Posted on 09/21/2005 4:58:56 AM PDT by Chairman_December_19th_Society
We will not tire, we will not falter, and we will not fail!
Good morning!!
Do not let the victims of the attacks on New York and Washington, nor the brave members of our Nation's military who have given their lives to protect our freedom, die in vain!!
NEXT SERVICES 250 MILES
The sign above is actually located on the Dalton Highway (AK Route 11), just north of Coldfoot, AK. From that point northward, there's nothing in the way of creature comforts until you reach Prudhoe Bay--no rest rooms, no water, no restaurants, no fuel, no nothing.
It might as well have been posted along the Gulf coast after August 28, 2005. From Baton Rouge to east of Mobile, roughly 250 miles, and from New Orleans to Jackson, MS, roughly 200 miles, nothing much was available.
Indeed, the destruction wrought by KATRINA has already (!) become the most expensive natural disaster in American history--and the counting has not really started. Already the Congress has appropriated almost $70 billion in relief, and insurance companies estimate payouts in similar ranges. This does not account for infrastructure repairs, such as highways, railroads, electric and phone lines, and so on. So, excluding the infrastructure, we already have a bill of $150 billion. The totality of hurricane ANDREW, the previous benchmark for natural disasters in this country, was just shy of $100 billion. When the counting is done, KATRINA will likely top the quarter-trillion dollar figure.
The mind reels. Two hundred and fifty thousand million dollars. To put it in some kind of perspective, 100 dollar bills is roughly one inch high. Two hundred and fifty billion dollar bills would form a stack 39,457 miles high. In other words, the quantity of dollar bills to fix KATRINA's wrath would stretch about one-sixth of the way from Earth to the Moon.
As mentioned earlier, the triangle of destruction left by KATRINA also boggles the mind. Areas in the tens of thousands of square miles were worked over, and in many instances either obliterated beyond recognition, or flooded in ways that prevented easy access.
Yet, the view among many is that, somehow, the Federal Government is immune to the fundamental acts of nature; the central Government can, somehow, instantly appear on the scene and provide the relief and comfort to those that have been left wanting because of the storm. For a moment, let's set aside the fact that Government assistance in this way is a rather liberal notion, that was discussed in the last installment of this series, which may be found on thread number 1703. The question worth pondering is how fast is it reasonable to expect aid to reach the region?
In the first installment of this series, the legislative constraints working upon the Federal Government were explored, and the Stafford Act limitations of aid were discussed. The second installment looked at the differences in responses when you contrast the Republican and Democrat governors. This installment, the final in the series, will explore the damage to the infrastructure of the region and how aid could not have arrived any faster than it did.
Note earlier where it was mentioned that damage occurred in a region over tens of thousands of square miles. In fact, an area roughly the size of England was laid waste by KATRINA's winds and floods. People who live along the Gulf coast are routinely advised to prepare for hurricane season by laying in non-perishable stocks that would last them five days. The theory here is that by the end of that time, you would either have services restored or, at least, be able to travel to places that have had service restored and get essentials to restock.
It's been three weeks, and, guess what, you STILL in many instances cannot even drive to places where you can get food, get gasoline, or other essentials.
Well, that sort of blows the theory of personal disaster planning, as recommended to the local inhabitants of the South, to smithereens.
So, what to do? Clearly, this is an area where even the most die-hard conservative would agree there is a role for the central Government to get things going again, to begin the process of rebuilding and moving in basic supplies.
These basic supplies didn't just have to be rolled in to a few major cities--ANDREW, for example, required supplies in Miami and the Florida Keys, that's it. No, KATRINA required even fundamental items such as water to be moved into remote homes in wooded areas (remember, no electricty, no pumps for the wells). Supplies were pre-positioned outside of the areas likely to be hit by the storm and could be moved to these places. But, first, you had to get to these places.
National Guard units, the people providing the relief, literally found themselves cutting their way to the coast. Interstate highways, particularly in southern Mississippi, are not somehow immune to this--trees were down over Highway 59. Then there was the flooding and coastal damage. United States route 90 is literrally running along the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico in a number of places; the "Twin Span" that was Highway 10 was similarly dropped ungraciously into the waters of Lake Pontchatrain.
Progress of major relief was, therefore, agonizingly slow. Sure, you could fly planes into Moisant Field (the Louis Armstrong International Airport) in New Orleans, but where could you go from there? The Interstate was flooded once you reached Metarie. This meant, for the Crescent City, material had to be trucked down from Baton Rouge--which, if you cannot use Highway 10, takes about four hours in a passenger car. Military conveys are much slower.
But they don't just bring supplies for the affected people, in this instance supplies had to be brought for the troops themselves. Remember, no services for 250 miles. They had to bring their own fuel, their own porta potties, and their own food, let alone the rations for the general population.
But aren't there plans for these sorts of things? Well, sorta, kinda. Sure, there were the Hurricane Pam exercises that worked the issue of a major hurricane inundating New Orleans--not altogether unlike KATRINA--but that was a plan that had never had to meet the harsh aspects of reality. KATRINA, as pointed out earlier, is the biggest natural disaster to hit the United States since, well, ever. So much of what has been going on has been improvised, devised at the moment because there is no historical model upon which to draw.
Yet, in spite of this lack of historical input to the equation, relief supplies were, although slow, beginning to trickle into affected areas. Materiel was starting to arrive along the coast of Mississippi within two days following the storm, and, despite the hand-wringing going on in Baton Rouge, within three in New Orleans. Subtract from that the time it took to EVEN REACH those areas--a day's drive in Louisiana (the supplies were coming from Shreveport, in the northwest part of the state), and probably a day and a half in Mississippi (something not talked about much in the media), and "stuff" was starting to get to those who needed it rather quickly.
Now to quickly touch on the obvious question--couldn't supplies have been pre-positioned closer? Sure. Then they would have been destroyed by KATRINA and replacement items would have to be trucked in from much further away. As it is, the scale of the relief effort is resulting in that long-distance trucking, but at least it was AFTER regional pre-positioned materiel had been dispersed.
So between the requirement to engineer novel solutions for a disaster at a magnitude never faced in American history, and the need to literally cut or float your way to the devastated coastline, the response was actually pretty darn quick.
Was it good? No, and pretty much everyone admits that. It is important to strive to make improvements in these sorts of things, and the President has committed to such. But is it the right question to ask whether it was "good" or whether, considering the circumstances, was it "the best it could be". Well, there's enough evidence now to show the Federal response probably wasn't the "best," but there's also an overwhelming amount that shows it was "pretty darn good."
So it's time to stop bellyachinig about the paucity of the Federal response and time to set about fixing the Gulf Coast.
For AMERICA - The Right Way, I remain yours in the Cause, the Chairman.
Hi Molly,
I haven't been to Corpus in years --- and I barely recall Galveston from the oil related trips with my dad. I know Galveston used to be below sea level but that after the huge hurricane 100 years ago, it was rebuilt above sea level and now you tell me it's a flat area. OMG! I fear for the destruction, the huge hit on our economy, but most of all, for the people. I am so stunned by the size of this one, that I feel numb.
I hope our kassie evacuates.
Kassie - I see you're north of Freeport, which I'm going to look up on the atlas, and that you're staying. Make sure you cell is charged, you fill the tub with water, have a can opener and flashlight, and a battery operated radio. I'll keep you in my prayers, FRiend.
Yes, after the 1900 storm, everything was rebuilt higher on Galveston - where I was born.
My great great aunt and her family managed to survive that storm. They happened to live on the very-slight rise of land on the Gulf side of the Strand.
First NO - where my great - g aunt was born - my NO family, and now Galveston.!!
You really have family roots in Galveston. I remember being impressed with Galveston... maybe it had to do with buildings on stilts? I swear, when I am finally settled in this house, I am going to go thru all 12 large boxes of family photos I brought with us. I know there's several photos of Houston, Galveston, Corpus and San Antonio in the 50's.
Do you still have any family in either NO or Galveston/Houston?
The reviews were all raves for this $24.99 little radio. Even if the power does not go off, I can use it outside on the deck or carry it w/me wherever I want.
Now, I'm also considering that Black and Decker Storm Station. lol
Checking in. I have a few more tasks to complete requiring daylight hours. I'll be back when I'm done.
NO is another story.
2 of my cousins fled NO & Katrina and headed to Houston, then a farm w. of the city!! Don't know what they're going to do now!!
They probably feel like they have a bullseye on their backs....
I back ordered that Black&Deker storm station thang.
My God, Rita has dropped to 904! Kat got to 902 but not when it hit.
Rita is STILL GROWING.
Oh my goodness. Your poor cousins. I think all we can do is pray and offer our help.
Where is kassie now? I have sent her my telephone numbers and asked her to call if she needs anything at all. Anything.
I am terribly worried. Terribly.
This beauty starts within seconds of power going off...I want one.
That was good of you to send her your phone #.
Storm surges expected all way to ClearLake and Pasedena...those are s.e. side of Houston & on the Mainland about 30 miles inland!...Just heard that on Hewitt's show...
Now maybe that's panicky, but maybe not....
I don;t think that's panicky,. Molly, I know how media folks like to overhype stuff, but I doubt it's possible at this point to "misunderestimate" Rita. Thirty miles inland would not surprise me, now that you have told me the area is literally flat.
I am even worried about Toby again. We have a high pressure system over MS that might start dissapating Friday and if it does?
Is a little joke appropriate? I hope so. I loved this one I got in e-mail today from a special friend.
Subject: Diet
A dietitian was once addressing a large audience in Chicago:
"The material we put into our stomachs is enough to have killed most of us sitting here, years ago.
Red meat is awful. Soft drinks erode your stomach lining. Chinese food is loaded with MSG. Vegetables can be disastrous, and none of us realize the long-term harm caused by the germs in our drinking water.
But there is one thing that is the most dangerous of all -- and we all have, or will at some point, eat it. Can anyone here tell me what food it is that causes the most grief and suffering for years after eating it?"
A 75-year-old man in the front row stood up and said, "Wedding cake."
Night onyx, everyone....
I just got an email telling me that the radio has already been shipped. I thought if I liked it that additional ones would make nice Christmas gifts for some on my list.
Looking through the L.L. Bean catalogue that came the other day, I saw a novel 2-part ball that if you put ice in the bottom part and shake and shake the ice cream recipe in the top half, you'd soon have ice cream! I've got a 10 yo grandson that would like that, I think, since he LOVES ice cream.
I am seriously thinking about ordering that Black&Decker Storm Station. Living alone in a rural area, I think I could really use one.
"Vegetarian" is an old Indian word meaning "I don't hunt so good."
There is a historical significance to party boats, going back to um, Cleopatra and um, Moses, and um...the crew of the Exxon-Valdez.
Oh, they're weighin' the fish at the fish weigh-in, down at Mercury Creek
The prize is a boat and a bucket of bugs for the biggest fish of the week
I caught me a nice little sunfish, it's gonna make me a winner
Not from the size of the fish itself, but the ball bearings I fed it for dinner!
They say necessity is the mother of invention. Don't know who the father is, probably remorse.
If life gives you lemons, throw 'em into a quart of vodka!
Red Green: You can't be forgetting your wedding anniversary, Dalton.
Dalton Humphries: Yeah, it's kind of ironic when the second dumbest think you ever did was to forget the dumbest thing you ever did.
OK, that's enough... ;)
Go to Fox News, there's a Jet Blue airliner with buggered landing gear about to try a soft landing, may things go well!
The story of my life for the past 6 months. Mind you 5 years prior...I didn't touch a drop.
Yikes..Jet Blue...changing channels.
Nite Molly dear.
Missing you and yet....I understand...so happy...you are happy.
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