quote:Originally posted by bmaxingout: more hot air. im with you thats all these people do is bash bush in here after reading some of these posts one really wonders if some of these people have ever picked up the news paper before besides the washington post or boston herald. did anyone in know that in 1996 the state of lo was given 2 billion dollars to repair the levies out of that they spent one tenth of one percent on the levies but they did manage to spend two million on a new fountain for maudi graw wow whats up with that billary cliton is all pissed off about fema being controlled by the dept of homeland sec.but yet she signed the bill that made that happen. she must have been hanging around kerry flipin and a flopin. wow dems have really lost control is it possible that we could ever beleive a word that comes out of their mouths
Bmax,
lol, already showed the impossibility of bashing Bush...
surrender, before you're embarrasssed too much to eat Wheaties...
You will need your strength in the days to come.
Lottsa rebuilding needed...
-------------------- Nashoba Holba Chepulechi Adventures in microcapitalism...
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Despite a week-long pounding by the elite media and Democrats, CNN/USA Today/Gallup finds only 13% of Americans blame Bush for hurricane response
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BY BOB WILLIAMS Wednesday, September 7, 2005 12:01 a.m. EDT
As the devastation of Hurricane Katrina continues to shock and sadden the nation, the question on many lips is, Who is to blame for the inadequate response?
As a former state legislator who represented the legislative district most impacted by the eruption of Mount St. Helens in 1980, I can fully understand and empathize with the people and public officials over the loss of life and property.
Many in the media are turning their eyes toward the federal government, rather than considering the culpability of city and state officials. I am fully aware of the challenges of having a quick and responsive emergency response to a major disaster. And there is definitely a time for accountability; but what isn't fair is to dump on the federal officials and avoid those most responsible--local and state officials who failed to do their job as the first responders. The plain fact is, lives were needlessly lost in New Orleans due to the failure of Louisiana's governor, Kathleen Blanco, and the city's mayor, Ray Nagin.
The primary responsibility for dealing with emergencies does not belong to the federal government. It belongs to local and state officials who are charged by law with the management of the crucial first response to disasters. First response should be carried out by local and state emergency personnel under the supervision of the state governor and his emergency operations center.
The actions and inactions of Gov. Blanco and Mayor Nagin are a national disgrace due to their failure to implement the previously established evacuation plans of the state and city. Gov. Blanco and Mayor Nagin cannot claim that they were surprised by the extent of the damage and the need to evacuate so many people. Detailed written plans were already in place to evacuate more than a million people. The plans projected that 300,000 people would need transportation in the event of a hurricane like Katrina. If the plans had been implemented, thousands of lives would likely have been saved.
In addition to the plans, local, state and federal officials held a simulated hurricane drill 13 months ago, in which widespread flooding supposedly trapped 300,000 people inside New Orleans. The exercise simulated the evacuation of more than a million residents. The problems identified in the simulation apparently were not solved.
A year ago, as Hurricane Ivan approached, New Orleans ordered an evacuation but did not use city or school buses to help people evacuate. As a result many of the poorest citizens were unable to evacuate. Fortunately, the hurricane changed course and did not hit New Orleans, but both Gov. Blanco and Mayor Nagin acknowledged the need for a better evacuation plan. Again, they did not take corrective actions. In 1998, during a threat by Hurricane George, 14,000 people were sent to the Superdome and theft and vandalism were rampant due to inadequate security. Again, these problems were not corrected. The New Orleans contingency plan is still, as of this writing, on the city's Web site, and states: "The safe evacuation of threatened populations is one of the principle [sic] reasons for developing a Comprehensive Emergency Management Plan." But the plan was apparently ignored.
Mayor Nagin was responsible for giving the order for mandatory evacuation and supervising the actual evacuation: His Office of Emergency Preparedness (not the federal government) must coordinate with the state on elements of evacuation and assist in directing the transportation of evacuees to staging areas. Mayor Nagin had to be encouraged by the governor to contact the National Hurricane Center before he finally, belatedly, issued the order for mandatory evacuation. And sadly, it apparently took a personal call from the president to urge the governor to order the mandatory evacuation.
The city's evacuation plan states: "The city of New Orleans will utilize all available resources to quickly and safely evacuate threatened areas." But even though the city has enough school and transit buses to evacuate 12,000 citizens per fleet run, the mayor did not use them. To compound the problem, the buses were not moved to high ground and were flooded. The plan also states that "special arrangements will be made to evacuate persons unable to transport themselves or who require specific lifesaving assistance. Additional personnel will be recruited to assist in evacuation procedures as needed." This was not done.
The evacuation plan warned that "if an evacuation order is issued without the mechanisms needed to disseminate the information to the affected persons, then we face the possibility of having large numbers of people either stranded and left to the mercy of a storm, or left in an area impacted by toxic materials." That is precisely what happened because of the mayor's failure.
Instead of evacuating the people, the mayor ordered the refugees to the Superdome and Convention Center without adequate security and no provisions for food, water and sanitary conditions. As a result people died, and there was even rape committed, in these facilities. Mayor Nagin failed in his responsibility to provide public safety and to manage the orderly evacuation of the citizens of New Orleans. Now he wants to blame Gov. Blanco and the Federal Emergency Management Agency. In an emergency the first requirement is for the city's emergency center to be linked to the state emergency operations center. This was not done.
The federal government does not have the authority to intervene in a state emergency without the request of a governor. President Bush declared an emergency prior to Katrina hitting New Orleans, so the only action needed for federal assistance was for Gov. Blanco to request the specific type of assistance she needed. She failed to send a timely request for specific aid. In addition, unlike the governors of New York, Oklahoma and California in past disasters, Gov. Blanco failed to take charge of the situation and ensure that the state emergency operation facility was in constant contact with Mayor Nagin and FEMA. It is likely that thousands of people died because of the failure of Gov. Blanco to implement the state plan, which mentions the possible need to evacuate up to one million people. The plan clearly gives the governor the authority for declaring an emergency, sending in state resources to the disaster area and requesting necessary federal assistance.
State legislators and governors nationwide need to update their contingency plans and the operation procedures for state emergency centers. Hurricane Katrina had been forecast for days, but that will not always be the case with a disaster (think of terrorist attacks). It must be made clear that the governor and locally elected officials are in charge of the "first response."
I am not attempting to excuse some of the delays in FEMA's response. Congress and the president need to take corrective action there, also. However, if citizens expect FEMA to be a first responder to terrorist attacks or other local emergencies (earthquakes, forest fires, volcanoes), they will be disappointed. The federal government's role is to offer aid upon request.
The Louisiana Legislature should conduct an immediate investigation into the failures of state and local officials to implement the written emergency plans. The tragedy is not over, and real leadership in the state and local government are essential in the months to come. More importantly, the hurricane season is still upon us, and local and state officials must stay focused on the jobs for which they were elected--and not on the deadly game of passing the emergency buck.
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posted
Nagin blames everyone but himself we up here call that demmie ass covering
New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin exploded in frustration last night as his city spun further out of control, saying that Gov. Kathleen Blanco and President Bush need to stop holding "goddman press conferences" and "get their ass[es] on a plane and sit down, the two of them, and figure this out right now."
"I don't know whose problem it is. I don't know whether it's the governor's problem. I don't know whether it's the president's problem," Nagin said during an interview with a local New Orleans radio station.
"But somebody needs to get their ass on a plane and sit down, the two of them, and figure this out right now," he erupted.
"I don't want to see anybody hold anymore goddamn press conferences," Nagin railed. "Put a moratorium on press conferences. Don't do another press conference until the resources are in this city. And then come to this city and stand with us, when their are [so many] military trucks and troops that we can't even count."
An exasperated Nagin continued:
"Don't tell me 40,000 people are coming here. They're not here. . . . I'm at the point now where it don't matter. People are dying. They don't have homes. They don't have jobs. The city of New Orleans will never be the same in this time."
Before launching into his radio tirade, Nagin explained: "You know, I'm not one of those drug addicts. I am thinking very clearly
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exactly how much more do you want. the proof is everywhere. ask for more and you will receive
Louisiana Officials in Flood-Money Scam Nine months before the Hurricane Katrina disaster, three Louisiana Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness officials were indicted for obstructing an audit into flood prevention expenditures.
In a November 2004 press release, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Western District of Louisiana announced:
A federal grand jury has returned two separate indictments charging three members of the State Military Department with offenses related to the obstruction of an audit of the use of federal funds for flood mitigation activities throughout Louisiana. "The two emergency management officials were senior employees of the Louisiana Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness. Both were charged with conspiracy to obstruct a federal audit."
Gov. Kathleen Blanco told Louisiana's News-Star at the time that she was disturbed by the indictments. She said the National Guard is cooperating with the investigation "as I expect them to do."
Reports of rampant corruption among Louisiana's state and local agencies have been cited in recent days to explain why officials were so ill-prepared to deal with the Katrina disaster.
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Update: Red Cross Says "We Were Kept From Superdome By State"
September 7, 2005 7:01 p.m. EST
Douglas Maher - All Headline News Staff Reporter
Washington, D.C. (AHN) - A report on Fox News from correspondent Major Garrett Wednesday night reveals a major break into what exactly went wrong at the Louisiana Superdome in the days after Hurricane Katrina struck the city.
An American Red Cross representative tells Fox News that the Louisiana State Homeland Security Department refused the relief organization permission to take food and water to the Superdome because they did not want to "encourage people to go there."
They State office of Homeland Security wanted to get people out and were afraid that providing support would be a "magnet" attracting more displaced citizens of New Orleans.
Stay with All Headline News for more on this developing aspect of the Hurricane Katrina Relief.
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NAGIN: The president looked at me. I think he was a little surprised. He said, "No, you guys stay here. We're going to another section of the plane, and we're going to make a decision."
He called me in that office after that. And he said, "Mr. Mayor, I offered two options to the governor." I said -- and I don't remember exactly what. There were two options. I was ready to move today. The governor said she needed 24 hours to make a decision.
S. O'BRIEN: You're telling me the president told you the governor said she needed 24 hours to make a decision?
NAGIN: Yes.
S. O'BRIEN: Regarding what? Bringing troops in?
NAGIN: Whatever they had discussed. As far as what the -- I was abdicating a clear chain of command, so that we could get resources flowing in the right places.
S. O'BRIEN: And the governor said no.
NAGIN: She said that she needed 24 hours to make a decision. It would have been great if we could of left Air Force One, walked outside, and told the world that we had this all worked out. It didn't happen, and more people died.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
again we must remember the president cannot mobilize the united states military without congresses approval or a request from a govenor in a state of emergency. the request came when it was alreadt too late
now thats not just alot of hot air,lol
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Not true. Like that Fox News you quote, it's doctored. It wsasn't as you claim, " Louisiana State Homeland Security Department", it was FEMA. And the suppiles they stoped from going to the City were truckloads of bottled water.
Don't you have sense enough to understand that Fox news is completely controlled by the far right wing Republican extremist...the same bunch that had Fox insisting even last month that the UN inspectors had found but covered up the finding of stores of atomic weapons in Iraq?
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posted
CNNUSATODAYGALLUP POLL: ONLY 13% BLAME BUSH? Wed Sep 07 2005 10:42:26 ET
A CNN/USA Today/Gallup poll of 609 adults taken September 5-6 shows:
Blame Game -- 13% said George W. Bush is "most responsible for the problems in New Orleans after the hurricane"; 18% said "federal agencies"; 25% said "state and local officials"; 38% said "no one is to blame"; 6% had no opinion. -- 29% said that "top officials in the federal agencies responsible for handling emergencies should be fired"; 63% said they should not; 8% had no opinion.
MORE
Government Performance -- 10% said George W. Bush has done a "great" job in "responding to the hurricane and subsequent flooding"; 25% said "good"; 21% said "neither good nor bad"; 18% said "bad"; 24% said "terrible"; 2% had no opinion. -- 8% said federal government agencies responsible for handling emergencies have done a "great" job in "responding to the hurricane and subsequent flooding"; 27% said "good"; 20% said "neither good nor bad"; 20% said "bad"; 22% said "terrible"; 3% had no opinion. -- 7% said state and local officials in Louisiana have done a "great" job in "responding to the hurricane and subsequent flooding"; 30% said "good"; 23% said "neither good nor bad"; 20% said "bad"; 15% said "terrible"; 5% had no opinion.
it had to do with your comment about wheaties
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posted
hey i see your buddie dean is on the racist ban wagon no wonder why the dems are out of power
Dean: Race Played a Role in Katrina Deaths Sep 07 7:44 PM US/Eastern
By DENISE KALETTE Associated Press Writer
Race was a factor in the death toll from Hurricane Katrina, Howard Dean told members of the National Baptist Convention of America on Wednesday at the group's annual meeting.
Dean, chairman of the Democratic party, made the comments to the Baptists' Political and Social Justice Commission. The Baptist Convention, with an estimated 3.5 million members, is one of the largest black religious groups in the country.
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The hot air part of you name tells a lot. I can't imagine finding more though.
Now to make a couple of corrections:
Did you mean buddy? I don't recognize the word buddie and I can't find it in the dictionary.
I'll assume you must have meant buddy. But assumption on your part that Howard Dean is a buddy of mine is false. You make a lot of false assumptions, I note.
I do think ol' Howard's comments, if correctly put forth by you above, hold at least a grain of truth. Too many people, mostly Republicans have blamed those poor starving and thirsty people for the mess they are in and used really unnecessary racial exagerations when doing so. Sick selfish hateful remarks!
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Bush is down to a 38% approval rating this AM.
As people get cought up this week-end on the events of the last 2 weeks it will fall even further Monday.
Many Republicans including myself are begining to feel our Party has been vandalized and just flat out abuised by these arrogant self-serving basturds.
I know some may "say" any self serving thing they please on these message boards, but.
My father who is 93 yrs old and still sharp of mind and witt, is not happy with Bush and crew!
He has been a republican sense changing parties in the late 1940's.
Brownie boy has him cussing in ways I haven't heard sense I quit high school to become a Surfer in search of the endless summer. I split the home scene at 15yrs old.
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Agreed Dustoff101. The Bush Administration may say they're Republicans, but they sure aren't acting like them. The Republicans I know are for smaller government, good leadership and less federal spending.
STRIKE THREE!!!! You're out! (If only it were that simple.)
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quote:Originally posted by 4Art: Agreed Dustoff101. The Bush Administration may say they're Republicans, but they sure aren't acting like them. The Republicans I know are for smaller government, good leadership and less federal spending.
STRIKE THREE!!!! You're out! (If only it were that simple.)
Don't know how I missed this one 4art EXCELLENT post. 5 stars!!
-------------------- "There is only one good, knowledge, and one evil, ignorance" (Socrates, 470-399 BC)
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quote:Originally posted by 4Art: Agreed Dustoff101. The Bush Administration may say they're Republicans, but they sure aren't acting like them. The Republicans I know are for smaller government, good leadership and less federal spending.
STRIKE THREE!!!! You're out! (If only it were that simple.)
Don't know how I missed this one 4art EXCELLENT post. 5 stars!!
when Bushthesecond won his first primary? i thought it was a fluke...
i was still willing to support anybody against Gore...
what is it they say about the rock and the hard place????
-------------------- Don't envy the happiness of those who live in a fool's paradise.
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quote:Originally posted by Dustoff101: I wanted Bush to get off his rear end, not go on a rumured drunk....Geez whats next? I can't believe I voted for this character...
Dustoff101
IMO, you're ar an .......? What can a Pres. do on a situation like this ? You think your Whitehouse WHORE Clinton could have done better ? - get a life
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