too late doesn't it? I realize to begin with weather was a bit of a factor in bringing aide but considering that they've known for YEARS that New Orleans would sink if a storm of this size hit, you'd have though they would have started moblizing aid as soon as they knew the hurricane was on course. but it seems to me they said, "ahhhhh we don't want to spend any unnessary money, so lets just wait and see how much damage there is." I think that's fucked.

[beastiegirrl101]

I donated to the Red Cross last night - the pictures and interviews are heartbreaking...

Did you see that a lot of people left their pets behind? I just dont get it.

[cookiepuss]

Did you see that a lot of people left their pets behind? I just dont get it.

yeah I was wondering about that too. I don't know if they were letting people with pets in the superdome. they only talked about people and children of course. And I was thinking if I got there and they wouldn't let me bring my pea sized dog with me, would would have thrown a fit and probably stayed outside in the storm and died with my dog. I'm crazy but I could never leave my pets behind. ever. ther was a fire in my neighborhood last year and I was evacuated. the ONLY think I took was my cat, my dog and my purse.

[beastiegirrl101]

^ I agree. They had this Dateline thing on last night and all these dogs were just walking around, like what the hell is going on where is my owner and I felt worse for them. It really broke my heart. I would not go anywhere with out my cat...I'd be in the storm with you.

[enree erzweglle]

I've seen several pictures from Katrina that involved pets, one of which stuck with me. It was a group of people--ma, dad, grandma (maybe), aunt, two young boys. They were in waist-high water struggling to move against a current (maybe caused by the helicopter holding the journalist who took the picture).

Anyway, the water was kicking up around them and they were all soaking wet. The one little boy has his ma's tee shirt gripped tightly in his right hand. She was carrying their dog, a paw each on each of her shoulders and his hind legs at her waist.

It was a very good photo, I thought, but that poor kid trying hard to wade in that water. (The photo is on the USAToday site, photo 29/37.)

Some people think pets are better off fending for themselves in situations like that and that they wouldn't take them. I think I'd have to take my cat with me to do everything I could to keep him from suffering some nasty death.

[YoungRemy]

when you are fighting for water and food, your instincts of survival kick in, when you have no home, thats when your pets get left behind. i completely get it...

[The Notorious LOL]

Did you see that a lot of people left their pets behind? I just dont get it.


the hell are they supposed to do?

[beastiegirrl101]

the hell are they supposed to do?

With everything so pet friendly these days I just dont see how people would just leave them to die. The only thing I would grab would be my cat and photo albums.

[Echewta]

Where is the leader in all of this? I could care less who it is but you would think someone would become the token key person to speak on behalf of what is going on to help people.

[YoungRemy]

With everything so pet friendly these days I just dont see how people would just leave them to die. The only thing I would grab would be my cat and photo albums.


dont you get what is going on?? people are trapped in there, they are trying to survive!!

first of all, if you were in New Orleans, your photo albums would be long gone.


we are talking about diabetics who dont have insulin, critically ill people who dont have meds, hospitals with no water, electricity, or the means to keep their ill alive....

yes it is sad what happens to these animals but there will be more human fatalities when this is all over...



folks, do we really understand what is happening in southern Louisiana?

[DipDipDive]

I really think the greatest tragedy in all of this is that mother nature does a fabulous job of fucking shit up and causing chaos on her own while we as humans still find it necessary to create the same helplessness and devastation with our own hands. As many have already said, this whole thing would still be horrific and insane without a fucking war on, but the fact that the majority of the people who would be sent to aid in this situation are currently occupied by the war effort makes me sick to my stomach. My sentiment was the same after the tsunami, and the fact that there's minimal help for the people on our own fucking soil causes even more sadness and anger in me than it did back then.

[beastiegirrl101]

dont you get what is going on?? people are trapped in there, they are trying to survive!!

first of all, if you were in New Orleans, your photo albums would be long gone.


we are talking about diabetics who dont have insulin, critically ill people who dont have meds, hospitals with no water, electricity, or the means to keep their ill alive....

yes it is sad what happens to these animals but there will be more human fatalities when this is all over...



folks, do we really understand what is happening in southern Louisiana?

I get it.

[cookiepuss]

dont you get what is going on?? people are trapped in there, they are trying to survive!!

well, I think what we are trying to say is for some of us our pets are part of the family and just as important as human life. Part of survival would be making sure they survive with us.

But in the panic and everything going on down there, sure I can see why many animals were abandoned. maybe some of them even ran away because they were so spooked.

[DipDipDive]

Ugh. All of this gives me such bad anxiety that I don't even know what to do with myself. Those poor fucking people. Literally. I was watching CNBC last night, and they were talking about how a large percentage of people in cities like Biloxi are on welfare, and being that they receive their aid at the beginning of the month rather than the end of the month, their funds were tapped out well before the hurricane hit. In other words, the few things they could've done like stock up on canned foods, water, and basic supplies necessary for survival was impossible because they were poverty stricken to begin with.

:( :(

[YoungRemy]

there are reports of RAPE victims being brought in to Charity Hospital, where evacuees are being shot at by SNIPERS...

meanwhile even the doctors are going hungry

[cookiepuss]

Damn. Hey i can understand looting but raping has nothing to do with survial. If that's true, then what the hell is that about?

"Hey, I'm in a powerless situation so I'm gonna rape this woman so I can feel like I'm in control of something!" I guess we don't live in a civilized country after all.

[Bob]

it sort of makes sense. i mean, you've got a city with a lot of people in it. some of these people are bad people (rapists, murderers, assorted criminals). the cops are busy, if not completely impotent due to circumstances. with nothing stopping them, they do what they want to do.

in other words, there's rapists in cities that haven't been hit by hurricanes, too. disorder just complicates things.

[Lemmy's Liver]

I think the most interesting part after realizing the massive scale of the disaster is the fact that your presidente was basically fondling his crown jewels for at least 24 hours when the shit hit the fan. probably golfing or something. and also: I LOL:d when I saw a piece on BBC where he mumbled something about USA fighting a war against terror and that the fight that's now going on in N.O. is also going to be dealt with. did someone drop his memo or what?

fruit

[cookiepuss]

I think the most interesting part after realizing the massive scale of the disaster is the fact that your presidente was basically fondling his crown jewels for at least 24 hours when the shit hit the fan. probably golfing or something. and also: I LOL:d when I saw a piece on BBC where he mumbled something about USA fighting a war against terror and that the fight that's now going on in N.O. is also going to be dealt with. did someone drop his memo or what?

fruit

shit maybe that's what we need... Bush to declare that the hurricane victims are terrorists, because at least then he'd send some fucking troops in. :rolleyes:

[Lemmy's Liver]

well, I think he was just panicking and didn't know what to say, so he thought "uhum I drop in the T-word, that'll make it look like I'm on top of things"

fruit

[Nuzzolese]

t's surreal. There are PLENTY out there that think it's best to go in, shoot to kill, and not have a thought as to how INSANE these people must be by now, and how it dictates their behavior. If people trapped there are shooting at helicopters, then they must be trying to make a point. It isn't like they don't want to get out--it's the opposite. Had the craziness and chaos not occurred, things wouldn't be moving along the way they seem to be now. Those people don't have the TVs and news and whatnot that we do, and after three days, I can understand them thinking that they have been left to die. How is it suddenly such a major priority now to get them the hell out? If this country is as supposedly strong as we like to think we are, why hasn't more been done before it took people reaching a critical mass?

The threat of anarchy alerted the media, they start showing dead bodies and condemning how little has been done to get the people out, and ZANG! Suddenly the Government starts taking quick action to do something. If it took/takes some crazed behavior to get the press and then the Government to show and realize the hardships occurring there, then so be it. If a National Guardsman had to be shot in the leg to get things rolling, so be it. If I was trapped there I'd be looting/taking/finding stuff too. I'd be trying to survive. If the law enforcers aren't there to protect and serve then I wouldn't respect the law's abstract ideals that have no relevence in a situation where I felt abandoned by them.

The media had to start to show the dead bodies, not people killed in the hurricaine, but the bodies of old people and babies and kids that have died because they had no food, no water, and no feeling of oncoming help AFTER the storm. Blame? Yeah, but I'd rather blame and point a finger towards the source of a horrible (and preventable) situation even if it isn't fully deserved so long as it makes the process get moving like it should've days ago. It was said earlier today that "New Orleans was now Baghdad-on-the-water". THAT is not a good thing to hear about an American city. Three days after the fact. Not good at all.

[cookiepuss]

fruit

he's more like a turd sandwhich

[The Notorious LOL]

the funniest thing I saw today was Anderson Cooper on CNN was talking to a senator from Baton Rouge about what they're going to do and shes like "I dont know if you heard but we're doing an EMERGENCY MEETING TONIGHT!" and hes like "Well, no I havent heard because Im in an area littered with corpses and I guess the political backslapping is a bit infuriating to me right now".

[Nuzzolese]

the funniest thing I saw today was Anderson Cooper on CNN was talking to a senator from Baton Rouge about what they're going to do and shes like "I dont know if you heard but we're doing an EMERGENCY MEETING TONIGHT!" and hes like "Well, no I havent heard because Im in an area littered with corpses and I guess the political backslapping is a bit infuriating to me right now".

that's a direct quote?!

[Echewta]

really? What did she do?

[Lemmy's Liver]

EMERGENCY MEETING FOR EVERYBODY ON SUNDAY THE 12TH OF OCTOBER

[kll]

it sort of makes sense. i mean, you've got a city with a lot of people in it. some of these people are bad people (rapists, murderers, assorted criminals). the cops are busy, if not completely impotent due to circumstances. with nothing stopping them, they do what they want to do.

in other words, there's rapists in cities that haven't been hit by hurricanes, too. disorder just complicates things.
well, doesn't new orleans have the claim of being like one of the most lawless cities in america on a typical day?

[The Notorious LOL]

that's a direct quote?!


not direct, but 80% accurate. It was quite amusing.

[Documad]

For a while there on the first day, the news said it was no big deal.

Now it's Escape From New York.

[Sarky Devotchka]

man's time will soon come to an end by our own hands.

[paul jones]

new orleans gets mentioned in a lot of 50's rock 'n' roll songs

[DipDipDive]

Just when I think I couldn't be more disappointed in our president and our government at large, they somehow manage to come through and piss me off more and more. I've never been this angry at Bush, and believe me, I've been vehemently anti-Bush for quite some time...

[Laver1969]

You hit it right on the head YR. They're shooting at the helicopters trying to rescue them and bring in supplies. Friggin animals.

I lived in a suburb of New Orleans the first 28 years of my life. I love New Orleans. It's a beautiful city with a lot of history, culture and flavor. But it is a poor, high-crime and volatile city.

I'm saddened, frustrated, disgusted, and sympathetic all at once.

g-mile you have to understand, New Orleans inner city is 67 % black... have you ever been to New Orleans anytime NOT DURING MARDI GRAS...

heres the bottom line- those being affected most are the poor minority residents of New Orleans- the African Americans- those are the ones who had nowhere to go, no cars to take them, once they were trapped it has literally become every citizen for themselves.


the truth of the matter is the white people live in the suburbs and EVACUATED WHEN THEY WERE GIVEN A CHANCE....


anyone else simply had no choice, or no chance to leave, and now they feel neglected-which they should.

the FEDS are fucking up a humanitarian rescue mission, but meanwhile when someone comes out of the hospital they could be shot raped or murdered because of the mentality in the streets...

from cnn.com
"We're going to talk about something else before the show's over, too. And that's the big elephant in the room. The race and economic class of most of the victims, which the media hasn't discussed much at all, but we will a bit later."

[alruggs]

:( I start crying every time I look at pictures. I just can't imagine the desperation of these people.

[CJM]

i would have thought the states would have had better "actions-on" for these types of situations.

[Laver1969]

:( I start crying every time I look at pictures. I just can't imagine the desperation of these people.

^Yes...same here.

Texas and the city of Houston are really coming through for New Orleans.

[alruggs]

Thank God somebody is. :(

[HotAndWet]

man's time will soon come to an end by our own hands.

I've been thinking about that lately. All these things that are going on, it just seems like we're getting closer and closer to ...I don't know? Something drastic? ???? Do you know what I mean? Not like christian end of world shit, but a change in species or something? Sorry I really can't explain without sounding like a douche.

[Documad]

So these reporters are all over the place, working for every network and goofy cable channel, as well as print journalists, etc. And they keep showing photos of people in distress and saying that the people are dying for lack of water. Maybe we could have fewer reporters and more helpers.

I haven't heard from my friend who works for FEMA yet. She lives in NC but gets sent to wherever there's a problem for as long as it takes. I keep wondering where they sent her. She's surely too busy to email.

[marsdaddy]

Am I the only one who thinks gas companies are using the hurricane as an excuse to raise the prices sky high?What? They couldn't do that and then be able to look their buddies Mr. President and Mr. Veep in the eyes over a friendly game of 7 card stud...could they?

I'm sure there are links from snopes.com or something, but the looting is being blown out of proportion. People are breaking into Walgreens to get diapers, food, water, etc. That's not looting, that's survival.

PS. If there is 20 feet of water, how could someone carry a Plasma TV and would it work, anyway?

[Medellia]

as well lets not foregt them, but shit looting, shooting and I love how every person the media shows doing it is black, I find that hard to believe, New Orleans isnt all black people
Because all the rich people had the means to leave. All of the poor people were stuck. And unfortunately in the south many of the people below the poverty line are black. I'm from Louisiana as well (up north though) and it was the same where I grew up. :(

[enree erzweglle]

So these reporters are all over the place, working for every network and goofy cable channel, as well as print journalists, etc. And they keep showing photos of people in distress and saying that the people are dying for lack of water. Maybe we could have fewer reporters and more helpers.

The reporters need to do what they're doing. It helps everyone to see see Anderson Cooper big-time angrily chewing out politicians who are clapping themselves on the back for a job well done. They express the outrage and helplessness that a lot of us are feeling. It's important that they're there, forcing the rest of us to see what those people are going through...it's like those poor people are in a Wes Craven movie. HORRIBLE.

And I don't think for a second that if the reporters weren't there doing what they're doing that the rest of the world would get the straight-up story from the military or the politicians.

The reporters should be there even though being there means that they're eating up some generators and using some of the supplies. I'm sure some of them are helping, too, as much as they can. I hope they stay.

One more thing, someone mentioned that of course, these victims don't have TVs so they can't tell if the rest of the world knows what the extent of what's happening there. It must be some small comfort to some of them to see the reporters there--that way, maybe they know that they're not in this alone. There's got to be some small amount of hope in there for them.

I wish I could go there.

[enree erzweglle]

I don't know why they don't just open those stores up to people to let them take whatever they want. It hurts me deeply to see armed policemen pointing guns at people and forcing them to their knees after they drop an armful of clothes. Or when this one guy is stealing something from a convenience store and a reporter corners him and pressures him to admit that what he did was wrong because it's stealing. WTF.

I don't care what they're stealing. Just open the damn stores, let people have what they want and then the stores will be empty and there won't be a looting problem. In the meantime, use that personnel for rescue of injured and protection of the survivors. Who cares if wal-mart or any store gets looted.

[Medellia]

The reporters need to do what they're doing. It helps everyone to see see Anderson Cooper big-time angrily chewing out politicians who are clapping themselves on the back for a job well done. They express the outrage and helplessness that a lot of us are feeling. It's important that they're there, forcing the rest of us to see what those people are going through...it's like those poor people are in a Wes Craven movie. HORRIBLE.
That's one of the few things keeping me together about this whole thing. :(


EDIT-About cops and the looting, I know that not every cop is doing this, but there has been footage of cops looting as well.

[TonsOfFun]

I've been watching BBC 24 news for the past couple of days.

It seems to me that the American authorities have fucked up this situation. I am surprised that even the idiot that Bush is, he hasn't been there. He hasn't made plans to take troops from places like Iraq to sort this shit out.

I'm so upset for those people effected. Is anyone on Washington gates demanding something is sorted out. It looks worse than any war-torn country I've seen on TV for the past 15 years.

And shoot-to-kill on looters!?!?!? I don't think America will recover too well on this until it's admin changes.

The tsunami on boxing day recovered better and quicker than this. But america should have better provisions to deal with this.

Fucked up!

[enree erzweglle]

And shoot-to-kill on looters!?!?!? I don't think America will recover too well on this until it's admin changes.
Is it shoot to kill? Because that's fucked up too. I think they should open every single store and let people go in and take what they want. They should encourage it. Put the troops behind protecting people and doing rescue/recovery.

I heard GW say something like, "There will be zero tolerance of crimes committed" and it was reported in the context of the looting that's happening.
That's a shame.

I remember when GW gave a speech in the days following 9/11 and he was trying to sound very casual and in-control when he said something like, "Go out and resume your lives. Shop. Resume your lives." There was something in his voice when he said that--maybe fear and a little desperation. I heard it. I understand that he has to be concerned about the economy, but I often get the sense from him that that's mostly all that matters to him and that the rest is a facade. Like he's going through the motions of sounding concerned.

[Medellia]

Is it shoot to kill? Because that's fucked up too. I think they should open every single store and let people go in and take what they want. They should encourage it. Put the troops behind protecting people and doing rescue/recovery.
My understanding is that the shoot to kill order is for the gangs, snipers, and rapists. The really dangerous people, and I can't say that I really disagree with it. It's disturbing, but how else are they going to stop the shootings? But if it's for the looters as well, that is EXTREMELY fucked up and we shouldn't stand for it. Shooting someone for taking food and water for their family's is barbaric. We're supposed to be better than that.

[TonsOfFun]

It's what they said on the BBC, shoot to kill on looters - you know the media though, they can sometimes make the truth different.

The pictures tell a sad enough story before any words or what might be a shoot to kill policy.

[Medellia]

Yeah it's for the looters as well. :(

Like I said, barbaric. :(

[teat]

I heard Bush say: "The relief effort will take a long time. The relief effort will take many months."


Bravo, George.

[teat]

It's what they said on the BBC, shoot to kill on looters - you know the media though, they can sometimes make the truth different.

The pictures tell a sad enough story before any words or what might be a shoot to kill policy.

It's crazy how anarchy is our 'default' setting, like the one way can all rely on reacting.

Shoot to kill is pretty ironic, wouldn't you be trying to save lives?

[TonsOfFun]

I wouldn't say anarchy is default. After the tsunami and 9/11, did people loot - I cannot remember this.

But the difference is - people reacted to a fucked up situation. The governments and armed forces reacted. The only reaction from bush is to make sure his holiday doesn't end early.

Anarchy has come from a desperate situation because sod all has been there to help them, unlike the tsunami and 9/11

[teat]

Anarchy has come from a desperate situation because sod all has been there to help them, unlike the tsunami and 9/11

It's no disrespect to those unfortunate folks in New Orleans, I'm just referring to their reaction in the face of relative inaction.
(y)

[TonsOfFun]

It's no disrespect to those unfortunate folks in New Orleans, I'm just referring to their reaction in the face of relative inaction.
(y)

that exactly what I was saying and knew you was getting at (y)

[Bob]

hey, i just thought of something? were any posters from this board from new orleans, or the general area? something could happen and we'd never know

[TonsOfFun]

hey, i just thought of something? were any posters from this board from new orleans, or the general area? something could happen and we'd never know

I was thinking that. I think that many would of probably get out. Most people on this board seem pretty posh and probably would of got out, cars etc cus I cannot remember any threads saying they was staying or leaving...

[Laver1969]

I think they should open every single store and let people go in and take what they want. They should encourage it.

The problem with this is that they are clearing out the gun sections of Wal-Mart, shooting at rescue helicopters, and shooting at firemen trying to put out a fire.

[Bob]

The problem with this is that they are clearing out the gun sections of Wal-Mart, shooting at rescue helicopters, and shooting at firemen trying to put out a fire.

this, i absolutely do not fucking understand. i can see where the violent crimes and looting are coming from, but shooting at firemen and rescue choppers? what the fuck? where does this come from? i can MAAAAYBEEE see the rescue choppers ("you left us to die for 3 days, and you're only coming now? fuck you" kind of thing), but firemen? what possesses someone to do that?

[teat]

this, i absolutely do not fucking understand. i can see where the violent crimes and looting are coming from, but shooting at firemen and rescue choppers? what the fuck? where does this come from? i can MAAAAYBEEE see the rescue choppers ("you left us to die for 3 days, and you're only coming now? fuck you" kind of thing), but firemen? what possesses someone to do that?

That is pretty strange behaviour. :confused:

[enree erzweglle]

The problem with this is that they are clearing out the gun sections of Wal-Mart, shooting at rescue helicopters, and shooting at firemen trying to put out a fire.
Right. I forgot about things like that. Thanks. (But they should maybe use the personnel to clear the stores of stuff like that and THEN let the people have at it. It would take a lot less manpower to do that than to post guards across the city and then have those guards point rifles at people who are taking clothes.)

[Bob]

That is pretty strange behaviour. :confused:

maybe it's just impossible to even try to understand it unless you're actually there. maybe things that seem insane from here seem normal when you're put into an insane situation.

[enree erzweglle]

this, i absolutely do not fucking understand. i can see where the violent crimes and looting are coming from, but shooting at firemen and rescue choppers? what the fuck? where does this come from? i can MAAAAYBEEE see the rescue choppers ("you left us to die for 3 days, and you're only coming now? fuck you" kind of thing), but firemen? what possesses someone to do that?The rescue choppers--maybe they were trying to down them for the medical supplies. Shooting at firemen? ...I can't explain that.

There's no rhyme/reason to murder or things like what you described above (shooting at the rescue workers and choppers). It's not like the shooters are attacking out of desperation. I think they're just insane.

[teat]

maybe it's just impossible to even try to understand it unless you're actually there. maybe things that seem insane from here seem normal when you're put into an insane situation.

I am trying my hardest to surround my head space with total destruction, wet paper and clothing everywhere, the stench of bloated corpses, the sound of gun-shots, the cries of despair, and I can't even come close to imagining how fucked up it must be.

[Nuzzolese]

They say it's frightening, they hear gun shots and screams, they have no electricity or clean water, no medications....and when the sun goes down each night it all gets worse. That last part chilled my blood.

[teat]

They say it's frightening, they hear gun shots and screams, they have no electricity or clean water, no medications....and when the sun goes down each night it all gets worse. That last part chilled my blood.

It must be like plaguing 'Dawn of the Dead' with the living.

[Nuzzolese]

It must be like plaguing 'Dawn of the Dead' with the living.

Exactly what I was thinking. It must feel like the end of the world to those people. I feel insensitive talking about it because I'm not doing anything to help. I mean, it's real assholish of me to sit up here in my comfy clean safe office clicking away at my desk in clean clothes, full belly musing how awful it must be for people.

[enree erzweglle]

It's like if this was a movie, you would think it was a bad movie because this stuff could not possibly happen like this and on such a large scale. It's like, wait, there's feces, corpses, rapes, unearthed coffins, people dying on the streets...and now there are killer snakes. In a movie, I'd just shake my head and say bad, bad screenplay. It's unreal and worse that it's just happening. I don't understand what the plan of action is or if there is one.

[teat]

Exactly what I was thinking. It must feel like the end of the world to those people. I feel insensitive talking about it because I'm not doing anything to help. I mean, it's real assholish of me to sit up here in my comfy clean safe office clicking away at my desk in clean clothes, full belly musing how awful it must be for people.

If the roles were reversed, I doubt you'd be cursing those in your present position, much rather focussing on staying alive.

[Bob]

i wonder what the people are going to be like when/if they get out? i mean, people come back from wars with post-traumatic stress disorder...nature basically declared war on an entire city, are these people ever going to be able to go back to a normal life after this?

maybe i'm making too much out of it

[teat]

maybe i'm making too much out of it

Nah, man, you're right on the mark. It was a full fledged attack. Mother Nature is an awesome creature.

[Medellia]

If it was just the hurricane they would be able to pull it all back together. It would take awhile, and there would be a terrible death toll, but they would be able to do it. But with everything that has happened since they will be full of resentment for years. Not just NOLA, but the whole state. I'm curious to what it's like in the north.

[Mcmac]

whats the death toll at the moment?

[Medellia]

It must be like plaguing 'Dawn of the Dead' with the living.
That's exactly what it's like. :(

[Medellia]

whats the death toll at the moment?
We may never know what it is. I don't think there's an official death toll. All I've heard is in the thousands.

[TonsOfFun]

Lt. Gen. Carl Stock has just cleared up the myth from the media about poor reaction and they've actually done everything they can (y)

[Laver1969]

If it was just the hurricane they would be able to pull it all back together. It would take awhile, and there would be a terrible death toll, but they would be able to do it. But with everything that has happened since they will be full of resentment for years. Not just NOLA, but the whole state. I'm curious to what it's like in the north.

I'm not sure what you mean by north...but I have family that evacuated to Amite, LA. It's about 60 miles north of New Orleans. No power, no water. But most importantly there wasn't huge flooding. So people are able to begin the clean up process.

I also have family that evacuated to Southwest Arkansas and Lake Charles, LA and those cities were barely touched by the actual Hurricane. But they're dealing with the ripple effect.

[Medellia]

I'm not sure what you mean by north...but I have family that evacuated to Amite, LA.
The northern half of the state. That's were most of my dad's family is, although there are a couple in the New Orleans area. They're still there, but are apparently okay. They seem to be far enough away from the violence and I don't think the flooding is too bad for them. This is all second hand info that I'm getting though.

[Laver1969]

Now we have multiple buildings burning in downtown New Orleans. There are no firefighters and no water in downtown New Orleans. This frightens me...this city could go up in smoke.

The firefighters that were being shot at were trying put out a fire at a mall on the west bank of New Orleans yesterday.

[Medellia]

And the standing water in the streets is contaminated with gas, among other things.

A two year old was trampled and a baby was born stillborn. God. I don't know what to say about that. :(

[Laver1969]

Here's a cut and paste about New Orleans Mayor Nagin.

"Nagin is angry, and wants people to flood the offices of the president and the governor with letters calling for help. He thinks not enough is being done to help the evacuees. He said that federal officials "don't have a clue what's going on."

"Get off your asses and let's do something and let's fix the biggest goddamn crisis in the history of this country," Nagin said. "People are dying. They don't have homes, they don't have jobs. The city of New Orleans will never be the same. And it's time."

[Medellia]

"Get off your asses and let's do something and let's fix the biggest goddamn crisis in the history of this country," Nagin said. "People are dying. They don't have homes, they don't have jobs. The city of New Orleans will never be the same. And it's time."
Yeah, I heard him say that. I cheered. And then I felt embarassed because I was alone in my living room cheering at the TV.

[enree erzweglle]

Yeah, I heard him say that. I cheered. And then I felt embarassed because I was alone in my living room cheering at the TV.
(y) I would have cheered too! (Just reading the quote gave me shivers.)

I wish I would have seen that report. Someone needs to get angry right in GW's face.

[YoungRemy]

It's not like the shooters are attacking out of desperation.

it's not??

they have been trapped in an urban jungle for four days now and believe that they have been left to die.

they see a rescue happening and their mentality is "their life is more important than mine..." they get desperate, they get angry, they shoot...

you cant give an entire town of refugees carte blanche to loot anything they want. this basically happened from monday until today, people are walking out with plasma tvs...
where are they taking these tvs they steal? the local pawn shop or swap meet??

here would be my plan for anyone I saw roaming the streets.
each one of them should be approached and given two options-

1. Do you wanna be rescued right now


or


2. do you wanna die?


thats pretty much the bottom line. anyone in the streets right now is getting in the way of a rescue mission... if there are armed stragglers who think they can take over a flooded city, then probably should be dealt with accordingly

[enree erzweglle]

it's not??
I didn't mean it that way. At all.

I meant that there's a difference between looting for water & food (being desperate to stay alive) and shooting (apparently without reason) at medical choppers and firemen.

Do we know why they were shooting at the choppers and firemen or is what you said (about their frustration over one rescue happening before another one) conjecture? (I haven't heard a reason for why those shootings happened.)

[YoungRemy]

our cousin is still stuck in Charity Hospital :(

[enree erzweglle]

our cousin is still stuck in Charity Hospital :(
:( I hope your cousin is okay. I heard that army helicopters were supposed to go to one NO hospitcal and take away some of the critically ill...maybe it was the one your cousin is in?

[Nuzzolese]

Rant:

People on the news keep comparing this to 9/11. I don't see why. They're not even close. Apologies to those who lost loved ones in the WTC towers, but Katrina is much, much worse.

9/11 was inflicted upon us deliberately by an identifiable enemy. America took it personally, and bound together (briefly, but long enough) to show a lot of resolve in the face of adversity.

Katrina has no face. There is no focal point for all this rage, so it's diverting inwards. Anarchy ensues. There are no whiz-bang Jerry Bruckheimer explosions to draw people's attentions, just a slow drowning/starving of thousands of people who were mostly below the poverty line before this happened.

9/11 happened to a symbol of America. Everyone rallied behind its loss.

Katrina hit an area that many people feel deserved a good washout. The media keeps pointing out that all the pictures of chaos look like something out of Somalia. We're already mentally distancing ourselves from the event. It's a sickening form of denial.

9/11 affected thousands of people, but in a relatively contained space. Quick government action secured the areas hit and prevented chaos.

Katrina has affected tens of thousands of people spread over multiple states. No specific targets, just a blanket of flooding and destruction. Police are giving up. With all the resources we have over in Iraq now, we're incapable of quickly restoring order and rescuing our own people.

How much of this statement is true:

The Government is reacting a lot slower to this than they would if it was thousands of affluent white people huddled in a sports stadium.

[Nuzzolese]

We've devoted something like 400 billion dollars towards a democracy in Iraq and our government ponies up a paltry 10.5 billion dollar relief fund for its own people living in anarchy. Where are the priorities?

I wonder how much of that 10.5 will be spent saving the oil down there instead of the people?

I just don't know what the major holdup is. This is a failure on a lot of levels. The Army Corps of Engineers has been asking for funds for decades to secure the levees that are now broken, but it has been cut time and time again. Just a year ago, they simulated this very scenario in a computer simulation and confirmed that this weakness was there.

[enree erzweglle]

Rant:

People on the news keep comparing this to 9/11. I don't see why. They're not even close. Apologies to those who lost loved ones in the WTC towers, but Katrina is much, much worse.
Are they comparing the government/aid response times?

(That's the only way that I can think to compare these two events, in terms of the amount of aid given and its timeliness.)

[Nuzzolese]

They are comparing the devastation and the horror and loss.

[enree erzweglle]

They are comparing the devastation and the horror and loss.
It sounds heartless, but I wouldn't make the comparison between the two in any way except in terms of response and long-term effects.

[Nuzzolese]

I also think it is in poor taste to compare the devastation and emotional loss of two things like that no matter how similar they may seem in circumstances.

[Laver1969]

I just know this country has the resources availble to do a better job with rescue efforts, getting supplies in, getting people out, maintaining order, and communicating with the stranded.

[YoungRemy]

the first REAL relief has arrived...

thirty armed amphibious trucks are in the streets to provide relief for Superdome and convention center refugees...

lets see if the refugees can stay peaceful and the troops keep everything civilized...



they are anticipating a desparate rush for supplies....


INSTRUCTIONS NOT TO AIM WEAPONS OR FIRE

[Echewta]

I had heard that the levee that broke was only built a few years ago, is that true?

[Laver1969]

I had heard that the levee that broke was only built a few years ago, is that true?

I'm not sure about that.

The levees and floodwalls have been protecting New Orleans for a very long time. I'm not sure what the "preventive maintenance" schedule was for the floodwalls.

[cookiepuss]

I also think it is in poor taste to compare the devastation and emotional loss of two things like that no matter how similar they may seem in circumstances.

agreed. I think they feel the need to make comparisons because they under value our capacity for empathy. they figure if they can relate it to something else that it will bring the point home and give people a frame of reference. I guess they think we're a stupid, passive audience and that we can't come to conclusions on our own.

but yeah it's idiotic to compare a natural disaster to a man made disaster. mother nature is ALWAYS going to pack the bigger punch.

[TonsOfFun]

This disaster is man-made, the hurricane was natural imho. There wouldn't such a disaster if the occupance had the country they thought they had/deserved. Not that I'm hitting on America or comparing to 9/11 but we wouldn't be having this discussion if response time was quicker because they wouldn't really be the disaster there is now...

[g-mile7]

from what I heard from my folks in Baton rouge people are coming there from NO and casuing shit, my grandma told me that in the Super Wal Mart some people (black sadly) started casuing shit saying and I quote her "were from New Orleans and we're here to take over this shit(Baton Rouge)" damn it people just lossing there minds I was just in New Orleans 2 years ago that city is art damn I cant beleive its getting evacuated like that, unheard of. But yea Baton Rouge getting over ran I go back there maybe inDecember so should be crazy espically with the Saints more then likely playing there home games at my pops alma matar LSU.

[enree erzweglle]

This disaster is man-made, the hurricane was natural imho.
That's sounds like a good way to characterize it, TonsOfFun.

I read this today on CNN:

"In the Netherlands, much of which lies below sea level as in New Orleans, there was some consternation that the Louisiana city was so poorly prepared, AP reported.

The nation installed massive hydraulic sea walls known as the Delta Works after devastating floods in 1953.

``I don't want to sound overly critical, but it's hard to imagine that [the damage caused by Katrina] could happen in a Western country,'' Ted Sluijter, press spokesman for Neeltje Jans, the public park where the Delta Works are exhibited, was reported as saying by AP.

``It seemed like plans for protection and evacuation weren't really in place, and once it happened, the coordination was poor.''"

http://www.cnn.com/2005/WEATHER/09/02/katrina.world/index.html

[monkey]

this situation makes me feel terrible, but at the same time, im forced to think upon the fact that this is mother nature establishing herself as a force in trying to preserve herself. whenever thousands of people die, there's less of a stress on NATURE.

that said, economically, this is gonna fuck up the world. and moreover, it's going to fuck up the US and our futures. Our generation (us between 18-25), have seen major trajedies in our times, and we're gonna have to fix our world now. it's gonna come down to us to be the leaders of the next boom.

i hope we do it better this time.

[Dr Deaf]

That's sounds like a good way to characterize it, TonsOfFun.

I read this today on CNN:

"In the Netherlands, much of which lies below sea level as in New Orleans, there was some consternation that the Louisiana city was so poorly prepared, AP reported.

The nation installed massive hydraulic sea walls known as the Delta Works after devastating floods in 1953.

``I don't want to sound overly critical, but it's hard to imagine that [the damage caused by Katrina] could happen in a Western country,'' Ted Sluijter, press spokesman for Neeltje Jans, the public park where the Delta Works are exhibited, was reported as saying by AP.

``It seemed like plans for protection and evacuation weren't really in place, and once it happened, the coordination was poor.''"

http://www.cnn.com/2005/WEATHER/09/02/katrina.world/index.html

there's actually more to that story:


As the federal government takeover of New Orleans continues and the helpless masses beg the state for refuge and assurance, the media is ignoring the key fact that it was the federal government itself that lowered the guard in cutting off key funding to protect Louisiana from natural disasters.

The New Orleans district of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers bore the brunt of a record $71.2 million (http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4200/is_20050606/ai_n14657367) reduction in federal funding for fiscal year 2006.

The Bush administration has been cutting funding for federal disaster relief funds since 2001 while doubling funding in other areas to pump up the biggest growth in government for decades, easily outstripping that of Bill Clinton.

A report from the Best of New Orleans news website outlines the details.

"...Among emergency specialists, 'mitigation' -- the measures taken in advance to minimize the damage caused by natural disasters -- is a crucial part of the strategy to save lives and cut recovery costs. But since 2001, key federal disaster mitigation programs, developed over many years, have been slashed and tossed aside. FEMA's Project Impact, a model mitigation program created by the Clinton administration, has been canceled outright. Federal funding of post-disaster mitigation efforts designed to protect people and property from the next disaster has been cut in half. Communities across the country must now compete for pre-disaster mitigation dollars."


A report from the Best of New Orleans (http://www.bestofneworleans.com/dispatch/2004-09-28/cover_story.html) news website outlines the details.

"...Among emergency specialists, 'mitigation' -- the measures taken in advance to minimize the damage caused by natural disasters -- is a crucial part of the strategy to save lives and cut recovery costs. But since 2001, key federal disaster mitigation programs, developed over many years, have been slashed and tossed aside. FEMA's Project Impact, a model mitigation program created by the Clinton administration, has been canceled outright. Federal funding of post-disaster mitigation efforts designed to protect people and property from the next disaster has been cut in half. Communities across the country must now compete for pre-disaster mitigation dollars."

The Bush administration's move to merge FEMA with Homeland Security meant that the two had to compete for funding. Straightforward projects that would have massively reduced the devastation we are now seeing, such as raising houses, were cast aside in favor of anti-terrorism measures.

And since the Bush administration has become renowned for its open border policies, the argument that the money was directed towards the real threats facing America is a hollow excuse.

Much of the Netherlands lies below sea level and after the 1953 flood which killed 1,800 people, the Dutch launched a major flood prevention program called the Delta Plan. Engineers fortified dykes and bolstered other water defenses against a future disaster and there hasn't been one since.

Had a similar project been in place for New Orleans and had Bush not cut the funding, the misery and turmoil being visited on that area would have been avoided.

It is an insult to the victims of Hurricane Katrina that the federal government can stomp in, impose martial law while forcibly evacuating local government officials against their will and then be portrayed as saviors by the media, when it was the Bush administration that figuratively opened the gates for the floods to rampage through the city and kill countless thousands.

[enree erzweglle]

^^^I know. It's criminal. (I have to admit that I knew nothing about this before this week. But I've been reading more and watching what I can about it. It's absolutely criminal that they've had so many experts warning them about this and about what they needed to do, yet they couldn't get funding. Funding was cut. It makes my insides hurt.)

[Dr Deaf]

...pay a little now or pay a lot later.

i'm concerned about the spin-off effects of this disaster. gmile's relative's account at the wal-mart was quite alarming. if these displaced (est 2m) people feel that they're entitled to take whatever they like, wherever they are; a country wide state of anarchy could spread among like minded impoverished people. essentially all the people of new orleans are effectively unemployed. how long until these jobs are 'rebuilt?' i'm thinking a lot of new orlean's residents will not return. partly because they won't have the money to -- or because they've started new lives elsewhere.

it's a tragic day for america.

[Laver1969]

I'd love to know what Mayor Nagin told Bush upon his arrival in New Orleans about an hour ago.

Nagin blasted the feds last night on WWL radio.

[g-mile7]

I'd love to know what Mayor Nagin told Bush upon his arrival in New Orleans about an hour ago.

Nagin blasted the feds last night on WWL radio.


Props to that Mayor...Im glad he kept it real and didnt sugar coat shit just cuz of politics...thats what we need more of someone who speaks the deal (y)

[paul jones]

I'd love to know what Mayor Nagin told Bush upon his arrival in New Orleans about an hour ago.

Nagin blasted the feds last night on WWL radio.

yeah I just listened to the link,Notorious LOL put up

[buddylee]

1 thing for sure is unlike the ' tsunami ' where we helped out
the USA will have to fix this on thier Own. I feel it's time we stop help others every time they need it and take care of out Own.

[Laver1969]

They are going to donate a large percentage of money donated for the Jerry Lewis telethon this weekend directly to Katrina relief.

[Dr Deaf]

1 thing for sure is unlike the ' tsunami ' where we helped out
the USA will have to fix this on thier Own. I feel it's time we stop help others every time they need it and take care of out Own.

20+ countries have pledged support for the relief efforts. if the US declines that support, that's their perogative.

[ET]

Bah, for some reason I can't post today?

Long story short...

We're taking in a lot of refugees here. The kids are being implanted into other school systems. Bad news is that a lot of the parishes already had too many kids in the first place.

Fools think that the whole state is under martial law. Someone got carjacked at one of the busiest intersection in my town. We don't mind helping but are also on guard. Speaking of, I hear that during the early part of the flood voltunteers were using their own boats to rescue folks stranded on the roofs of their own homes. One rescuee thanked his saviour by shooting him in the head and attempting to steal his boat.

Oh yeah, some more lovely news...

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Rep. John Sweeney, R-N.Y., urged President Bush to appoint former New York City mayor Rudolph Giuliani or two former military officials to run the ground response in the Gulf Coast, saying local authorities are not up to the task.

Sweeney suggested Giuliani or retired generals Colin Powell and Tommy Franks could take charge of the much-criticized hurricane relief efforts.

"We owe it to the American people to have America's best leaders with experience on the ground running this," said Sweeney. "It's been painfully obvious over the last four or five days that the circumstances and challenges coming at us are new, are nothing that had ever been anticipated."


NEVER SAW IT COMING! So let's get Guiliani involed!

"We need to get the job done now, and I don't think anybody is better prepared to do that psychologically and otherwise than Rudy Giuliani," Gingrich said

Nah, forget about people in the local governments who've lived in the state their entire lives and through at least 2 major hurricanes... they don't know what they're dealing with.

If you or anyone you know wants to donate, these charities give 100% of their targeted donations to the hurricane victims.

America's Second Harvest (http://www.secondharvest.org/site_content.asp?s=735)

Salvation Army (https://secure2.salvationarmy.org/donations.nsf/donate?openform&projectid=USN-hurricane05)

Christian Relief Fund (http://christianrelieffund.org/)

I would avoid the Red Cross, based on my own personal experiences. The area got hit by a lesser hurricane a few years back and upon losing their homes most residents got a bag of ice in terms of "aid" from the RC. The Salvation Army provided children and adults with clothing and whatever they could manage in terms of shelter, since they have local stations throughout the state.

It's always a good idea to donate blood too.

[TonsOfFun]

edit: xxx - ignore this, just a stupid rant not needed here

[Echewta]

20+ countries have pledged support for the relief efforts. if the US declines that support, that's their perogative.

[ET]

Because all the rich people had the means to leave. All of the poor people were stuck. :(

120,000 residents of New Orleans make less than $8,000 a year.

Remy, hope your cousin is doing well. Make sure you update, okay?

[Dr Deaf]

]

I would avoid the Red Cross, based on my own personal experiences. The area got hit by a lesser hurricane a few years back and upon losing their homes most residents got a bag of ice in terms of "aid" from the RC. The Salvation Army provided children and adults with clothing and whatever they could manage in terms of shelter, since they have local stations throughout the state.

It's always a good idea to donate blood too.

w3rd (http://www.prisonplanet.com/articles/september2005/010905redcross.htm)

As the aftermath of hurricane Katrina continues to wreak mayhem and havoc amid reports of mass looting, shooting at rescue helicopters, rapes and murders, establishment media organs are promoting the Red Cross as a worthy organization to give donations to.

The biggest website in the world, Yahoo.com, displays a Red Cross donation link prominently on its front page.

Every time there is a major catastrophe the Red Cross and similar organizations like United Way are given all the media attention while other charities are left in the shadows. This is not to say that the vast majority of Red Cross workers are not decent people who simply want to help those in need.

But what the media fails consistently to remember in their promotion of the organization is that the Red Cross have been caught time and time again withholding money in the wake of horrible disasters that require immediate release of funds.

The Red Cross, under the Liberty Fund, collected $564 million in donations after 9/11. Months after the event, the Red Cross had distributed only $154 million. The Red Cross' explanation for keeping the majority of the money was that it would be used to help 'fight the war on terror'. To the victims, this meant that the money was going towards bombing broken backed third world countries like Afghanistan and setting up surveillance cameras and expanding the police state in US cities, and not towards helping them rebuild their lives

Then Red Cross President Dr. Bernadine Healy arrogantly responded when questioned about the withholding of funds by stating, "The Liberty Fund is a war fund. It has evolved into a war fund."

Despite the family members of victims of 9/11 complaining bitterly to a House Energy and Commerce Committee's oversight panel, the issue seemed to be brushed under the carpet and the mud didn't stick.

The Red Cross' scandalous activities reach back (http://www.opinionjournal.com/editorial/feature.html?id=95001506) far before 9/11.

After the devastating San Francisco earthquake in 1989, the Red Cross passed on only $10 million of the $50 million that had been raised, and banked the rest.

Similar donations after the Oklahoma City bombing in 1995 and the Red River flooding in 1997 were also greedily withheld.

Smaller charities that were involved with the 2004 Tsunami relief project went public to say that large charities like Red Cross and United Way were engaged in secret backroom negotiations with each other that meant a large portion of the donation money was purposefully restricted from reaching the most needy areas affected by the disaster.

The history is clear, the Red Cross and other large so-called charities are in actual fact front group collection agencies for the military industrial complex.

Many informed historians have even alleged that the Red Cross was used as a Skull and Bones cover to overthrow The Russian Czar and pave the way for the rise of the Bolsheviks.

Do not give any money to the Red Cross unless you support the expansion of empire abroad and police state at home. Find a smaller trustworthy organization in the local area of New Orleans and make your donation to them.

[ET]

Thanks, I had been looking for an article mentioning what happened after 9/11. Seems like someone NEVER FORGOT.

Also, nevermind the 'Christian' Relief Fund. It's only a name. They help out people of all religions and races. As all Christians should... :mad:

[HEIRESS]

I wish there was a channel I could switch to where it's just ET giving me my hurricane aftermath updates

[Echewta]

CNN's Google Earth boner is in full erect.

[zippo]

Just open the damn stores, let people have what they want and then the stores will be empty and there won't be a looting problem. In the meantime, use that personnel for rescue of injured and protection of the survivors. Who cares if wal-mart or any store gets looted.

u·to·pi·a ( P ) Pronunciation Key (y-tp-)
n.

An ideally perfect place, especially in its social, political, and moral aspects.

[enree erzweglle]

I work at a university and we'll be taking students from Tulane, letting them finish the academic year (or maybe just the term?) here with room and board provided. Nice. I liked that a lot. I think the other big local school (Pitt) is doing the same thing. Very nice.

[zippo]

my point wasnt that these types of aid situations dont exist but that you cant expect it from everyone and even less demand it

[YoungRemy]

they just reported that Fidel Castro is ready to send Cuban doctors and supplies to help in the humanitarian aid....

[zorra_chiflada]

they just reported that Fidel Castro is ready to send Cuban doctors and supplies to help in the humanitarian aid....

(y)
would the US do the same for cuba?

[Laver1969]

Governor Pataki of New York just presented the Red Cross with a check for 2.5 million dollars.

[Audio.]

I'm waiting till it's over and the damn americans get a better leader next time.
I wonder how that one guy that would have won president would handle this?
Anyways the french, el salvador and mexico and aus and cana and a whole bunch of other countries are helping. :)
all is good if we all hurry up!

[Dr Deaf]

Dear Mr. Bush:

Any idea where all our helicopters are? It's Day 5 of Hurricane Katrina and thousands remain stranded in New Orleans and need to be airlifted. Where on earth could you have misplaced all our military choppers? Do you need help finding them? I once lost my car in a Sears parking lot. Man, was that a drag.

Also, any idea where all our national guard soldiers are? We could really use them right now for the type of thing they signed up to do like helping with national disasters. How come they weren't there to begin with?

Last Thursday I was in south Florida and sat outside while the eye of Hurricane Katrina passed over my head. It was only a Category 1 then but it was pretty nasty. Eleven people died and, as of today, there were still homes without power. That night the weatherman said this storm was on its way to New Orleans. That was Thursday! Did anybody tell you? I know you didn't want to interrupt your vacation and I know how you don't like to get bad news. Plus, you had fundraisers to go to and mothers of dead soldiers to ignore and smear. You sure showed her!

I especially like how, the day after the hurricane, instead of flying to Louisiana, you flew to San Diego to party with your business peeps. Don't let people criticize you for this -- after all, the hurricane was over and what the heck could you do, put your finger in the dike?

And don't listen to those who, in the coming days, will reveal how you specifically reduced the Army Corps of Engineers' budget for New Orleans this summer for the third year in a row. You just tell them that even if you hadn't cut the money to fix those levees, there weren't going to be any Army engineers to fix them anyway because you had a much more important construction job for them -- BUILDING DEMOCRACY IN IRAQ!

On Day 3, when you finally left your vacation home, I have to say I was moved by how you had your Air Force One pilot descend from the clouds as you flew over New Orleans so you could catch a quick look of the disaster. Hey, I know you couldn't stop and grab a bullhorn and stand on some rubble and act like a commander in chief. Been there done that.

There will be those who will try to politicize this tragedy and try to use it against you. Just have your people keep pointing that out. Respond to nothing. Even those pesky scientists who predicted this would happen because the water in the Gulf of Mexico is getting hotter and hotter making a storm like this inevitable. Ignore them and all their global warming Chicken Littles. There is nothing unusual about a hurricane that was so wide it would be like having one F-4 tornado that stretched from New York to Cleveland.

No, Mr. Bush, you just stay the course. It's not your fault that 30 percent of New Orleans lives in poverty or that tens of thousands had no transportation to get out of town. C'mon, they're black! I mean, it's not like this happened to Kennebunkport. Can you imagine leaving white people on their roofs for five days? Don't make me laugh! Race has nothing -- NOTHING -- to do with this!

You hang in there, Mr. Bush. Just try to find a few of our Army helicopters and send them there. Pretend the people of New Orleans and the Gulf Coast are near Tikrit.

Yours,
Michael Moore
MMFlint@aol.com
www.MichaelMoore.com


P.S. That annoying mother, Cindy Sheehan, is no longer at your ranch. She and dozens of other relatives of the Iraqi War dead are now driving across the country, stopping in many cities along the way. Maybe you can catch up with them before they get to DC on September 21st.

[Space]

yea I'm from Baton Rouge orgianlly and my fam down there says its chaos, Baton Rouge is packed with people from New ORelans

im offering up my house to friends of friends from that area that need space, i live in ATX, i can handle a couple.

Would prefer them to be beastie boys fans, and internet friendly.

PM

[YoungRemy]

we just received word from my cousin Rachele , who is a breathing specialist at Tulane U hospital.

she has been evacuated to Lafayette Louisiana and reunited with her husband and two children...

they are heading back towards Houston and may never go back...


our cousin, Brian, a resident second year ER doctor at Charity , is still stuck in New Orleans with critically ill patients.

from what Rachele told us, they are moving Charity patients to TUlane now, because conditions are better, but they sill dont know whats next or who is coming to rescue them

[BionicEye]

The one statement that has made me think the most...

"The situation in NO gives us a good indication of what could happen during the next 9/11".

[Dr Deaf]

here's an intersting ariticle from the NY times.


Stuff happens.

And when you combine limited government with incompetent government, lethal stuff happens.

America is once more plunged into a snake pit of anarchy, death, looting, raping, marauding thugs, suffering innocents, a shattered infrastructure, a gutted police force, insufficient troop levels and criminally negligent government planning. But this time it's happening in America.

W. drove his budget-cutting Chevy to the levee, and it wasn't dry. Bye, bye, American lives. "I don't think anyone anticipated the breach of the levees," he told Diane Sawyer.

Shirt-sleeves rolled up, W. finally landed in Hell yesterday and chuckled about his wild boozing days in "the great city" of N'Awlins. He was clearly moved. "You know, I'm going to fly out of here in a minute," he said on the runway at the New Orleans International Airport, "but I want you to know that I'm not going to forget what I've seen." Out of the cameras' range, and avoided by W., was a convoy of thousands of sick and dying people, some sprawled on the floor or dumped on baggage carousels at a makeshift M*A*S*H unit inside the terminal.

Why does this self-styled "can do" president always lapse into such lame "who could have known?" excuses.

Who on earth could have known that Osama bin Laden wanted to attack us by flying planes into buildings? Any official who bothered to read the trellis of pre-9/11 intelligence briefs.

Who on earth could have known that an American invasion of Iraq would spawn a brutal insurgency, terrorist recruiting boom and possible civil war? Any official who bothered to read the C.I.A.'s prewar reports.

Who on earth could have known that New Orleans's sinking levees were at risk from a strong hurricane? Anybody who bothered to read the endless warnings over the years about the Big Easy's uneasy fishbowl.

In June 2004, Walter Maestri, emergency management chief for Jefferson Parish, fretted to The Times-Picayune in New Orleans: "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."

Not only was the money depleted by the Bush folly in Iraq; 30 percent of the National Guard and about half its equipment are in Iraq.

Ron Fournier of The Associated Press reported that the Army Corps of Engineers asked for $105 million for hurricane and flood programs in New Orleans last year. The White House carved it to about $40 million. But President Bush and Congress agreed to a $286.4 billion pork-filled highway bill with 6,000 pet projects, including a $231 million bridge for a small, uninhabited Alaskan island.

Just last year, Federal Emergency Management Agency officials practiced how they would respond to a fake hurricane that caused floods and stranded New Orleans residents. Imagine the feeble FEMA's response to Katrina if they had not prepared.

Michael Brown, the blithering idiot in charge of FEMA - a job he trained for by running something called the International Arabian Horse Association - admitted he didn't know until Thursday that there were 15,000 desperate, dehydrated, hungry, angry, dying victims of Katrina in the New Orleans Convention Center.

Was he sacked instantly? No, our tone-deaf president hailed him in Mobile, Ala., yesterday: "Brownie, you're doing a heck of a job."

It would be one thing if President Bush and his inner circle - Dick Cheney was vacationing in Wyoming; Condi Rice was shoe shopping at Ferragamo's on Fifth Avenue and attended "Spamalot" before bloggers chased her back to Washington; and Andy Card was off in Maine - lacked empathy but could get the job done. But it is a chilling lack of empathy combined with a stunning lack of efficiency that could make this administration implode.

When the president and vice president rashly shook off our allies and our respect for international law to pursue a war built on lies, when they sanctioned torture, they shook the faith of the world in American ideals.

When they were deaf for so long to the horrific misery and cries for help of the victims in New Orleans - most of them poor and black, like those stuck at the back of the evacuation line yesterday while 700 guests and employees of the Hyatt Hotel were bused out first - they shook the faith of all Americans in American ideals. And made us ashamed.

Who are we if we can't take care of our own?

http://www.nytimes.com/2005
/09/03/opinion/03dowd.html

[ET]

our cousin, Brian, a resident second year ER doctor at Charity , is still stuck in New Orleans with critically ill patients.

from what Rachele told us, they are moving Charity patients to TUlane now, because conditions are better, but they sill dont know whats next or who is coming to rescue them

It's good to hear that they're doing okay. Hope Brian and the others get some more assistance soon.

[BionicEye]

My good friend a NYer moved down to NO a few years ago to be with his girlfriend. The poor bastard had to evacuate and leave everything behind. They're moving to new england. sucks.

[Laver1969]

our cousin, Brian, a resident second year ER doctor at Charity , is still stuck in New Orleans with critically ill patients.

from what Rachele told us, they are moving Charity patients to TUlane now, because conditions are better, but they sill dont know whats next or who is coming to rescue them

What's the latest? I've heard Charity has been evacuated.

[YoungRemy]

What's the latest? I've heard Charity has been evacuated.
yeah, he got out on friday evening and flew to Atlanta. his parents and his wife are meeting him tonight in ATL and driving him back to Birmingham, where he will take the next two weeks off, then he goes back to work at Charity.


it turns out they kept Charity open because it is a state run hospital, they were bringing in new patients all week, along with the critically ill ones.


he must be traumatized, to say the least, but he did a heroic thing, saving lives and fighting to stay alive himself

so everyone iin my family is safely relocated to various parts of the south.

some of their houses has a couple of water, i foot here, six inches there. (this from reports from winesses, not first hand accounts)some of the water is already receding, though, so they are all going back tomorrow to Jefferson Parish to inspect it fully.

[Documad]

My friend's brother-in-law is missing. He was last seen by a neighbor at one of the evacuation centers in the city, where apparently people were told to leave after the storm was over, but before the levee broke.

His wife was out of town when it happened. In past storms, his wife insisted they go stay with relatives inland.

[Dr Deaf]

http://judicial-inc.biz/katrina.htm

FEMA Head FIRED From Horse Association in 2001
As several readers have alerted me, not only was FEMA chief Michael D. Brown a former attorney for the Lyons, Colorado based International Arabian Horse Association, but he was actually *fired from* the International Arabian Horse Association. A Kos poster writes that his colleagues say he was fired for being an "unmitigated, total...disaster". The NYT profiles him here. Even I am staggered -- Brown was the lawyer for the horse association not back in the 1980s or 1990s, but until 2001 when he was brought into FEMA as deputy director by Joe Allbaugh. Incredible. One would think Bush administration party patronage positions would be confined to - you know, cushy ambassadorships and Iraq CPA positions, not doled out as heads of agencies that should be led by even semi-competent technocrats and professionals. Bring in the cavalry, indeed.



It's all there, Jeff, on the Meet The Press Broussard video...

Sunday, September 4, 2005

Jefferson Parish President Aaron Broussard announced on WWL-TV Saturday Night that residents would be allowed back in the Parish on Monday, but must re-evacuate by Thursday. Broussard had promised earlier in the week that residents would be allowed back on Monday, and seems to have managed to cut a deal with the feds to allow this happen.

Earlier reports on this site have shown that FEMA has barred rescue teams from entering New Orleans. And now the feds are dragging people out of the city by gunpoint (http://neworleans.indymedia.org/news/2005/09/4374.php). And back in Jefferson, Broussard explained on NBC's Meet the Press this morning that FEMA is making war even on local authorites [VIDEO] : (http://movies.crooksandliars.com/Meet-the-Press-Broussard.wmv)
RUSSERT: You just heard the director of homeland security's explanation of what has happened this last week. What is your reaction?

BROUSSARD: We have been abandoned by our own country. Hurricane Katrina will go down in history as one of the worst storms ever to hit an American coast. But the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina will go down as one of the worst abandonments of Americans on American soil ever in U.S. history. Whoever is at the top of this totem pole, that totem pole needs to be chainsawed off and we've got to start with some new leadership. It's not just Katrina that caused all these deaths in New Orleans here. Bureaucracy has committed murder here in the greater New Orleans area and bureaucracy has to stand trial before Congress now.

"Three quick examples. We had Wal-Mart deliver three trucks of water. FEMA (http://thinkprogress.org/2005/09/04/worst-abandonments/) turned them back. They said we didn't need them. This was a week ago. FEMA, we had 1,000 gallons of diesel fuel on a Coast Guard vessel docked in my parish. When we got there with our trucks, FEMA says don't give you the fuel. Yesterday - yesterday - FEMA comes in and cuts all of our emergency communication lines. They cut them without notice. Our sheriff, Harry Lee, goes back in, he reconnects the line. He posts armed guards and said no one is getting near these lines"

Broussard ended the interview pleading for help with the moving story of how Jefferson Parish Emrgency Director Walter Maestri's mother died in a nursing home after being promised rescue repeatedly for five days. No wonder he said earlier this week that Jefferson Parish would be better off right now if it were its own country.

Earlier in the week, Maestri explained how FEMA broke signed agreements to have sufficient assets on the ground within 48 hours of an emergency. FEMA assets are blatantly wreaking havoc and making war on the people of Southeast Louisiana. As residents "temporarily" stream back in tomorrow, they should bring with them generators, gasoline, weaponry, and weeks or months worth of provisions. Sherriff Harry Lee needs to deputize every able-bodied male of Jefferson Parish who returns to patrol key infrastructure and keep an eye on all federal thugs who may be provocateuring, sabotaging infrastucture or withholding supplies.

http://www.total411.info/

[QweenOfBoggle]

I work at a university and we'll be taking students from Tulane, letting them finish the academic year (or maybe just the term?) here with room and board provided. Nice. I liked that a lot. I think the other big local school (Pitt) is doing the same thing. Very nice.

Yepp. Northeastern here in Boston took around 10 kids in from Tulane. I met a couple of them the other night. They were evacuated the same night they moved to their dorm rooms. They were told to pack an "overnight bag." Most of them packed 1 or 2 changes of clothes and very few toiletries. Now, they've lost everything, except their lives, which is the most important thing as a lot of people never got out at all. All of this is just horribly depressing.
:(

[Dr Deaf]

Eyewitness Report
From New Orleans
From Alicia Jrapko
ajrapko@yahoo.com
9-6-5

On Saturday September 3, award-winning filmmaker Gloria La Riva, internationally-acclaimed photographer Bill Hackwell and A.N.S.W.E.R. Youth & Student Coordinator Caneisha Mills arrived in New Orleans as an A.N.S.W.E.R. delegation to document an accurate account of the situation and provide solidarity and support to those in need

The following is an eyewitness report of the crisis in the area written on Sunday, September 4....
_____

Media reports on September 2 describe anarchy and general chaos as the climate in all of New Orleans. The national media reports that hope, supplies and food were now being distributed in the area. However, once we arrived in the Algiers district of New Orleans after seven checkpoints, the reality shows otherwise.

Algiers

While 80 percent of New Orleans was submerged in water, Algiers is one of the few districts that has been spared as it sits higher than most of the city. An historic district established in 1719, Algiers is on the west bank of the Mississippi river, across from the French Quarter. Probably 15% of the residents still remain behind, most of them determined to stay in their homes. The majority of homes are still intact, although many have suffered damage. While their houses survived, the peoples' chance of survival seemed very bleak since there was no electricity or disbursement of food, water or other supplies.

"Imagine being in a city, poor, without any money and all of a sudden you are told to leave and you don't even have a bicycle," stated Malik Rahim, a community activist in the Algiers section of New Orleans. "90% of the people don't even have cars."

One woman told us it was not possible for her to evacuate. She said, "I can't leave. I don't have a car and I have nine children." She and her husband are getting by with the help of several men in the community who are joining resources to provide for their neighbors.

The government claims that people can get water, but residents have to travel at least 17 miles to the nearest water and ice distribution center. Only one case of water is available per family. Countless people have no way to drive.

There is a huge military and police presence but none of it to provide services. All of them, north and south of the river, are stationed in front of private buildings and abandoned stores, protecting private property.

The goods they are driving in are for their own forces.

Not one of them has delivered water to Algiers or gone to the houses to see if sick or elderly people need help. There is no door-to-door survey to see who was injured. The overwhelming majority of people who have stayed in Algiers are Black but some are white. One white man in his late 50s in Algiers pointed across the street to a 10-acre grassy lot. It looks like a beautiful park. He said, "I had my daughter call FEMA. I told them I want to donate this land to the people in need. They could set up 100 tractor trailers with aid, they could set up tents. No one has ever called me back." He is clearly angry.

Although some of the residents do express fear of burglaries into houses, acts of heroism, sacrifice and solidarity are evident everywhere.

Steve, a white man in his 40s, knocks on Malik's front door. He tells us, "Malik has kept this neighborhood together. We don't know what we'd do without his help." He has come in because he needs to use the phone. Malik's street is the only one with phones still working.

Malik and three of his friends have been delivering food, water and ice to those in need three times a day, searching everywhere for goods.

There is a strong suspicion among the residents that this is a deliberately forced removal. Algiers is full of quaint, historic French-style houses, with a high real estate value, and signs of gentrification are evident.

Downtown New Orleans

Although entry is prohibited into downtown New Orleans north and east of the Mississippi, because of extensive flooding and the almost total evacuation, we were able to get in on Sunday.

The Superdome is still surrounded by water and all types of military - helicopters, army trucks, etc - are coming in and out of the area; however, most of the people have already left. On US-90, the only road out of New Orleans, convoys of National Guard troops are pouring into the city, too late for many. According to an emergency issue of The Times-Picayune, 16,000 National Guard troops now occupy the city.

Water is premium and not available. One African American couple approached our car. The woman asked us, "Do you have water you could give us? We have four kids. When they told us to leave before the hurricane we couldn't. We have no car and no money."

Undoubtedly it is similar in the other states that got the direct hit of Katrina, Mississippi and Alabama. On the radio we hear reports of completely demolished towns. What differentiates the rest of the Gulf coast from New Orleans is that the many thousands of deaths in New Orleans were absolutely preventable and occurred after the hurricane. On everyone's lips is the cutting in federal funds to strengthen the levees of Lake Pontchartrain.

Two reporters from New York tell us they just came from the New Orleans airport emergency hospital that was set up.

New Orleans International Airport

The New Orleans International Airport was converted into an emergency hospital center. Thousands of people were evacuated there to getsupplies and food, and for transportation that would take them out of the city. Many people arrived with only one or two bags, their entire lives minimized to a few belongings.

Some people did not want to leave their homes, but say they were forced to do so. For example, one white woman and her husband, Pauline Noble and Jerome Hill, were forced to evacuate. Pauline said, "The military told us that we had one minute to evacuate. We said that we weren't ready and he said they can't force us to leave but if we don't leave anybody left would be arrested . but it was the end of the month. The two of us have been living for a couple of months on $600 a month and rent is $550. At the end of the month, we only had $20 and 1/8 of a tank of gas. There was no way we could leave."

When it became apparent that nobody was coming back to pick them up, the couple walked five miles to the airport to see if they could get help.

Disaster Medical Assistance Teams, doctors, nurses and community organizations came from as far as San Diego, California and Kentucky to provide support during the crisis. None of them were dispersed into the community. When we arrived at the airport on Sunday, September 4, there were approximately 20 medical people for every one patient while people in regions such as Algiers and the 9th ward were left to fend for themselves.

The majority of people in New Orleans blame the local and national government for the catastrophe. One young Black man said, "The government abandoned us . [it's] pre-meditated murder." Another said, "Why would you [the government] protect a building . instead of rescuing people that have been without food or water for three or four days? It seems like that was the plan. . We couldn't starve them out, the hurricane didn't kill them, it seems planned."

Baton Rouge

As we drive to Baton Rouge tonight to visit evacuated people, we hear on local radio that possibly 10,000 people have died in the flooded areas of New Orleans. Tonight in one announcement, we hear the names of some of the missing people still being searched for, a 90-year-old woman named Lisa, a man 102 years old, two women 82 and 85 years old. The elderly, the most vulnerable, left to their own devices.

Bodies are lying everywhere, and hidden in attics and apartments. The announcer describes how one body, rotting after days in the sun, was surrounded by a wall fashioned from fallen bricks by survivors, and given a provisional burial to give her some dignity. The sign placed next to her body said, "Here lies Vera, God Help Us."

At a Red Cross shelter outside of Baton Rouge, we meet Emmanuel, who can't find his wife and three sons after the floods. His story is shocking. His home is near the 17th Street Canal, where the Pontchartrain levee broke through.

"I stayed behind to rescue my neighbors while I sent my wife and kids to dry land," he says. It is difficult for him to relate what happened. He had a small boat so he went from house to house picking up neighbors. While doing so, he encountered many bodies in the water.

"My best friend's body was floating by in the water. One mother whose baby drowned tied her baby to a fence so she could bury him after she returned." Because troops kept driving by him and others without helping them, he had to walk 30 miles north until he was picked up.

This crisis is a crime of the highest magnitude. The Bush Administration is always able to find money to fund wars that will benefit the rich of this country; however, when it comes to providing aid to respond to a disaster of this magnitude, funds, supplies and resources are lacking. From Bush on down, they should be indicted.

----

when new orlean's is rebuilt, developers will snatch up the properties for fuck all and make it the most sensational casino / resort tourist destination since las vegas.

[QueenAdrock]

Yepp. Northeastern here in Boston took around 10 kids in from Tulane. I met a couple of them the other night. They were evacuated the same night they moved to their dorm rooms. They were told to pack an "overnight bag." Most of them packed 1 or 2 changes of clothes and very few toiletries. Now, they've lost everything, except their lives, which is the most important thing as a lot of people never got out at all. All of this is just horribly depressing.
:(

We're doing the same thing at UMD, we've recently enrolled an emergency 100 students.

My mom and I also went and bought 3 cat dishes, 2 dog dishes, 2 dog collars, 3 cat collars, 3 leashes, 3 bottles of water-free shampoo, 50 sanitizing pet wipes, 3 hand sanitizers, 1 bottle of disinfectant, 1 bottle/can opener combo, 2.5 gallons of water, 2 kitty litter pans, and 2 kitty litter scoopers. Baby kitties and puppies need love down there too!

I encourage everyone to look into being a foster family for their local shelter. I know that the Montgomery County Humane's Society is bringing back a truckload of rescued animals from down south, and they need foster families to hold and take care of the animals until their families are found again, and there are many other shelters across the country who are doing the same thing. I'd totally do it if I didn't have two extremely jealous cats.

[Documad]

We're doing the same thing at UMD, we've recently enrolled an emergency 100 students.
Everytime you post your school's name I think University of Minnesota at Duluth and I blink really hard.

It sounds like a lot of colleges are doing this. The college my friend teaches at is not only covering tuition and board for students, but also offering to relocate and support their families here for a year.

[QueenAdrock]

(y) Free tuition is always good.

I could change my schools name to TurtleTown, USA.

[Documad]

I could change my schools name to TurtleTown, USA.
That would be lovely. Thanks. :p

[Monsieur Decuts]

anyone hear anything from James Carville on this..ragin cajun?

[Newtral77]

Ok so apparently there are allegations that the feds are intentionally letting the area waste away.... that seems like a reach, but I did hear that 4 NOPD cops have committed suicide and another 300-400 have quit. Some of the people still in the area shot at a helicopter that was airlifting supplies to repair a bridge, and when the police arrived they shot at the cops, causing the cops to return fire and kill 4 of them. How are the feds supposed to send help to the area when these people just shoot at it.

I'm sorry but if I was in that situation I would want all the help I could get... I would NOT be shooting at helicopters airlifting people out and bringing supplies in.

Shooting at Evacuation helicopters (http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/nm/20050901/us_nm/weather_katrina_dc_83)

[Medellia]

I'm sorry but if I was in that situation I would want all the help I could get... I would NOT be shooting at helicopters airlifting people out and bringing supplies in.
Well you aren't in that situation are you? Fact is none of us know how we would react in that situation until it actually happens.

[Dr Deaf]

Ok so apparently there are allegations that the feds are intentionally letting the area waste away.... that seems like a reach, but I did hear that 4 NOPD cops have committed suicide and another 300-400 have quit. Some of the people still in the area shot at a helicopter that was airlifting supplies to repair a bridge, and when the police arrived they shot at the cops, causing the cops to return fire and kill 4 of them. How are the feds supposed to send help to the area when these people just shoot at it.

I'm sorry but if I was in that situation I would want all the help I could get... I would NOT be shooting at helicopters airlifting people out and bringing supplies in.

Shooting at Evacuation helicopters (http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/nm/20050901/us_nm/weather_katrina_dc_83)


...of all the new footage i've watched in the last week, none of it included any of this allegeded domestic terrorism. the suggestion of snipers shooting at rescuers lays the ground work for a reasonable excuse in the slow reaction by FEMA and other govt agencies. it's also a great reason to roll out the national guard with orders to shoot and kill potential 'looters', rather than launching an effective relief effort.

new world orleans. (http://infowars.net/Pages/Sept05/050905New_World_Orleans.htm)

[Space]

found it...

[Space]

ay yo, dont front on us now.

we will take care of our own. if yall wanna bitch about politics, then just buy some stocks in diapers and leave my people out of your bizness.

we can take care of our own, we aint gonna let 40,000 die like france and europe did last summer in a heat wave (!) .