Posted on 09/01/2005 3:01:00 AM PDT by Cincinatus' Wife
Living in the most materially advanced civilization in history, we Americans forget how fragile civilization is and the tragic nature of the human condition. This week, nature reminded us.
.....Civilization has been compared to skin stretched over a skull that is, the thin veneer under which the ever-present savage dwells. We have seen the truth of that observation borne out in horrifying tales of looters, some of them armed and some of them police officers running rampant in flooded New Orleans.
To paraphrase Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, the line between civilization and barbarism runs through every human heart. And even as the mob raged on the streets outside, heroic doctors and nurses worked and are still working in the heat and darkness of New Orleans hospitals to save patients. Hunters and fishermen organized a bateau and bass-boat flotilla and sailed into the flooded areas to rescue survivors. Despite the harrowing circumstances, these good men and women have not forgotten who they are.
And what about the rest of us? Who are we? What is our duty to our neighbor? Texas Gov. Rick Perry admirably declared this state's willingness to do what it can for refugees, saying, "We're all in this together." There is nothing as true and as necessary to say at this point.
In recent years, sociologist Robert Putnam has noted with alarm the fraying of the social fabric as our wealth made us more individually self-sufficient. Now, the hurricane has jerked us back to elemental reality, and this catastrophe will test the American character as nothing else not even 9-11 has in modern U.S. history.
Civilization is not buildings, highways and cities, but what we carry in our heads and hearts. And, in the end, all we have is each other.
(Excerpt) Read more at dallasnews.com ...
Government not only can't help, but it has no intention of even trying. The failure of the so-called "authorities" to shoot looters walking off with electronics, jewelry, guns, etc. is actually the cause of a problem which is now so vast that nothing can be done. If it had been done right at the start, only a couple would have had to be shot to put a stop to it.
While none of the looters will ever be prosecuted, it's my bet that, if some honest citizen uses his personal firearm to defend himself against these animals, he'll be locked up.
This ought to be a huge signal flare to anyone who maintains the illusion that they are "safe" in a "civilized" society.
"The disruptors and scum get all the coverage"
Pray especially for the LA, MS & AL troops serving in Afghanistan & Iraq, that they feel God's peace....they worry for their loved ones, their homes and their towns. I've seen the Navy put up a contact site....but every one else is so busy with life saving efforts.
You are so right.
The hurricane and people's decision to remain, cost lives.
Where do you come off saying Bush hasn't made good decisions?
What time line do you live on?
Do you think things just fall out of the sky?
That's so over the top.
There will be order but it sounds like you're itching for a battle in the streets.
Yes, let's not lay the blame where it belongs. On the people who refused to leave when told to and on the looters are making the Search and Rescue efforts inefficient.
Talk about trying to make "political hay" out of a disaster. You're the definition of that.
The last thing on God's green earth I'd ever want is battling in the streets, which is why it angers me so much that various officils have failed to perform their duties. When they refuse to do what's necessary to preserve order, THAT'S what causes battle in the streets - not the honest citizen who will protect and defend himself and his family by himself, if necessary.
Then I apologize.
I don't know if the police in New Orleans have cleaned up their act but if not, it isn't in any position to demand law and order.
At some point the state and local government needs to catch the heat for this NOT George W. Bush. But that would mean pointing fingers at Democrats and LORD! the msm isn't going to do that.
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