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"This is clearly something that was disturbing. It was disturbing to me when I learned about it, which came as a surprise. You know, the very day that this emerged in the press,I was on a video conference with all the officials, including state and local officials. And nobody, none of the state and local officials or anybody else was talking about a convention center," Mr. Chertoff told CNN.
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DHS and FEMA should not have to spend valuable time watching television for information when there is work to be done - especially when the top officials are in contact via video conference. Those "officials" should be the official source of information - not MSM.
James Lee Witt has been "advising" Blank-O. If I was a paranoid, tin-foil-hat-wearing nut I might be having "hanging chad" flashbacks about now.
Politicians are always a questionable source of information.
DHS and FEMA need to use an intelligence gathering model for building a profile of the reality on the ground. They need to use media reports, technical means (i.e. satellite and aerial photos) and first hand reports from the ground as well as reports from politicians.
Politicians are a notoriously unreliable source of information. They will always shape the information to suit their interests.
Would you trust Nagin or Blanco to give an accurate report? I sure wouldn't.
"DHS and FEMA should not have to spend valuable time watching television for information when there is work to be done"
This is what is killing me about the liberals. They keep saying how could they not know WE were seeing it on TV! IDIOTS, they were not watching TV! Anyway half the crap being shown was old rerun sensationlized footage of people that had already gotten help even thought the same clip was being shown over and over like they were still in danger.
I remember seeing some interviews from the people at the convention center. They kept saying we haven't had anything to eat or drink for 3 or 4 days. THEN, they interview others that say they are having to loot the stores around them for survival. So, while I'd not have liked to be stuck in that hell hole, EVERYONE there was not starving and dying of thirst. A lot of them had been resourceful and got food and water. There were people dying in the water, in attics and rooftops who really had NO food or water, though.
Of course.
The media gets their information from either government sources or from observation of the scene.
Information gleaned from observing the scene is incomplete and subject to misinterpretation (for example, the shooting incident yesterday). If they observe something, they should check with their government sources to verify it.
That is why it would not be responsible for Chertoff to let CNN be his sitrep consultant.
"DHS and FEMA should not have to spend valuable time watching television for information when there is work to be done - especially when the top officials are in contact via video conference. Those "officials" should be the official source of information - not MSM."
You're wrong. Yeah, the officials should give FEMA the info, but like the Russians say, "Between 'Should Be' and 'Is' many pairs of shoes are worn out."
As an emergency coordinator, a reporter with a sattelite truck (or even a camera phone) is one of your best assets. Exploit that asset to it's fullest- don't ignore it. And no, the directors of FEMA and DHS don't need to watch TV- they have staff for that!