NationStates Jolt Archive

They're desperate for someone to blame (http://www.grandforks.com/mld/grandforks/12663495.htm) for the levee proble, since it seems none of their other mud is sticking. Now, it's environmental groups.
JACKSON, Miss. - The federal government is trying to find evidence of any past efforts by environmental groups to block work on New Orleans' levees, according to a published report.

The Clarion-Ledger said Friday it obtained an internal Justice Department e-mail sent out this week to U.S. attorneys that asks: "Has your district defended any cases on behalf of the (U.S.) Army Corps of Engineers against claims brought by environmental groups seeking to block or otherwise impede the Corps work on the levees protecting New Orleans? If so, please describe the case and the outcome of the litigation."

Cynthia Magnuson, a spokeswoman for the Justice Department, told the newspaper she could not comment on internal e-mails.

The newspaper quoted unidentified federal officials as saying the query was prompted by a congressional inquiry.
Yet another example of the Bart Simpson presidency, whose motto is "I didn't do it."

And the more I scan around on line, the more gems I find. (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9314188/#050916) From Brian Williams of NBC News:
I am duty-bound to report the talk of the New Orleans warehouse district last night: there was rejoicing (well, there would have been without the curfew, but the few people I saw on the streets were excited) when the power came back on for blocks on end. Kevin Tibbles was positively jubilant on the live update edition of Nightly News that we fed to the West Coast. The mini-mart, long ago cleaned out by looters, was nonetheless bathed in light, including the empty, roped-off gas pumps. The motorcade route through the district was partially lit no more than 30 minutes before POTUS drove through. And yet last night, no more than an hour after the President departed, the lights went out. The entire area was plunged into total darkness again, to audible groans. It's enough to make some of the folks here who witnessed it... jump to certain conclusions.
They're also the photo-op administration--all show and no substance.

Yet another example of the Bart Simpson presidency, whose motto is "I didn't do it."
I thought that was "Eat my shorts."

I blame Landrieu and Blanco, along with the Congress. Bush is the executive; he only signs the budget in to law because all of the fiscal appropriations come from the Senate/house. So, to find out the real culprits, you have to take the Congress to task.

Landrieu and Blanco did manage to secure 7 million to study termites in the NO area; interestingly enough, that was almost as much as they got for levee repairs.

They can also point the finger at global warming. Apparently scientists are suggesting that the rise in ocean temperatures are giving rise to larger, more devastating storms. Don't confuse that with the frequency of storms which is not increasing. (i think)

Vetalia, wouldn't they get in trouble for using money granted for one project on another project (which is what I have seen you sugest in other threads)? I would think that it would be against the rules to do something like that.

But Bush is taking responsibility. He totally said so. So, like, it's all good now. Now he's taken responsability he's free to find a whole bunch of other people to blame.





quality.

I was really hoping to find out what "CYA" ment...

They can also point the finger at global warming. Apparently scientists are suggesting that the rise in ocean temperatures are giving rise to larger, more devastating storms. Don't confuse that with the frequency of storms which is not increasing. (i think)
You're right--global waming isn't causing more storms--those run in 30-35 year cycles apparently--but it is making those storms larger and more powerful.

But Bush is taking responsibility. He totally said so. So, like, it's all good now. Now he's taken responsability he's free to find a whole bunch of other people to blame.





quality.

I was really hoping to find out what "CYA" ment...
Cover Your Ass

Cover Your Ass
Ah...kinda obvious-now I feel silly.

Though to be fair, hasn't that been his mode all along? Being 'the buck doesn't stop anywhere near me, if it stops at all' president?

Ah...kinda obvious-now I feel silly.

Though to be fair, hasn't that been his mode all along? Being 'the buck doesn't stop anywhere near me, if it stops at all' president?
That's about it, I think.

They can also point the finger at global warming. Apparently scientists are suggesting that the rise in ocean temperatures are giving rise to larger, more devastating storms. Don't confuse that with the frequency of storms which is not increasing. (i think)
No, they can't because they've already taken the position that there is no global warming -- just ask Dick Cheney.

Well they don't have to look far..

According to a recent report in the Los Angeles Times, a 1977 lawsuit filed by Save the Wetlands stopped a congressionally funded plan to protect New Orleans with a "massive hurricane barrier." A judge found New Orleans' hurricane barrier would have to wait until the Army Corps of Engineers filed a better environmental-impact statement.

The very day he spoke a congressional task force reported the levees that failed in New Orleans would have been raised higher and strengthened in 1996 by the Army Corps of Engineers were it not for a lawsuit filed by environmentalists, led by who else but the Sierra Club.

and to avoid any "partisan" remarks:

The congressional task force that exposed the Sierra Club's mischief in New Orleans was convened in April to study the costs of NEPA and suggest means to reform it. Doubtless members of the task force -- it includes 12 Republicans and 10 Democrats -- will find some valuable contributions to the environment it has made. But the task force and Hurricane Katrina have already revealed it needs serious reform.


http://www.washtimes.com/commentary/20050915-090259-2463r.htm

But Bush is taking responsibility. He totally said so. So, like, it's all good now. Now he's taken responsability he's free to find a whole bunch of other people to blame.





quality.

I was really hoping to find out what "CYA" ment...

He is taking responsibility for the Federal issues. That still leaves the local and state issues.

He is taking responsibility for the Federal issues. That still leaves the local and state issues.
That's quite a two-step there.

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4849706


FEMA Official Says Agency Heads Ignored Warnings
by Laura Sullivan


Morning Edition, September 16, 2005 · In the days before Hurricane Katrina hit land, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff, FEMA Director Michael Brown and other top Homeland Security officials received e-mails on their blackberries warning that Katrina posed a dire threat to New Orleans and other areas. Yet one FEMA official tells NPR little was done.

Leo Bosner, an emergency management specialist at FEMA headquarters in Washington, D.C., is in charge of the unit that alerts officials of impending crises and manages the response. As early as Friday, Aug. 26, Bosner knew that Katrina could turn into a major emergency.

In daily e-mails -- known as National Situation Updates -- sent to Chertoff, Brown and others in the days before Katrina made landfall in the Gulf Coast, Bosner warned of its growing strength -- and of the particular danger the hurricane posed to New Orleans, much of which lies below sea level.

But Bosner says FEMA failed to organize the massive mobilization of National Guard troops and evacuation buses needed for a quick and effective relief response when Katrina struck. He says he and his colleagues at FEMA's D.C. headquarters were shocked by the lack of response.

"We could see all this going downhill," Bosner said, "but there was nothing we could do."

...

National Situation Updates
Read the daily briefings that Leo Bosner and his team sent to Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff, FEMA Director Michael Brown and other top officials in the days before Hurricane Katrina made landfall:


Friday, Aug. 26 E-mail (http://www.fema.gov/emanagers/2005/nat082605.shtm)
Saturday, Aug. 27 E-mail (http://www.fema.gov/emanagers/2005/nat082705.shtm)
Sunday, Aug. 28 E-mail (http://www.fema.gov/emanagers/2005/nat082805.shtm)
Monday, Aug. 29 E-mail (http://www.fema.gov/emanagers/2005/nat082905.shtm)

Well they don't have to look far..

According to a recent report in the Los Angeles Times, a 1977 lawsuit filed by Save the Wetlands stopped a congressionally funded plan to protect New Orleans with a "massive hurricane barrier." A judge found New Orleans' hurricane barrier would have to wait until the Army Corps of Engineers filed a better environmental-impact statement.

The very day he spoke a congressional task force reported the levees that failed in New Orleans would have been raised higher and strengthened in 1996 by the Army Corps of Engineers were it not for a lawsuit filed by environmentalists, led by who else but the Sierra Club.

and to avoid any "partisan" remarks:

The congressional task force that exposed the Sierra Club's mischief in New Orleans was convened in April to study the costs of NEPA and suggest means to reform it. Doubtless members of the task force -- it includes 12 Republicans and 10 Democrats -- will find some valuable contributions to the environment it has made. But the task force and Hurricane Katrina have already revealed it needs serious reform.


http://www.washtimes.com/commentary/20050915-090259-2463r.htm
You want to avoid partisan remarks, but you quote Emmet Tyrell and the Washington Times, neither of which actually cite the case of which they speak so that the legitimacy of the complaint can be determined. Tyrell may well be right, but it would be one of the rare occasions that that has happened.

He is taking responsibility for the Federal issues. That still leaves the local and state issues.Just what exactly is he going to do to himself? Or is he just "saying" that he's taking the responsibility?

Just what exactly is he going to do to himself? Or is he just "saying" that he's taking the responsibility?


I think his mother should debreif the pres on national tv , bend him over her lap and give him a good spanking.

I think his mother should debreif the pres on national tv , bend him over her lap and give him a good spanking.
What if he's wearing boxers..?

What if he's wearing boxers..?

or what if he isn't wearing anything under there?

or what if he isn't wearing anything under there?
Then "debriefing" wouldn't be appropriate, would it..? ;)

or what if he isn't wearing anything under there?
Is this turning into a George W. Bush porn thread?
:eek:

As important as all this seems now. Think about past disasters, then without the help of google, who was President during these disasters?

The Galveston hurricane, which killed some 8,000
The Great Okeechobee Hurricane, which killed more than 2,500
The Johnstown, Pa., flood, which killed at least 2,200
The San Francisco earthquake, which killed 700

Okay, maybe there are some history scholars that can remember dates and put them together with the Presidents, but most people can't.

[edit]
I guarantee that the President during each of these disasters was remembered for other things that happened during his administration. Do you remember ever hearing or reading a single word about how the president responded to any of these events?

As important as all this seems now. Think about past disasters, then without the help of google, who was President during these disasters?

The Galveston hurricane, which killed some 8,000
The Great Okeechobee Hurricane, which killed more than 2,500
The Johnstown, Pa., flood, which killed at least 2,200
The San Francisco earthquake, which killed 700

Okay, maybe there are some history scholars that can remember dates and put them together with the Presidents, but most people can't.

[edit]
I guarantee that the President during each of these disasters was remembered for other things that happened during his administration. Do you remember ever hearing or reading a single word about how the president responded to any of these events?Funny you mention the San Francisco earthquake--while everything was going to shit with the Katrina response, someone over at the Daily Kos put together a timeline (http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2005/9/5/134849/2070) about the response based on information from the San Francisco museum. I'm quoting it in full below:
The earthquake struck at 5:13 AM.

By 7 AM federal troops had reported to the mayor.

By 8 AM they were patrolling the entire downtown area and searching for survivors.

The second quake struck at 8:14 AM.

By 10:05 AM the USS Chicago was on its way from San Diego to San Francisco; by 10:30 the USS Preble had landed a medical team and set up an emergency hospital.

By 11 AM large parts of the city were on fire; troops continued to arrive throughout the day, evacuating people from the areas threatened by fire to emergency shelters and Golden Gate Park.

St. Mary's hospital was destroyed by the fire at 1 PM, with no loss of life, the staff and patients having already been evacuated across the bay to Oakland.

By 3 PM troops had shot several looters, and dynamited buildings to make a firebreak; by five they had buried dozens of corpses, the morgue and the police pistol range being unable to hold any more.

At 8:40 PM General Funston requested emergency housing - tents and shelters - from the War Department in Washington; all of the tents in the U.S. Army were on their way to San Francisco by 4:55 AM the next morning.

Prisoners were evacuated to Alcatraz, and by April 20 (two days after the earthquake) the USS Chicago had reached San Francisco, where it evacuated 20,000 refugees.

Now I realize this has little to do with the substance of your post, which I actually agree with--that Bush will likely be remembered in the future for more than just how he responded (or rather, didn't respond) to this hurricane, though I think this will be part of the legacy. I just found it interesting.

And the President at the time was the last Republican I can imagine myself having voted for--Teddy Roosevelt. Okay, I might have voted for Ike.

Funny you mention the San Francisco earthquake--while everything was going to shit with the Katrina response, someone over at the Daily Kos put together a timeline (http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2005/9/5/134849/2070) about the response based on information from the San Francisco museum. I'm quoting it in full below:


Now I realize this has little to do with the substance of your post, which I actually agree with--that Bush will likely be remembered in the future for more than just how he responded (or rather, didn't respond) to this hurricane, though I think this will be part of the legacy. I just found it interesting.

And the President at the time was the last Republican I can imagine myself having voted for--Teddy Roosevelt. Okay, I might have voted for Ike.
Damn, I got confused-I was thinking of the other San Fransico earthquake, which if I had thought about it was really the Loma Preata(sp) earthquake.

I'd be interested to know, however, in those instances was there a sharp change in the voting trends of those areas or dis-satisfaction with the response that would correspond-where the people in charge still in charge or voted for the next time 'round. How history will remember it is one thing, how the present will deal with it is slightly different.

Funny you mention the San Francisco earthquake--while everything was going to shit with the Katrina response, someone over at the Daily Kos put together a timeline (http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2005/9/5/134849/2070) about the response based on information from the San Francisco museum. I'm quoting it in full below:


Now I realize this has little to do with the substance of your post, which I actually agree with--that Bush will likely be remembered in the future for more than just how he responded (or rather, didn't respond) to this hurricane, though I think this will be part of the legacy. I just found it interesting.

And the President at the time was the last Republican I can imagine myself having voted for--Teddy Roosevelt. Okay, I might have voted for Ike.
Well played, sir! :D

Yeah, note to just about everybody -- the one thing we don't want to do is compare any living politician to any politician who lived before WW2. They were all smarter, faster, stronger, better, and the farther back in time you go, the more better than the current losers they get. I blame nuclear testing -- it's ruining the gene pool, making us all stupid.

Well played, sir! :D

Yeah, note to just about everybody -- the one thing we don't want to do is compare any living politician to any politician who lived before WW2. They were all smarter, faster, stronger, better, and the farther back in time you go, the more better than the current losers they get. I blame nuclear testing -- it's ruining the gene pool, making us all stupid.It's not so much that they were better, because they really weren't--it's that history and nostalgia go hand in hand an awful lot, and we tend to remember the good and downplay the bad, so the farther back you go, the better they look.

It's not so much that they were better, because they really weren't--it's that history and nostalgia go hand in hand an awful lot, and we tend to remember the good and downplay the bad, so the farther back you go, the better they look.
That's certainly true, but I still think earlier generations had a higher initial standard than we demand today. At the least, they could speak in sentences. ;)

Also, it seems that when things were more difficult to do -- no cars, no phones, no plastics, etc. -- officials had less trouble doing them. Hard experience breeds determination? Or maybe the locals, being more isolated, didn't see themselves as inferiors in a chain of command, so orders got issued faster. Anyway, they don't make the new guys look good by comparison.

That's certainly true, but I still think earlier generations had a higher initial standard than we demand today. At the least, they could speak in sentences. ;)

Also, it seems that when things were more difficult to do -- no cars, no phones, no plastics, etc. -- officials had less trouble doing them. Hard experience breeds determination? Or maybe the locals, being more isolated, didn't see themselves as inferiors in a chain of command, so orders got issued faster. Anyway, they don't make the new guys look good by comparison.

The thing is, only the words of those that spoke in sentences has survived the passage of time.

Look at this analogy. Classical music. Most of us are only aware of the greats...Beethoven, Mozart, Chopin, etc.. The 1000's of crappy classical composers have faded into obscurity (guys who couldn't sniff Salieri's jock.) Therefore, we are left with only the greats to color our perceptions of the times. Fast forward to today. If we listen to the radio, we are forced to wade through every one hit wonder, every bubblegum piece that will be forgotten in 5 years. Of course it seems like crap by comparison.

People have been complaining about the degradation and malaise of civilization for as long as there has been civilization. This is because the mundane/boring/humdrum is soon forgotten, and only the greatly eloquent or the greatly tragic (which often leads to great eloquence,) remains.

The thing is, only the words of those that spoke in sentences has survived the passage of time.

Look at this analogy. Classical music. Most of us are only aware of the greats...Beethoven, Mozart, Chopin, etc.. The 1000's of crappy classical composers have faded into obscurity (guys who couldn't sniff Salieri's jock.) Therefore, we are left with only the greats to color our perceptions of the times. Fast forward to today. If we listen to the radio, we are forced to wade through every one hit wonder, every bubblegum piece that will be forgotten in 5 years. Of course it seems like crap by comparison.

People have been complaining about the degradation and malaise of civilization for as long as there has been civilization. This is because the mundane/boring/humdrum is soon forgotten, and only the greatly eloquent or the greatly tragic (which often leads to great eloquence,) remains.
The poet Miller Williams wrote a poem that deals with that idea--there's a line that goes something like "but what of those who were merely good?" and the crux of the poem is in the notion that as time passes, the number of poets we can carry into the next generation gets squeezed ever smaller, until finally we think, "there were not many poets then, but they were great."

But Bush is taking responsibility. He totally said so. So, like, it's all good now. Now he's taken responsability he's free to find a whole bunch of other people to blame.

I find it fascinating how as long as the President doesn't do anything actually illegal in his second term he's completely unaccountable, pragmatically speaking; he can't be threatened with the usual democratic threat of "Fuck up and we'll vote you out!" because he has to leave after his second term anyway!

Plenty of blame to go around, for sure. And lots of CYA'ing as we speak.

Here's some from Mayor Nagin, the designated first-responder, who fell woefully short in caring for his people. He's been blaming everyone except himself - this man's political future depends on covering his ass.

I apologize for the length, but it's worth a read if you're interested in examining the multiple facets of the disaster response.

"As I’ve tried to explain in the comments section of some of the recent Katrina postings, this event had a ripple effect across every level of US Government in exposing the incompetence, confusion, communication failures, and logistical nightmares that occur when a high-level disaster strikes a major city and a large geographical region. Truthfully, the specter of this nightmare scenario has likely haunted the dreams of every New Orleans Mayor for generations. Each Mayor passing it on to the next, like a game of russian roulette. However, once the resonsibility is in the current Mayor’s hands, he is obligated to provide the best safeguard for the people during an emergency, regardless of how it may have been done in the past. In the last 25 years or so, our ability to track hurricanes and predict their path and strength has been greatly improved. And so has our ability to prepare for the arrival of such storms. Every section of the country that is prone to such weather has some kind of emergency plan in place for use. Most community leaders review, audit and/or rehearse it regularly. This article gives a telling critique of what seemed starkly different about how the local and State leadership in Mississippi and Louisiana viewed its emergency plans and the basic requirements to make it work. New Orleans, because of its density of population, location below sea level and its volume of people with limited options for transportation, has an even bigger obligation to its citizens to have a reasonable, coordinated, thorough and rehearsed procedure that gives everyone a fair opportunity, at minimum, to be moved out of harm’s way and to a more secure area.

The delays, confusion and neglect of procedure within the Mayor’s office and in its dealings with the Governor’s staff (which had their own issues of bureaucratic paralysis), cost precious hours within the compressed timeframe of an impending disaster. The results were thousands of the most vulnerable of the City’s population either stuck in facilities that were never intended for use other than a last resort simply for riding out the hurricane itself, or forced to try to survive in homes destined for destruction and flooding.

Which left the Federal sector with the uneviable task of trying to understand what was needed, where it was needed and then dealing with the logistics of gathering and dispersing all those assets to their proper places. The mistakes made early on at the local/State levels rippled through to affect the reaction and response of these Federal agencies (which aren’t exactly nimble by nature), which were likely further crippled by the exposed ineptness of their own organizations. My point is that these initial failures created situations that greatly affected the way decisions were made and actions were taken all the way down the line.

But the Mayor Nagin is having nothing to do with accepting any real blame in any of this:

MAYOR NAGIN: You know, I’m sure I could have done a lot of things much better, but I will tell you this, Tim: I was there. I was among the people in the Superdome. I knew what was going on every minute. I did not have air conditioning nor shower facilities. I made decisions based upon facts and not what I thought was going to happen. So history will judge me based upon those actions. But I will tell you something: I think I did everything possible known to any mayor in the country as it relates to saving lives. And I think as this continues to unfold, history will say that we did some things to save thousands and thousands of lives. Now, could we have done things better? Absolutely.

MR. RUSSERT: What’s the biggest mistake you made?

MAYOR NAGIN: My biggest mistake is having a fundamental assumption that in the state of Louisiana, with an $18 billion budget, in the country of the United States that can move whole fleets of aircraft carriers across the globe in 24 hours, that my fundamental assumption was get as many people to safety as possible, and that the cavalry would be coming within two to three days, and they didn’t come.

MR. RUSSERT: Many people point, Mr. Mayor, that on Friday before the hurricane, President Bush declared an impending disaster. And The Houston Chronicle wrote it this way. “[Mayor Nagin’s] mandatory evacuation order was issued 20 hours before the storm struck the Louisiana coast, less than half the time researchers determined would be needed to get everyone out. City officials had 550 municipal buses and hundreds of additional school buses at their disposal but made no plans to use them to get people out of New Orleans before the storm, said Chester Wilmot, a civil engineering professor at Louisiana State University and an expert in transportation planning, who helped the city put together its evacuation plan.” And we’ve all see this photograph of these submerged school buses. Why did you not declare, order, a mandatory evacuation on Friday, when the president declared an emergency, and have utilized those buses to get people out?

MAYOR NAGIN: You know, Tim, that’s one of the things that will be debated. There has never been a catastrophe in the history of New Orleans like this. There has never been any Category 5 storm of this magnitude that has hit New Orleans directly. We did the things that we thought were best based upon the information that we had. Sure, here was lots of buses out there. But guess what? You can’t find drivers that would stay behind with a Category 5 hurricane, you know, pending down on New Orleans. We barely got enough drivers to move people on Sunday, or Saturday and Sunday, to move them to the Superdome. We barely had enough drivers for that. So sure, we had the assets, but the drivers just weren’t available.

MR. RUSSERT: But, Mr. Mayor, if you read the city of New Orleans’ comprehensive emergency plan — and I’ve read it and I’ll show it to you and our viewers–it says very clearly, “Conduct of an actual evacuation will be the responsibility of the mayor of New Orleans. The city of New Orleans will utilize all available resources to quickly and safely evacuate threatened areas. Special arrangements will be made to evacuate persons unable to transport themselves or who require specific life-saving assistance. Additional personnel will be recruited to assist in evacuation procedure as needed. Approximately 100,000 citizens of New Orleans do not have means of personal transportation.”

It was your responsibility. Where was the planning? Where was the preparation? Where was the execution?

MAYOR NAGIN: The planning was always in getting people to higher ground, getting them to safety. That’s what we meant by evacuation. Get them out of their homes, which–most people are under sea level. Get them to a higher ground and then depending upon our state and federal officials to move them out of harm’s way after the storm has hit.

MR. RUSSERT: But in July of this year, one month before the hurricane, you cut a public service announcement which said, in effect, “You are on your own.” And you have said repeatedly that you never thought an evacuation plan would work. Which is true: whether you would exercise your obligation and duty as mayor or that–and evacuate people, or you believe people were on their own?

MAYOR NAGIN: Well, Tim, you know, we basically wove this incredible tightrope as it is. We were in a position of trying to encourage as many people as possible to leave because we weren’t comfortable that we had the resources to move them out of our city. Keep in mind: normal evacuations, we get about 60 percent of the people out of the city of New Orleans. This time we got 80 percent out. We encouraged people to buddy up, churches to take senior citizens and move them to safety, and a lot of them did. And then we would deal with the remaining people that couldn’t or wouldn’t leave and try and get them to higher ground until safety came.

Did you get all of that. He vaguely admits to being able to do better, but when asked his biggest mistake, it was in depending on the Federal Government! When asked why no buses were used to move those with no transportation out of the most vulnerable areas, as per his own Plan, the answer is that we wouldn’t have drivers available! Oh okay, well we’ll just put an intention of having a way to move our poor or special needs population out of harm’s way to make them feel good and to fulfill our legal obligations of documentation, but we have no intent to actually follow through with it. Can you say “disregard of duty”?

And when asked what happened to the expectation of following the City’s Evacuation Plan, the Mayor just reiterates what the intention of the Evacuation was! …..Um yeah, we know the intent, why wasn’t it followed?

Then, when asked which viewpoint he took regarding evacuating people, based upon statements he made, he admitted he was responsible for moving those who couldn’t leave earlier, out of harm’s way.

Exactly Mayor, exactly.

Now, could he move everyone out? Realistically, no. Limitation of time, certain attrition of drivers (even in the best executed Plan), and simple stubborness or ignorance of those remaining, would cause that result. But that’s tens of thousands of people moved, who were instead left to their fates.

As I’ve said before, there will be many people and actions at fault, both before and after the hurricane and the subsequent flooding. No level of government will be unscathed. But those with myopic “all about Bush” tunnel vision are missing the scope of this bungled preparation and response.

And let me make this a little longer, with a side note. Does anyone who actually thinks seriously about issues and wants to truly advance race relations in this Country still even bother to listen to Rev. Jesse Jackson anymore?

Here’s a snippet of a interview he had on FOX recently (yes, yes, I know, just focus for me please…):

JACKSON: To make a mayor the fall guy, I think, is a misstatement. You had a five-day warning about the storm coming Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday by the meteorologists. And emergency preparedness was not even prepared for the emergency.
So that was no massive plan for rescue and for relocation and for relief and family reunification and reconstruction. That’s bigger than a given mayor.

And then this…..

JACKSON: Wait a minute. Mayors do not fix levees. That’s what the Corps of Engineers do.
HANNITY: Mayors are supposed to have used buses and evacuate people, and this mayor didn’t do it.
JACKSON: But he had no place to relocate them. That becomes a state function.
HANNITY: You leave them in the wake of a hurricane because you don’t know the exact location of where the bus is going to go? I’d get them the heck out of town. Get them out of the way.
JACKSON: And land them where? There must be some reception.
HANNITY: Dry land, away from the hurricane.
JACKSON: But then you have to be received on dry land. You have to have a rescue operation, but you must also have a relocation plan.

Now, beyond Jesse’s misstatements about the City’s Plan and some just plain confusing sentences, does anyone really believe that he would have gone out of his way to make such excuses for a emergency Plan’s failures if the New Orleans administration was white? Seriously, a white administration and an affected population that was largely poor and black? Please! He would have held the administration to their Plan by THE LETTER. Shouting “racism” the whole way.

Now, contrast this with another Black Leader (and Reverend):

“Mayor Nagin has blamed everyone else except himself,” said the Rev. Jesse Lee Peterson, founder and president of the Brotherhood Organization of a New Destiny.
“The mayor failed in his duty to evacuate and protect the people of New Orleans. … The truth is, black people died not because of President Bush or racism, they died because of their unhealthy dependence on the government and the incompetence of Mayor Ray Nagin and Governor Kathleen Blanco,”

And there you have it. One person who reflexively parrots his one-note song for any and all occasions. And one person who acknowledges that injustice and incompetence comes in all colors."

http://www.lies.com/

He is taking responsibility for the Federal issues. That still leaves the local and state issues.


If he were truly taking responsibilty, wouldnt he have said "Im am so deeply sorry for not doing absolutely everything, and I mean everything I could have to relieve the suffering of the people of New Orleans, and the hurricane victims in the south. I ask your forgiveness, and would like to reassure you, steps will be taken to not only assure such negligence will not happen again, but to also hold those responsible for such incompetence, on Federal, State, and Local levels, fully accountable."

But he didnt really say anything like that did he?

He merely said some glossy speech, and fired the head of FEMA.

Thats getting a scapegoat, not accepting responsibility.

Funny you mention the San Francisco earthquake--while everything was going to shit with the Katrina response, someone over at the Daily Kos put together a timeline (http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2005/9/5/134849/2070) about the response based on information from the San Francisco museum. I'm quoting it in full below:


Now I realize this has little to do with the substance of your post, which I actually agree with--that Bush will likely be remembered in the future for more than just how he responded (or rather, didn't respond) to this hurricane, though I think this will be part of the legacy. I just found it interesting.

And the President at the time was the last Republican I can imagine myself having voted for--Teddy Roosevelt. Okay, I might have voted for Ike.
I was going to point out the response in the SF earthquake, if this took hold. The reason for a timely response was that TR was such a forceful figure. And there was a lot less bureaucracy to cut through, too.

Incidently, the mayor of SF issued a proclamation that looters would be shot. Something that was sadly missing in the efforts to restore order in New Orleans.

http://boortz.com/images/1906_shoot_looters.jpg

If he were truly taking responsibilty, wouldnt he have said "Im am so deeply sorry for not doing absolutely everything, and I mean everything I could have to relieve the suffering of the people of New Orleans, and the hurricane victims in the south. I ask your forgiveness, and would like to reassure you, steps will be taken to not only assure such negligence will not happen again, but to also hold those responsible for such incompetence, on Federal, State, and Local levels, fully accountable."

But he didnt really say anything like that did he?

He merely said some glossy speech, and fired the head of FEMA.

Thats getting a scapegoat, not accepting responsibility.

Unfortunately, he is taking responsibility wether you want to believe it or not. Just because he didn't say what you want him to say, doesn't take away the fact that he did take responsibility.

He can only take responsibility for the Federal Response and that is precisely what he did. He doesn't have to take responsibility for the Local and State responses. That would be Nagin's and Blanco's job. So far they haven't.

Why didn't Nagin follow through with the evac plan that was in place? Why didn't Blanco allow for the American Red Cross to head to the Convention Center with Food and water?

Bush did the right thing by taking responsibility for the Federal Response. Now if only Nagin and Blanco can do the same on the other level....

They're desperate for someone to blame (http://www.grandforks.com/mld/grandforks/12663495.htm) for the levee proble, since it seems none of their other mud is sticking. Now, it's environmental groups.

Yet another example of the Bart Simpson presidency, whose motto is "I didn't do it."


Heehee
Do you know that there was a proposal of into George W into the simpsons. George Sr didn't get on with Homer, but in the new episode George W and Homer were to become best friends....they were't allowed to make it :eek:

Yet another example of the Bart Simpson presidency, whose motto is "I didn't do it."

http://www.blackvoicenews.com/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=3602&mode=thread&order=0&thold=0

BUSH ACCEPTS RESPONSIBILITY FOR KATRINA’S SLOW RESPONSE

Boy that's gotta irritate the Bush bashers!

:p

i swear you Idiots dont get it if you would watch the news and not just read liberal news you'd know that bush took full blame for the falure of federal support. and what would the feds have to do with a levee in your town? thats state and local governments.... the people i talk to who left La. before katrina existed said the government was Corrupt and in shambles.

I blame Landrieu and Blanco, along with the Congress. Bush is the executive; he only signs the budget...I blame anyone but Bush !!!!

I Want 4 MORE YEARS !!!!

They're desperate for someone to blame (http://www.grandforks.com/mld/grandforks/12663495.htm) for the levee proble, since it seems none of their other mud is sticking. Now, it's environmental groups.

Yet another example of the Bart Simpson presidency, whose motto is "I didn't do it."

No, it's "accountability first," just like they said during their initial campaign.

First they find out who to blame, then they start working on how to fix it. Usually by removing whoever they blamed.

Note that when a politician says they don't want to get into the blame game it's because they think they're going to be stuck on the loosing team.

i swear you Idiots dont get it if you would watch the news and not just read liberal news you'd know that bush took full blame for the falure of federal support. and what would the feds have to do with a levee in your town? thats state and local governments.... the people i talk to who left La. before katrina existed said the government was Corrupt and in shambles.

No, we know that he took blame "to the extent that the Federal government is responsible for failing to act." Do you know why? Because it was all his fault and no one was buying his bullshit for 2 solid weeks this time. Usually the media, which is not in the least bit liberal, just tells it like Bush wishes it was.

Jeez! What's with you conservatives. "Well, he says that it's the mayors fault, so it can't possibly be his fault... Oh, he said that it is his own fault, well it couldn't possibly be the fault of so noble a man." I swear, every last one of you Bushites must have Stokholm Syndrome.

i swear you Idiots dont get it if you would watch the news and not just read liberal news you'd know that bush took full blame for the falure of federal support. and what would the feds have to do with a levee in your town? thats state and local governments.... the people i talk to who left La. before katrina existed said the government was Corrupt and in shambles.
Flame yourself and your idea of idiots - you don't know what constitutes "liberal news" apparently, back it up! There's a lot of people who can SPELL better than you and apparently know the difference in what to think, so take care not to FLAME a bunch of people you're better off not arguing with.

I blame anyone but Bush !!!!

I Want 4 MORE YEARS !!!!

No:

I Want 4 MORE WARS !!!!

We could take Saudi Arabia, Iran, North Korea, and...what the hell...CHINA in that amount of time. YAY FOR TEH USA!