Monday, September 05, 2005
I'm Tired
I'm tired of it all.
I'm tired of a mayor who failed to enact a disaster plan already created to utilize all the buses in the greater metropolitan area, and who failed to adequately stock the disaster shelters that he designated the citizens go to. I'm tired of seeing him take a position of authority and certainty, while stating on CNN that the CIA might take him out at any time.
I'm tired of a governor that recognized the state's plan to deal with a hurricane of this magnitude was woeful, and yet did nothing to remedy the fact.
I'm tired of a state senator who threatens to punch anyone that questions here state's preparedness, regardless of the fact that they are the first line in any disaster.
I'm tired of Congressman who see the use of the word refugee as being inappropriate, when it is an inescapable fact that the very meaning of the word means to seek refuge, something every natural disaster survivor is.
I'm tired of a FEMA director that stresses the danger of the hurricane before it hits, but backtracks afterwards hiding behind a thick tangle of words like 'unforeseen' and 'unprecedented'. I'm tired of a Director if Homeland Security who sees the progress 72 hours after the storm as good.
I'm tired of a President that doesn't recognize the image of being President. No matter how connected or informed he might or not be of a situation, accepting gifts of guitars, eating cake, and continuing a vacation do not convey decisive leadership.
I'm tired of a bureaucracy that ties up needed resources, and still continue to do so. I'm tied of a federal government that failed to act until asked to do so, and did not plan for that help being asked. Nor did it care to mobilize the airlines of America to evacuate before the storm began, an ability it has only ever invoked to move troops around the world.
I'm tired of reporters exploiting suffering, and celebrities using the opportunity to continue their protest of the war in Iraq, and as a photo op to further their career and political stature. Ditto to the politicians.
I'm tired of the finger-pointing, the blaming, and the recriminations. I'm tired of far right-wing conservatives espousing stating that anyone who didn't walk out was asking for it (let's see them walk seventy miles with three children in 100 degree weather to Baton Rouge, along an interstate in intermittent thunderstorms). I'm tired of religious zealots, both Christian and Muslim, stating this was in response to America's (or, to be more specific, Bourbon Street's) sins. I'm tired of environmentalists that blame the storm's destructiveness on global warming. I'm tired of progressives that suggest Bush let in happen, or perhaps caused it to happen by blowing up the flood walls. I'm tired of the assertion that this was done to disperse the population of New Orleans across the nation, for some nefarious agenda to rebuild the Crescent City as a haven for the rich.
And all of this happens while perhaps thousands of New Orleans are still stranded, dying in the most remote corners of the city.
I feel a deep loss of trust in all of these people. The plight of New Orleans and the danger it faced has been apparent ever since the day the city was first founded. For nearly forty years, the vulnerability of the city has been discussed, researched, and studied, and yet no one and nothing was done to rectify those inequities. The city, state, and federal governments failed to act, both in preparation and response. All share an equal blame in what has happened, and one of America's most unique cities and important ports now lies lifeless in a festering bog.
Perhaps this will lead to a fundamental shift in government. Perhaps it will lead to a truly comprehensive disaster recovery plan that will allow for a seamless integration on all levels. Perhaps it will mean an end to pork spending in all levels of government, and a concentration on the most important national needs of the country. Perhaps it will lead to politicians making decisions not based on what will most please their constituents and base, but rather what is right and what is necessary. Perhaps it will lead to an upheaval in all halls of power in this nation, and all those who were culpable will be held to account.
I won't hold my breath.
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