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marfknox
SFN Die Hard
USA
3739 Posts |
 Posted - 09/01/2005 : 23:53:07
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From the NY Times: http://www.nytimes.com/2005/09/02/national/nationalspecial/02response.html?hp&ex=1125720000&en=41248434df5debce&ei=5094&partner=homepage
In an interview Thursday on "Good Morning America," President Bush said, "I don't think anyone anticipated the breach of the levees." He added, "Now we're having to deal with it, and will."
From the Washington Post: http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/editorial/3335820
New Orleans and Louisiana officials begged the federal government for years to improve the levies and other protections against flooding, to no avail.
From the Chicago Tribune: http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-050901relief-story,1,490120.story?coll=chi-news-hed&ctrack=1&cset=true
And the hurricane experts shook their heads in disgust and futility, much of it directed at the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
"We told FEMA, and we told them long ago, and we told them more than once that they needed to purchase the land for tent cities with full facilities in anticipation of this," said Ivor van Heerden, deputy director of the Louisiana State University Hurricane Center, where experts warned since the late 1990s that New Orleans' levies couldn't withstand the storm surge of a major hurricane.
"They told me Americans don't live in tents," van Heerden said. "I guess that sums up their attitude."
and
And in Florida, some veterans of last year's wave of hurricane destruction wrung their hands at the slow pace of rescue in New Orleans.
"Like everyone, I'm watching with disbelief," said Chris Reynolds, a Tampa-based professor of emergency management at American Military University. "Why was there such a long delay?"
And some commentary relating the Hurricane disaster to Iraq: http://www.axisoflogic.com/artman/publish/article_19599.shtml
They need more people and thousands of National Guard troops from that region are in Iraq.
*shakes head* This is why, from a purely cold, economic, non-humane point of view, a country should never go to war unless it absolutely has to.
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"Too much certainty and clarity could lead to cruel intolerance" -Karen Armstrong
Check out my art store: http://www.marfknox.etsy.com
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Edited by - marfknox on 09/02/2005 00:03:31
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pleco
SFN Addict
USA
2998 Posts |
Posted - 09/02/2005 : 05:01:11 [Permalink]
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Yes, the feds have really fucked this one up. Unfortunately, I am not surprised at all.
I hope that Bush and his cabinet doesn't get too much mud on their wing-tips when they come to visit today.
The military needs to invade New Orleans immediately - just pretend it is Bosnia or something.
Or maybe the president can tell us to pray really hard - I'm sure god is going to do something pretty soon....wait for it...wait for it... |
by Filthy
The neo-con methane machine will soon be running at full fart. |
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| Edited by - pleco on 09/02/2005 05:01:51 |
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filthy
SFN Die Hard
USA
14408 Posts |
Posted - 09/02/2005 : 06:17:21 [Permalink]
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Indeed. This morning, I found this gem that pretty well covers it. The five most idiotic statements thus far. I'm sure there will be many more: quote:
CLUELESS....Could the people in charge of managing the catastrophe in New Orleans possibly be more clueless?
George W. Bush, President of the United States, six days after repeated warnings from experts about the scope of damage expected from Hurricane Katrina: "I don't think anyone anticipated the breach of the levees."
Michael Chertoff, Secretary of Homeland Security, following widespread eyewitness reports of refugees living like animals at the Convention Center: "I have not heard a report of thousands of people in the Convention Center who don't have food and water."
Mike Brown, Director of FEMA, referring to people who were stuck in New Orleans largely because they were too poor to afford the means to leave: "...those who are stranded, who chose not to evacuate, who chose not to leave the city..."
Patrick Rhode, deputy director of FEMA, commenting on his agency's performance after four days of steadily increasing urban warfare, deeply flawed coordination, and continuing inability to evacuate refugees: "Probably one of the most efficient and effective responses in the country's history."
Dennis Hastert, Speaker of the House of Representatives, providing needed reassurance to the newly homeless: "It makes no sense to spend billions of dollars to rebuild a city that's seven feet under sea level....It looks like a lot of that place could be bulldozed."
This is beyond belief. What's with these people?
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"What luck for rulers that men do not think." -- Adolf Hitler (1889 - 1945)
"If only we could impeach on the basis of criminal stupidity, 90% of the Rethuglicans and half of the Democrats would be thrown out of office." ~~ P.Z. Myres
"The default position of human nature is to punch the other guy in the face and take his stuff." ~~ Dude
Brother Boot Knife of Warm Humanitarianism,
and Crypto-Communist! 
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pleco
SFN Addict
USA
2998 Posts |
Posted - 09/02/2005 : 06:33:36 [Permalink]
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| I think that a terrorist would pick right now as the time to do something in the US. The world can see how pathetic the govt. was at handling this, and now resources are stretched thin. :-( |
by Filthy
The neo-con methane machine will soon be running at full fart. |
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GeeMack
SFN Regular
USA
1093 Posts |
Posted - 09/02/2005 : 06:46:08 [Permalink]
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Here are a few more articles showing again how George W. Bush and crew are the biggest fuck-ups currently living on the planet Earth.
Why the Levee Broke
Why New Orleans Is In Deep Water
New Orleans District of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Faces Huge Budget Cuts
A big problem we have right now is the general attitude that our senators, congress people, president, judges, mayors, etc. are our leaders. We need to stop referring to them as leaders. They are not, never were intended to be, and never should be considered our leaders. They are our employees. We are their bosses. Our representatives should be exactly that... representatives. Our public servants should work for us, not the other way around.
We've made a huge cultural mistake by taking those people to be our leaders and that needs to change. Let's stop using the word "leader" when we refer to them. Let's understand that they are supposed to do our bidding. Let's correct our friends and neighbors when they mistakenly refer to those public employees as "leaders". And most importantly, since we are their bosses, let's set about the task of recognizing which ones are doing a lousy job and fire them.
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beskeptigal
SFN Die Hard
USA
3834 Posts |
Posted - 09/02/2005 : 12:06:58 [Permalink]
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quote:
Originally posted by pleco
I think that a terrorist would pick right now as the time to do something in the US. The world can see how pathetic the govt. was at handling this, and now resources are stretched thin. :-(
Why should they bother? We're doing a good job of it without their help.
Filthy, I couldn't help but notice the irony of your sig quote:
"What luck for rulers that men do not think." -- Adolf Hitler (1889 - 1945)
Who is it again that doesn't think? |
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BigPapaSmurf
SFN Die Hard
3192 Posts |
Posted - 09/02/2005 : 12:10:50 [Permalink]
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Ill post this here as well,
From 10/04 National Geographic
quote:
But the next day the storm gathered steam and drew a bead on the city. As the whirling maelstrom approached the coast, more than a million people evacuated to higher ground. Some 200,000 remained, however—the car-less, the homeless, the aged and infirm, and those die-hard New Orleanians who look for any excuse to throw a party.
The storm hit Breton Sound with the fury of a nuclear warhead, pushing a deadly storm surge into Lake Pontchartrain. The water crept to the top of the massive berm that holds back the lake and then spilled over. Nearly 80 percent of New Orleans lies below sea level—more than eight feet below in places—so the water poured in. A liquid brown wall washed over the brick ranch homes of Gentilly, over the clapboard houses of the Ninth Ward, over the white-columned porches of the Garden District, until it raced through the bars and strip joints on Bourbon Street like the pale rider of the Apocalypse. As it reached 25 feet (eight meters) over parts of the city, people climbed onto roofs to escape it.
Thousands drowned in the murky brew that was soon contaminated by sewage and industrial waste. Thousands more who survived the flood later perished from dehydration and disease as they waited to be rescued. It took two months to pump the city dry, and by then the Big Easy was buried under a blanket of putrid sediment, a million people were homeless, and 50,000 were dead. It was the worst natural disaster in the history of the United States.
When did this calamity happen? It hasn't—yet.
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"...things I have neither seen nor experienced nor heard tell of from anybody else; things, what is more, that do not in fact exist and could not ever exist at all. So my readers must not believe a word I say." -Lucian on his book True History
"...They accept such things on faith alone, without any evidence. So if a fraudulent and cunning person who knows how to take advantage of a situation comes among them, he can make himself rich in a short time." -Lucian critical of early Christians c.166 AD From his book, De Morte Peregrini |
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Stargirl
Skeptic Friend
USA
94 Posts |
Posted - 09/02/2005 : 14:12:32 [Permalink]
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It's not just the failure of a quick response to the devastation caused by the hurricane that the media should be highlighting. It's that after getting everything they've wanted for the last four years the woefully slow and inadequate response to Katrina illustrates what would probably happen if there were a nuclear biological or chemical attack by terrorists against a major U.S. city. This Reuters article talks a little more about that.
And what is one of the important things on Bush's mind? Read this report from the Whitehouse to find out.
quote:
We've got a lot of rebuilding to do. First, we're going to save lives and stabilize the situation. And then we're going to help these communities rebuild. The good news is -- and it's hard for some to see it now -- that out of this chaos is going to come a fantastic Gulf Coast, like it was before. Out of the rubbles of Trent Lott's house -- he's lost his entire house -- there's going to be a fantastic house. And I'm looking forward to sitting on the porch. (Laughter.)
Yes, a top priority should defiantly be the rebuilding one of Trent Lott's houses so Bush can go do some schmoozing with fellow Republicans. If it's on the river maybe they can watch the bodies float by while sipping their Mint Juleps.
quote:
And I'm not looking forward to this trip. I got a feel for it when I flew over before. It -- for those who have not -- trying to conceive what we're talking about, it's as if the entire Gulf Coast were obliterated by a -- the worst kind of weapon you can imagine.
The poor baby has to go look at death and destruction to make himself look presidential. Maybe he should prohibit the media from covering the disaster just like they prohibit coverage of the returning dead and wounded from Iraq. Yeah that's the answer then everything would be peachy just like it Iraq.
quote:
And now we're going to go try to comfort people in that part of the world.
And the last sentence really infuriates me. It's his part of the world, his country, the U.S.A. damn it. And those are his people, citizens of his country that need help NOW.
Lord-o-mighty how much more detached can a person get?
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If God did not exist, it would be necessary to invent him - Voltaire |
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GeeMack
SFN Regular
USA
1093 Posts |
Posted - 09/02/2005 : 15:21:41 [Permalink]
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The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers knew of the potential danger to New Orleans from vulnerabilities with the levee system. Several links on the pages of this forum already point to that information. We already know that funding was cut for some major reinforcement and upgrade projects, and that even the Corps of Engineers claimed those cuts were due to resources being allocated to the Iraq War instead.
But now it looks like George Bush got the right spokesman in there. Lt. Gen. Carl Strock, commander of the Corps of Engineers, is denying that there was a disaster waiting to happen. He's claiming that the levees were expected to hold strong for another couple of centuries. A liar like that has a bright future in the Bush regime.quote:
Engineers may need up to 80 days to remove Hurricane Katrina's flood waters from the swamped New Orleans, a senior U.S. Army Corps of Engineers official said on Friday.
Draining New Orleans Could Take 80 Days - Army
In 80 days, at $177 million per day, the Iraq War will have cost the American taxpayers another $14 billion. We sure could use that money for food, clothing, and shelter for the victims of Katrina. Call or write your representatives and remind them that they work for you, then demand they bring those troops home from Iraq. Don't take any excuses or insubordination from them. You are their boss. Not only are you entitled to make this demand, it is your responsibility to do so. We've got a mess here at home, in more ways than one, and the time to start cleaning it up is now.
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pleco
SFN Addict
USA
2998 Posts |
Posted - 09/02/2005 : 16:14:44 [Permalink]
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| Unfortunatly Gee we don't live in a democracy, but a republic (and a fairly corrupt one at that). |
by Filthy
The neo-con methane machine will soon be running at full fart. |
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GeeMack
SFN Regular
USA
1093 Posts |
Posted - 09/02/2005 : 22:13:05 [Permalink]
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quote:
Originally posted by pleco...
Unfortunatly Gee we don't live in a democracy, but a republic (and a fairly corrupt one at that).
I understand, but the reality is some people will give up, and some of us will try to take our country back. I called my senators and left messages for them to call me on matters of extreme national importance, but I can't do it alone.
In other matters regarding the Katrina catastrophe and George Bush's continued display of incompetence, here's how the press is being treated by the military. Is this in Iraq? No, it's in the good old U.S. of A.quote:
A National Guardsman refused entry [to Hall D of the convention center]. It doesn't need to be seen, it's a make-shift morgue in there," he told a Reuters photographer. "We're not letting anyone in there anymore. If you want to take pictures of dead bodies, go to Iraq."
Murder and Mayhem in New Orleans' Miserable Shelter
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caslad60
New Member
United Kingdom
5 Posts |
Posted - 09/03/2005 : 15:22:54 [Permalink]
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Hi Gee, and everyone else. Just dropping into say thanks for giving me the link to here .Hope to contribute as an "outsider" if I can. I'm "getting a bit of stick" over on the Magic Cafe for criticising Mr Bush's government over the response to the Hurricane . Could do with some back up if you;ve got nothing else to do?
cheers
Howard
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GeeMack
SFN Regular
USA
1093 Posts |
Posted - 09/03/2005 : 16:04:02 [Permalink]
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Hi, caslad60, and welcome to SFN. Your posts won't get deleted here for criticizing George W. Bush. And interestingly enough, your posts wouldn't get deleted here even if you ardently supported and defended him. Take a look around the site. You'll probably find some interesting discussions. Feel free to join in!
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Dr. Mabuse
Septic Fiend
Sweden
9688 Posts |
Posted - 09/03/2005 : 17:05:29 [Permalink]
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| Feds didn't drop the ball, they weren't even in the same arena. |
Dr. Mabuse - "When the going gets tough, the tough get Duct-tape..."
Dr. Mabuse whisper.mp3
"Equivocation is not just a job, for a creationist it's a way of life..." Dr. Mabuse
Support American Troops in Iraq:
Send them unarmed civilians for target practice..
Collateralmurder. |
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tw101356
Skeptic Friend
USA
333 Posts |
Posted - 09/03/2005 : 17:10:16 [Permalink]
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Apparently FEMA now means Feeble Emergency Management Attempts.
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- TW
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filthy
SFN Die Hard
USA
14408 Posts |
Posted - 09/03/2005 : 17:29:39 [Permalink]
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quote:
Originally posted by beskeptigal
quote:
Originally posted by pleco
I think that a terrorist would pick right now as the time to do something in the US. The world can see how pathetic the govt. was at handling this, and now resources are stretched thin. :-(
Why should they bother? We're doing a good job of it without their help.
Filthy, I couldn't help but notice the irony of your sig quote:
"What luck for rulers that men do not think." -- Adolf Hitler (1889 - 1945)
Who is it again that doesn't think?
Now B'gal, you know just as well as I that Hitler only had one ball was speaking in the venacular of the times; "men" meaning the overwhelming percentage of Homo sapiens, male, female, and working-on-it.
Interesting thought though, as to the how the roles of women have, not so much changed, as expanded in the scarce decades since WW-II.
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"What luck for rulers that men do not think." -- Adolf Hitler (1889 - 1945)
"If only we could impeach on the basis of criminal stupidity, 90% of the Rethuglicans and half of the Democrats would be thrown out of office." ~~ P.Z. Myres
"The default position of human nature is to punch the other guy in the face and take his stuff." ~~ Dude
Brother Boot Knife of Warm Humanitarianism,
and Crypto-Communist!
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