Why Utter Chaos in New Orleans? Your Opinion?

[HelpingHands]

This is an opinion poll on the disaster in New Orleans. Why such chaos?

[geezerbob]

My partial assessment is in post 14 on this thread:

http://forums.catholic.com/showthread.php?t=72720

[Robert in SD]

People in the region are completely overwhelmed, hungry, thirsty, homeless, and growing desperate. Pointing the finger at someone else means you have less energy to devote to finding solutions to the immense challenges of the situation, IMHO.

[felra]

The Governor in her AM TV interview indicated that the looters were drug addicts and people "out of their mind".

In a simplistic analysis, I think that each person has within them some proportion of "the good, the bad, and the augly"; and when push comes to shove, in absence of a strong value foundation and/or prior experience of managing acute stress/trauma, folks are vulnerable (or predisposed in character) for the the bad and the augly to take front stage when one's actual or perceived survival in on the line.

[gilliam]

Originally Posted by geezerbob

My partial assessment is in post 14 on this thread:

http://forums.catholic.com/showthread.php?t=72720

Good assessment I'd say.

[Mt19:26]

I didn't vote because I think it's a combination of a few of the options. I think planning for relief from a hurricane of that magnitude was severely lacking especially after it was known that New Orleans could not survive a catagory three or higher storm. I also think there was some negligence by the fact that nothing was done to help prepare the city for a severe huricane.

[Fitz]

The magnitude of the crisis is greater than anything we have ever experienced in our country.

[Veronica Anne]

Originally Posted by Fitz

The magnitude of the crisis is greater than anything we have ever experienced in our country.

So true!

I mean... who in the world would ever expect to see people's dead bodies drifting by them and have no way to even address that psychologically?

[Veronica Anne]

I think that folks who shed the blame on "people who refused to evacuate" are assuming that those people who did not evacuate had a WAY to evacuate.

Let's all be aware that the folks who did not leave New Orleans, at least, do not own cars. That there's no way even enough buses to handle those thousands.

Let's NOT blame the victims for the Act of God level of nature that hurricane packed!!

Sheeeeesh!!!

[swampfox]

Originally Posted by Veronica Anne

I think that folks who shed the blame on "people who refused to evacuate" are assuming that those people who did not evacuate had a WAY to evacuate.

Let's all be aware that the folks who did not leave New Orleans, at least, do not own cars. That there's no way even enough buses to handle those thousands.

Let's NOT blame the victims for the Act of God level of nature that hurricane packed!!

Sheeeeesh!!!

The New Orleans mayor didn't use the available buses to forcibly evacuate those with no means or disposition to leave

[gilliam]

Originally Posted by swampfox

The New Orleans mayor didn't use the available buses to forcibly evacuate those with no means or disposition to leave

From Instapundit (interesting thoughts):


JUDGING FROM THIS PHOTOGRAPH, the New Orleans authorities had plenty of unused buses had they chosen to take people out of the city rather than coop them up in the Superdome or the Convention Center. Now, of course, they're flooded and useless for the purpose. I don't know why they didn't make use of them on Saturday and Sunday. Not enough drivers?

UPDATE: Brendan Loy -- who was calling for mandatory evacuation on Saturday -- thinks this was a tragic missed opportunity.



KATRINA RELIEF UPDATE: Michael Barone emails:

A source at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce tells me (5:15pm) that they're in touch with corporations who have pledged $100 million in aid to hurricane victims and communities. Wal-Mart and General
Electric have each pledged $15 million.

I'm also forwarding to you an email from the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation. It includes several offers of specific kinds of help relayed via CBC members and has absolutely none of the political blame-game stuff we have seen too much of. I think the CBCF deserves
credit for this kind of constructive response.

Indeed. Here's the release -- click "read more" to read it.

Read More »


http://instapundit.com/archives/025310.php

[swampfox]

Originally Posted by gilliam

From Instapundit (interesting thoughts):


JUDGING FROM THIS PHOTOGRAPH, the New Orleans authorities had plenty of unused buses had they chosen to take people out of the city rather than coop them up in the Superdome or the Convention Center. Now, of course, they're flooded and useless for the purpose. I don't know why they didn't make use of them on Saturday and Sunday. Not enough drivers?

UPDATE: Brendan Loy -- who was calling for mandatory evacuation on Saturday -- thinks this was a tragic missed opportunity.



KATRINA RELIEF UPDATE: Michael Barone emails:

A source at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce tells me (5:15pm) that they're in touch with corporations who have pledged $100 million in aid to hurricane victims and communities. Wal-Mart and General
Electric have each pledged $15 million.

I'm also forwarding to you an email from the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation. It includes several offers of specific kinds of help relayed via CBC members and has absolutely none of the political blame-game stuff we have seen too much of. I think the CBCF deserves
credit for this kind of constructive response.

Indeed. Here's the release -- click "read more" to read it.

Read More »


http://instapundit.com/archives/025310.php

Thanks for the links--This mayor's misjudgments were catastrophic and now he is berating the feds for not doing his job. Under the FEMA system, the local authorities are charged with implementing evacuation plans.

[deb1]

I am going to ask a stupid question, but it has been one that has been bothering me for quite awhile. Buses are able to leave NO, why don't the people just walk out of the city. Wouldn't it be safer outside of NO? I know nothing about the area around New Orleans, so forgive me if this sounds like a ignorant question.

[manualman]

Definate combination of things.

1. HUGE disaster. The swath of destruction is enormous!
2. Late surprise. Everbody thought that NO had survived the storm pretty well and had begun to focus on the apparently harder hit eastern areas when the levees failed. That hopelessly the logistical arrangements for getting relief to the city.
3. Poor local preparedness. Why build a super shelter like the Superdome and NOT give it an independent water supply and passive ventilation options?
4. Demographics. Nobody thought of the fact that the do-it-yourself evacuation plan would maroon the poorest and most desperate folks in an unpopulated town full of wealth. (See #3, above).
5. Nobody ever expected relief teams to be shot at, looted and otherwise hindered by mobs.
6. Poor individual preparedness. If YOU were warned two days in advance that potential doomsday was coming, wouldn't you have filled up every bottle and jug you owned with drinking water and hoarded some food? Not enough people did.
7. Americans are spoiled. Not just THEM. I honestly believe that this behavior would happen durn near anywhere in America today in similar circumstances. We are a nation of people who see clean water, sanitation, food and shelter as RIGHTS that somebody is obliged to provide us. When disaster strikes people perceive that their RIGHTS have been violated and that some person or group is to blame. Thus the resentment and hostility to the rescuers instead of joy.

[Peace-bwu]

Originally Posted by manualman

Definate combination of things.

1. HUGE disaster. The swath of destruction is enormous!
2. Late surprise. Everbody thought that NO had survived the storm pretty well and had begun to focus on the apparently harder hit eastern areas when the levees failed. That hopelessly the logistical arrangements for getting relief to the city.
3. Poor local preparedness. Why build a super shelter like the Superdome and NOT give it an independent water supply and passive ventilation options?
4. Demographics. Nobody thought of the fact that the do-it-yourself evacuation plan would maroon the poorest and most desperate folks in an unpopulated town full of wealth. (See #3, above).
5. Nobody ever expected relief teams to be shot at, looted and otherwise hindered by mobs.
6. Poor individual preparedness. If YOU were warned two days in advance that potential doomsday was coming, wouldn't you have filled up every bottle and jug you owned with drinking water and hoarded some food? Not enough people did.

Great analysis, and much more concise than mine.. I'm wordy!

7. Americans are spoiled. Not just THEM. I honestly believe that this behavior would happen durn near anywhere in America today in similar circumstances. We are a nation of people who see clean water, sanitation, food and shelter as RIGHTS that somebody is obliged to provide us. When disaster strikes people perceive that their RIGHTS have been violated and that some person or group is to blame. Thus the resentment and hostility to the rescuers instead of joy.

You are right on the money with this. I also think that this is even more true for city folk. Rural people ( my part of the world) are very good at doing physical things for themselves. As my dad said, if he were in that situation he would have taken as much water and food as he could get and go on a hiking trip outta New Orleans ASAP. This would have especially worked for him because he always uses hiking backpacks, never suitcases, and he lives on GORP and water for weeks at a time while camping. He also built our house with his own two hands when I was a kid.