Monday, September 05, 2005

Katrina & the White House

What has happened in the gulf coast of Mississippi & Louisiana should make every US citizen take a moment and think about how prepared they are for a disaster.  With many days warning that  a major (level 3 or higher) hurricane was headed for the northern edge of the Gulf of Mexico and two days warning that it was headed for the mouth of the Mississippi river (and New Orleans) it still took days and days for the relief effort to get started.  Anyone who lives where a disaster, natural or man-made, can hit an area larger that a few tens of square miles should take what happened to heart and start make there own plans.

If you are middle income or less then the Federal Relief effort has given you fair warning, you’re on your own for the first week after things settle down.  If Homeland Security, Fema, and the US military can take two to five days to get its act together just how long will it take them when they are caught truly flat-footed?

By the way, did anyone notice how fast the US relief effort for the tsunami last year and how slow it was for Katrina?  What has changed?  Does this administration think that Americans don’t need help as much as people of India Ocean?  Does the White House think that Americans don’t need help because ‘All True Americans’ take care of them selves and don’t go ‘hat in hand’ begging for help when a disaster hits?  I don’t think so, so I’m left with only one other conclusion; they are incompetent or they just don’t care that much.  We should know soon.  I wait with baited breath.