Posted on 10/02/2005 10:05:23 AM PDT by ATOMIC_PUNK
Most of the media blames President Bush and Michael Brown for the delay in getting the necessary food and water supplies to the victims of the Katrina Hurricane disaster. But before we pass judgment on anyone (the President, the Mayor or the Governor), we must be reminded that the job of the media is not just to inform the public, but to make their news presentations so exciting and so entertaining that advertisers will stand in line to advertise, which means substantial profits for their news organizations. News is a profit making business.
Over the years, the media has not only intentionally kept information from the general public; they have meticulously decided what information the public should or should not know. It is subtle form of mind manipulation and mind control.
But what really happened? And who dropped the ball? To fully understand what transpired, we must look at a variety of news sources as well as sources beyond the media. As a fact-finding investigator, this is what my investigation has uncovered regarding the local (the mayor), the State (the governor) and the federal (Michael Brown and President Bush). I will start with the Mayor (the local government) and their responsibility. Please take your time to read this entire report, you will find it very interesting.
The Mayor of New Orleans¡¯ Responsibility
The following information is taken directly from the City of New Orleans Comprehensive Emergency Management Plan (cut and pasted with no editing).
v The coordination of city and state resources and operations is present throughout all planning, implementation, and resolution of declared disasters. This includes the City of New Orleans Office of Emergency Preparedness (NO OEP), New Orleans Health Department (NOHD), the State of Louisiana Office of Emergency Preparedness (La OEP), The LSU Health Science Center (LSU HSC){Medical Center of LA}), the State of Louisiana Department of Social Services (La DSS), and the Louisiana National Guard (LANG). [No mention of federal agencies]
v Regarding providing shelters for those with special needs, this is what the New Orleans¡¯ Emergency Plans says.
v The Special Needs Shelter (SNS) will only be activated by the Mayor of New Orleans or his designee. Entrance into the SNS does not relieve any individual of the responsibility for their own care. Admission into the Shelter is NOT TO BE INTERPRETED AS A GUARANTEE OF SAFETY, and the City of New Orleans is not assuring anyone protection from harm within the facilities that are being offered or opened for this purpose. It is critical that everyone understands that this shelter will not be able to substitute for the comforts of the individuals¡¯ homes, and that all equipment and special furniture, which are normally used, may not be able to accompany them. It is recommended that all persons with special medical needs and/or their responsible family members develop a viable plan for transportation out of the community to a community that will be able to give long term assistance. The potential exists that New Orleans could be without sufficient supplies to meet the needs of persons with special considerations, and there is significant risk being taken by those individuals who decide to remain in these refuges of last resort.
Please note the plan is not assuring anyone ¡°protection,¡± it tells them the shelters they provide ¡°will not be a substitute for the comforts of their own home¡± and that there is ¡°a risk being taken by those individuals who decide to remain in these refuges as last resort.¡±
Look what their plans says about evacuation of those with special needs.
v III. SHELTER POPULATION The population for the shelters established in the New Orleans area will be considered those individuals without the resources to evacuate. The coordination of transportation and needs for transportation will be coordinated through the SNS Director and NOHD [New Orleans Health Department] EMS Administrator and/or their designee. The organization of the shelter, its staff and direction of all activities in the unit will be the joint responsibility of the Office of Emergency Preparedness (NO OEP), the New Orleans Health Department (NOHD) and the State of Louisiana Department of Social Services (LA DSS)
There seems to be no evidence that the city of New Orleans provided shelters or transportation other than the Superdome at the last minute. The following is what the shelters were supposed to contain.
v D.Auxiliary Officer
The Auxiliary Officer will be responsible for all needs of a non-medical or non-direct patient care nature. This individual will report to the SD, or designee. The responsibilities shall include, but will not be limited to: oversight of security personnel, sanitation needs, food and water acquisition and preparation. {Shelters will contain the following] generator power capability, multiple restroom facilities both male and female, a refrigerator that is under the control of generator power, tables that can be used for beds or a minimum of 200 cots for staff and residents of the area. Port-o-lets must be on site in event of rest room failures or disruption. Food will be provided to shelter staff and resident as available by Volume Services of America in the Superdome.
There is no evidence that any of these types of shelters existed and or were used by the city of New Orleans, if such shelters did exist. We have just reviewed the Mayor¡¯s Emergency Plan for those residents with special needs, but what were his plans for the rest of the population? Again, the following is taken directly from the City of New Orleans Comprehensive Emergency Management Plans.
v Authority to issue evacuations of elements of the population is vested in the Mayor. By Executive Order, the chief elected official, the Mayor of the City of New Orleans, has the authority to order the evacuation of residents threatened by an approaching hurricane. [Note: this authority is not given to any Federal agency.]
v The safe evacuation of threatened populations when endangered by a major catastrophic event is one of the principle reasons for developing a Comprehensive Emergency Management Plan. The thorough identification of at-risk populations, transportation and sheltering resources, evacuation routes and potential bottlenecks and choke points, and the establishment of the management team that will coordinate not only the evacuation but which will monitor and direct the sheltering and return of affected populations.
v The SOP is developed to provide for an orderly and coordinated evacuation intended to minimize the hazardous effects of flooding, wind, and rain on the residents and visitors in New Orleans. The SOP provides for the evacuation of the public from danger areas and the designations of shelters for evacuees.
v The Hurricane Emergency Evacuation Standard Operating Procedure is designed to deal with all case scenarios of an evacuation in response to the approach of a major hurricane towards New Orleans. It is designed to deal with the anticipation of a direct hit from a major hurricane. This includes identifying the city¡¯s present population, its projected population, identification of at-risk populations (those living outside levee protection or in storm-surge areas, floodplains, mobile homes, etc.),
Again, none of these plans identified any Federal agencies as a participant. The sole responsibility rested with the Mayor of New Orleans and the State of Louisiana. What about transportation? Whose responsibility is this? Was transportation and food and shelter a federal responsibility?
v Conduct of an actual evacuation will be the responsibility of the Mayor of New Orleans in coordination with the Director of the Office of Emergency Preparedness, and the OEP Shelter Coordinator. The evacuation requirements includes identifying the transportation network, especially the carrying-capacity of proposed evacuation routes and existing or potential traffic bottlenecks or blockages, caused either by traffic congestion or natural occurrences such as rising waters. Identification of sheltering resources and the establishment of shelters and the training of shelter staff is important, as is the provision for food and other necessities to the sheltered.
What about feeding the people, is this the federal responsibility?
v The City of New Orleans will utilize all available resources to quickly and safely evacuate threatened areas. Those evacuated will be directed to temporary sheltering and feeding facilities as needed.
Did the mayor anticipate that this will be a terrible storm with catastrophic proportions? This is what the Seattle Times quoted the mayor as saying on August 27th:
v ¡°The mayor said that in a worse case scenario, a gigantic storm surge would sweep past the levees and flood the city with 18 feet of water. It would take weeks to pump all the water out. Nagin said he spoke to a forecaster at the hurricane center that this is the storm New Orleans has feared these many years. Nagin was exploring the idea of ordering a mandatory evacuation. Making matters worse, at least 100,000 people in the city lack transportation to get away. Nagain said the Superdome could be used as a shelter of last resort for people who have no cars, with city bus pick up points around New Orleans. [resident quoted in the article]. I know they¡¯re saying, ¡°Get out of town, but I don¡¯t have any way to get out, said Hattie Johns 74.¡±
The New York Times reported that Mayor Nagin said:
v Hurricane Katrina could bring 15 inches of rain and a storm surge of 20 feet or higher that would most likely topple the network of levees and canals that normally protect the bowl shaped city from flooding.
In another Seattle Times article May Nagin was quoted as saying:
v We re facing a storm that most of us have feared¡ God bless us.
What were the experts telling Mayor Nagin? In an article by the Associated Press (before the storm), they stated the following:
v Joseph Bentley headed to the Superdome yesterday morning, like most of the city¡¯s low income residents who had nowhere else to go. New Orleans is one of the nation¡¯s poorest cities.
v Ivor Van Heerden, deputy director of Louisiana State University Hurricane Center said, ¡°All indications are that this is absolutely the worst case scenario. We¡¯re talking about in essence having in the continental United States a refugee camp of a million people. After the storm passes, the water will have no where to go. Emergency management officials are going to be wondering how to handle a giant stagnant pond contaminated with building debris, coffins, sewage and other hazardous materials. We¡¯re talking about an incredible environmental disaster.
Regarding the city¡¯s ability to handle the floods, this is what Stevan Spencer, the New Orleans¡¯ Levee District Chief Engineer said;
v Some of the city pumps sit in houses that date back to the 1890¡¯s. It really makes you wonder what the French were doing when they built this place.
Regarding whether or not the homes could withstand a storm of this magnitude, city officials including Lou Robinson, captain of New Orleans¡¯ Fire Department told the reporters:
v ¡°There are a lot of older homes, most of these homes are below sea level, and most of these homes are termite ridden.¡± New Orleans¡¯ housing stock is virtually all wood-framed, and often aged and dilapidated. Many structures have been weakened by a relentless exotic termite infestation. [see appendix for more articles from other new organizations]
Knowing all of these factors well in advance and being very familiar with their own Comprehensive Emergency Plans that calls for evacuation and emergency shelters, why didn¡¯t the Mayor of New Orleans launch a massive evacuation program that included the use of all of all available transportation, including the city¡¯s metro and school buses to move people out of the area into shelters days before the storm hit land?
The Responsibility of the Governor & State
In the New Orleans¡¯ Comprehensive Emergency Plans it listed the following four State agencies that would assist the City of New Orleans in the time of a declared disaster.
v The State of Louisiana Office of Emergency Preparedness (La OEP), The LSU Health Science Center (LSU HSC){Medical Center of LA}), the State of Louisiana Department of Social Services (La DSS), and the Louisiana National Guard (LANG).
There is no evidence that any of these State agencies assisted the mayor in evacuating the city or that these agencies assisted in providing food and shelters for that at-risk population that needed to be evacuated. One internet news service reported the following:
v On Friday night before the storm hit Max Mayfield of the National Hurricane Center took the unprecedented action of calling Mayor Nagin and Governor Blanco personally to plead with them to begin MANDATORY evacuation of New Orleans and they said they¡¯d take it under consideration. This was after the NOAA buoy 240 miles south had recorded 68¡ä waves before it was destroyed.
The records will show that on August 26, 2005, Governor Kathleen Blanco declared a state of emergency and issued Proclamation No. 48 KBB 2005 activating the Louisiana Homeland Security¡¯s emergency response and recovery program which would have included the State¡¯s National Guard. However the records will also show that the State¡¯s National Guard did not reach the city of New Orleans to assist the local police in securing the city until late Tuesday and early Wednesday, two days after the flood hit. Reports indicate that as of August 28, 2005 the State of Louisiana had a total of 11,500 guardsmen, with 3500 in Iraq and the remaining 8,000 in Louisiana.
Were the National Guard part of the local law enforcement group that refused to let trucks of water and food into the city as reported by the President of the American Red Cross? This is what one news organization reported about this incident. v Fox News Channel¡¯s Major Garrett reported Wednesday that the Red Cross had ¡°trucks with water, food, hygiene equipment, all sorts of things ready to go ¡ to the Superdome and Convention Center.¡± v But the Louisiana Department of Homeland Security, Garrett said, ¡°told them they could not go.¡± v ¡°The Red Cross tells me that Louisiana¡¯s Department of Homeland Security said, ¡®Look, we do not want to create a magnet for more people to come to the Superdome or Convention Center, we want to get them out,¡¯¡± he explained. v ¡°So at the same time local officials were screaming where is the food, where is the water, the Red Cross was standing by ready [and] the Louisiana Department of Homeland Security said you can¡¯t go.¡± Was the slow response from the governor Blanco a pay back because Mayor Nagin endorsed Republican, Bobby Jindal during the 2003 Louisiana Gubernatorial Runoff instead of Kathleen Blanco? We hope not, but no one can explain what the Louisiana Homeland Security did with its own resources before the storm hit or what they did right after the storm passed. This brings us to the federal. The Responsibility Federal & President Bush
The Seattle Times reported that on Saturday August 27th President Bush did take action. The article said:
v President Bush, vacationing at his ranch in Texas, declared a state of emergency for the Gulf Coast, a move that cleared the way for immediate federal aid. Mr. Bush also urged people in the storm¡¯s potential path to head for safer ground.
v ¡°We cannot stress enough the danger this hurricane poses to the to the Gulf Coast communities,¡± he said.
v The President also participated in a videoconference on Sunday with disaster management officials who were preparing for the storm. And he spoke by telephone with the governors of the four states under immediate threat: Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida.¡±
In Support of Bush, the White House officials reported the following:
v President Bush spent Friday afternoon and evening in meetings with his advisors and administrators drafting all of the paperwork required for a state to request federal assistance (and not be in violation of the Posse Comitatus Act or having to enact the Insurgency Act).
Just before midnight Friday evening the President called Governor Blanco and pleaded with her to sign the request papers so the federal government and the military could legally begin mobilization and call up. He was told that they didn¡¯t think it necessary for the federal government to be involved yet.
After the President¡¯s final call to the governor she held meetings with her staff to discuss the political ramifications of bringing federal forces. It was decided that if they allowed federal assistance it would make it look as if they had failed so it was agreed upon that the feds would not be invited in.
Saturday before the storm hit the President again called Gov. Blanco and Mayor Nagin requesting they please sign the papers requesting federal assistance, that they declare the state an emergency area, and begin mandatory evacuation. After a personal plea from the President, Nagin agreed to order an evacuation, but it would not be a full mandatory evacuation, and the governor still refused to sign the papers requesting and authorizing federal action.
In frustration the President declared the area a national disaster area before the State of Louisiana did so he could legally begin some advanced preparations.
The governor¡¯s office gives a different story. They report that the Louisiana Governor requested Federal assistance on August 28, thereby activating FEMA and her own National Guard. They say a power struggle emerged as federal officials tried to wrestle authority from Gov. Kathleen Blanco. A spokesperson from her office said;
v ¡°Shortly after midnight Friday, the Bush administration sent her a proposed legal memorandum asking her to request a federal take over of the evacuation of New Orleans.¡±
If this is true, and the governor was not going to use Louisiana¡¯s Homeland Security resources to assist with the evacuation (ie. 8,000 National guardsmen), she should have given up her authority rather than to let the people remain in the city and die. On September 11th 2005, CNN reported that Governor Blanco finally confessed that she requested federal troop on Wednesday, two days after the storm and not before the storm. This was her mistake, but the President also made a few mistakes.
President¡¯s Bush¡¯s Mistakes
Even though the primary responsibility of providing evacuations, shelters and food and water was the City of New Orleans and the State of Louisiana, why did Bush cut funding to secure the levees? The purpose of the levees was to save lives. This is definitely a mistake on Bush¡¯s part. However Bush wasn¡¯t the only President that cut funding. The records show:
v Funding for these projects has generally trended downward since at least the last years of the Clinton administration. Congressional records show that the levee work on Lake Pontchartrain received $23 million in 1998 and $16 million in 1999.
Would more federal funding to secure the levees guarantee that the levees would hold and prevent flooding? Perhaps, but some experts say that unless the State and federal governments build a comprehensive levee system like those in Holland, securing the current system would create a false sense of security and would be a waste of money. My personal opinion is this; I don¡¯t believe that there is a man made structure in the world that can withstand the force of Mother Nature when she releases all of her power.
Michael Brown
Was Michael Brown qualified to head FEMA? Most people would agree - that with Brown¡¯s past work experience, he should have never been given the position, particularly when there are a multitude of former Military officers with disaster experience, as well as Fire Chiefs and disaster relief professionals from the Red Cross and other agencies who were far more qualified. This was Bush¡¯s second mistake even though he did not personally hire the man. The records show: v Before joining the Bush administration in 2001, Brown spent 11 years as the commissioner of judges and stewards for the International Arabian Horse Association¡This was his full-time job¡for 11 years. v Brown was forced out of the position after a spate of lawsuits over alleged supervision failures. He was asked to resign, according to Bill Pennington, president of the IAHA. v Soon after, Brown was invited to join the administration by his old Oklahoma college roommate Joseph Allbaugh, the previous head of FEMA.
Brown¡¯s appointment is what most African Americans call ¡°the white man¡¯s Affirmative Action Program.¡± Employment decisions like theses are the primary reasons why many blacks feel equality programs like Affirmative Action are necessary and needed. African Americans are convinced that government sponsored fair employment programs, provides the only assurance that African Americans and other minorities will get a fair shake when these types of employment decisions are made.
Speaking of Equal Opportunity and employment, it would be prudent if FEMA and other agencies would build temporary living quarters just outside of New Orleans to house many of those who have been displaced by the hurricane. The close proximity would make these individuals immediately available for hire in a few weeks when the first phase of reconstruction begins. With a Reconstruction budget of $150 billion, hundreds of thousands of skilled and unskilled workers will be needed for this monumental task. The qualified displaced residents should be the first hired. If they are relocated to temporary shelters in other states where employment opportunities are few, many may have a difficult time retuning to New Orleans to become part of the new massive workforce.
Did the federal government totally blow it in responding to the hurricane? The answer is No. The Wall Street Journal reported the following:
v Significant U.S. Military assistance was on alert throughout the week prior to Katrina¡¯s landfall. The Pentagon began tracking the storm when it was still just a number in the ocean on August 23rd, some five days before landfall in Buras Louisiana. As the storm approached, senior Pentagon officials told staff to conduct an inventory of resources available should it grow into a severe hurricane. Their template for these plans was the assistance the Department of Defense provided Florida last year for its four hurricanes.
v And a week earlier than this, Defense Secretary Rumsfeld issued an executive order delegating hurricane decision authority to the head of the Northern Command, Admiral Timothy J. Keating. Four days later, as the tropical storm soon to be named Katrina gathered forced, Adm. Keating acted on that order.
v Before the hurricane arrived in New Orleans, Adm Keating approved the use of the bases in Meridien, Miss., and Barksdale, La., to position emergency meals and some medical equipment; eventually the number of emergency-use bases grew to six. And before land fall, Adm. Keating sent military officers to Mississippi and Louisiana to set up traditional coordination with their counterparts from FEMA. As well, Deputy Defense Secretary, Gordon England ordered the movement of ships into the Gulf. The Pentagon carried out these preparations without any formal request from FEMA or other authorities.
In addition to this, the United States Coast Guard was on hand within hours after the hurricane passed and rescued over 2,000 people during the first 48 hours.
Nevertheless, people keep asking: why was the government so slow? Everyone who has ever applied for Social Security, Veteran Benefits, or filed a discrimination complaint knows that the fastest agency in government is still slow. When you have the bureaucracies of the local government, the state government and the federal government all involved in one emergency project, it only makes the response three times slower, not three times faster. Bureaucrats will never change the system, only citizens like you and I can bring about the necessary change (with our vote) when we have had enough.
Claims of Racism
Last but not least, what about claims of racism? The millions of people around the world, (people of all colors) who are donating a multitude of services and millions of dollars, apparently do not see black folks, they merely see hurting people and they are doing everything they can to show them that they care. The television cameras are not showing white racist who are harming blacks, they¡¯re showing white rescue workers rescuing blacks and white Red Cross providers sheltering and feeding blacks. As a black man, I must say that throughout this whole ordeal I have not witnessed racism - I have only seen unprecedented compassion. And this storm of compassion is far more powerful than the storm of Katrina.
Your thoughts are appreciated.
Rev. Wayne Perryman
Appendix
Reports Predicting New Orleans¡¯ Disaster by Various News Organizations
In-depth media reports
December 1, 2001. The Houston Chronicle published a story, Keeping its head above water: New Orleans faces doomsday scenario which predicted that a severe hurricane striking New Orleans ¡°would strand 250,000 people or more, and probably kill one of 10 left behind as the city drowned under 20 feet of water. Thousands of refugees could land in Houston.
September 2001. Popular Mechanics ran a story called New Orleans Is Sinking discussing what might happen if a severe hurricane landed on New Orleans. ¡¤ October 2001. Scientific American published an article by Mark Fischetti called Drowning New Orleans. This article begins,
A major hurricane could swamp New Orleans under 20 feet of water, killing thousands. Human activities along the Mississippi River have dramatically increased the risk, and now only massive reengineering of southeastern Louisiana can save the city¡ New Orleans is a disaster waiting to happen.
June 2002. The New Orleans Times-Picayune published an award-winning five-part series called Washing Away by John McQuaid and Mark Schleifstein.Washing Away covered various scenarios, including a Category 5 hurricane hitting the city from the south. The series also explored the various environmental changes that have increased the area¡¯s vulnerability. One article in the series concluded, ¡°Hundreds of thousands would be left homeless, and it would take months to dry out the area and begin to make it livable. But there wouldn¡¯t be much for residents to come home to. The local economy would be in ruins.
2003: The creator of the claymation figure Mr. Bill,Walter Williams, produced a one-hour interactive DVD called
New Orleans: The Natural History.¡± The summary notes: What few people realize is that the very forces that created New Orleans now threaten its very existence. The eco-system is incredibly fragile and volatile, and if no action is taken, the city could be wiped out in the next hurricane or gradually swept into the sea from the current course of things. The item is viewable and available for order at http://www.mrbill.com/store/products_large/dvd/new_orleansDVD.htm with proceeds now to help with Hurricane Katrina relief efforts. ¡ October 2004. The National Geographic Magazine published a feature titled Gone With the Water. The article is primary focus is on the destruction of the Mississippi deltas wetlands and the effects that this has on the regions ability to withstand a hurricane, in addition to ecological and social impacts. The article begins with a haunting hypothetical worst-case scenario.
November 2004. The Natural Hazards Observer carried an article entitled What if Hurricane Ivan Had Not Missed New Orleans?, which suggested ¡°The potential for such extensive flooding and the resulting damage is the result of a levee system that is unable to keep up with the increasing flood threats from a rapidly eroding coastline and thus unable to protect the ever-subsiding landscape.
January 2005. The PBS science show Nova aired an episode on the hurricane threat to New Orleans, including interviews with New Orleans officials and scientists involved in the LSU study. The episode is available for online viewing here.
May 23, 2005. The American Prospect carried Thinking Big About Hurricanes. That article described the likely aftermath of a major storm surge. ¡°Soon the geographical bowl of the Crescent City would fill up with the waters of the lake, leaving those unable to evacuate with little option but to cluster on rooftops terrain they would have to share with hungry rats, fire ants, nutria, snakes, and perhaps alligators. The water itself would become a festering stew of sewage, gasoline, refinery chemicals, and debris.
June 2005. The FX docudrama Oil Storm depicted a category 4 hurricane hitting New Orleans and forcing residents to evacuate and hide out in the Superdome. The docudrama went on to speculate about a national economic meltdown caused by the decreased oil supply.
This entry was posted on Wednesday, September 14th, 2005 at 8:17 pm and is filed under Articles. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
"Most of the media blames President Bush and Michael Brown for the delay in getting the necessary food and water supplies to the victims of the Katrina Hurricane disaster"
Well after the Governor and the Mayor and the New Orleans police department get their 90% of the blame then we can discuss how to allocate the rest of it.
I don't see why FEMA or President Bush have any responsibility. They did what was expected.
I guess any time something goes wrong the knee jerk reaction is to blame Bush.
I suppose the bombings in Bali are Bush's fault. You know somewhere someone will ...
The Governor and the Mayor are using the Rather 'false but true' defense.
Right on!
Problem is that they have already dumped 99% of the blame on Bush and there's just not enough left over to spread among Nagin, Landerieu, Blanco and the rest of those incompentent Dem slugs that Louisianaites seem to prefer.
"Most of the media blames President Bush and Michael Brown for the delay in getting the necessary food and water supplies to the victims of the Katrina Hurricane disaster"
Well after the Governor and the Mayor and the New Orleans police department get their 90% of the blame then we can discuss how to allocate the rest of it.
***I applaud you. I am in 100% agreement. I couldn't have said it better.
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