Hurricane Katrina
Bane~Child:
There is an approach that the heads of the major families that run all the businesses in Japan use:
Rather than say, 'Who can we blame?'...Ask, 'What can we do to fix this problem?', and then they do it. In their thinking, ultimely everyone is resposible in some way, if not equally. Each worker from the janitor up takes responsibility very seriouosly and it is the very fabric of corporate life in Japan. This is so much more civilized and so simple an approach, I can't help but admire the wisdom and wish more would follow this type of example.
ZephyrZodiac:
And let's face it, the Japanese have been living with disasters for a very long time! And far less people died living in traditional Japanese paper houses than have died in recent years in concrete tower blocks!
Jarsie:
I have no sympathy for the looters, and those of us who live on the Gulf Coast and are somewhat familiar with New Orleans shouldn't really be surprised. New Orleans has long been known as a corrupt city from all levels of government, and at one time was known as the murder capital of the world. It specializes in black-on-black crime. And it doesn't help any when the local government initially ignored the looters because it had other priorities and was short handed due to the fact that a large number of its police force left the city and many resigned outright.
As for the blame game, it's very easy to blame the federal government, and ignore the fact that the feds have to respect state rights; they just can't go marching into a state and take over. The governor of the state has to *ask* for federal intervention. President Bush declared the gulf coast states a national disaster area even before the hurricane made landfall...federal aid was ready to go as soon as the Governor of Louisiana requested it...which she didn't do until days after Katrina made landfall. Blame the POTUS all you want; the fact of the matter is he was within the law not to send federal troops rushing into Louisiana until he was asked to do so by the State.
What took so long? Governor Blanco, not picking up the phone and giving permission for the Federal government to step in and take over before the hurricane hit. And Mayor Nagin not putting in place the evacuation plan that had been agreed upon years before. What did you people expect, a major air lift? Get real.
Yes, it's counterproductive to point fingers and assign blame. Unfortunately, there are some extremist elements of the party I was once proud to call my own who have no compunction about using this opportunity of human suffering for political gain, and all because they're under the illusion that this will get them back into the White House in 2008. I have a feeling that when the smoke clears, and the lawsuits start coming at the state and local level, there will be quite a few revelations.
By the way, I live in Houston, TX and we have had our share of hurricanes, so I speak from experience. We were ready for the evacuees from Louisianna long before the storm hit. Churches and private organizations, as well as the city of Houston were mobilized early on. If the city of New Orleans had done likewise, the loss of life might have been less. If the Governor of Louisiana had asked for federal intervention in a timely fashion...who knows how many lives would have been saved?
I am happy that Regikko is safe and that her home is relatively speaking, okay. I pray for those victims of the hurricane, and I grieve with the bereaved. I hope that when all the dust is settled and all is said and done, New Orleans will be better prepared for the next major hurricane that comes its way.
After all...here in the Gulf Coast region, it's still hurricane season until November...and if Katrina had been just 5 degrees west...Houston might very well have gotten it instead of New Orleans.
But then again...we Houstonians are pretty experienced with major hurricanes.
J. M. Pescado:
Quote from: ZephyrZodiac on 2005 September 06, 02:30:28
And let's face it, the Japanese have been living with disasters for a very long time! And far less people died living in traditional Japanese paper houses than have died in recent years in concrete tower blocks!
There's something to be said for cheapness and expendability, too. If a paper house collapses on somebody, it won't kill them. The problem here is when people try to find some kind of middle ground, which, as we all know, tends to produce a solution that satisfies neither condition. If you live in a cardboard box, you won't have much to worry about from most disasters, either.
ZephyrZodiac:
Keep an old tin bath in the outhouse, and you've something to keep you afloat till the water levels drop!
On a more serious note, it seems odd that the US Federal government could go into Afghanistan and Iraq without permission from their Governments (ostensibly to sort out life-threatening situations) but couldn't override a state government in the US itself! Surely, to prevent this kind of thing ever happening again, there needs to be a rider added to the constitution to allow a takeover by the state if a local government is not handling a situation? What, in fact, would have been the case had the state government actually been wiped out by the disaster, and there was no government to make the decision to ask for assistance?
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