Posted on 09/16/2005 2:34:16 PM PDT by zot
I understand you hold that point dear. I disagree with it.
-- From statements made by Governor Blanco, I believe the REAL reason was to force people to evacuate and not come back. She made that very clear.
---- I understand you hold that point dear. I disagree with it.
------ Then you also disagree with the statements by the CEO and the President of the American Red Cross.
EVANS: Well, Larry, we were asked, directed by the National Guard and the city and the state emergency management not to go into New Orleans because it was not safe."EVANS" is Marty Evans, the President and CEO of the American Red Cross. She said one of the reasons given was safety. That also comports with other reports, e.g., resuce boats held back due to being shot at, and suspension of evacuation of Superdome due to being shot at.http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0509/02/lkl.01.html
O'REILLY: OK. But I think a lot of it has to do with your security of your people. Um, in the first days after the hurricane, there was no security in the town.EVANS: That's right.
O'REILLY: And if you had gone in, you know, the thugs with the AK-47s could have done damage, as they did to med-evac workers, to hospital workers, to doctors. We went all through that. Now it's under control.
EVANS: Right.
Of course I am not saying that the Red Cross didn't give as a reason that the locals didn't want to create a magnet at the Superdome, but c'mon - does that make sense? Why not provide food and water to folks while they wait for the bus? In fact, all the better to draw them to the ad hoc bus station.
True, zot. They have. The internet helps more people go around the MSM to essentially do their own reporting. Recently, we "pajamadeen" have been able to push back on the MSM and get the truth out more widely on stories like the Dan Rather forged papers. But the MSM still has enormous power and the tools to, as you say, make their version of events stick.
Very, very frustrating.
You're right, it doesn't make sense -- to you and me -- but it does in light of the order that the city would be evacuated and the presence of the Red Cross would keep people from evacuating and encourage others to come into the city.
Here is the Red Cross statement:
http://www.redcross.org/faq/0,1096,0_682_4524,00.html
Hurricane Katrina: Why is the Red Cross not in New Orleans?
* Acess to New Orleans is controlled by the National Guard and local authorities and while we are in constant contact with them, we simply cannot enter New Orleans against their orders.
* The state Homeland Security Department had requested--and continues to request--that the American Red Cross not come back into New Orleans following the hurricane. Our presence would keep people from evacuating and encourage others to come into the city.
* The Red Cross has been meeting the needs of thousands of New Orleans residents in some 90 shelters throughout the state of Louisiana and elsewhere since before landfall. All told, the Red Cross is today operating 149 shelters for almost 93,000 residents.
* The Red Cross shares the nation’s anguish over the worsening situation inside the city. We will continue to work under the direction of the military, state and local authorities and to focus all our efforts on our lifesaving mission of feeding and sheltering.
* The Red Cross does not conduct search and rescue operations. We are an organization of civilian volunteers and cannot get relief aid into any location until the local authorities say it is safe and provide us with security and access.
* The original plan was to evacuate all the residents of New Orleans to safe places outside the city. With the hurricane bearing down, the city government decided to open a shelter of last resort in the Superdome downtown. We applaud this decision and believe it saved a significant number of lives.
* As the remaining people are evacuated from New Orleans, the most appropriate role for the Red Cross is to provide a safe place for people to stay and to see that their emergency needs are met. We are fully staffed and equipped to handle these individuals once they are evacuated.
Your headline says she blocked them....but where in your timeline does it say that?
The Louisiana Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness, and the Louisiana State Highway Patrol, take their orders from Governor Blanco.
Monday 29 August
-- Red Cross [agent of FEMA] is ready to take food and water into New Orleans. Not allowed by the Director of the Louisiana Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness, because of concerns over logistical difficulties.
The Red Cross is one of the key non-governmental organizations dispatched by FEMA. By not allowing them to take food and water into New Orleans (they were never were allowed to do that), she blocked FEMA.
Tuesday 30 August
10:30 am -- Governor Blanco declares martial law throughout the State of Louisiana, tells state highway patrol to block all entrances into the state.
11:43 am -- Martial law is being enforced. Governor Blanco has instructed the highway patrol to block off all entrances into the state. (WDSU)
By ordering the State Highway Patrol to close the borders, she blocked FEMA-dispatched convoys of relief supplies that were trying to come into the state.
Thank you. Wasn't there also a form Blanco was supposed to sign to allow fema to take over or come in?
She was supposed to ask FEMA to come in, and then cooperate with them, but (by law) FEMA can't take over and can't disregard the state and local authorities.
FEMA resources aren't first responders and FEMA doesn't have any authority to establish law and order.
What FEMA does is organize the pre-positioning of relief supplies in anticipation of requests, and then organize and dispatch support in response to requests, but they aren't omniscient -- if they don't get specific requests from state and local officials, they don't know where to send what.
In any case, FEMA writes a lot of federal checks to pay for relief and recovery efforts. For example, they were paying about $1000 per day, plus the cost of the cargo, for each truck that was blocked by Governor Blanco's order to close the Louisiana borders.
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