The initial framing of this tragedy I was acquainted with on the net was that the politics and blame are in bad taste. It was a hurricane, an intersection of bad luck and nature taking a deadly toll in our part of the world as it unfortunately has many times in the past. This obvious fact can explain a lot, but after the wind and rain passed, a story separate altogether from the aftermaths of hurricanes in past years unfolded. Aid to those in need can come in two basic forms. Either you’re down there lending a hand, or donating money to fund the efforts.
In our post 9/11 world of understaffed wars, where America became comfortable with the concept of purchasing a bumper sticker and feeling like they were making a difference, the donation of money has now become this tragedy’s threshold for calming our collective conscious. Those who have donated should feel pride in the fact that they pitched in, but what that money has thus far equaled in terms of relief for the thousands stranded in southern Louisiana should serve as a lesson to us all that results can’t merely be bought.
The situation in New Orleans resembles the one in Iraq, as the threat of danger and a lack of resources has kept the results we strive towards out of reach. We lament over the fact that both the Iraqis and the minorities stranded in what’s left of the Big Easy haven’t managed to band together and emulate the highest standard of civility, and aim to relieve ourselves from the shame of failure by laying the blame on the victims themselves. For those of us who are damning the political discourse on the heels of this tragedy, this is precisely where their hypocrisy lies. As this rationale is as political as it gets.
Despite this obvious double standard, the facts are being ignored by many. The truth of the matter is that the people who are STILL stranded without ample food, water or shelter in New Orleans are black. And as much as some desire to chalk this up as purely coincidental, with the monetary and technological resources we (the richest country in the world) possess, even the most vehement political rationalization stands little chance against the images we’ve all been seeing now for three full days. Highlighting this of course is the fact that President Bush declined to witness the scene personally until today.
Criminals acquired machine guns from businesses allowed to sell such weapons by the federal government, while at the same time the government is trying it’s best to make sure more effective forms of birth control are prevented from being sold over the counter. Which is more dangerous? Federal funding for state municipalities and social services have been cut, while Louisiana’s National Guard resources are in Iraq today rather than where they should be. All these people in New Orleans who paid their taxes just like the rest of us deserve better than this!
Shepherd Smith has detailed how the tourists in a hotel across the street from the mayor’s office evacuated into buses and were brought to the Superdome. From there they were given preference over the ‘commoners’ (read: niggas), moved to the front of the line before those who had been waiting already for four days for a bus out of the city. Speaking about the people I mentioned who have been stranded on the highway overpass across from the Superdome he had this to say. “On the first day they needed food and water, on the second day they needed food and water, on the third day they needed food and water, on the forth day they needed food and water, and on the fifth day they got some food and water.”
He said this on Bill O’Reiley’s show, and the reality of preference, the shameful lack of response from the federal government was agreed upon. In terms of ‘why’ it went down like this, Shepherd didn’t pretend to have answers, but O’Reiley suddenly began talking about poverty and how the people down there lacked leadership. Following a break, the Natalee Holloway story was back on my screen. It’s as surreal a development as I’ve ever seen as these people who go unnoticed by all TV media until now, are finally part of the conversation. The ‘frail white hype’ story from Aruba couldn’t be silenced completely, surfacing finally in a way that shows us all how tasteless it was from the start.
Anyone who doesn’t realize how far astray we’ve gone as a country with the scenes in New Orleans and Iraq as a backdrop are lying to themselves. We’ve been able to exist in a bubble for so long that reality appears to us as whatever we choose to make of it. The poverty level rose this past year, but to anyone wearing a red jersey it was nothing more than a statistic in a box score. The assault weapons ban was lifted and stores were stocked with the tools necessary to turn a part of America into a third world country we normally feel thousands of miles away from. If these factors now rearing their ugly heads were only political, most of America would be satisfied. To the chagrin of many who’d rather not have to bother with either, the reality of it all is defensively demonized as tasteless if you call it what it is. How convenient.
I suppose we’d rather sustain this false reality where a missing white girl out of 230 million of us is news. Faced with the downer of having to recognize life outside of the bubble, apathetic oblivion has become our drug of choice for over a generation. It started with the millions of us who refused to truthfully deal with the writing on the wall in Vietnam, and the remnants of the destruction this political drug has dealt to us is evidenced in more aspects of our society than I can even count. In New Orleans it’s right in front of our eyes, but being the junkies we are now, even what can be seen with our own two eyes is now negotiable.
I used to equate the term ‘chickenhawk’ only with wars and whether people who wanted them had the cahones to pick up a gun. Now I’m beginning to realize that the term also applies to those of us who long for relevance in a political discussion of life in America, but don’t want humanity getting in the way. Those of us who want to feel ‘informed’, but don’t want anything heavier to deal with than a pretty white girl gone missing while on vacation. You know why news stories of attacks and death in Iraq are deemed a ploy by the ‘liberal media’? Because too many of us want to play the game without ever having to get dirty.
To the babies who went days without formula, and the elderly who couldn’t wait in line hours for an MRE, understand that while those cameras are down there, you’re hurting the eyes and ears of millions here in America. The fact that you have black skin and a belly that hasn’t been fed for five days is offensive to us in different ways. For some of us it’s reality, while for others it’s nothing more than a political cartoon in a liberal newspaper. You are the gay child of this staunchly conservative country and have been for years. I’m ashamed that you’ve gone hungry for five days in my country amidst rapists and murders on asphalt in hot summer, while others are pissed that you’re on their TV at all.
This is too funny, DI. How many times, over at Lee’s blog have you complained about the “lies told at Fox News”? Now you are quoting them as fact to prove your little theory. You are too much, man. Too much!!!!
You forgot to mention that the Mayor of New Orleans is BLACK. Guess that info is “beside the point”. Right?
LOL
The population of New Orleans is 67% BLACK. Anyone who would be shocked that the majority of the people who are – or were, since over 25,000 have been bused out in the past two days -stranded in the city are BLACK, is an idiot.
Chris:
I think you are arguing that the response was inept because the disaster was in a black area. I would agree that may have contributed to it, but thanks to the currentt lack of preparedness disaster response is going to be poor in any area. I wonder if part of the reason America is obsessed with missing white women is that is one of the few things the country can handle anymore.
Without a doubt the poverty in the area made the situation worse as many of these people could not leave. Again thogh, with the current group of people in charge even if they wanted to help they would not be able to as they are incompetent.
Seems like thier is a racist element to the commentary, ie black people loot and white people find. This tragedy has shown how far the US has fallen, right now parts of America resemble the third world.
Have a good holiday
Perusing conservative web sites I am getting the feeling that they are trying to say it is un-american to critisize the relief effort. This tactic worked with 9/11 I doubt it is going to work this time, something about Bush playing the guitar while people were dying.
Karl, criticizing is fine. Just criticize the right people.
Oh, I forgot. EVERYTHING is George Bush’s fault. Good thing there are folks like you around to keep reminding us.
What about the mayor of New Orleans? What about the Governor of Louisiana? What were their responsiblities, and how well do you feel they carried out these responsibilities?
Repmom:
I see it this way. The levee project should have been completed and the people should have been evacuated. The federal governement want s to say it is the states responsibility, the state wants to say it is the feds responsibilty. It really doesn’t matter to the people who were stuck in the convention center for days without food or water someone should have helped them. The federal govt has the resources i.e. helicopters and boats to do this sort of thing so I think the feds should have responded quicker. The FEMA response was very inadequate. Could the state and city government have done more? Of course. But the Federal government has the majority of resources so the majority of responsibility falls on them.
The Lackadasical response from the president was unacceptable, and I think had he responded in a more forceful manner lives would have been saved.
From pandagon.net
Dear racist _____ who complained about looting:
Posted by Amanda Marcotte at 12:30 PM
This is what your stupidity leads to.
HOUSTON — Thousands of refugees of Hurricane Katrina were transported to the Astrodome in Houston this week. In an extreme act of looting, one group actually stole a bus to escape ravaged areas in Louisiana.
About 100 people packed into the stolen bus. They were the first to enter the Houston Astrodome, but they weren’t exactly welcomed.
The big yellow school bus wasn’t expected or approved to pass through the stadium’s gates. Randy Nathan, who was on the bus, said they were desperate to get out of town.
“If it werent for him right there,” he said, “we’d still be in New Orleans underwater. He got the bus for us.”
Eighteen-year-old Jabbor Gibson jumped aboard the bus as it sat abandoned on a street in New Orleans and took control.
“I just took the bus and drove all the way here…seven hours straight,’ Gibson admitted. “I hadn’t ever drove a bus.”…
Authorities eventually allowed the renegade passengers inside the dome.
But the 18-year-old who ensured their safety could find himself in a world of trouble for stealing the school bus.
“I dont care if I get blamed for it ,” Gibson said, “as long as I saved my people.”
Sixty legally chartered buses were expected to arrive in Houston throughout the night. Thousands of people will be calling the Astrodome “home,” at least for now.
That’s not stealing and that’s not looting. This is beyond ridiculous. That’s heroism. If this kid gets arrested for being a hero and single-handedly saving 100 people, then I am laying the blame on the feet of everyone who complained about looting.
In the meantime, according to PEEK, Fox News is having trouble perpetuating the lie that BushCo intends to raise a finger to save the life of a single poor black Southerner. Geraldo Rivera broke down crying and reporters from New Orleans on Fox are all but accusing the federal government of lying to people, promising them help and then reneging on that promise.
And as for the racist behind this foot-dragging and lying and all those that support them, I hope that when you get to hell, after you’ve been greeted nicely by Satan and checked in by Ronald Reagan, your punishment is to be drowned over and over and over again until you realize that suffering is suffering, no matter what race or class or ethnicity the people suffering are.
This entire situation isn’t “raising questions” about race in America. It’s answering them.
You know, when the order to evacuate was given, I wonder how many thought about those who could not afford to evacuate? I wonder if New Orleans itself had a plan in place to use city school buses and NORTA buses to transport people out of the city? School buses sit in a their parking lot, in orderly rows, unused and now flooded. NORTA buses are probably in a similar parking lot, in similar condition.
I wonder, too, how many New Orleans citizens had an evacuation plan? When I lived there, I don’t think we had one – we lived through Betsy and Camille, too. Do you have an evacuation plan? How about one at work?
The standard I’ve seen from surfing the right-wing sites is that Bush could still be in Crawford right now and anyone criticizing a thing is ignorant.
Some clearly regard those who didn’t leave for whatever reason as irresponsible and off-base to expect the federal government to bail them out.
Empathy is widespread, but under the strict condition that anything bad that may have happened be the fault of no one but the Mayor of New Orleans and the Governor. It’s interesting because at first the line is, ‘nobody’s to blame’. Then when the debate gets rolling, the same people who said this then place the blame only on those leaders from the state level on down.
This is a highly volatile time for American politics, and the sad reality is, throughout the world people are perceiving the situation as proof that we’re all talk. It can be spun in any way imaginable here in America, but to those on the outside looking in, we don’t look like anything special all of a sudden.
It’s embarassing.
Great article:
From talkingpointsmemo.com
“Now at least we have the storyline. The Bush administration wasn’t caught sleeping on the job while New Orleans went under with a gutted FEMA run by a guy who got fired from his last job policing horse shows. In fact, according to the new White House storyline, the governor of Louisiana and the mayor of New Orleans didn’t ask for help quickly enough. And the White House was powerless to act until they did. Apparently they couldn’t even reschedule the president’s vacation until the locals got the right forms signed.”
Let the spin begin
Which makes sense, the fed can’t just go into a state and “occupy it” without any sort of permission by said state. Liberals seem to think that it’s the Federal Government’s responsibility to handle issue like this, which is totally wrong.
What would you have the feds do? Go down to New Orleans and abduct 100,000 blacks and transport them across state line to by put in concentration camps in Texas? No matter what Bush did liberals will bash him!!! The state and local authorities ignored the recommendations (the only real power the fed has and should have) and now blame Bush for the hurricane.
This Bash Bush at all costs is going to come back to bite democrats later.
Right:
Bush’s first excuse was that he pleaded with these people to evacuate and that the evacuations were mandatory.
To me the real issue is what happened afterwards, their have been a lot of hurricane warnings that did not pan out so I can see why no one was to worried that people stayed behind, even though they should have a system so those who want to evacuate can. The real issue is what happened afterward, Bush and co kept vacationing and calling it a state problem while people were dying from hunger and dehydration. In addition the army corp of engineers has been saying that the levy system was going to fail at some point, why is Bush and Co so surprised.
Finally if finger pointing is counterproductive why is Bush and Co spending so much time doing it.
One thing you and I might agree on is whether or not the low-lieing areas should be rebuilt as residential areas. I think the area might be better suited for other uses.
Wasn’t Condis excuse after 9/11, that no one told her what to do. Now Bush and Co are essentially saying that no one in state and local government told them what to do. What do we have FEMA for again. Why do we have a president, for some reason I think the role of president is to be more than assistant governor.
Maybe racism is still a problem in America:
Mark Williams, explaining why things would have gone better if New Orleans had more white people: “They didn’t have the necessary brains and common sense to get out of the way of a Cat 5 Hurricane….The only role race plays in this is that the American black population has been the prototype for an entire race of people being, being turned into a group of dependents of the government — trapped there, I’m using that word very loosely are screaming we want help, we want help.”
Tom DeLay, chatting with a couple of young evacuees who are now living in a tent in Houston: “Now tell me the truth boys, is this kind of fun?”
Steve Sailer, displaying his trademark scientific approach to issues of race and poverty: “In contrast to New Orleans, there was only minimal looting after the horrendous 1995 earthquake in Kobe, Japan — because, when you get down to it, Japanese aren’t blacks.”
Rep. Richard Baker (R-Baton Rouge), musing with his lobbyist pals about one of the silver linings from Katrina’s destruction of New Orleans: “We finally cleaned up public housing in New Orleans. We couldn’t do it, but God did.”
Rick Santorum (R-Law & Order-SVU), displaying his trademark sensitivity to the plight of the poor caught in Katrina’s path: “There may be a need to look at tougher penalties on those who decide to ride it out and understand that there are consequences to not leaving.”
Hugh Hewitt, explaining that, as usual, the odious MSM is responsible for everything, including all the dead people in New Orleans: “[Reporters] did not do their homework, because they did not understand the levees were the threat, they ended up killing hundreds of Americans. I’m not going to say thousands, because I don’t know the number. But I know hundreds are dead, that they did not communicate the severity of this storm.”
Barbara Bush, wittily showing off the Bush family’s famous compassion toward the poor after a visit to the Astrodome: “So many of the people here, you know, were underprivileged anyway, so this is working very well for them.”
Robert Tracinski, in a widely emailed missive, picking up where Mark Williams and Steve Sailer left off: “But what about criminals and welfare parasites? Do they worry about saving their houses and property? They don’t, because they don’t own anything. Do they worry about what is going to happen to their businesses or how they are going to make a living? They never worried about those things before. Do they worry about crime and looting? But living off of stolen wealth is a way of life for them.”
From washingtonmonthly.com
Talkleft.com has a good discussion about gun confiscation in New Orleans where is charlton Heston when you need him.
It was only a matter of time before the talking heads and politicians started eating their own fingers and toes. You either HAVE to ignore a growing volume of things that can be blamed on Republicans, something that is done regularly over the airwaves…but when it’s too dificult to remain on the right side of the issue while maintaining one’s humanity…it’s the humanity that gets thrown overboard first.
That takes place by either resorting to flat out racism, veiling the racism by singling out the looting as the main eyesore, or painting a sunny picture of it all regardless of the suffering one is in the midst of.
It’s the story…that everything is as it should be and things are great, the story is the important thing. Humanity comes second. That’s what you’re seeing now.
Well, as it turns out racism had nothing to do with it, it was another example of Democrats ignoring their base. I’ve psoted before that Democrats view mionorities and unions like the Chupacabra views cattle, as a source of food.
A black Democrat sentanced thousands of blaks to death by refusing to follow an established evacuation plan. A female Democrat let minority women suffer by also refusing to follow the established evacuation plan. It was a Republican President who had to come save the day for both Republicans and Democrats.
This whole racism angle is an insult to everything that is true and honest in the world. Liberals, you butchered your own constiutents because of your incompetance and the first step is to acknowledge your failures and try to learn for your mistakes.