WHAT WENT RIGHT: MEDIA MISSED A WILDLY SUCCESSFUL NEW ORLEANS RESCUE DRIVE

New York Post ^ | 8/27/06 | LOU DOLINAR

[conservative in nyc]

DO you remember the dramatic TV footage of National Guard helicopter landings at the Superdome, as soon as Katrina passed, to drop off tens of thousands saved from certain death? Of the corpsmen running with stretchers to carry the survivors to ambulances and the medical center? Or the reports on how the operation - with Coast Guard helicopters, regular military units and local first responders, too - went on for more than a week, saving more than 50,000 lives?

No? That's because the national media imposed a near-total blackout on the nerve center of what may have been the largest, most successful aerial search-and-rescue operation in history.

In fact, they got the Katrina timeline exactly backwards: Help wasn't late to arrive. The most important work - lifesaving, search and rescue - got done in the first four days after the hurricane passed.

On this anniversary week of Hurricane Katrina, we'll hear endless rehashing of the manifold failures of FEMA and the Bush administration - much of it deserved - and endless chanting of the "help was late" meme. What we won't hear is what congressional reports have since shown: Three other agencies anticipated the crisis and swung into action as soon as the storm passed.

THE Coast Guard rescued about 30,000 New Orleans residents stuck in attics, on rooftops, and clinging to trees as floodwaters rose; the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, another 20,000-plus. The Louisiana National Guard and the National Guard Bureau (its federal overseer) accounted for 17,000 more, as well as providing critical stockpiles of food, water and support for volunteers, local police and firefighters. Even FEMA rescuers played major roles. How many were saved from death is unknowable, but tens of thousands clearly faced death from drowning, dehydration, heat stroke and disease.

[Names Ash Housewares]

Didnt happen. Spike Lee will tell ya.

[CajunConservative]

Thanks for posting this. Those guys did a phenomenol job.

[Mr_Moonlight]

Lou Dolinar has been writing very informative and useful columns about computers and online computing in that left-wing rag, Newsday, for years. Nice to see that the NY Post has picked up on Dolinar for an opinion piece which Newsday wouldn't dare publish!

Welcome aboard, Lou

[wildwood]

how about the guy who "borrowed" another man's boat, saved loads of people, and was just served with a lawsuit from the owner, saying they were distressed from having lost use of their boat during that time. amazing.

now THAT is a story the press needs to pursue.

[Mr_Moonlight]

now THAT is a story the press needs to pursue.

Don't hold your breath waiting for it .........

[dirtboy]

how about the guy who "borrowed" another man's boat, saved loads of people, and was just served with a lawsuit from the owner, saying they were distressed from having lost use of their boat during that time.

Expect Governor Blanco to pay the money out of the money budgeted to remodel the governor's mansion.

And expect Bill Clinton to rebuff the advances of a female.

[Yorlik803]

The Nat Guard isnt like the real Military afterall...
SARC.....

[aculeus]

That's why they blew up the dikes! So they could look good on tv.


/you know what.

[mirkwood]

[UB355]

Trailer for an upcoming movie about the Coast Guard here

http://movies.yahoo.com/feature/theguardian.html

[I'm ALL Right!]

Blah. Kevin Costner. This movie looks like someone merged "The Perfect Storm" with "Top Gun."

[UB355]

Good description. I actually went to a theater last night to see Talladega Nights. It was mildly amusing.

http://www.sonypictures.com/movies/talladeganights/

They showed the Guardian Trailer. Those guys have balls. I know because I am a paid on call Firefighter. We had a drowning incident in connection with a flood in 1998. The water force is incredible.

[BilLies]

looked up the site and did a google; your picture looks as reliable as your BIO. Please post a link to the picture.
This site does need BS. If you post the site I will apologize.

[kitkat]

BUMP

[sono]

The fact that this article is in the NY Post and not the NY Times explains this phenomenon:

[RichInOC]

Well, as that great conservative (heh) Don Henley once sang, it's int'resting when people die.

[conservative in nyc]

They wouldn't be able to fly from New York to L.A., either.

According to the op ed, 6 people died at the Superdome complex during Katrina - 4 due to natural causes, 1 suicide and 1 drug overdose. But 7 babies were born there during that period.

I don't recall hearing about babies being born on the news. Death, destruction and mayhem sell. Normalcy doesn't.

[SuziQ]

I can't wait to see The Guardian!

[mirkwood]

"looked up the site and did a google; your picture looks as reliable as your BIO. Please post a link to the picture.
This site does need BS. If you post the site I will apologize."

Thou'rt by no means valiant;
For thou dost fear the soft and tender fork of a poor worm.

Taken from: Measure for Measure