Hurricane Katrina

[camsmith]

Once again the left is celebrating another tragedy.

What a great chance to get stuck into Bush, who cares about the fact that tons and tons of food and water are being delivered to New Orleans, aswell as the huge amount of effort going into getting people out of the city.

Or that 4,500 people have been rescued who would have otherwise died.

Nope, forget all that.. lets get stuck into Bush.

 

[Blade]

Once again the left is celebrating another tragedy.

That's a low blow and you'd retract it if you had a shred of decency about yourself.

Anyway . . .

The below is extracts from an article that was published in the Oct. 2004 edition of the National Geographic Magazine which authenticates that there was increasing concerns over flood control - or lack there of - in the New Orleans, Louisiana area.

"The killer for Louisiana is a Category Three storm at 72 hours before landfall that becomes a Category Four at 48 hours and a Category Five at 24 hours—coming from the worst direction," says Joe Suhayda, a retired coastal engineer at Louisiana State University who has spent 30 years studying the coast. Suhayda is sitting in a lakefront restaurant on an actual August afternoon sipping lemonade and talking about the chinks in the city's hurricane armor. "I don't think people realize how precarious we are,"
Suhayda says, watching sailboats glide by. "Our technology is great when it works. But when it fails, it's going to make things much worse."

The chances of such a storm hitting New Orleans in any given year are slight, but the danger is growing. Climatologists predict that powerful storms may occur more frequently this century, while rising sea level from global warming is putting low-lying coasts at greater risk. "It's not if it will happen," says University of New Orleans geologist Shea Penland. "It's when."

FULL ARTICLE

 

[Mong]

Once again the left is celebrating another tragedy.

What a great chance to get stuck into Bush, who cares about the fact that tons and tons of food and water are being delivered to New Orleans, aswell as the huge amount of effort going into getting people out of the city.

Or that 4,500 people have been rescued who would have otherwise died.

Nope, forget all that.. lets get stuck into Bush.

Celebrating?? No joy here i am afraid... Plenty of concern over the poor handling of it all though

Are you in Millers cue and are of the opinion they have done a good job?

 

[tommytomlin]

Once again the left is celebrating another tragedy.

What a great chance to get stuck into Bush, who cares about the fact that tons and tons of food and water are being delivered to New Orleans, aswell as the huge amount of effort going into getting people out of the city.

Or that 4,500 people have been rescued who would have otherwise died.

Nope, forget all that.. lets get stuck into Bush.

If I close my eyes and put my fingers in my ears and think really really hard, I like to pretend I'm Batman

 

[camsmith]

Are you in Millers cue and are of the opinion they have done a good job?

Dont know what Millers has to do with anything ive said, im of my own opinion. And i think they are doing a good job now, yes.

---

And blade, i should have said -some- on the left appear to be more worried about how they can use this tragedy to continue GWB bashing than worry about how they do something about it themselves.

Is that a better way of saying it?

Regardless if you disagree, it must be said that some have no sympathy for those hurt by the hurricane and are using it to push their anti-bush propaganda.

 

[Dread]

Regardless if you disagree, it must be said that some have no sympathy for those hurt by the hurricane and are using it to push their anti-bush propaganda.

You're a moron.

Criticising the US government and having sympathy are not diametrically opposed. Those on the left can both rip into Bush for his complete f**k up on this issue AND be concerned for the victims.

Seems the right would just like to hope this issue can just go away. Unfortunately for them, this one is just too big to sweep under the carpet.

 

[Meanie]

You're a moron.

Criticising the US government and having sympathy are not diametrically opposed.

Nope but it's what Bush supporters will trot out no doubt.

 

[camsmith]

hmm, i just think continued criticism is uncalled for.

But its only my opinon... so who really cares.

 

[tommytomlin]

I think when it takes six days to evacuate American citizens from a death-filled squalor because the government and the bureaucracy cannot pull its finger from its proverbial arse, continued criticism is very much called for. Bush deserves criticism, his administration deserve criticism, the Louisiana Governor deserves criticism, FEMA deserves a lot of criticism, and the Mayor deserves some criticism.

What has happened in New Orleans is an absolute disgrace. Yeah, the aid has arrived, yes they evacuated thousands of people and saved thousands of lives before the hurricane, but that's what they're MEANT to do. To use the lives they've saved as a defense for the thousands of people who have been forced to live in thirld world conditions because of behind-the-scenes powerplays and inaction from a government meant to protect them is ridiculous.

 

[SpaceMonkey]

Agreed. If something like this happenned in Australia, I'd be sreaming blue murder at Howard and co. if it happenned in NZ I'd be fithy at Clarke. It's nothing to do with left vs right.
I mean at one point they mentioned that a bunch of police were ignoring people fighting in the street because they were tring to catch a looter in a supermaket. Now am I the only one who thinks that considering that as there were thousands of people without food and water the police would've been better off just going into the supermaket, taking all the suitable food and water and giving it to people, and the govt could have compensated the supermarket owners later?

 

[Alex28]

To me, this is not about hating America - it is highlighting what a disgrace Bush's administration has been in handling this disaster. These are the people who were the backbone in voting them into power, and they have just abandoned them. To have to live in such conditions for nearly 5 days before something serious actually happens is just unacceptable.

The reporting of this has been a disgrace - I saw a report a few days ago where Reuters had tagged a photo of Black people with food as "looters" and white people with bread and soft drink as "survivors who found food". There might not be an intentional race agenda here, but it is not a coincidence that 90% of the people that couldn't get out of the city in time and were stuck there are black.

One last thing - I just read that Haliburton has got a substantial contract to clean up New Orleans - no time for tenders. Coincidence I am sure...

 

[BuffaloRules]

The handling of this disaster ( and obviously a lot more people other than George Bush need to be accountable ) has to be one of the most monumentul f**k ups in US history...

http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/morale-slumps-as-stress-takes-toll-on-police/2005/09/04/1125772411697.html

Morale slumps as stress takes toll on police
By Joseph Treaster in New Orleans
September 5, 2005


Reeling from the chaos of their overwhelmed city, at least 200 New Orleans police officers have deserted or quit and two have committed suicide.

Some officially told their superiors they were leaving, police officials said. Others worked for a while and then stopped showing up. Still others never made it in after the storm.

For nearly a week, many of the New Orleans Police Department's 1500 officers have had to work around the clock, trying to cope with flooding, an overwhelming crush of refugees, looters and occasional snipers.

The Police Superintendent, Edwin Compass, said morale was "not very good".

"If I put you out on the street and made you get into gun battles all day with no place to urinate and no place to defecate, I don't think you would be too happy either," he said. "Our vehicles can't get any gas. The water in the street is contaminated. My officers are walking around in wet shoes."

The Assistant Superintendent of Police, Warren Riley, said about 1200 officers were on duty on Saturday. Some of the missing officers "couldn't handle the pressure" and the force did not need them, he said, while others were absent due to personal tragedy.

Some patrol officers said morale was already low as a result of understaffing and a lack of equipment. "We have to use our own shotguns," one patrolman said.

Another officer said that many of those who quit were younger, inexperienced officers who were overwhelmed.

Police officials did not identify those who had committed suicide on Friday and Saturday, but said one was an "absolutely outstanding" patrol officer and the other had lost his home and had been unable to find his family.

Chief Riley attacked the initial federal response, saying that for the first three days the police, fire departments and volunteers had been alone trying to rescue thousands.

"We expected the Government to respond within 24 hours. The first three days we had no assistance, " he said.

"We have been fired on with automatic weapons. We still have some thugs around. My biggest disappointment is with the Federal Government and the National Guard.

"The guard arrived 48 hours after the hurricane with 40 trucks. They drove their trucks in and went to sleep.

"We have people who died while the National Guard sat and played cards."

The New York Times, Agence France-Presse

As others have said, its not like there wasn't any warning that a disaster of this magnitude was on the way. Read the warning at the start of this thread.

The US authorities handling of this disaster has been Gallipoli like.

 

[weasel]

Fired on by automatic weapons?!! Maybe this will force a re-considering of gun laws in the US. But I shouldn't get too hopeful.

 

[millersnose]

halliburton bu$hitler michael moore

rexy - 10,000 - happy?

spacey - off course the governor of louisiana is making a noise its what they are supposed to do

particulairly given:

Behind the scenes, a power struggle emerged, as federal officials tried to wrest authority from Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Babineaux Blanco (D). Shortly before midnight Friday, the Bush administration sent her a proposed legal memorandum asking her to request a federal takeover of the evacuation of New Orleans, a source within the state’s emergency operations center said Saturday.

The administration sought unified control over all local police and state National Guard units reporting to the governor. Louisiana officials rejected the request after talks throughout the night, concerned that such a move would be comparable to a federal declaration of martial law. Some officials in the state suspected a political motive behind the request. “Quite frankly, if they’d been able to pull off taking it away from the locals, they then could have blamed everything on the locals,” said the source, who does not have the authority to speak publicly.

 

[Rexxy]

You forgot to add your source. Although I would be too ashamed to mention it as well if I had to rely on this site to justify the actions of the authorities...

http://freewillblog.com/

Now if N.O. had a population of 500K and 80K were left for dead, it only would have taken 1 in every 6 of those fleeing to pick up someone and take them to safety.

I wonder what would have happened if this sort of disaster happened in Australia? I'm sure we would have handled it far more efficiently and compassionately.

halliburton bu$hitler michael moore

rexy - 10,000 - happy?

spacey - off course the governor of louisiana is making a noise its what they are supposed to do

particulairly given:

Behind the scenes, a power struggle emerged, as federal officials tried to wrest authority from Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Babineaux Blanco (D). Shortly before midnight Friday, the Bush administration sent her a proposed legal memorandum asking her to request a federal takeover of the evacuation of New Orleans, a source within the state’s emergency operations center said Saturday.

The administration sought unified control over all local police and state National Guard units reporting to the governor. Louisiana officials rejected the request after talks throughout the night, concerned that such a move would be comparable to a federal declaration of martial law. Some officials in the state suspected a political motive behind the request. “Quite frankly, if they’d been able to pull off taking it away from the locals, they then could have blamed everything on the locals,” said the source, who does not have the authority to speak publicly.

 

[Rexxy]

So Millers, should Lucas Heights meltdown I shouldn't expect you to pick me up and take me to safety on the way through.

Windows would up tight. Doors locked. Granny in rocking chair tied onto roof with occy straps, with a shotgun threaten to shooting anyone who comes within 6 feet of the vehicle. Neighbor's kids, with Nintendo, chucking a browneye at those unfortunate enough to be left behind.

 

[SpaceMonkey]

If youre black, you're looting, if you're white, you're "finding food". Nice.

 

[millersnose]

So Millers, should Lucas Heights meltdown I shouldn't expect you to pick me up and take me to safety on the way through.

Windows would up tight. Doors locked. Granny in rocking chair tied onto roof with occy straps, with a shotgun threaten to shooting anyone who comes within 6 feet of the vehicle. Neighbor's kids, with Nintendo, chucking a browneye at those unfortunate enough to be left behind.

lucas heights is a tiny yield research facility not a power station

if it melts down i will have a coffee

i dont get all this race stuff

people here are saying they didnt get rescued immediately because they were black

Are you guys saying that a decision was made to ignore blacks at the expense of whites?

 

[millersnose]

You forgot to add your source. Although I would be too ashamed to mention it as well if I had to rely on this site to justify the actions of the authorities...

http://freewillblog.com/

no its the washington post dopey


http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/09/03/AR2005090301680.html

Now if N.O. had a population of 500K and 80K were left for dead, it only would have taken 1 in every 6 of those fleeing to pick up someone and take them to safety.

well why didnt they whiop around and coordinate this huge evacuation in the 24 hours notice they had

I wonder what would have happened if this sort of disaster happened in Australia?

we already know

we have darwin as an example - the death toll was huge

I'm sure we would have handled it far more efficiently and compassionately.

yeah

we would have had thousands of magic choppers and identified exactly were people were going to be in trouble and immediately made things better with instant "just add water" packets of 'she'll be right'

 

[Rexxy]

I'm not the dopey one. Mr Resort to Petty Insults.

You're the one saying everything is hunky dory and inferring that 10,000 dead is acceptable in a city that got good warning, knew it was built under the water level, had no contingency plans and still took 4 days to get water to people.

Darwin was a great example of a city being demolished, emergency services mobilized, and 65 dead. Too many? probably but it shows

Australians = Smarter.

Australians = More Compassionate.

Australians = less driven by blind ideology.

no its the washington post dopey


http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/09/03/AR2005090301680.html






well why didnt they whiop around and coordinate this huge evacuation in the 24 hours notice they had





we already know

we have darwin as an example - the death toll was huge



yeah

we would have had thousands of magic choppers and identified exactly were people were going to be in trouble and immediately made things better with instant "just add water" packets of 'she'll be right'