Posted on 09/04/2005 5:38:41 AM PDT by Alas Babylon!
The Talk Shows
Sunday, September 4th, 2005
Guests to be interviewed today on major television talk shows:
FOX NEWS SUNDAY (Fox Network): Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff
MEET THE PRESS (NBC): Chertoff; Scientific American editor Mark Fischetti; former New Orleans Mayor Marc Morial; author Mike Tidwell.
FACE THE NATION (CBS): pre-empted by U.S. Open (Tennis).
THIS WEEK (ABC): Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La.; Chertoff; author and journalist Rick Bragg.
LATE EDITION (CNN) : Chertoff; Sen. Trett Lott, R-Miss.; Health and Human Services Secretary Michael Leavitt; Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Julie Gerberding; Reps. William Jefferson, D-La., Richard Baker, R-La., Charles Melancon, D-La., and Bobby Jindal, R-La.; former Sen. John Breaux, D-La.; American Red Cross President Marty Evans; former Surgeon General David Satcher; the Rev. Al Sharpton.
At least one site that people may go to for information is showing the photo many may miss it on Yahoo but those doing research may find it on that site.
It is the photo I used for the one I posted here a little while back with the caption on it as requested by "beyond the sea"
There was just a black reporter on CNN interviewing a woman in the French quarter who owns a club there and she said people could walk in like it was ready for business - no damage. She thought the damage in the rest of the city was awful or something like that. The guy said what did you think about the slow response. She went on to say that she though Bush did just right, etc., etc. I'm surprised CNN even showed it - probably was live and they'll cut later. He made some comment to the camera about the slow response (even though she wouldn't be goaded into saying what he wanted).
I found wikipedia's treatment of the whole event, including political ramifications to be quite "fair and balanced". Fox News doesn't deserve that phrase anymore, as their coverage, namely Shep and Jerry Rivers, to be quite "unbalanced", literally.
Bring on the Congressional Investigations!
This is an over generalization, I'm sure, but I noticed while I was a college student (many years ago) that the least able students gravitated to majors in Education..(usually primary ed), psychology, and journalism. I may be wrong about today's students in those fields, but I don't think so from what I have personally observed.
I did a little research. New Orleans has spent 673 million over the last 10 years on: New basketball arena, New Vintage Trolley Care system and just recently appropriated 315 million for the convention center expansion. Seems they had the money, but chose to spend it on pork projects rather than the poor and helpless citizens of New Orleans. Google search New Orleans basketball arena and trolley rail system.
Just to add a relevant detail - it isn't "THE" levee. More than one was breached.
Another relevant detail that needs to be pointed out: the barge didn't "smash" through the levee - it was "pulled" through. Whoever witnessed it did not really understand the science of what they were seeing.
Even a huge barge does not possess the mass to smash through a wall of earth the size of a levee. There is one force, however that can - the slow, relentless pressure of water against a semi-permeable surface.
What happened was that because a great deal of the material used to construct the levees was the most easily available loose delta soil and miscellaneous debris, which will not compact and solidify well, as the water pressure increased water began to actually penetrate and seep through the levee walls. As this process accellerated, the seeping water began to, in a very real sense, actually flow through the levee walls. As it did the walls were gradually eroded from within.
What this meant was that an observer viewing the levee from above would be seeing what appeared to be a levee that was "holding", but it would really be washing away below, out of sight. This process would continue until enough material was eroded to allow the visible top of the levee to collapse and then observers could see the water pouring through. In reality, however, the water had been pouring through long before that.
That's what the observer of the barge saw - it didn't smash through, it was drawn by the invisible pull of the water directly to that point on the levee where the unseen flow caused the top of the levee to crumble and collapse.
There is an important lesson in this scenario that needs to be remembered whenever the immediate crisis is over and talk turns to the decision whether to rebuild New Orleans on the present site or relocate it. Because of the nature of the construction of the current levees, they probably would not have held for long even if they had been twice as high.
Some serious study needs to be given as to just what types of levee material and construction would be strong enough, and also whether even good, solidly-built levees would have the necessary sub-statum support to keep them from sagging and cracking as the already-observed area-wide compaction and sinking progresses. The dynamics of this collapse provide strong arguments for the case to relocate the city.
Now I really am off to see to dinner catch you all later.
Yea, old Wes did such a spectacular job at Waco.
Anyone care to guess who the FEMA director was at the time?
Shep Smith looked really sinister in his Mug shot when he was busted for running over the liberal reporter in Tallahassee after the 2000 Election. She made the mistake of trying to save the parking spot with her body. Shep has that Channel 7 (fox Affiliate in Miami) "take no prisoners get the story" attitude. He was pathetic in his coverage of the Hurricane, he is too emotional and childish and should have stayed in Studio B.
Totally agree w you! As I said we need to be prepared as the Dims are going to spin this like everything else out of control (or try to). Thanks for the info on the 1998 Bubba rejection - I remembered reading that he had rejected at least one - but couldn't remember specifics.
I did hear on the radio (Howie Carr) that the decision to do the levees to withstand a CAT 3 was originally made in 1965 under Johnson, based on cost-benefit analysis. He didn't get more specific though, so I hadn't heard the "once in 500 years" estimate for CAT-5, though.
Louisiana Catastrophic Hurricane Planning Workshop
Brad Tiffee, IEM, Inc.
Sean R. Fontenot, LOHSEP
From July 16–23, 2004, over 300 participants from Federal, State, local, and volunteer agencies participated in the Louisiana Catastrophic Hurricane Planning Workshop at the Louisiana Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness (LOHSEP) in Baton Rouge. The purpose of the workshop was to develop functional plans for response to and recovery from a catastrophic hurricane striking southeast Louisiana, including the City of New Orleans.
Driven by a predetermined scenario, entitled Hurricane Pam, the participants developed 15 functional plans over the course of the week, including: pre-landfall activities; unwatering of leveeenclosed areas; hazardous materials; billeting of response personnel; distribution of power, water, and ice; transport from water to shelter; volunteer and donations management; external affairs; access control and re-entry; debris; schools; search and rescue; sheltering; temporary housing; and temporary medical care.
The scenario involved a slow-moving Category 3 storm making landfall near Grand Isle in the early morning. In the scenario, the storm, sustaining winds of 120 mph at landfall, spawned tornados, destroyed over 75% of the structures in its path, and left the majority of New Orleans under 15–20 feet of water. The workshop was sponsored by FEMA and LOHSEP, with a weather scenario designed by the National Weather Service and damage and consequences developed by IEM, Inc. of Baton Rouge. IEM, Inc. also facilitated the workshop sessions.
From November 29–December 3, over 90 participants met in New Orleans to continue planning for three topics: sheltering, temporary housing, and temporary medical care. These three topics were chosen by the workshop’s Unified Command as areas that needed continued group planning.
The outcome of these workshops is a series of functional plans that may be implemented immediately. Along with these plans, resource shortfalls were identified early, saving valuable time in the event an actual response is warranted. It is because of the dedication of every workshop participant that Louisiana is much better prepared for a catastrophic hurricane.
Facts tend to get lost in confusion. ;-)
Since not one of the Sunday Talking Head Shows didn't have either of them on .. I doubt they will
It's kind of hard to ask the real questions if they don't interview them
Come to think of it .. I have seen or heard much from Gov. Blanco since she called for a Day of Prayer
So bringing $s into the city is more important than keeping their citizens safe.
Good on him!
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"My Hero is a Bus Thief". :)
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