FOXNEWS: Mayor Nagin intervened to help tourists escape New Orleans before people in Superdome

Fox News - O'Reilly | September 2, 2005 | nwrep

[nwrep]

Shepard Smith eyewitness report on O'Reilly: Mayor Ray Nagin intervened today to help tourists (many foreigners) staying at the upscale W hotel downtown escape New Orleans ahead of many of the people in the Superdomw. Tourists were shipped in buses to the Superdome and other connecting buses took them to safety.

Black Mayor Ray Nagin favors "W" tourists. Imagine that headline after all the racist garbage thrown at the President.

[vaudine]

LOL! A clear minded analyst!

vaudine

[concerned about politics]

---And they wonder why Bush/Homeland Security wasn't prepared for fixing the problems after such a devastating event. This is bad for Bush. Trust me. If I'm wrong, you can call me on it. But I'm quite sure I'm right.---

I don't think so. It was chaos and anarchy until he showed up. Now, things are getting done. Actually, he's the one that ultimately took charge, and it wasn't even his job. Heck, he should call Jeb in. That place would be ship shape in no time. The democrats are no where to be found!

[concerned about politics]

Agree that Shepard Smith has been anything but a "consummate professional". Self-righteous is more like it. Placing unrealistic expectations on the tireless rescuers.

He just doesn't like being stuck down there without make up. Until things settle down, he doesn't get out of there. Shep seems to be more concerned about Shep, and it shows.

[anymouse]

Apparently the hotels checks cleared. /sarcasm

I'm sure this decision was based on sound priorities of need, but some how I would not be surprised if this wasn't part of this clown's retirement plan.

[claudiustg]

<---And they wonder why Bush/Homeland Security wasn't prepared for fixing the problems after such a devastating event. This is bad for Bush. Trust me. If I'm wrong, you can call me on it. But I'm quite sure I'm right.---

I don't think so. It was chaos and anarchy until he showed up. Now, things are getting done. Actually, he's the one that ultimately took charge, and it wasn't even his job. Heck, he should call Jeb in. That place would be ship shape in no time. The democrats are no where to be found!>


That wasn't my quote, you know. That was what I was rebuting.

[beyond the sea]

The guy sure 'yells' a different game, doesn't he?

[concerned about politics]

That wasn't my quote, you know. That was what I was rebuting.

Oh. LOL. Sorry.

[TeddyCon]

And no Dems have made comparos to Dubya's hustling a few (of how many?) Bin Ladins out of our country on 9/11 yet!?

Oh, that's right, the mayor of NO is a card-carrying member of their 'gubment cheese' party. Never mind then.

[Tall_Texan]

Nagin is a loser. He'll be defeated next election.

No he won't. You forgot Rush's golden rule of Democrat politics: The worse you perform, the more Democrats promote you.

[Tall_Texan]

Most tourists come from around the world to experience something they will never forget. I think the folks of New Orleans have certainly delivered, so I don't see why the tourists would be complaining. I did find it interesting the couple of tourists I saw interviewed last weekend that wanted to know what this "hurricane" thing was they kept hearing about - and why the shopkeepers were putting plywood in front of their windows. They probably figured it was another one of those wild and crazy French Quarter occasions.

[gnarledmaw]

"LOL! Don't think there'll be voting in NO for years to come, if ever."

Why not? Long deceased Democrats vote from adresses in the middle of rivers all the time in Chicago.

[Lib Buster]

Absolutely correct. I am a former Lakeview resident myself and all the areas you listed are predominatly white. I think a lot of the MSM simply does not know the individual neighborhoods, so they don't argue when the point is brought up.

[rineaux]

Im sure your glad you moved.
It's time to start speaking out. We have been the silent majority for to long. not to be cold but factual, some lost their apts and the homes they rent. others lost the homes they own along with rental property. the bottom line is white, black, red, etc., they are all equal with no home to go to.

[advance_copy]

From the Associated Press:

Mayor Ray Nagin has used the hotel as a base since it is across the street from city hall, and there were reports the hotel was cleared with priority to make room for police, firefighters and other officials.

[warsaw44]

" All the National Guard troops are in Iraq - there are no National Guard troops to help in NO "
and
" That damned Bush - he stole all the money NO needed to make the city of safe. He spent it all in Iraq for his oil buddies "
and..
" See what Bush is doing? He took his time, didn't send help and now NO is screwed "
Blah, blah, blah - vomit.

I expect other moronic statements to follow but I have heard all of the above so far. People foaming at the mouth as they proclaim this crap.
It will get worse and this will be an issue in the next election. " Those Evil Republicans! Look what they did in NO! " - and people WILL believe it.

[Sir Francis Dashwood]

I am wondering what condition the banks in NO are in? Talk about a prime looting target.

Bank vaults can withstand quite a lot of force. Without a power source to operate tools, you would need a blast (or a corrosive agent) that would destroy a lot of its contents.

[tomakaze]

helping tourists escape? Oh what a bastard.
I can see that. pretty decent of the guy really.
Of all the folks there these would be the folks least prepared, unlikely to have emergency kits, 2 weeks food stockpiled and whatnot.
90% of the problem immediately following this has to do with the fact that, Self Reliance is no longer a virtue in this country.
this crap is the welfare/entitlement/victim mentality chickens coming home to roost.
And here comes the Conegressional Black Caucus to the rescue! these oppurtunistic animals are worse than filth. same old song and dance, communists to the last member, Jesse Jackson Jr's snide little psuedo anti-semtic remark in particular on CNN yesterday made me want to vomit.
 

people started looting on day one. day friggin one. Looters should have been shot on site from the start, regardless of what was being looted. cold? BFD. anyone with common sense, who think past the end of their nose and plans ahead longer than a couple hours at time (i.e. a reasoning human being) keeps basic supplies on hand - especially in an area prone to disasters like this. if you dont you are a darwin award waiting to happen. if you're head of you household and you havent done this its contemptable.
"ooh they're poor" wail the the apologists. bollocks - if you can afford a carton of kools a week you can damn well afford to keep a couple pallets of ramen noodles and tinned tuna around.
"ooooh no one had the means to evacuate" - bollocks again. po' folks can be down right ingenious when it comes to scoring transpo to things like raves, parties, concerts and what not (yet this ingenuity is utterly useless when it comes to scoring transpo to say, a job interview). I used to be "po' folks". alot of my buddies still are.
not only that, but it's entirely likely that alot of folks stayed around, thinking things wouldnt be that bad for the sole purposes of being around to loot the homes of folks better off than them to "get theirs", and got bit in the *ss.
"why it takin so long for the government to mobilize!?" - it takes time to mobilize, especially for a releif effort this massive. logistics, comms alot of things have to be in place before you get the ball rolling - hence the self reliance thing. oh, and shooting at rescue helos and boats aint too smart either.  
This whole thing is heart breaking, and shameful at the same time. Numbs the mind just thinking of the scope of it. all those kids. 9 cities basicly gone?
maybe this whole experience will wake people up to a few things, namely the importance of self reliance and community with your neighbors but i sincerely doubt it.  
/just getting caught up on all the news from this the past couple days
//had absolutley no idea things had gotten as bad as they had or that the damage was so bad
///a good number of coworkers have been released for early R&R to head home and see if they still have homes, locate family members.
////numbed

[CindyDawg]

The stupid tourists probably had more money than the poor people huddling in the super dome. I read about two families who paid $5000 for a limo to drive them back to Chicago. It was probaly worth it. The poor people don't have $5000.

White = stupid and rich? This mindset is exactly why they were in the most danger. All things being equal they should have waited their turn but unforunately they were being abused just because of the color of their skin.

[HateBill]

I agree with you about Smith. After a few minutes of his histrionics, I came upon a great nickname for him "Tallulah" (after Tallulah Bankhead).

The one reporter who was superb was Molly Hennenberg. Not for her the wailing, rending of the garments-type reporting of Tallulah or Geraldo. She was good-natured, classy and informative in her reports from the refugee center in Baton Rouge. She personalized the refugees for the viewers and introduced us to those she had befriended and you could tell that she (in her non-reporting capacity) was part of the solution rather than part of the problem (Tallulah's hysterics made the situation worse, I'm sure, as he conveyed his anger and hopelessness to those he was among).

[TomGuy]

Many people just simply cannot function in a crisis. They go to pieces. Regrettably, many of them are in management and operational positions.

Remember the later reports after 9-11-01 attacks. Senators Daschle, Kerry, Boxer and Reid (IIRC) sat in a Daschle's office numbed (frozen, as Kerry later said, IIRC), until the White House personnel called them and told them to head for cover -- evacuate.

Mayor Nagin didn't know what to do. He froze. Even as still-Cat-5 Katrina was roaring just a few dozen miles south of N.O., the Mayor was on a radio interview, afraid to order a mandatory evac, because his attorneys advised there might be liability in doing so.

Afterward Nagin kept waiting for the Governor, or FEMA or the NG, or the FED or the UN or somebody to do something.

Simultaneously, apparently, the LA governor's office was numbed and frozen too. Nagin couldn't get them to act/respond. They seemed to be waiting for FEMA or the NG, or the FED or the UN or somebody to do something.

===

In the current climate of terrorism and seeming worsening natural disasters, we need to be sure we are electing real leaders. Too many political contests are more like high school popularity contests than elections for leadership personnel.

When the 'leaders' sit 'frozen' or 'numbed' in a crisis situation, they are of no use.