September 02, 2005
Good question.
A friend e-mails:
I've been watching a lot of the Blame-Bush-First media, CNN is terrible, but one thing seems clear. The introduction of federals into a State emergency requires a State request. Bush set the table for such a request by declaring the gulf states disaster areas even before Katrina hit. This made them eligible to make a request of the federals. If I have that much right, then the crucial question is when was the request was made. My guess is it was not until late Wed or Thurs. I suppose this is tivial in the Bush-bashing scheme of things but someone should set the timeline straight.Good question. And one might be interested in this piece, New Orleans orders evacuation, from last Sunday, which includes the line: "Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Blanco said that President Bush had called and urged the state to order the evacuation." Kinda looks like, far from dragging his feet, Bush may have been the only one looking ahead!
There's a lot of stupid talk right now, of the "the government ought to do something" variety. People seem to be only dimly aware that we have three levels of government, and the Feds are not the first responders in a disaster, but the last. I heard some New Orleans victim on the radio, saying, "The President should have had supplies piled up, to fly in the next day." NO, he should not have. YOU should have laid in supplies, your city should have stockpiled supplies, and the State of Louisiana should have accumulated supplies.
That would be normal preparation for an oncoming danger. Preparations for a week or two are the least that's reasonable. FEMA and the military should be back-up only.
What a collection of hysterical little old ladies this country has become!
We have to wait for the Fedr'l Gummint to rescue us, and it's nobody else's fault.
Mayor Nagin is a craven weasel with his "getting pissed" at the Feds act. I'm familiar enough with human nature to recognize the tactic. He's incompetent and screwed up big-time, so, by yelling and screaming and other assorted histrionics, he's deflecting the criticism on the only entity that too many Americans expect to be the ONLY source of governing competence anymore.
I would not want to be stuck on a lifeboat with anyone of this sort of mentality, as they would only be a danger to myself and others. I would toss them overboard, or bash them in the head and keep their bodies as emergency rations should things get really desperate.
Posted by: Roderick Reilly at September 2, 2005 09:13 PMThere's no end to the hysteria of those who believe we have a nanny state.
Last night PBS had a documentary about wetlands south of New Orleans that was surely made long before this hurricane, but they managed to edit it to blame Bush for all of this.
Among other things, can we retake PBS?
Posted by: Xixi at September 3, 2005 08:43 AM
