I respect life, liberty and property as much as you do.
What has happened in New Orleans is Armageddon to the majority of people. What happened is not a looting in retaliation for an asassination (sp?)or a police brutality.
It is for survival. Until you walk in their shoes, don't judge them. That's all I'm saying.
Shooting at sitting duck policemen on rooftops who were trying to find frightened people CAUGHT in their homes, and GOT nailed themselves when the waters rose...IS NO SURVIVAL... it is TERRORISM.
And screaming out at elderly people in nursing homes, telling them to get the hell out, stealing their food and ransacking their possessions IS NOT SURVIVAL...it is TERRORISM.
And TYING to BREAK into a children's HOSPITAL to STEAL DRUGS is not SURVIVAL...it is TERRORISM.
And shooting at UNARMED PEOPLE is not survival...it is TERRORISM.
And for President Bush to say let the looting go forward and don't try to stop it, per the suggestion you make in the post before the one I am responding to, IS NUTS!
It figures you wanted Elian sent back to communism after his mother lost her life trying to provide him with a life away from Castro and all the hell that provides.
I don't believe you support President Bush, one iota. My guess, you think you are a patriot and take on that name, but function as a liberal.
Do you protest with the DC Chapter against the Code Pinko's?
BTW: I'm sure your socialist girlfriend is a lovely person, for a pinko. ;-)
Being poor is not an excuse.I'm sure there were many other less fortunate who left when they should have,and others who stayed,and did not do these horrible acts.These people are just plain wrong.But nevertheless our government will give them anything they want and demand.
It's not that clear cut. There are desperate people who need food, water and medicine for them and their families to survive. There also oppoprtunists who are taking advantage of the chaos for their own gain and psychopaths who relish the opportunity to shoot someone and almost certainly get away with it.
The problem is that all those people are mingled together in the same crowd. The sad truth is that the criminal gangs are probably the only organizations left in the city that can coordinate activities without radios or cell phones, and their time isn't occupied with saving lives. Any church or civic group sufficiantly organized to feed its poorest members was sufficiently organized to evacuate them last weekend.
So the local thugs, who have the weapons and experience breaking in to buildings, start doing so with a bunch of legitimately desperate people right behind. They're not difficult to tell apart -- look at what they're carrying. If they're carring bread, produce and bottled water, they're probably just trying to get by. If they're carring plasma TVs and jewelry, this probably isn't the first time they've stolen.
I'm not terribly interested in blaming anyone in government for a lack of planning, This was an unprecedented event on many levels. I don't recall any disaster in the U.S. where thousands of people were expected to be trapped for days without the likelihood of being able to get even bottled water.
But we should be thinking ahead to the next natural disaster, or God forbid, a WMD attack. Emergency planners should have a list of every distribution point for necessities -- groceries, distribution warehouses, etc. Send cops to secure, them, and have a rationing plan in place. Sick and elderly first,then children, then able-bodied adults. Anyone trying to jump in line or steal non-essential items will be warned, then shot if they don't stop.
Individual cops on the beat, sheriff's deputies, corrections officers, neighborhod watch captains, etc. should have a post assigned ahead of time in case communications are cut off. Obviously, saving lives takes precedence, but for a cop without a helicopter or a boat, the most effective way to save lives in NOLA right now is to help get food and water to those on the brink.
Got your back, man.