Wednesday, September 07, 2005

Talking Points Memo: by Joshua Micah Marshall: September 04, 2005 - September 10, 2005 Archives

Talking Points Memo: by Joshua Micah Marshall: September 04, 2005 - September 10, 2005 Archives

He's right, you can't make that stuff up. Bush pulled Firefighters, Coast Guard, and other first responders away from their jobs so that they could be used as props in his photo-ops. Just when you think the politicking can't get more disgusting, they go and up the ante.

Tuesday, September 06, 2005

TIME.com: Dipping His Toe Into Disaster

TIME.com: Dipping His Toe Into Disaster -- Sep. 12, 2005 -- Page 1

My favorite Bush quote thus far:

"Out of the rubbles of Trent Lott's house--he's lost his entire house, there's going to be a fantastic house. And I'm looking forward to sitting on the porch."

Maybe Trent Lott qualifies to have Habitat for Humanity build it. Or perhaps not.

New bankruptcy law a problem for Katrina victims

New bankruptcy law a problem for Katrina victims

Really nothing more to add.

Bush's FEMA

News in brief...

"The government's disaster chief waited until hours after Hurricane Katrina had already struck the Gulf Coast before asking his boss to dispatch 1,000 Homeland Security employees to the region - and gave them two days to arrive, according to internal documents."

"
All last week, FEMA bureaucrats gave prominent placement on the agency's Web site to Operation Blessing, the Virginia-based charity run by controversial right-wing evangelist and Christian Coalition founder Pat Robertson."

"
In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, several witnesses have alleged that the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) turned away volunteers who were ready to help New Orleans residents people trapped in their flooded homes. Other witnesses have said that FEMA turned away offers of aid, prevented water and fuel from reaching people on the ground, and cut emergency communications lines."

And this list is worth looking at, just for the sheer horror:

FEMA won't accept Amtrak's help in evacuations

FEMA turns away experienced firefighters

FEMA turns back Wal-Mart supply trucks

FEMA prevents Coast Guard from delivering diesel fuel

FEMA won't let Red Cross deliver food

FEMA bars morticians from entering New Orleans

FEMA blocks 500-boat citizen flotilla from delivering aid

FEMA fails to utilize Navy ship with 600-bed hospital on board

FEMA to Chicago: Send just one truck

FEMA turns away generators (See entry from 3:32 P.M. by Ben Morris, Slidell mayor)

FEMA: "First Responders Urged Not To Respond"

Friday, September 02, 2005

My, my, my.

Did you ever have one of those days where there was just so much to do that you ended up spending it in kind of a paralysis, unsure of where exactly to begin? Then you can imagine my past week.

I'm not sure exactly what sent me over the tipping point, perhaps it was the news that the Army Corps of Engineers of New Orleans had been unable to complete much of the retrofitting to the levees responsible for keeping New Orleans dry because of a $71.2 million cut in their budget by the Bush administration. Or perhaps it was the fact that 35% of Louisiana's National Guard is currently in Iraq, making it impossible for these volunteers, trained in Hurricane Disaster recovery, to assist in the aftermath. Maybe it's the fact that the new CAFE standards released by the Bush administration just add to our problems of fuel shortages and global warming, to the benefit of big business. Maybe it's the fact that the best response Bush could summon up, his best attempt at empathy, was during his "fly over" of New Orleans on his way back to the White House (cutting his vacation short by a day), when he said "It's devastating. It's got to be doubly devastating on the ground."

Oh really.