Times-Picayune begs for New Orleans help

This just infuriates me. . .we continue to have a huge region of our nation struggling desperately to begin recovery from Hurricane Katrina, and just like people left stranded in Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama, our federal government continues to be AWOL.

Over the past few days, I've read stories questioning toxic waste conditions in parts of the city (and the rise of a malady called "Katrina Cough") and was appalled when the contract to search and secure dead bodies ended even though the Lower Ninth Ward still needed areas to be searched. And it is disgusting to me that people who are returning to check on their property are finding dead bodies in their homes, bodies left there for the past two months...and have to call 911 to report them after worrying for MONTHS what happened to family members and receiving little help from FEMA or our government.

I have a question here: what exactly is it in the American mindset that seems to believe the Iraqi people, who have never paid one nickel in taxes...who have never asked to be part of any American Empire...deserve $300 billion dollars, 150,000 troops to protect them, money to rebuild everything from a power line to replacing household goats, but our own citizens do not deserve timely assistance from the rest of the nation?

There are thousands and thousands of American citizens scattered all over the country who may never return home. There are thousands more camping out along the Gulf Coast because they don't have FEMA trailers or materials/money to start rebuilding their homes. And instead of a nation focusing on this issue, we have cartoon televangelists screaming that the gays caused Katrina, a Republican Administration with congresswingnuts screaming that people should never have lived in New Orleans in the first place, and a continuation of more of NOTHING.

Our first obligation is to this nation. Our military's obligation is to defend and protect THIS nation, not some experiment in sharia constitutional law somewhere else. Anyway...that's my rant part...below is part of the editorial in the New Orleans Times-Picayune today:

Paper calls for help to repair levees
Times-Picayune: 'Time for nation to return favor' to New Orleans

Sunday, November 20, 2005; Posted: 1:12 p.m. EST (18:12 GMT)


NEW ORLEANS, Louisiana (CNN) -- New Orleans' largest newspaper accused some federal lawmakers of considering the city a "burden" and called on the U.S. government Sunday to "fulfill the promises" it made before the most destructive hurricane in U.S. history.

The Times-Picayune, in a front-page editorial under the headline "It's time for a nation to return the favor," also called on residents -- whether at home or "still in exile waiting to return" -- to lobby Congress.

"The federal government wrapped levees around greater New Orleans so that the rest of the country could share in our bounty," the editorial said, adding that the government "convinced us that we were safe.

"We weren't.

"The levees, we were told, could stand up to a Category 3 hurricane.

"They couldn't.

"By the time Katrina surged into New Orleans, it had weakened to Category 3. Yet our levee system wasn't as strong as the Army Corps of Engineers said it was. Barely anchored in mushy soil, the floodwalls gave way."

http://www.cnn.com/2005/US/11/20/katrina.newspaper/index.html

K&R

how soon they forget

The neglect of the NOLA and Mississippi people is unbelievable.

That's how it works. Katrina, Rita and their victims have been demoted to "human interest pieces" at the tail end of a slow news day. We'll see little, feel good, clips of small victories and the massive destruction will not even be a backdrop in the story.

There will be a lot to answer for on that "Great Gettin' up Mornin'"

on edit: nom.

within the borders of the richest country in the world. However, the admin shouldn't worry....there will be another hurricane season next year, and by the time it is over, maybe LA will just cease to exist at all...no more worries.

and it's been like a third-world country for a long, long time.

Say this, just don't.

:cry: :cry:

and recommendable. God damn but I'm so pissed about all this shit. :grr:

Damn gays!

That's why the red states on the Gulf Coast always get hammered with hurricanes.

That's why Florida's red counties get destroyed while the blue counties remain untouched.

That's why the red states in the midwest get so many tornadoes.

That's why the red counties in Southern California and the Southwest get wildfires.

I don't think gays are the problem. What can kill you is voting Republican!

:sarcasm:

I read that black Americans and black businesses have been helping rebuild New Orleans and the Gulf Coast. We can do better.

What makes you think our tax dollars are going to the Iraqis? It's our god damn military industrial complex. Our tax dollars are going to wealthy defense contractors who overcharge and don't provide the necessary equipment on time. Don't you find it odd that all that money can't be accounted for? Our representatives in Congress are unable to tell us where our tax dollars are going.

I read your posted article after I spent the afternoon going through the canofun video files on the recent budget bill.

Out of all of them this one stuck out. Gene Taylor walks to the podium and without notes, without posters, without raising his voice - lays everything down on the table...

http://www.canofun.com/blog/videos/budgetgenetaylornov1705.wmv

Powerful!

And woe to it on the heart and soul of any Congressperson who could sit there and not wonder at the absolute corruption and dishonesty of the actions of our majority party.

Thank you so much for posting this. . .

more people could have seen this. We saw Murtha rising to the call, we saw schmidt disgracing herself and playing by the rethug play book and yet how many people saw the impassioned speeches made by our house democrats. How many people saw the objectivity, the honest outpouring of grief and shock over this? They weren’t libelous, they weren’t vindictive and consequently they weren’t reported…

Check it out. . .

not only that, but I've heard that the Times-Pic may be closing its doors to be an online-only paper---they were hit really hard and had to let a lot of people go

I would love to help these areas, but really don't know what I can do.

It appears as though we've forgotten about New Orleans. I am certain after watching "60 Minutes" that the majority of Americans have absolutely no idea as to the extent of the devastation there.

It's shocking to me, how quickly it happened. Forgotten.

The piece they did on NOW Friday about the rebuilding was infuriating. Showed undocumented aliens in what was essentially an armed workcamp, underpaid and cheated, and housed in container trucks.

I felt helpless in September, and I'm feeling helpless now.

But we decided to do something about it, and you still can too. Show our friends on the Gulf Coast that we haven't forgotten them

We have some financial woes (S.O.'s company was sold), so we knew we couldn't donate much, but we had a party to raise money for New Orleans, and soaked our friends for $1500 (we would have made a lot more if we didn't know so many poor and cheap theater people).

It was pretty painless. Make a couple pitchers of hurricanes, make a couple muffeletas (hoagies on round bread with olives), get a Cajun music CD or two, and you're got yourself a Mardi Gras party. I have half a case of Mardi Gras beads left - if anyone hosts a party, they're yours free for the PMing - and they're a big hit with the under-12 crowd. Our friends still talk about it - it was fun, and it raised a lot more than we could ever have hoped to donate ourselves. Many of our friends don't go to many parties anymore unless they can bring kids, so it was an all-ages afternoon party.

Everyone made checks out to the Red Cross, earmarked for Hurricane Relief, but you can always ask for checks for the Mennonite Relief Fund, American Friends Service Committee, or another group you trust.(Remind folks that if their company doubles charity contributions to be sure to get the company's forms to you - one woman gave us $250, which doubled to $500)

and I'm sure people there appreciate everything you've done.

There's a collective that was formed down in New Orleans as a result of the hurricane - and they take supplies like paint, ladders, garbage bags..little things along with donations. Apparently, people have been volunteering and helping with cleanup, they've opened a medical clinic and they are also operating a place where people can
"check out/borrow" equipment to use at their private homes.

http://www.commongroundrelief.org/

Someone needs to audit them. NOW!

peace.

Uptown and the Quarter are doing pretty well. The CBD seems to be coming back alive to some extent. New Orleans East is totally and absolutely decimated, with mile after mile of abandoned stores, apartment complexes, businesses of every kind.

No power, water or sewer in N.O. East, and none expected for who knows how long.

There are hand scrawled signs on plywood advising of where to get emergency health care.

It is indescribable

I know there are problems with checking things like toxic contamination, etc., and I know the levees need more permanent repair. . .but I saw somewhere that only about 70,000 people are living in the city right now and we are just not hearing enough how we are going to rebuild...and it's not just N.O., but the Mississippi Gulf Coast as well.

Jacobin - were you able to really travel around the abandoned areas much?