Posted on 09/07/2005 4:25:31 AM PDT by Chi-townChief
Evacuees. Humanitarian crisis. Terrorism. Failure of leadership. We Americans have become citizens of the world. No longer can we stand aloof, conjuring pity and donations for the wretched souls of other lands who suffer the indignity of losing everything. This new millennium has shown us we are just as vulnerable to the ills of our modern world as any impoverished African nation.
Terrorism on our shores? Never, we thought.
We were insulated on two sides by friendly neighbors and on two other sides by huge expanses of water. Terrorism was something that happened in the neighborhoods of Jerusalem or the subways of London.
But that hole in the ground in Manhattan is ongoing proof that we are no longer insulated from anything.
Evacuees in America? Never, we thought.
Those poor misfortunates were to be found in the fetid, disease-infected backwaters of some war-torn Third World nation that we could not even find on a map.
Now we know they also can be found in the Superdome, a place we thought was only for fun and games.
Humanitarian crisis in America? Never, we thought.
That was what we called it once the evacuees of those war-torn Third World nations had overrun the neighbors willing to help. By the time the evacuees had become a humanitarian crisis, people already were dying from starvation and disease that easily could have been prevented with a few antibiotics and some clean drinking water.
Now we know that people without food, water and sanitation are just as likely to die in a waterlogged city in America awaiting help that never comes as they are in a waterlogged village in Thailand.
Humanitarian aid to America? Never, we thought.
That was something we offered, not something we asked for. Show us a humanitarian crisis on the five o'clock news and watch as Congress debates how much money to send and whether the country is worthy of our help. Now Sri Lanka is sending us $25,000 to help us dig out from our own disaster.
Failure of leadership? Not here, we thought, at least not when the stakes were this high.
That was what happened in other countries, where the leaders made themselves and their friends wealthy while the poor suffered, where the government was disorganized and unable or unwilling to respond. Now we have proof that it is happening here as well.
Before Katrina, we Americans had always come through for our own. There always was money and manpower and political will to mobilize help where it was needed most.
But the Bush administration has different priorities. He has spent our money and manpower and political will in Iraq fighting a war of his choosing.
Even at home, he has acted more like one of those Third World dictators who enriches himself and his friends while impoverishing his country. President Bush's tax cuts -- which went primarily to the wealthiest Americans, including Bush and his pals -- left little for the poor people who live in the inner cities of New Orleans and the rural areas of Mississippi. They were left to wallow in abject poverty, just one natural disaster away from destitution, starvation and helplessness.
Now that the troops have rolled into New Orleans and the levy repairs have begun, we have turned to another uniquely American pursuit -- ruminating on the causes of this national embarrassment. Was the response so slow because the victims were overwhelmingly black and poor? Was it because the people and money we needed were in Iraq rather than America? How will we ensure it never happens again?
It will take years to fully answer those questions.
But we Americans already have learned some cruel lessons this millennium. Some have made us angry, others have bolstered our resolve. Learning that we are no better at taking care of our own than some impoverished Third World country may be the most humbling of all.
mailto:cindyrichards153@hotmail.com
Sure it's a milestone for the left.
They get to trumpet out their phoney "concern" for the downtrodden poor, badmouth the current administration, and thin the rolls of their unproductive constituency.
It's a win-win-win situation for them.
Sick, huh? But I'm not surprised in the least.
It is a good thing most of America is made up of Americans and not Leftist trash.
While the Left is gloating, people are already talking about rebuilding.
My only two cents is that reconstruction take place in a manner that does not require government management and leadership, except in the traditional role of providing for the basic public infrastructure. Oh, and that the entire rebuilt city be built above sea level on ground that won't sink.
And unlike the third world, we will fix the problem ourselves.
This article linked below confirms that the Governor delayed getting through the red tape to have the National Guard and military on hand for the hours and days immediately after the hurricane.
I wonder how many children and women were raped in those shelters because the Governor didn't ensure adequate security?
http://www.washingtontimes.com/op-ed/20050906-093817-7790r.htm
We can survive Katrina. What we can't survive are those two not so friendly neighbors.
All victims please step this way. The bus back to the plantation departs in 10 minutes. Be on it, or under it.
CHICAGOLAND PING
Umm...wasn't it the Clinton Adminstration that took the "Terrorism? What terrorism? Not here!" mindset as embassies were being destroyed left-and-right, and even after the Cole was destroyed in her own port?
And I beg this columnist to find anyone who actually thought that natural disasters never happen in America.
It's difficult to read that Sun-Times hit piece for seveal reasons ~ the first is that it is so filled with Progressive propaganda, and the second is it does not use words correctly. For example, the writer is using "evacuees", as if people were something like the aftermath of a colonoscopic examination rather than the more correct "refugees".
She's right about a failure in leadership, but wrong about where she puts the blame.
The tests of terrorism and hurricanes are not unique to Americans. We, the people, will deal with it in spite of our own enemies at home.
I am amazed. It is like comparing peanut butter to jelly. 9-11 was a terrorist attack. Katrina was a natural occurence. In Maine we get black flies in the spring. It is nature. We get bit and we grumble. But we do not blame it on the current administration. I have 3 rules:
never piss into the wind
never piss on an electric fence
never try to piss in black fly season
Sorry for the urination fixation, but if you are male and in Maine you will understand.
I'd like to see the abolition of sales, property and income taxes in LA for the next 25 years, with a conservative core of people rebuilding the southern portion of the state. Do it right. Get the rats out of there.
I've read better-reasoned editorials in high school newspapers.
Lot of what she writes is TRUE
BUt not for the reason she probably believes
With corruption rampant--democratic party in charge of the state --crime ridden city etc etc . NOLA was a diaster waiting to happen
Of course she doesn't mention the cause --LIBERALISM and a left wing dominated MSM pushing it for all its worth that is ruining this country
And she is part of the problem
Patient is dying from welfarism and her solution is to expand it
This so-called writer has her head so far up her a$$ she'd need the Mt. Palomar telescope with searchlights attached to find it.
It will take more than this article for me to want to go back to bed and pull the covers over my head.
The author works very hard at being the damn fool that she is.
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