Let us continue to pray for the people affected by hurricane Katrina. Let us thank GOD for the generosity of the American people as they respond to the needs of those in the area.
Having said that, this morning on the radio I heard a news report which included the mayor of New Orleans blasting the federal government for their slow response. This evening I heard a TV newscast where he continued to fault the U.S. government with language that was bleeped out.
First of all, any mayor or other government official knows or should know that government bureaucracies react slowly. That is simply a fact of life. Given the circumstances, instead of complaining he should be grateful and thankful.
I don't know the mayor personally but I do know political people. If what I'm saying does not apply to him, I apologize. I do not know his motive(s) and very few people probably actually do. However, we all know that one of man's faults is to deny responsibility for mistakes and to try to blame others to take the heat off. That seems to be particularly true in this modern era.
This is a rather lengthy quote from the front page of the Peoria Journal Star on Monday, August 29, 2005 by an Associated Press writer written before the hurricane hit New Orleans.
"When Hurricane Katrina hits New Orleans today, it could turn one of America's most charming cities into a vast cesspool tainted with toxic chemicals, human waste and even coffins released by floodwaters from the city's legendary cemetaries." (My comment: if I remember correctly, New Orleans has above ground cemetaries.)
(Here is a key point as the quote continues.) "Experts have warned for years that the levees and pumps that usually keep New Orleans dry have no chance against a direct hit by a Category 5 storm."
"That is exactly what Katrina was as it churned north-northwest toward the city. With top winds of 160 mph and the power to lift sea level by as much as 28 feet, the storm threatened an environmental disaster of biblical (The writer (editor) did not capitalize Biblical, I would have.) proportions, one that could leave more than 1 million people homeless."
(Skipping four paragraphs of predictions.)
"With Katrina bearing down on his below-sea-level city, Mayor C. Ray Nagin ordered a mandatory evacuation for the city's 485,000 residents...."
Was it the federal government that built a city below sea level? Was it this administration who did not prepare the levees for a Category 5 storm? I'm not going to judge whether or not the evacuation order was given at the appropriate time since hind sight can never change the event and we don't have the benefit of hind sight at the point of decision (some people should remember this); but I do know from the story that it was the mayor not the federal government who gave the order. We also know from experience that some people choose to ignore such orders. Who made the decision to evacuate people to the domed statium? Who prepared the evacuation plans? In a federal system all these things and more are the responsibility of the local and possibly the state government.
Don't blame the federal government for a disaster not of their making! I wouldn't be surprised to hear someone blame President Bush for hurricane Katrina hitting New Orleans. (A plot by his oil rich political friends?) It seems to be a situation of blaming any other person to take the pressure off. President Bush and the federal government becomes an easy target to blame. It unfortunately seems to be human nature--not GOD's nature. Is the mayor expecting perfection from everyone else and ignoring his own failures?
Having said that, this morning on the radio I heard a news report which included the mayor of New Orleans blasting the federal government for their slow response. This evening I heard a TV newscast where he continued to fault the U.S. government with language that was bleeped out.
First of all, any mayor or other government official knows or should know that government bureaucracies react slowly. That is simply a fact of life. Given the circumstances, instead of complaining he should be grateful and thankful.
I don't know the mayor personally but I do know political people. If what I'm saying does not apply to him, I apologize. I do not know his motive(s) and very few people probably actually do. However, we all know that one of man's faults is to deny responsibility for mistakes and to try to blame others to take the heat off. That seems to be particularly true in this modern era.
This is a rather lengthy quote from the front page of the Peoria Journal Star on Monday, August 29, 2005 by an Associated Press writer written before the hurricane hit New Orleans.
"When Hurricane Katrina hits New Orleans today, it could turn one of America's most charming cities into a vast cesspool tainted with toxic chemicals, human waste and even coffins released by floodwaters from the city's legendary cemetaries." (My comment: if I remember correctly, New Orleans has above ground cemetaries.)
(Here is a key point as the quote continues.) "Experts have warned for years that the levees and pumps that usually keep New Orleans dry have no chance against a direct hit by a Category 5 storm."
"That is exactly what Katrina was as it churned north-northwest toward the city. With top winds of 160 mph and the power to lift sea level by as much as 28 feet, the storm threatened an environmental disaster of biblical (The writer (editor) did not capitalize Biblical, I would have.) proportions, one that could leave more than 1 million people homeless."
(Skipping four paragraphs of predictions.)
"With Katrina bearing down on his below-sea-level city, Mayor C. Ray Nagin ordered a mandatory evacuation for the city's 485,000 residents...."
Was it the federal government that built a city below sea level? Was it this administration who did not prepare the levees for a Category 5 storm? I'm not going to judge whether or not the evacuation order was given at the appropriate time since hind sight can never change the event and we don't have the benefit of hind sight at the point of decision (some people should remember this); but I do know from the story that it was the mayor not the federal government who gave the order. We also know from experience that some people choose to ignore such orders. Who made the decision to evacuate people to the domed statium? Who prepared the evacuation plans? In a federal system all these things and more are the responsibility of the local and possibly the state government.
Don't blame the federal government for a disaster not of their making! I wouldn't be surprised to hear someone blame President Bush for hurricane Katrina hitting New Orleans. (A plot by his oil rich political friends?) It seems to be a situation of blaming any other person to take the pressure off. President Bush and the federal government becomes an easy target to blame. It unfortunately seems to be human nature--not GOD's nature. Is the mayor expecting perfection from everyone else and ignoring his own failures?
posted by Christian Gunslinger at 11:52 PM
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