h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

It's deeply unpleasant down there at the moment.

I work Saturdays and I've spoken to a couple of folks who used to live in Biloxi today.

In the light of those conversations, it's hard to read posts about gas prices, the Bush government and global warming without feeling a bit confused. The best way to sum it up is: whether I agree or disagree with your viewpoint, how can people be using a natural disaster of this type to score political or socioeconomic points?

Thats actually been a major talking point lately.
My personal opinion is that they need someone to blame, someone to point the finger at, because this sort of thing just isn't supposed to happen here; didn't Katrina know this is America, and that sort of thing just isn't done here.

After 9/11 it was easy to hold our collective heads up high and say "look at those bad men and what they did to our country", it's hard to point a finger in a menacing way at a hurricane; especially when it's no longer here

Hello people!

I am also very shocked about what's happening in New Orleans! All those people ... what stays with me is a picture that appeared in a newspaper here in South Africa showing a disabled woman and the woman who cared for her. Imagine old people, disabled people, sick people, being 'hit' by this horror, stranded in a cesspool of filth without food or clean water, medicine or care ...

And even able-bodied humans! Suddenly reduced to a desperate condition. One can understand the looting ... *some* people will loot because they are desperate for food ... but others will loot just to enrich and empower themselves ... loot luxury objects, and guns!

And the pets!

And what about the violence, the rapes?

And the town itself! Of course the place had a history, an atmosphere, all of which have been irrevocably changed now!

What about 'scoring' political points?

I don't think that is necessarily a bad thing. People are trying to find out why this happened and what can be done. Some people will seek somebody to blame. Blame the conservatives, the government, because of their inadequate measures of prevention and their inadequate respone. This seems to make more sense than blaming Nature! What is 'political' for people, is for many of them, what they feel to be right, the right way of doing things for Society. When they criticise in a political vein it's because they want to advance their views of what would be best for Society. Any catastrophe like this hurricane presents a good opportunity for people for getting their message across: Look what happened! This is because of this, and this, and this ... and this is how we should act to remedy the situation now and in the future!

Right now people are suffering and not getting adequate help - even dying - because of a failure of organisation, and perhaps also a failure of people's sense of responsibility. If the USA was a country that was better organised, and if it was a country where people more honestly cared for each other ... *including* poor people ... the response would have been more rapid and effective. So people can urge their government, their fellow countryfolk, to care more, to do something to help, and in that they can also proclaim some political message, saying that the country and the government should get their priorities straight.

PS I, too, am horrified to hear that they sell guns in Walmart! Here in South Africa such a thing is unthinkable.

It's ok, because they don't sell handguns, "only" shotguns
But hey, we have the right to arm ourselves against foriegn nations coming in and taxing us unnecicarily
Not that I'm against the 2nd amendment, I'm actually for it. It represents a personal freedom that I'm not willing to give up. Just like I'm not about to say yes to getting rid of the 1st amendment - freedom of speech; no matter what some people say under the protection of that right.
It's all part of what makes the USA what it is; but hey, I live here, so you could say I'm bias

Now that I have had time to calm down some...

blaming Bush for the hurricane on the grounds that his environmental policies aren't sufficiently eco-friendly...
...oh come ON people. He might be an idiot and he might be one hell of a lot less green than he needs to be but current environmental conditions are NOT a result of the policies of George Bush. Blaming GW just shows that you have NO idea what you're talking about. People seem to have forgotten there was a hurricane of similar proportion to Katrina in the sixties too.
So either this is a cyclical thing, a natural expression of the weather pattern,
or
a freak event
or
the environmental damage that begat Katrina has been in place a lot longer than we realise.

It's understandable that people are looking for someone or something to blame.

The other thing I find odd is that people are surprised by the lawlessness. Haven't we seen this before? Yes, we have. Any time the accepted order breaks down people go a little insane. In Iraq, as the Coalition forces rolled in, the first response of a large number of people was to steal anything not nailed down. What should be more disturbing is that this could clearly happen anywhere.

I'm horrified by some of the reporting that goes on. Katrina has given us a new irregular verb. Apparently, white folks 'search for supplies' but black folks 'loot'. Does this bother anyone else?

Whatever your feelings and opinions on the matter, whether you agree with me or whether you think I'm an idiot (it's possible!) please take the time to find a way to help. The Red Cross are just one of a number of organisations that are doing great work, there are links to them on any number of sites and the BBC has already made other links available on the main site, and I believe some of them are mentioned in this thread. The folks on the Gulf Coast need us.

I agree on the last point certainly "Put your money where your mouth is"

Plenty of time to debate the rest after everyone & everything possible has been rescued; i have no doubt there are still people stranded on the roof hanging on somewhere.

"How to help:"

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/4204066.stm

zdt

I'm not blaming anyone Gradient. I do wish the relief response to the storm had been organized faster. But who's to say I could have done any better if I had been in office?

I know what you mean, JEllen, and I wasn't really pointing the finger at anyone on this thread either. We're all venting a little, we're all wishing we could do more and a lot of us will be wondering why those who can, haven't.

Personally, I was steamed at some of the Demotrat Talking Heads who saw an opportunity to score points of The President instead of maybe doing something useful. I'd feel the same way if the roles were reversed and the Republicans were doing the points scoring. In situations like this, politics is a waste of time and effort.

I suppose that, as a foreigner, the US constitution is no damned business of mine...but doesn't the 2nd amendment begin 'A well regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free state...'?

What? And this militia has to shop at Walmart?

Not blaming Bush for the hurricane...but given the lack of coordinated activity both before and after it struck, what's your government *for*? It's heartening, though, that the support seems to be coming together due to the generosity of ordinary citizens.

If you look a little closer at the 2nd Ammendment, you'll find that this well regulated militia is there to prevent the Government becoming tyrannical. It is a provision in the constitution for the citizens to remove their own government by force of arms, should the army be used against them.

So yes. A citizen militia shops at walmart because if the government holds all the guns how can it operate in the manner intended?

I lay the blame for Ammendment 2 at the feet of Jefferson. he was barking.

I noticed on tonight's news that it's the Red Cross feeding people 3 hot meals a day in the rescue centre.
That's where I'm going to be sending my donation.
They were searching people going in, to make sure they weren't armed, in case they were going to rob, rape, steal, etc.
In the same bulletin, the gun shops in the towns where the survivors have been sent, have had a 1000% increase in sales.



I fear for the Human Race, I really do.

How nice to see Willum posting here. *waves*


God Bless everyone.

Refugees start arriving here in MA tommorrow, 2500 so far The GOV. says they'll be well cared for

from what I've heard, partly what escalated everything was a breakdown of local government
It has come to light that there WAS contingency plans in place in case of just such an emergency, and they weren't followed
Evacuations weren't ordered or carried out properly, supplies weren't stockpiled and distributed properly, and the Mayor and Governor spent more time worrying about re-election than preparing...there WAS a major breakdown at the federal level, but it shouldn't have been that bad
Not that I'm blaming anybody per-se, I wasn't there, I don't know what it was like. But I am a news junkie

Like I said before, this whole thing showed several chinks in our armour.
i just hope we learn from our mistakes

PS. I sit corrected on the 2nd amendment, I'm apparently not as well versed as I should be

people react so differently!

I think the human race will continue with their daily life again soon*, because some people have feet on the ground!


* as if not yet already!

Something absolutely heart-rending from a missing persons' website:

'His name may be Nedemaya or Jeremaiah. He appears to be about two years old.'

Y'all may have noticed in my name tagline that I am angry at people for being unsupportive of americans at this critical juncture. Be assured, it is not directed at anyone on this thread, but rather at certain people on Ask. It's digusting to me that anyone would question giving aid to these people who have lost everything. I try really really hard to stay out of political arguments here on hootoo, but this really pisses me off. When London was bombed not long ago, there were, appropriately, expressions of support and condolence. Where is that support now?

The Netherlands is supporting: militairy medical ship with food / water / medicines. 3 pumps and 5 technical advicers to help.

That's great Pheloxi!

Yes, I did notice the change, and I also know which individuals you're referring to. Please don't feed the trolls.

That being said, I admit that I'm hoping that recent events make the appalling current US federal administration start to pay more attention to human needs *at home*, and stop trying to run the world. That's what the UN is for. (If the US paid its bills, the UN would run a lot better.)

I know you are a very long way from supporting Bush and his assortment of freaks and cretins in high places. Please don't make the common American mistake of thinking that criticism of a government equals contempt for a country. The aforementioned trolls are unable to make the distinction either.

Hoping that the US administration starts behaving like a civilised administration and stops bullying every other country - including mine, don't get me started on that - doesn't stop me feeling desperately sorry for those affected by Katrina. I've been supporting the International Red Cross for some time now; they're better equipped to do what's necessary than I am as an individual. That's how my bit of help will get to where it's needed.

We-Canada-had sent an urban emergency team within 48 hours, they're now back after saving roughly 160 people. Also 3 ships(I believe 2 destroyers & 1 frigate)loaded with supplies sailed for the area either Mon. evening or Tues. morning.