Finally writing about Katrina.

Greetings Mayor Ray Nagin.





I have no intent to make light of the great disaster that is ongoing in what was New Orleans. The loss of life and property is beyond comprehension and is a tragedy of the worst proportions. What I will illustrate is some absurdities which are apparently not very obvious.

If I choose to live in a tidal plane whose responsibility is it to ensure that my property does not get flooded? And, when the inevitable happens, would I be justified in blaming my problems on the President of the United States? Is it the fault of the federal government or the Corps of Engineers for not giving me enough money to protect my property?

Now why was it my responsibility to pay to keep New Orleans above the water level? And, why would someone choose to purchase costal property that was below sea level? Like Sam Kinnison said, “we have deserts but we don’t live in them.”

Next, Mayor Nagin and many in the media are criticizing FEMA and the President for a delayed response in the relief effort. These are more brainless accusations made in ignorance. President Bush declared a state of emergency before Katrina even made landfall so FEMA could preposition its relief effort. What was not predicted was the need to evacuate and feed half a million people from a flooded and crime ridden city. To my recollection, this is a feat which has never been accomplished before. The closest comparison I can imagine would be the Normandy invasion but the allies practiced for months and then only transported 156, 000.

If Mayor Nagin thinks that FEMA should have used their crystal ball to predict and better prepare then why didn’t he use his to better evacuate his city or reinforce the dikes with New Orleans funds before Katrina?

Finally, we have a class within our society which I have started calling feral humans. Some of these feral humans are making a mess of the rescue effort in New Orleans. For those who would rape and murder during the rescue effort I suggest 168 grains of justice propelled by 44.5 grains of determination which I can produce at a cost of around 25 cents. As for the looters, I can forgive those acquiring food but those looting anything other than food or water should be identified, prosecuted, and sentenced to the maximum the law allows. “We have no way of washing our clothes” is no excuse. I have personally worn the same clothes under extreme for much more than 5 days.

I still pray for those who are suffering because of this disaster, however, I will not give a free pass to those who would politicize their suffering and I make no apologies for what I say because, this is Where I Stand.

Update: I just found this An Open letter to Shepard Smith and Geraldo Rivera. I originally wanted to spend more attention to this particular train of thought so I'm happy to link to this one.