Hurricane Katrina

[Balta1701]

Jesus Christ...from the trib

 

    While federal and state emergency planners scramble to get more military relief to Gulf Coast communities stricken by Hurricane Katrina, a massive naval goodwill station has been cruising offshore, underused and waiting for a larger role in the effort.

 

    The USS Bataan, a 844-foot ship designed to dispatch Marines in amphibious assaults, has helicopters, doctors, hospital beds, food and water. It also can make its own water, up to 100,000 gallons a day. And it just happened to be in the Gulf of Mexico when Katrina came roaring ashore.

 

    The Bataan rode out the storm and then followed it toward shore, awaiting relief orders. Helicopter pilots flying from its deck were some of the first to begin plucking stranded New Orleans residents.

 

    But now the Bataan's hospital facilities, including six operating rooms and beds for 600 patients, are empty. A good share of its 1,200 sailors could also go ashore to help with the relief effort, but they haven't been asked. The Bataan has been in the stricken region the longest of any military unit, but federal authorities have yet to fully utilize the ship.

 

    Captain ready, waiting

 

    "Could we do more?" said Capt. Nora Tyson, commander of the Bataan. "Sure. I've got sailors who could be on the beach plucking through garbage or distributing water and food and stuff. But I can't force myself on people....

 

    "I figured we would be a big help in New Orleans. We've got electricity, and the police could have charged up their radios. We've got water, toilets. We've got food."

 

Amphibious Assault ships...like the Bataan...also carry landing craft...the kinds of heavily armored vehicles (LVT's, LCAC's) which can travel either on shallow water or even land, and are designed to be able to go from the ocean up onto beaches and travel for a ways. In other words, that sort of resource could have evacuated thousands.

 

They're still sitting there.

[Texsox]

Amazing. Who was in charge and why wasn't a complete list of resources from major players like the military, made available? I am getting sicker by the moment thinking about the death and nightmares that could have been avoided. We have the greatest military this planet has ever seen, and we made tham almost non players.

[NUKE_CLEVELAND]

Well if the government doesn't need the $100,000,000.00 have them send it to me. I assume it would be a wire transfer, not shipped in trucks to New Orleans. The proper government reaction to someone offering $100,000,000.00 is thank you, send it to this account.

 

 

Kuwait has offered 500 million to help out.

 

Thanks guys.

[Balta1701]

Amazing. Who was in charge and why wasn't a complete list of resources from major players like the military, made available? I am getting sicker by the moment thinking about the death and nightmares that could have been avoided. We have the greatest military this planet has ever seen, and we made tham almost non players.

No one was in charge. FEMA and the DHS were supposed to be in charge. But they weren't.

 

Go read that Trib piece...the Bataan actually dispatched an LCU loaded with food and a doctor to go towards New Orleans, and they were forced to turn around when the ship was ordered back out to sea. The only ones who could give orders for the military to send resources in? You guessed it...FEMA.

 

If that Brown guy can't be jailed for this...he should at least be out of his job yesterday.

[Balta1701]

Kuwait has offered 500 million to help out.

Gulf War 1 cost the U.S. $76 billion.

[Balta1701]

Sri Lanka has given the U.S. an offer of $25,000...and they were hammered by the Tsunami a few months ago. For that one, I'm grateful.

 

Japan has offered the U.S. $200,000, with maybe another $300,000 down the road. If I'm doing the math right, that's $.0016 for every person in Japan.

[KipWellsFan]

Kanye West's "Bush doesn't care about black people" censored by NBC for West Coast feed

 

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/na...-home-headlines

"It would be most unfortunate," the network said in a statement defending its action, "if the efforts of the artists who participated tonight and the generosity of millions of Americans who are helping those in need are overshadowed by one person's opinion."

 

Excuse me, but whose tragedy is this: NBC's or America's?

 

NBC may have been nervous about West's comments, including the notion that America and its president are unresponsive to the needs of the poor. But you can be sure those remarks would have been cheered more than anything else in the program by the black parents and children still trapped in the New Orleans Convention Center and the Superdome if they had been able to hear them.

 

The line NBC stopped us from hearing on the West Coast: "George Bush doesn't care about black people."

 

The puzzling thing is why NBC axed that, but allowed another provocation, potentially more disturbing, to stay in: "We already realized a lot of the people that could help are at war right now, fighting another way, and they've given them permission to go down and shoot us."

 

West was apparently referring to the National Guard troops who were sent to New Orleans to help the flood victims and stop the looting.

 

The show was aired live on the East Coast, where West's full comments were heard.

 

more at link

[LowerCaseRepublican]

The Red Cross has been banned from New Orleans and volunteers bringing food, water, blankets and other materials have been turned away by National Guardsmen and FEMA because there is no significant coordination for the assistance program. So they should bring Jesse Jackson, Barack Obama and the Rainbow Push Coalition down to New Orleans. Have them get in contact with the mayor & organize an effort to get assistance to where it needs to go. I would love to see the President arrest the mayor of New Orleans and Jesse Jackson for illegally trying to bring aid into New Orleans. Because the last thing the administration needs with the current claims of racism in respect to the lack of assistance is black people being beaten and harassed by police and National Guardsmen in the South.

[Balta1701]

My God...according to sources...Homeland Security Director Chertoff just said on Meet the Press that he learned about the Levee Breach from his Tuesday Morning Newspaper...24 hours after it had happened.

 

Russert's first question was whether or not Chertoff was contemplating resigning. If he didn't learn about the levee breach for 24 hours after it happened, he shouldn't just be resigning...he should have to clean up the Superdome.

[Balta1701]

The Red Cross has been banned from New Orleans and volunteers bringing food, water, blankets and other materials have been turned away by National Guardsmen and FEMA because there is no significant coordination for the assistance program.  So they should bring Jesse Jackson, Barack Obama and the Rainbow Push Coalition down to New Orleans.  Have them get in contact with the mayor & organize an effort to get assistance to where it needs to go.  I would love to see the President arrest the mayor of New Orleans and Jesse Jackson for illegally trying to bring aid into New Orleans. Because the last thing the administration needs with the current claims of racism in respect to the lack of assistance is black people being beaten and harassed by police and National Guardsmen in the South.

We've already had people ripping on an 18 year old kid who stole a bus in the middle of the city, drove it around picking up survivors, and took a full bus load out to Texas...because he stole the bus.

[KipWellsFan]

Wondering where Dick Cheney has been?

 

http://news.independent.co.uk/world/americ...ticle310186.ece

The criticism is all the sharper because the President did nothing to alter his holiday schedule for 48 hours. Vice-President Dick Cheney remains on holiday in Wyoming. Condoleezza Rice, the Secretary of State, returned to Washington after being seen shopping for $7,000 shoes in Manhattan as New Orleans went under.

 

Vice-President Useless Dick

[Balta1701]

Wondering where Dick Cheney has been?

It's a shame I didn't run into him while I was in Wyoming...He'd have had a Condi-shoe-shopping moment of his own.

[KipWellsFan]

09.01.2005: Responding to Hurricane Katrina: President's Remarks Announcing Extremely Belated Launch of "Operation Bureaucratic Clusterf***"

http://www.whitehouse.org/index.asp

 

lol

[southsideirish71]

The Red Cross has been banned from New Orleans and volunteers bringing food, water, blankets and other materials have been turned away by National Guardsmen and FEMA because there is no significant coordination for the assistance program.  So they should bring Jesse Jackson, Barack Obama and the Rainbow Push Coalition down to New Orleans.  Have them get in contact with the mayor & organize an effort to get assistance to where it needs to go.  I would love to see the President arrest the mayor of New Orleans and Jesse Jackson for illegally trying to bring aid into New Orleans. Because the last thing the administration needs with the current claims of racism in respect to the lack of assistance is black people being beaten and harassed by police and National Guardsmen in the South.

 

 

Jesse is to busy doing photo ops with Stroger, Danny Davis and others stating over and over if it were whites that were there that they would of been saved on day one. I just watched them on the news again. Nice race baiting agenda. Jesse is just trying to say it over and over and over enough times so when his son runs for Mayor he can use it as a reason to get the black vote out. One Alderman stands by Kanye Wests statement because that is how her voters feel. Its nice to see how the very leaders of the African American community are doing their absolute best to keep screaming racism over and over so their agenda can be forwarded.

 

How about this, everyone wanted the military to come down there and help everyone out. Let them control the situation now that they are there and streamline efforts through them. They have to provide security and logistics for that area. If Jesse Jackson wants to take off his suit, and swim through the crap I say let him in. But of course Captain Morals is just there to scream and scream racism some more, get on tv and line his pockets with more and more money. Maybe with this he can extort more contracts for his family like he has done in Chicago.

[NUKE_CLEVELAND]

Jesse is to busy doing photo ops with Stroger, Danny Davis and others stating over and over if it were whites that were there that they would of been saved on day one.  I just watched them on the news again.  Nice race baiting agenda.  Jesse is just trying to say it over and over and over enough times so when his son runs for Mayor he can use it as a reason to get the black vote out.  One Alderman stands by Kanye Wests statement because that is how her voters feel.  Its nice to see how the very leaders of the African American community are doing their absolute best to keep screaming racism over and over so their agenda can be forwarded. 

 

How about this, everyone wanted the military to come down there and help everyone out.  Let them control the situation now that they are there and streamline efforts through them.  They have to provide security and logistics for that area. If Jesse Jackson wants to take off his suit, and swim through the crap I say let him in.  But of course Captain Morals is just there to scream and scream racism some more, get on tv and line his pockets with more and more money.  Maybe with this he can extort more contracts for his family like he has done in Chicago.

 

I think Senator Frist has the best idea for helping these people. He shut his f***ing mouth, took off his suit and went down there and did something meaningful with his professional training. People should key off that example.

[Texsox]

Perhaps we had too many resources. To think that people died because of bureaucratic bungling just makes me cry. We have thousands of intelligent hard working people in our government, it is the greatest government the world has ever seen, and we produced this?!

 

I have to blame the leadership, starting with our President who went fund raising for his party. It sounds like he was getting some very bad information. I believe, if he truly knew what was happening, he would have had everyone winging back to the White House immediately. I can't believe he was given accurate information, and continued his plans. I may disagree with his political views, but his compassion for human suffering is real, and his political thinking is usually first rate, both would have him getting involved sooner rather than later.

[Texsox]

I think Senator Frist has the best idea for helping these people.  He shut his f***ing mouth,  took off his suit and went down there and did something meaningful with his professional training.  People should key off that example.

 

Including Bush. I wish he had gone to the White House immediately, stayed at the White House, and kicked some ass. If he was going to make a tour, how about tomorrow, see the empty New Orleans, visit the places in TX, LA, MS, AL, etc. where victims went. Thank the workers and volunteers, slap a few backs and fly off.

 

BTW, his staff did take the time to alert the media what Frist was doing. He didn't shut his mouth. But I still believe he did his best and I applaud him for it. I also like the fact he probably received some real info on the medical situation. Bringing the word's attention to problems isn't the worse thing in the world to do.

[Heads22]

I think Senator Frist has the best idea for helping these people.  He shut his f***ing mouth,  took off his suit and went down there and did something meaningful with his professional training.  People should key off that example.

 

 

I'd be lying if I didn't think he was trying to show a shift more to the middle by criticizing parts of the fed. gov., but I still tip my hat to him. People need to follow his lead.

[southsideirish71]

Including Bush. I wish he had gone to the White House immediately, stayed at the White House, and kicked some ass. If he was going to make a tour, how about tomorrow, see the empty New Orleans, visit the places in TX, LA, MS, AL, etc. where victims went. Thank the workers and volunteers, slap a few backs and fly off.

 

BTW, his staff did take the time to alert the media what Frist was doing. He didn't shut his mouth. But I still believe he did his best and I applaud him for it. I also like the fact he probably received some real info on the medical situation. Bringing the word's attention to problems isn't the worse thing in the world to do.

 

 

I like how everyone is all bent out of shape that he wasnt in Washington. Do you realize that the president has a mobile armada of state of the art communications equipment that travels with him everwhere he goes. He can conduct business from all over the world not just from the Oval Office itself. If he was behind his desk, again he would be criticized for using it as a photo opp.

 

How about we make sure that the area is secure from the snipers and the gunfire before we let our leader into the fray. He toured the area from the safety of a helicopter and everyone gave him s*** for a photo op opportunity. I am sure that he will be on the ground at some point when the area is secure. And then everyone can criticize him for the photo opp then. I love how everyone says New Orleans is empty, like the gang members with the guns threw down their weapons and jumped on a bus.

[JUGGERNAUT]

It's so easy to analyze the situation after it happens. So much data to analyze so little time to analyze it. But it's a LOT harder to analyze a situation in real-time.

 

It's amazing how so many blame Bush when there are 10's of 1000's of people responsible for the infrastructure & managing emergencies in the gulf coast. Based on the news media once again we see the Dems condemning Bush with the perception that it's the Fed's job to manage a crisis. Excuse me?

 

Are to we accept that elected officials & appointed managers in that region behave no better than monkeys? Darwinists might lead you to believe that but the rest of us who believe that mankind should behave at a level comparable to it's intellect don't.

 

The blame for the crisis left in Katrina lies squarely on the shoulders of local government officials. They are the ones who are responsible for managing not just the infrastructure but also the zoning laws, permits, licensing, & other forms of regulation to prepare against such emergencies.

 

The risk of a Katrina like event has always been apparent to the region. Let's not act like this is somehow an act of God or something driven by a paranormal curse.

 

Beyond Katrina's path of destruction itself there is the melt down of civility. Who's to blame for that? Is it reasonable to assume that a public education system void of a definitive system of morality is a contributing factor? I think so. It's like trying to teach the people that 1+1=2 most of the time but can = other things depending on your perspective. Maybe in some weird twisted sense it's politically correct but you can't build upon it. Civilization requires a fair amount of cohesiveness to progress.

 

So when I read about people on the ground firing on helipcopters trying to give aid & support to people on the rooftops I do stop & ask the question why? Why are they doing this? What in their social development has led them to act that way? Would they have done it 40 yrs ago? When I seek answers to these questions I am led back to the same common thread: education void of definitive morality.

 

So if you are seeking someone to blame in this mess look squarely at the people responsible for education the masses in that region (New Orleans to Biloxi).

Edited September 4, 2005 by JUGGERNAUT

[Heads22]

f***ing teachers anyways.

[kapkomet]

You know what? This thread is bulls***. BULLs***.

 

Instead of bantering back and forth about f***ing politics, what are WE going to do about it?

 

I'll share what me and my family have chosen to do about it in the upcoming days, if we're able to help out in the ways that I think we can. These people are in my city. And we are doing our part to help them out, screw the politics, the backgrounds, the ANYTHING of these people. They just need our help. I feel like locking this thread and shoving it so far up people's asses here that this will never see the light of day again. This thread identifies EXACTLY what the f*** is wrong with our country today. And I'm ashamed to have taken part in it after seeing some of these people today.

 

WHO f***ING CARES what these talking heads are doing, it's what WE do about it!!!!

[southsideirish71]

You know what?  This thread is bulls***.  BULLs***.

 

Instead of bantering back and forth about f***ing politics, what are WE going to do about it?

 

I'll share what me and my family have chosen to do about it in the upcoming days, if we're able to help out in the ways that I think we can.  These people are in my city.  And we are doing our part to help them out, screw the politics, the backgrounds, the ANYTHING of these people.  They just need our help.  I feel like locking this thread and shoving it so far up people's asses here that this will never see the light of day again.  This thread identifies EXACTLY what the f*** is wrong with our country today.  And I'm ashamed to have taken part in it after seeing some of these people today. 

 

WHO f***ING CARES what these talking heads are doing, it's what WE do about it!!!!

 

 

I have given money, canned food and diapers to our red cross.

[LowerCaseRepublican]

http://dailytelegraph.news.com.au/story/0,...5001028,00.html

 

Castro joins the fray of assistance. Offering 1,100 doctors and 26 tons of meds.

[WilliamTell]

I've donated blood for the past 2 years, I don't know if mine will go down there but at least I've contributed to some people.