Posted on 09/08/2005 8:46:29 AM PDT by InvisibleChurch
Thursday, Sept. 8, 2005 11:38 a.m. EDT Ray Nagin: School Buses Not Good Enough
New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin garnered a ton of publicity with a profanity-laced interview he gave to WWL radio last Thursday, where he blasted President Bush and Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Blanco for not coming to rescue his city in time.
However, Nagin's most newsworthy comments - where he explained why he didn't used hundreds of city school buses to evacuate his city's flood victims - went almost unnoticed.
Turns out, Nagin turned his nose up at the yellow buses, demanding more comfortable Greyhound coaches instead. "I need 500 buses, man," he told WWL. "One of the briefings we had they were talking about getting, you know, public school bus drivers to come down here and bus people out of here."
Nagin described his response:
"I'm like - you've got to be kidding me. This is a natural disaster. Get every doggone Greyhound bus line in the country and get their asses moving to New Orleans."
While Nagin was waiting for his Greyhound fleet, Katrina's floodwaters swamped his school buses, rendering them unusable.
Ray Nagin fails to comprehend that when you're in a hole the first thing to do is to quit digging.
When we were forced to land at Coldfoot instead of proceeding north to our construction camp, we were taken by schoolbus the rest of the way. It was 85 below zero, and the driver, who seemed real pleased to be assigned that job, never got the bus out of second gear the whole way. Think school buses have a somewhat hard ride? It can be even stiffer under the right conditions. There was heat inside the bus, BTW, it never got below -60 in there.
Regarding the comment pasted below. I am pretty sure that as soon as a mandatory evacuation order is issued that many, if not most, of the normal liability statutes are set aside.
Who would want to drive an un airconditioned school bus, full of evacuees, when you have your own family to take care of? Certainly not the regular school bus drivers, what other city employees would do it? Is it even legal to just hand over the keys to city property to anyone that says they can drive a bus? Who is liable in case of an accident?
The Superdome and conventionc enter was much better than a school bus ride
NOT
They obviously have never been there before Katrina.
You are correct. The keys should have been left in the buses, and the gate, unlocked.
No sir, I would not. My mouth is supposed to be redeemed from such talk. A public servant is supposed to behave like one. No public figure should be using such language-it speaks of ignorance.
I was thinking swimming.
Now that's my kind of evacuation. Except the caviar, I'm not into that.
But with a Cat 5 bearing down, and me living 10 feet below sea level, I'd ride in the back of a dump truck to get out of there.
for later.
Was that a metaphor for New Orleans, as a whole?
Very well done ;)
I understand that Hillary is trying to ensure that the focus of the upcoming Katrina investigation remains on just the errors made by the US government. Don't want to look at the local or state failures, oh no!
a. Lots of towns/cities have school buses as part of their disaster plan....because IT'S A DISASTER means you use everything that moves!
b. Speaking of funny...I know of a homeless woman that on discharge from the hospital demanded a bus ticket to a hot vacation spot 3 states over. When asked why (like if she had family there-- then they would have sent her there) she stated "I've just always wanted to visit there". I kid you not.
It was a lame attempt at CYA, but the fawning media didn't call him on it.
>>
Under the same conditions, 99% of Freepers would swear in much the same way. Get a clue.<<
I doubt very much that 99%5 of Freepers would get in front of a mic and spout off such ignorant, profanity-laced tirades. The mayor is an incompetent buffoon, and he is the one who is "clueless" of how to act in public.
(Denny Crane: "Sometimes you can only look for answers from God and failing that... and Fox News".)
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