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Topic: Some NYT columns on the New Orleans catastrophe
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dragonman97
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posted September 03, 2005 17:54
Will read later - thanks. ![[Smile]](smile.gif)
In the meantime, a friendly reminder: bugmenot.com
Edit: Reading them now...and they do _not_ require registration. I think it's because they're opinion columns, and not leading news.
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snupy
BlabberMouth, a Blabber Odyssey
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posted September 03, 2005 23:46
Great articles, Snaggy. Thanks
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codazzo
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posted September 04, 2005 01:27
Cutting funds on the FEMA, staying at his ranch his Texas till everybody was yelling at him and then complaining about the inefficiency of the rescue operations.
you gotta be kidding me.
Plus, how can you stand a president who talks like a junior high schoolkid? Stop calling everybody "folks" damnit
I thought presidents were supposed to be an example to follow in about every respect
duh ![[ohwell]](graemlins/ohwell.gif)
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GMx
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posted September 04, 2005 06:24
I like this quote from Maureen Dowd:
quote:
Michael Brown, the blithering idiot in charge of FEMA - a job he trained for by running something called the International Arabian Horse Association - admitted he didn't know until Thursday that there were 15,000 desperate, dehydrated, hungry, angry, dying victims of Katrina in the New Orleans Convention Center.
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The Famous Druid
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posted September 04, 2005 16:06
quote:
Originally posted by GMx:
I like this quote from Maureen Dowd:
quote:
Michael Brown, the blithering idiot in charge of FEMA - a job he trained for by running something called the International Arabian Horse Association
Arabian horses?
The man is clearly an Islamic Fundamentalist Terrorist!
Send him to Guantanamo!
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nerdwithnofriends
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posted September 04, 2005 16:24
hmmmm...
While for the most part I agree with these articles, one thing bugs me: wouldn't it be Louisiana's job as a state to ensure the maintenance of New Orlean's levees, not the job of the national government? I mean, that just seems like something that would fall under the 'states rights/responsibilities' category. If so, why are they blasting congress with failing to maintain the levee of one city in one state as well as failing to provide adequate relief? I understand that the national government is not doing a very good job about the relief effort, but is it really their job to ensure new orleans remains above water?
That would be like requiring congress to approve and oversee road maintenance here in Missoula, Montana. While they provide funding for highway maintenance, they don't tell us how to use that money. That's for us to figure out.
Does anybody know the answer to this question? Am I way off base here?
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Callipygous
BlabberMouth, a Blabber Odyssey
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posted September 04, 2005 18:40
The international implications of this have so far received little comment, but may well be very damaging in the long term for the US. We all knew that the US was a sharply divided society, but events in New Orleans have thrown this into sharp focus and afforded all of us a glimpe at the seamy underbelly of the American dream. The comment in this Washington Post article that has the most resonance for me is the one from the Sri Lankan who said ''It's disgusting. Not a single tourist caught in the tsunami was mugged. We can easily see where the civilized part of the world's population is.'' It has echoes of Ghandi's reply when asked what he thought of Western civilistion. "I think it would be a good idea."
One thing is for certain, that the loss of prestige and moral authority suffered by the US internationally over this, won't help to persuade Iraqis that they have much to learn from you about how to run their country.
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GMx
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posted September 04, 2005 19:01
The control of levees, dams and anything to do with the construction of these is under the jurisdiction of the United States Army Corps of Engineers. AFAIK
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dragonman97
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posted September 04, 2005 21:02
quote:
Originally posted by codazzo:
Cutting funds on the FEMA, staying at his ranch his Texas till everybody was yelling at him and then complaining about the inefficiency of the rescue operations.
When the hell is he actually in office?! Why the fsck is he always on that damn ranch? No wonder gas prices are so high - does anyone realize how much fuel he's burning taking Air Force One back and forth between DC & TX?
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Colonel Panic
BlabberMouth, the Next Generation
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posted September 05, 2005 07:21
quote:
Originally posted by nerdwithnofriends:
[QB] hmmmm...
While for the most part I agree with these articles, one thing bugs me: wouldn't it be Louisiana's job as a state to ensure the maintenance of New Orlean's levees, not the job of the national government?
GMx is correct, maintenance of the waterways is under the jurisdiction of the Army Corps of Engineers, and for good reason: our waterways are part of one of the great transportation systems in the world. The Mississippi watershed, including the Ohio River and Missouri rivers carries large quantities of grain, coal, timber and ore-- just to mention a few commercial items. We're talking steel from Pittsburgh, timber from the Ohio River Valley and Wisconsin, grain from as far away as Kansas City and Minneapolis (where major railheads are located, and prior to the rail system, they were connected by Canals, like the Hennepin Canal, the Erie Canal, the I&M canal and others).
It may be lost on you, nerd, but the effects of the damage in New Orleans is already being felt by farmers in Iowa, where great quantities of corn are transported for international shipping. With the port damaged, those markets are now unavailable and prices are plummeting. The Nation's breadbasket does not have the capacity to store the quantity of grain that can't be shipped -- it will rot and children in far off lands may starve.
Nerd, pay attention in History and Geography class and you'll understand the importance of New Orleans as an international port, vital to the nations economic and the military interests.
The economic, military and social consequences of Bush Failure are immense. From Bahgdad to New Orleans, politicization of Bush Failure by the far right should be an embarassment to his supporters (and is in fact embarassing to most Americans). Time and again, we see this man and his administration continue to make the same mistiakes as we see his supporters ignore his mistakes and sacrifice morality for political capital.
CP
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Matias
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posted September 05, 2005 09:46
quote:
'How can the US take Iraq, a country of 25 million people, in three weeks but fail to rescue 25,000 of its own citizens from a sports arena in a big American city?''
This is my issue. Well, one of the ones I had. It just makes no dam sense....at all! ![[shake head]](graemlins/shakehead.gif)
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Ugh, MightyClub
BlabberMouth, the Next Generation
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posted September 06, 2005 08:48
quote:
Michael Brown, the blithering idiot in charge of FEMA - a job he trained for by running something called the International Arabian Horse Association
I read somewhere on the NY Times site last night that he was fired from the horse job, calling his credentials into even more question. But competance (or lack of it) does not seem to be a consideration for the Bush administration.
I thought I had no respect for the man before Katrina. I guess now I'm running a respect deficit.
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Ugh!
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The Famous Druid
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posted September 06, 2005 14:00
quote:
Originally posted by Ugh, MightyClub:
quote:
Michael Brown, the blithering idiot in charge of FEMA - a job he trained for by running something called the International Arabian Horse Association
I read somewhere on the NY Times site last night that he was fired from the horse job, calling his credentials into even more question. But competance (or lack of it) does not seem to be a consideration for the Bush administration.
Ah, but he is a failed Republican congressional candidate, what better qualifications does he need?
My favourite quote on Mr Brown...
"He's done a hell of a job, because I'm not aware of any Arabian horses being killed in this storm,"
[edit]A brief summary of his background can be found at the Boston Herald
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If you watch 'The History Of NASA' backwards, it's about a space agency that has no manned spaceflight capability, then does low-orbit flights, then lands on the Moon.
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