President Bush, ‘Last’ if not ‘Least’ Person to Blame Than Those Closer at hand.
When such a natural disaster as hurricane (Katrina) strikes a major city in
the greatest nation, of the world and the area turns into a third world,
drown, pillage, rape and murder scene for ‘days’ after there is assuredly
lots of blame to go somewhere. There is decidedly Truth to any moral matter.
And too, what lessons can be learned and repetitions avoided if blame is
discarded where it should sit heavily where it crashes down.
In assigning blame must clean debris and cob-webs of each deck ‘before’
advancing to the next
The check-off list, in this situation actually starts with self, then
progresses to neighbour, city, State and lastly the federal government all
who have a moral and ethical social responsibility to the children and
people they are paid to serve and elected to serve.
In this case, the media (i.e.,CNN) may not escape blame either, for the
hundreds of times they have ‘way overdid’ sensational ‘news story’ opinion
loops that never materialized as forebode, if at all.
Self
It is ’self’ responsibility that has the most to blame in the whole sad and
sordid story as cruel and unpleasant as abdicators and ‘advocates’ of same,
may take it. As found out in reality, the government can’t… for assorted
reasons, (not the least, or most, being…… political) do everything
sometimes, including offer critical aid, for us.
The area was declared a disaster area even before the storm struck
indicating the extent of danger approaching and ( even so, underestimated)
seriousness taken by ‘official sources’.
Residents were able to be told ‘days’ in advance to ‘get out, now!’. Those
able, could have ‘walked’ to higher and dryer ground (at least more so) than
they obviously, occupied. Residents also had a few days to move the infirmed
or arranged to move the infirmed even if they had to beg neighbours, or call
for municipal aid, buses etc.
It is never morally, responsible to stay and stoically ‘fight’ it out when
you are charged with your own children or elderly parents.
I can’t imagine which schools, or parents would teach American youth to
behave like self-gorged, Viking pillagers and rapists under any
circumstances, but there it was/ is, (in a major supposed refuge site no
less) with the aid no doubt of street-gang mentality, lack of parents,
Hollywood and music street-gang ‘entertainment’ and lawyer led ‘rights’
activists who care not, a wit for civil civilization.
That written, the ultimate blame falls on the perpetrators themselves who at
minimum do know right from wrong/ evil from good, as a natural private and
communal instinct of the human condition….. of the sane.
There is never a need to steal…… anything, least of all material goods
not essential to survival of a few days. If the government is incapable of
getting immediate life sustaining and medical supplies to individuals
otherwise cut off from aid but, (conveniently standing in front of a
Wal-Mart) there would be nothing immoral in taking and distributing and
‘accounting for’ (including leaving name and address) water and food
confiscated.
Most likely, under such conditions small debts to store owners would be
forgiven (even not!…. what individual debt, a slip of paper…. ‘a few
dollars’ for food and water, for one’s soul). Government can’t ‘fix’ or
control human behaviour or original sin, only parents and individuals can.
Goodness! it was reported ‘police officers’ were seen ‘running’ their own
carts chock full of the latest fashions etc. What could this ‘great’ city
have been under normal life?
Neighbour
Sometimes, ‘neighbour’ can mean a little more, than just the guy next door
whose as well off as you and even gone ahead ‘to cut the path’ in times of
crisis. As there was ample time and warning for orderly evacuation of
thousands and thousands, who ‘in fact’ did so. There was also time to offer
aid to those less off.
A quick tour through the poorer areas with offers of ’squeezing’ an infirmed
soul or child into the back of the family van would have been a Christian
duty over a kind gesture. There was time to drop off one’s own family and
come back for a second trip, safely, for others.
If you can’t rely (and as seen…in numerous disasters, including
Ontario/Quebec’s ice storm) totally on the government for your own family,
how do you think your neighbours will fair any better? Personal
responsibility does encompass your neighbours sometimes in a Christian
society.
Municipality
It is morally intrinsic.. to say the least… that the municipal government
and mayors of large cities especially that lie in potentially vulnerable
areas to nature and evil, have to actually be ‘competently’ cognizant or
wary of so. (including in logistical matters that will inevitably arise and
contingency plans for all situations within their ‘reasonable’ expectation
and control).
That appears to not have happened to any extent in the case of New Orleans
where the Mayor even fumbled with the question of mandatory evacuation while
‘even’ the media was asking, what could possibly be the hold-up. More than
two examples of political reasons which may or may not have been the case,
here come immediately to mind.
1) mandatary anything doesn’t go well with liberal politicians, primarily
because like curfews for the youth, it is deemed not to go well with the
liberal-think constituency.
2) a declared mandatary evacuation may have put some liability onus on the
city to ensure buses were provided and police would leave no one behind who
could not get out on their own.
In obvious retrospect and light of facts, the mayor was not equipped or
prepared to deal with ‘anything’ and was clearly relying on governments
above the municipality level to do the lion’s share of , provide, search and
rescue. Super cities are ‘big’ governments with great responsibility.
State
The State, of course, is the secondary ‘back up’ for all rural and major
cities it contains within, hence the (need for) control of state troopers,
law reserves, state health depts. etc. To that extent they need to be more
prepared than the cities for just such emergencies and to take control and
responsibility of a municipal disaster area, if need be.
Though there was the illusion of tough talk from the State, it was only
that. Law enforcers like the military, and the public needed specific rules
of engagement well before four or five days after catastrophe struck
especially in a land swamped, and literally hy-jacked by trial lawyers and
social ‘advocates’
“Dealt with to the extent of the law… harshly etc” are too politically
butt- protecting vague to what had to be said… and done. Not forgotten in
the mix, why were/are there ‘hordes’ of poor and inasmuch implicated the
poorly educated and motivated who were to poor and ignorant to leave. Is
Louisiana not within the borders of the United States of America.
Who or whom from the State is not offering (or preventing) education,
opportunity and most importantly, motivation for the hordes of poor to
better themselves, that other States do not experience.
I learned in one week, that Louisiana should not be a ‘have not’ State….
The area and city of New Orleans alone, is quite a prosperous city
benefiting greatly from tourism, (read unleashed partying for serious
partygoers, like there’s ever a shortage of them in a secular society )
gambling and oil refining. If a sizable amount of the tax on these billions
of dollars isn’t going to the State, where is it going?
I’m no specialized expert for ‘media experts’ to pick and analyse for the
big picture, and admittedly one of 32 million or so sanctimonious know- it-
all Canadians, but something rather misleading, if not sinister is missing
in the Louisiana picture. Something, I’m honestly not sure of, but those
closer to it are certainly in the know. And something misleading or sinister
always has political motivation on top or buried somewhere within.
My advice to the people of Louisiana in coming elections is to completely
clear the decks with untouchable people who will also clear the
bureaucracies and ignore those who have been so ‘helpful’ and representative
of them…… to date.
Federal Government
President Bush is last to blame, but hardly immaculately immune from it.
Louisiana is more than just a State, of the dead, suffering, and criminal
fodder, now… as true as that is. It is also an embarrassment that reflects
if more so on the secular element of the United States.
By secular element I contend, people of self limited/interested to their
properties and fortunes made, those who deceivingly live off, and celebrate
off, the backs of the same, and selective ‘human rights’ to selective groups
that impose on the rights of others and go way beyond human ‘basic’ rights
( i.e. rights advanced for privilege or term limiting that should be
legislated if deemed necessary by elected bodies,) by anyone’s definition.
I doubt anyone in the world is more anti-socialism than I, but equally do I
detest the obscenely rich who feel they need not give to anyone for anything
in any manner in aid of their fellow man and simply amass fortunes to their
diluted humanistic ‘credit’ or worse, simple personal greed.
I digress. Whenever a President drops his instinctive gut, and rests on his
laurels relying on a consensus of his advisors, nothing is sure to get done
in a hurry. (Don’t hold your breath for vouchers.)
The slow carrier boats to China should have left port the day before Katrina
left Louisiana, not a few days later though one would have hoped the city
and the State would have provided food and water resources and rescue teams
to last at least until the first breakfast of day one. And too, the first
clue of local governments that collapsed faster than a stilted clapboard and
tar- paper shack in the bayou was the uniformed cop bawling like a baby…
on cue for CNN in a Oprahist-like moment, when he was otherwise paid…. to
brawl looters like a soldier.
Perhaps, in some ways it is understandable, people panicked and abandoned
all aspects of civility, as they did right off the mark….. if never
excusable.
Hey, Terry Schiavo went without food and water for fourteen days and by ‘all
‘ ’scientific’ and ‘legal’ account didn’t suffer a second, (sorry, but I
remain always measurably cynical of all civilized ’secular’ christened, and
politically susceptible… ‘institutions’).
Ronald Regan’s military invaded a whole Country quicker and more
efficiently, (under secrecy, yet) than it took to take the reins of a rescue
operation in Louisiana as the President should have and still hasn’t, (as of
this writing).
Four words…. armed paratroopers and air lifts. The ‘Keep up Pretenses for
the sake of the neighbours’ ship sailed ahead of the aircraft carriers.
I know the high-horse modern Canada , I have come to love…(to be ashamed
of) doesn’t do… military, primarily to sock a few socialist bucks away,
over idealist romantic principles of the world being a safe place to live
and be free in. …. but how come only they have this Jacques on- the- spot
mega- gallon water- maker or purifier machine thing-y?
Paul Gordon
Cannington Ont.
