Where have all the bodies gone
Gosh, I seem to recall reading (and hearing) where the BBC's heroic Nagin of New Orleans declared that there would be the minimum of 10,000 dead and could be as high as 25,000. Well, where are they then? Because the latest count as of yesterday (Sunday) is 197. Now, don't get me wrong, 197 dead is still 197 too many, but it's a hell of a long way from 10,000.
Addendum: The state Department of Health and Hospitals said today Louisiana's death toll from Hurricane Katrina now stands at 279. That figure, which comes from statistics reported by local coroners to state officials, includes 242 bodies at the metrowide morgue at St. Gabriel, three bodies in St. Charles Parish, 25 bodies in Jefferson Parish, six bodies in St. Tammany Parish and three bodies in New Iberia Parish.
Another interesting piece from the AP on the start of the cleanup being done in New Orleans. One line jumped out of me...
"Bourbon Street is cleaner than it ever is during Mardi Gras."
Also for all you Bush-bashers, and Lordy! but haven't I run into some mighty ones here in "Merry Old England," there is a piece running in the post-gazette that rather debunks the conventional wisdom of reporters "reporting" the slowness of the government, meaning President Bush (naturally), to Katrina in reality is, opposite of the truth.
What? Opposite of the truth? Well, apparently so, at least according to
Jason van Steenwyk, a Florida Army National Guardsman, who has been mobilized six times for hurricane relief. He notes that:
"The federal government pretty much met its standard time lines, but the volume of support provided during the 72-96 hour was unprecedented. The federal response here was faster than Hugo, faster than Andrew, faster than Iniki, faster than Francine and Jeanne."
One last little gem that I have come across today is by Star Parker from townhall.com. Ms. Parker wrote a column about the race debate in regards to the hurricane Katrina.
"What we are witnessing is a well-honed black political public-relations operation geared to obfuscation, stoking hatred and fear, and nurturing helplessness and dependence among black citizens. Such efforts keep black politicians powerful, diversity businesses prosperous and blacks poor."
As a side note to this, I watched, while trying not to gag, the ITV World News last night. They had the Reverend Jesse
Anyway, here is more of what Ms. Parker has to say about the REVend JACKson:
"Jesse Jackson is now touring through Louisiana. Where was he as Katrina thundered toward New Orleans, with a population almost 70 percent black and poor? He was in Venezuela embracing President Hugo Chavez, who the week before was in Cuba visiting his good friend Fidel Castro and who also includes among his friends Zimbabwe's despot, Robert Mugabe."
posted by Laura @ 3:42 PM
31 Comments:
Is this same time when Bush - who unlike Jackson - is the President, was on vacation at his ranch?
Hello Alice, my old sausage, I, for one, have not jumped on the bandwagon of criticising the man who you call "my president" and the rest of us call "old s**thead", for his handling of the current tragic situation in New Orleans. I do not like the politicisation of tragedies like this.
Instead, I would prefer to lambast Georgie Boy as being the most ignorant, ill-begotten, bigotted, stupid, warmongering, uncompassionate, dimwitted a***ole ever to hold that office. And he is not without some competition.
Bwahaha! Whoop!! Oh, vicus, luv, I just love it when you speak such sweet nuthin's. I've miss your rants.
Oh give it a rest, gaffauk. Bush has been to Katrina's arena three times now. That's three more times than your prime minister ever visited Cambria when they had their flood.
You need to take care of things in your own backyard, before you enter America's.
P.S. to both gaffauk and vicus, something tells me you two didn't vote for Maggie Thatcher. But then, hey, I could be wrong.
Hi Alice. As we both live in a democratic country - then surely we can criticise any government? Don't take it personally that I don't like Bush or his actions over Katrina. I'm not attacking America or you. I just think it is an interesting debate.
If Blair didn't visit Cumbria then shame on him. I certainly don't hold him up to much esteem either. What's your point? The Cumbria floods is hardly comparable to Katrina.
Also if that's your belief that 'countries should take care of things in their own backyard first' - how come US and UK can't seem to sort out their own problems without causing misery in other countries?
btw - I didn't vote for Maggie. I was too young. I did vote Tory in 92 which was waste as it for John Major who turned out to be very incompetent. In fact I reckon Maggie (and Reagan) were strong leaders.
Left and Right is not always as straight forward as it seems y'know - sometimes I agree with some things some parties say - and sometimes I disagree. However attacking Jackson and defending the guy who is responsible for heading up the US government and it's emergency agencies seems somewhat curious.
Nagin has no idea what's going on -both before and after the hurricane.
Too bad there's no one left to vote him out.
It's funny to listen to the leftist Limey's analyzin' our guvment over here in the land of the free.
They have no idea what they are talking about.
Ahhhhh and Jesse JACKson. REVrend JACKson. Our own little master of extortion. He is very proficient. I used to have respect for Jesse Jackson - way, way back when he was a positive force for the black community in America. That was a long time ago.
It's funny to listen to the redneck throwback's defending their moron president over there in the land of the free.
They have no idea what they are talking about.
In all honesty, vicus and gaffauk, why without all the spouting "because he's the president" why do you automatically put all the blame on Bush? vicus, if you know the USA so well, then you know that for natural events the local and state governments are suppose to be the first responders, before and after. And as for the federal government's response, it wasn't any slower or faster than anyother hurricane that occurred in any other state. The reason why New Orleans, the city, flooded was not because the federal government did not respond, but because of location.
gaffauk, so what if the president was on a working vacation on his ranch; actually, he wasn't on his ranch that day, he was in another state, if we are suppose to be the most powerful country in the known world (sarcasm off), then surely the president has all the electronc equipment that keeps him updated on the pulse of the country. Where exactly should he have been? Would it have made a difference if he had flown through the hurricane back to D.C.? Or did you want him to be at the levees holding them together so they wouldn't flood.
Unlike the two of you, I don't hold him to blame for everything; although, I do believe that some of the blame lies with him, there are plenty of others that can claim that prize.
The mayor, the governor, environmentalists, Congress, the president, and the American people. But most of all, I blame nature.
This from vicus scurra's web page:
"I sometimes think that I am too kind by nature, and need to adopt a more abrasive approach to those who believe that they cannot do without my counsel."
Really? Too kind? Need to be more abrasive?
You also say in your profile: "But I am a wonderful human being."
Well could have fooled me!
Alice, old fools like this serve no other purpose than to expose the complete and utter moral and intellectual vacuity of the left.
But after a short while, their visits only serve to disrupt, which is their intended purpose.
As for the truly GOOD, KIND folks of THIS great nation, we find such clowns to be pathetic relics of the Marxist golden years that are now tossed on what President Reagan called the "ash heap of history."
And that's exactly where garbage like vicus belongs!
i swear, i am so sick of mike and that terrible haircut and cheap $2 thesaurus he carries around in his pocket. mike, give it a rest, if you're so political why don't you get a real fucking job in a real fucking political city like washington d.c. or new york? oh yeah, thats right, because you're a never were who took one class at columbia, worked a few paper pusher jobs and suddenly is an expert on all things governmental. so i say, go fuck yourself.
as for W, obviously our standards are too high. we expected a strong, decisive leader who sees the world in black and white. then he shows up two days later to fly over new orleans.
we expect him to capture and kill osama bin laden. four years later...
but hey, its our fault, not W's.
steve, and your point is? This is not Mike's blog, but my blog. If you have a rant for Mike go rant in his yard. And next time, leave a trail, I consider those that don't, have something to hide...do you?
p.s. steve, if you are so sick of Mike, why do you go over to his blog in the first place, hmmmm?
i don't go to mike's blog, i see his obnoxious comments on others.
and what kind of paper trail would you like, alice? i don't think parcel express ships packages as big as you.
Why I am not big a'tall. In fact, quite petite. Anyway, that's not the kind of paper trail I mean. Why don't you have a blog, then you could just rant to your heart's content. And why don't you go to Mike's blog...been banned by any chance??
If you are going to comment on my blog, just don't spill any blood on my floor, and pick up after yourself. Oh, and make sure the lid is down on the toilet.
- House rules.
Alice, please understand, I do not blame Bush for the natural disaster, nor his response to it. On the contrary, I deplore the hurricane being used for political ends. Please read my posts and you will see that I have consistently held this viewpoint.
It is everything else that he has done that causes concern. If the American people feel the (long overdue) need to get rid of the idiot, then do it for a justified reason. There is no shortage of such reasons.
Perhaps it is my style that caused you to believe that I was being sarcastic in putting this point of view forward. Too bad. I am on a mission. And hoping that someone will tell me what that mission is.
Well, vicus, that's why Americans can go to the voting booths every four years to vote on their next president. And since there are only two terms for a president, Bush will be gone in 2008. Someone else will be in resident at our White House.
BTW, I like our system of voting better than your system of voting.
And when you have figured out your mission, please let me know what it is.
Alice - you are right - the blame does not lie purely on Bush, but on also on others, Federal, State and local. I believe that Bush was found wanting. Do you really believe ex-FEMA boss Brown was 'doing a heck of a job?'
As for voting systems both US and UK are terrible. In the UK only 23% of the electorate voted for Labour yet they get 55% of the seats. Also in the States the electorate College is a joke - and a badly out of date one at that.
In 2000 how come the guy most popular votes loses? How come most States including large ones like New York and California don't split their electoral votes depending on the proportion of votes cast for each person. Both US and UK are virtually 2 party states. That's poor democracy.
Ooooooooohhhh. 'Redneck.' Good one, Vicus - you nasty little man.
Do you even know what a 'redneck' is?! LOL!
gaffuk, the United States is not a democracy. We are a republic. We are a representative government. We are not fashioned out of the old Greek government where majority ruled. The founding fathers were very wise not to do it that way. If they had, every fly-over state would never have had a voice in how things are run.
I surely wouldn't want the people from New York or California (as an example) to be the only ones to dictate how the rest of us could live.
And you said it yourself. In 2000, the most popular guy, especially in New York and California was Al Gore. If we were a democracy, as in mob rules, then Gore would have been in, followed by Kerry. And that would have been disasterous, in my most humbled opinion.
Monicar, my love, of course I know about rednecks. And you are obviously displeased with me for some reason, but I am a fan. I loved your performance in "Deliverance".
vicus, monicar is from Philly, not down in Georgia where Deliverance took place.
Surely, you didn't take it personally...I think you are made of sterner stuff?
Damn, sorry, I never was good with accents. Maybe she played the sheriff in that James Bond film?
Oh vicus, you are just, hmmm, incorrigible (saying that with a smile on my face and a twinkle in my eye).
"You can't put democracy and freedom back into a box."
George W. Bush
"In Afghanistan, terrorists have done everything they can to intimidate people — yet more than 10 million citizens have registered to vote in the October presidential election — a resounding endorsement of democracy"
George W. Bush
So if you are not a democracy then George hasn't looked in the box yet? And he's giving democracy to Afghanistan and not his own country?
I don't see how it is very wise or faie when a small handful of counties in Florida (2000) or Ohio (2004) determine the fate of 297 thousand Americans. I'm not sure why a person in New York counts less than someone in Wyoming
gaffauk, a person in New York doesn't count less than a person in Wyoming. A person in Wyoming counts just as much as a person in New York. If you don't like how the United States has its government, what can I say. Tough shit.
BTW, far wiser men than you decided on our Constitution. Since they rejected Great Britain, obviously they didn't like what they saw here, and came up with our government. Our government may not be the the best, but it's better than what I have seen so far in this wide world of ours. IMHO
well i guess alice doesn't know history.
british neo-liberalism gave our founding fathers the basic ideas on which our constitution is based.
No Vicus - you nasty, nasty little man - not the sherriff.
Try a Don Corleone attitude paired with a Marilyn Monroe visage.
Watch it! HA! I won't make any fast moves so as not to frighten you.
Ok Alice.
Here's the maths...
2004
Wyoming
3 votes in Electoral college
Eligible voters 384,308
1 vote for each 384305 people
New York
31 votes in Electoral college
Eligible voters 12,825,654
1 vote for each 413730 people
Hmmm - not quite the same - only 29425 people you missed there.
I'm sorry you seem so sensitive to a mild criticism towards the US voting system. As I say I think our voting system is rubbish too. I haven't studied all the voting systems around the world but I guess you are being patriotic and defensive.
I don't think we want to turn this into who's country is better than whose - as that's a bit childish plus you seem to be living here - so can't be all that bad, can it?
I don't know what you want from me. Do you want me to admit that the Electoral College has some flaws to it? I suppose one has to be on the other side of the fence to detect a flaw. If the Electoral College votes in the way someone wants, then it's doing the right thing. If it votes in the wrong direction that one feels, then it's flawed.
I don't think I'm being childish. The Electoral College was set up to protect the Wyomings from the New Yorks of our country, not the other way around.
So really what's your point? So what do you want me to say, it's flawed. Yes, it's flawed. To date, there isn't a country nor it's system that isn't flawed in someway. We don't live in eutopia, we live in the real world.
I frankly don't understand your system of government. From what I make out, you vote for a party, not a man in sight. Your party decides who will be Prime Minister. So, in essence, you could like a certain party, and a certain member of that party. However, the members of your party (in charge) may not want that person in, so he/she doesn't get in...or gets voted out.
Now as for the reason I live here in the UK. I don't mind living here. I am here because I am married to an Englishman who lives here. I think you have a beautiful country. I don't mind becoming a resident here, but I am an American. Period.
p.s. From what I am getting from you, you want me to tell you that our President shouldn't be President. But I won't because I can't. Obviously, a person can win the popular vote and not when the electoral vote. That's the way the United States formed its government. Perhaps, in hindsight, without realizing it, our founding fathers perhaps knew at some time in our future, there would be alot of citizens ignorant of what was going on politically and went with the flow.
gaffauk, I am not even going to decide who's government is better or worse. Each country developed a system that suited them. No one is better or worse, just a bit different.
Truce?
Hi Alice
Sure - Truce sounds good. You are right that in any system there are flaws. I was pointing out that both US and UK are 2 party states which polarises our politics purely into Right and Left which can be seen as somewhat outdated.
I recommend taking the test at http://www.politicalcompass.org/ which shows how far you are to the righ and left but also authoritatian or libertarian.
Sometime on blogs when people query the war or Bush - naturally those who support Bush can attack the individual or liberals per se. I am happy to concede any points you can persuade me on. Becuase of some of us don't like Bush policies - doesn't make us dislike America or Americans any less.
I find the debate interesting.
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