South Eastern Homies....

[Chadd 916]

do you think the US govnerment is doing a good job in releif efforts so far?

Now to me it appears that the govnerment is doing alot of talking about whats going to be done but there not doing that much. thats just IMO. i mean theres still people on there roof top waiting to be rescued.

People are shooting at the rescuers, that's going to slow down relief efforts. I do find it hard to believe that relief efforts were not set in motion as soon as it was deemed likely that the storm was going to hit NO-LA

[ponty 0]

Its just a very difficult situation. I think the people are mad at the lack of information and the talk of help coming. Its all be talk with little to back it up.

Now some victims are doing horrible acts to the very people who are trying to save them.

Shameful on all fronts!

[jay 1]

There's so much I could say about this but I simply don't have time. I will say that the cops should have been shooting looters on site from the first minute they got into the area. They've missed their opportunity to at least implement some sort of control over the situation.

[Chadd 916]

do you think the US govnerment is doing a good job in releif efforts so far?

Now to me it appears that the govnerment is doing alot of talking about whats going to be done but there not doing that much. thats just IMO. i mean theres still people on there roof top waiting to be rescued.

When the forecasters said that this would be a bad season, some measures should have been taken- such as plans, evacuations, shelters (ones with food, authority, water), etc. But this Hurricane was at such a high magnitude, you simply cannot really prepare for it with a great outcome Either way you are screwed. The measures I described above should have been taken though much more clearly andf seriously.

Especially as I said in my last post with the high population of poor people there with not many ways out, it was hell waiting to happen. There is so much you can do. It could be better, but the flooding of New Orleans even after the storm hit really hurt things a lot. It went from a 2 month cleanup right after the storm got out of there to a few years now because the levers failed and New Orleans was being filled up by both sides. Of course there are many other towns of smaller magnitude in the same boat.

Most major cities have plans to deal with natural disasters, the problem has been a continued lack of funding to upgrade the protective dikes and levies.

[jjtt99 0]

It's too bad the military resources are busy because they sure could be used on the homefront.

Your buddies up North (well buddies as long as you're not in the softwood lumber industry) sent down people and supplies, but economy and population wise we're 10x smaller than you Yanks so tough to keep up!

JJ

[Chadd 916]

I think they were only designed for cat 3.  When you are 20ft below sea level, your coastle marsh protection is gone and you are wedged btw 2 bodies of water, its trouble.

Arriving at the superdome with no police, authority, food, water, sanitation is not planning.  They had pissed poor plans then.  Last minute plans.  Its obvious.  The lack of sanitation and the high heat, I understand in there.  What could you do?  But they should have been a great deal of National guards placed there already so 2 shootings would not have occured.  There should have been tons of packs of water on the football field floor.  I am talking cases upon cases.  Snack foods should have been there.  They knew 25K+ people would be in there.  No matter how you cut it, that is horrendous planning.  Instead thugs were ruling the place and pretty much they all say, NO one was in charge.

The decision to build the city there was made hundreds of years ago, not much they can do about it now. There have been plans around since the 60's to increase the height of the levies but the fund were never appropriated.

I thinkit would have been irresponsible for troops and support personnel to be put into the NO to ride out the storm. Most of the cops who stayed, knowing they would be needed had to be rescued. Should they have been staged in Texas and flown/trucked in as soon as possible? That's just about the only solution I could see.

How exactly were they going to get all of these supplies into the superdome? They told residents to get the hell out of the city. Forcing others to stockpile for those unable or unwilling to leave would have put even more lives in danger. Not to mention the fact those supplies would have been taken by the same thugs that are in power now and those who needed them would not have them.

It's too bad the military resources are busy because they sure could be used on the homefront.

There are still more than enough military resources available, I just don't think the current administration believed that people would turn so openly rebellious so quickly.

[ponty 0]

The current administration has a history of under estimating things.

OK I am really going to stop now.

[Chadd 916]

The current administration has a history of under estimating things.

OK I am really going to stop now.

All politicians do.

[areed89 3]

The current administration has a history of under estimating things.

OK I am really going to stop now.

It's guys like you saying things like this that prevent an earlier move to use the active duty military. Everyone already calls GW a war monger, if he'd have set the Posse Comitatus (spelling) act aside and sent the big army in before it got bad there would be nothing but complaining. I can't say I'd want to run an administration in which I had to worry about every knee jerk reaction to every move made good or bad.

[Chadd 916]

I don't know how many of you have seen this but the Senator gets a really nice verbal pimp slap, too bad the reporter didn't just bag the interview at that point as it goes down hill from there.

http://www.uvm.edu/~lcate/Anderson-Cooper-...ieu-Katrina.wmv

[asdfa 0]

I don't know how many of you have seen this but the Senator gets a really nice verbal pimp slap, too bad the reporter didn't just bag the interview at that point as it goes down hill from there.

http://www.uvm.edu/~lcate/Anderson-Cooper-...ieu-Katrina.wmv

wow that pimp slap's golden! :P it's about time people (somewhat) stand up to spoiled, idiot politicians

just a quick question, how are the donations and relief campaigns like in the states right now? comparable to just after 9/11? unfortunately, i suspect the amount of casualties could be higher than 9/11 when katrina is all said and done

[ponty 0]

The current administration has a history of under estimating things.

OK I am really going to stop now.

It's guys like you saying things like this that prevent an earlier move to use the active duty military. Everyone already calls GW a war monger, if he'd have set the Posse Comitatus (spelling) act aside and sent the big army in before it got bad there would be nothing but complaining. I can't say I'd want to run an administration in which I had to worry about every knee jerk reaction to every move made good or bad.

The issue has to do with how we respond after things goes bad. Afterall this is the US and ~ 5 days waiting in misery is unacceptable in this country.

Its "guys like me" with differing opinions that makes us America bub.

Is this what we can expect if, God forbid, we have to deal with a terror attack on a larger scale than 9/11. I think these questions need to be asked no matter what your political ideas may be.

[Chadd 916]

Evidently placing FEMA under the Department of Homeland Security created some of the delay. Allegedly, people weren't sure who had the authority to mobilize certain assets.

Not to mention, our government is always slow to react to situations. Once it does react, the response can be overwhelming. This is simply another case of it taking a few days to ramp up the response, like virtually every other major disaster.

[ponty 0]

Evidently placing FEMA under the Department of Homeland Security created some of the delay. Allegedly, people weren't sure who had the authority to mobilize certain assets.

Not to mention, our government is always slow to react to situations. Once it does react, the response can be overwhelming. This is simply another case of it taking a few days to ramp up the response, like virtually every other major disaster.

Exactly Chadd. Five days to figure out who is doing what. Big organizational problems in my mind.

[Chadd 916]

Evidently placing FEMA under the Department of Homeland Security created some of the delay. Allegedly, people weren't sure who had the authority to mobilize certain assets.

Not to mention, our government is always slow to react to situations. Once it does react, the response can be overwhelming. This is simply another case of it taking a few days to ramp up the response, like virtually every other major disaster.

Exactly Chadd. Five days to figure out who is doing what. Big organizational problems in my mind.

The only bright side to this tragedy is there should be a major reconsideration of what role FEMA should play. With any luck, they will set up a National Guard-style setup. By that I mean, they should have people put in time to be trained for certain roles. If a natural disaster like a hurricane appears likely, call them up and stage them in a nearby state so they can roll in as soon as possible. If the damage isn't bad, send them home.

The federal government has several rapid deployment groups who are trained to kill, why not one that is trained to help?

[Vapor#42 0]

The federal government has several rapid deployment groups who are trained to kill, why not one that is trained to help?

That statement is sooo true.. I was watching an interview with president Bush this morning and it looked as if he was almost smurking (sp?) when asked how he was going to handle the situation..

The question I am asking is, where are all the choppers and buses etc delivering supplies to the needy.. people are dying on the st's from hunger and heat and there is almost nothing being done! ;) IMO, Bush is going to loose alot of respect around the world after showing what he can do to aid this disaster.. Or should i say what he { can't } do..

God help those trying to survive..

[Chadd 916]

The federal government has several rapid deployment groups who are trained to kill, why not one that is trained to help?

That statement is sooo true.. I was watching an interview with president Bush this morning and it looked as if he was almost smurking (sp?) when asked how he was going to handle the situation..

The question I am asking is, where are all the choppers and buses etc delivering supplies to the needy.. people are dying on the st's from hunger and heat and there is almost nothing being done! ;) IMO, Bush is going to loose alot of respect around the world after showing what he can do to aid this disaster.. Or should i say what he { can't } do..

God help those trying to survive..

I was watching them deliver supplies over the last couple of days. If people are dying at this point it's because they are not at the shelters or evacuation centers or they are very ill.

[foppa21 0]

..The mayor and Gov down there are a lot to blame for the lack or planning and organization as well since I believe one of their duties is to notify the gov if they need help and national guard, etc. Plus their leadership during the ordeal has not been good..

On the contrary, I believe that Nagin has done a rather good job considering the circumstances. You can only beg people to leave the city so many times before it falls on deaf ears. If you're familiar at all with New Orleans intrigue and politics than you can only imagine how much worse the leadership would have been if Morial was still mayor.

Blanco, on the other hand, is just a moron.

[Chadd 916]

..The mayor and Gov down there are a lot to blame for the lack or planning and organization as well since I believe one of their duties is to notify the gov if they need help and national guard, etc.  Plus their leadership during the ordeal has not been good..

On the contrary, I believe that Nagin has done a rather good job considering the circumstances. You can only beg people to leave the city so many times before it falls on deaf ears. If you're familiar at all with New Orleans intrigue and politics than you can only imagine how much worse the leadership would have been if Morial was still mayor.

Blanco, on the other hand, is just a moron.

I'm actually impressed that the Mayor called out the federal government for being so slow. I fully believe his public comments helped those in Washington recognize the severity of the situation.

[Thockey17 1]

Finding food and drink is fine in my book, but when you start taking 9 and 10 pairs of sneakers and 20 pairs of jeans and tell the reporter that they are a necessity. It needs to be stopped. Personally i dont care if you are black, white, red, yellow, green or whatever. If you cause these kind of problems, during a time of crisis you deserve to be shot. Race should not be an issue, but sometimes i think the media is trying to make it. I know we shouldnt blame the media for this and that, but this is what CNN saying about it right now.

[foppa21 0]

Hopefully word will spread around the city to the lowlifes now that the national guard and police killed 6 of the guys who opened fire on the contracters. I really hate to say it, but if anything I wish the Guard and the police had gone in guns hot earlier, and quelled this gang style activity before it got too bad.

On a lighter note, it's good to hear some encouraging news out of the surrounding region. My parents and little sis got power and phone service back in Pearl River county, and St. Tammany parish just over the state line has been coming back on the grid today as well.

[Miike 1]

Anybody hear what Kanye West had to say about Bush? It was on the Relief Concert on NBC the other night.

"I hate the way they portray us in the media. You see a black family, it says, "They're looting." You see a white family, it says, "They're looking for food." And, you know, it's been five days [waiting for federal help] because most of the people are black. And even for me to complain about it, I would be a hypocrite because I've tried to turn away from the TV because it's too hard to watch. I've even been shopping before even giving a donation, so now I'm calling my business manager right now to see what is the biggest amount I can give, and just to imagine if I was down there, and those are my people down there. So anybody out there that wants to do anything that we can help -- with the way America is set up to help the poor, the black people, the less well-off, as slow as possible. I mean, the Red Cross is doing everything they can. We already realize a lot of people that could help are at war right now, fighting another way -- and they've given them permission to go down and shoot us!"

"George Bush doesn't care about black people!"

Mike Myers was caught jaw dropped. Kanye ripped up bush accordinbg to headlines. I just saw part of the interview.

[Chadd 916]

Anybody hear what Kanye West had to say about Bush? It was on the Relief Concert on NBC the other night.

Mike Myers was like speechless.

Actually, Myers picked up and continued as soon as West shut up. Chris Tucker's eyes were huge when they cut over to him for his bit though.

[Miike 1]

Anybody hear what Kanye West had to say about Bush? It was on the Relief Concert on NBC the other night.

Mike Myers was like speechless.

Actually, Myers picked up and continued as soon as West shut up. Chris Tucker's eyes were huge when they cut over to him for his bit though.

Yes i know that. But at first he was stunned.

[Chadd 916]

He was expecting them to cut out of the segment