> Care to explain that??
Sure. Within two hours of the quake, I was sitting shellshocked at my local RSA, watching the local news as it was unfolding (I do not have a TV, so if I want to watch the news, the RSA is where I must do that).
I live in Auckland, on the other island some 600+ miles from this disaster, so I currently have no first-hand info on this crisis. And I was keen to find out what had happened.
TV 3 was on: they are a credible local news source in NZ. A FEMA representative was on camera, telling us the Americans were on the way. There was a camera shot of aeroplanes full of men and equipment — a truly magnificent sight, the sort of thing only Americans can do.
Shortly thereafter — sometime on Wednesday — the Americans arrived in Christchurch, as promised. Or so it has been reported (and I have no reason not to believe it).
FEMA was criticized during Hurricane Katrina for sitting on their hands. Not this time, and not in NZ. The Yanks are here, and we are very grateful.
FEMA was UNJUSTLY criticized for sitting on it’s hands by a bias media. The facts didn’t support the accusations. FEMA is NOT a first responder organization. In the case of Katrina, FEMA is a support agency. State and local agencies were to provide first responder support with FEMA providing long-term and broader resources.
I'm glad to hear it; but I haven't heard it on our TV news. I wondered why. Often, it seems that our President is far more concerned with the fortunes of those who have not been friendly to us than to those who have been close to us through the years.