an interesting view

[grimm]

on the current crisis and its timeline


IIRC The Department of Homeland Security is responsible. The Secretary was
chosen by the President and he also agreed on who the head of FEMA should
be. Therefore they should be in charge and responsible for any screw ups.

Rudy did a great job of handling a tiny crisis in New York relative to what
is going on in LA, MS and AL. He is so good at what he did, he probably
should also have been sent to Iraq to lead our troops to victory and then
use his "crisis manager" skills there.

I heard FEMA actually did some practice disaster releif exercises in NO so
they should have had a plan and a knowledge of the nuances of the
governmental structure, the location of supplies, the transportation system,
the levies etc. However, as Bush plays war hero president, the ability of
FEMA to respond was weakened. It may have been due to stupidity or not
caring or robbing Peter to pay paul the Iraq fiasco or a simple desire to
reduce the domestic budget.

This piece from the Washington Journal gives an interesting look at the
management and the funding of FEMA:

"CHRONOLOGY....Here's a timeline that outlines the fate of both FEMA and
flood control projects in New Orleans under the Bush administration. Read it
and weep:


a.. January 2001: Bush appoints Joe Allbaugh, a crony from Texas, as head
of FEMA. Allbaugh has no previous experience in disaster management.


b.. April 2001: Budget Director Mitch Daniels announces the Bush
administration's goal of privatizing much of FEMA's work. In May, Allbaugh
confirms that FEMA will be downsized: "Many are concerned that federal
disaster assistance may have evolved into both an oversized entitlement
program...." he said. "Expectations of when the federal government should be
involved and the degree of involvement may have ballooned beyond what is an
appropriate level."


c.. 2001: FEMA designates a major hurricane hitting New Orleans as one of
the three "likeliest, most catastrophic disasters facing this country."


d.. December 2002: After less than two years at FEMA, Allbaugh announces
he is leaving to start up a consulting firm that advises companies seeking
to do business in Iraq. He is succeeded by his deputy, Michael Brown, who,
like Allbaugh, has no previous experience in disaster management.


e.. March 2003: FEMA is downgraded from a cabinet level position and
folded into the Department of Homeland Security. Its mission is refocused on
fighting acts of terrorism.


f.. 2003: Under its new organization chart within DHS, FEMA's preparation
and planning functions are reassigned to a new Office of Preparedness and
Response. FEMA will henceforth focus only on response and recovery.


g.. Summer 2004: FEMA denies Louisiana's pre-disaster mitigation funding
requests. Says Jefferson Parish flood zone manager Tom Rodrigue: "You would
think we would get maximum consideration....This is what the grant program
called for. We were more than qualified for it."


h.. June 2004: The Army Corps of Engineers budget for levee construction
in New Orleans is slashed. Jefferson Parish emergency management chiefs
Walter Maestri comments: "It appears that the money has been moved in the
president's budget to handle homeland security and the war in Iraq, and I
suppose that's the price we pay."


i.. June 2005: Funding for the New Orleans district of the U.S. Army Corps
of Engineers is cut by a record $71.2 million. One of the hardest-hit areas
is the Southeast Louisiana Urban Flood Control Project, which was created
after the May 1995 flood to improve drainage in Jefferson, Orleans and St.
Tammany parishes.


j.. August 2005: While New Orleans is undergoing a slow motion
catastrophe, Bush mugs for the cameras, cuts a cake for John McCain, plays
the guitar for Mark Wills, delivers an address about V-J day, and continues
with his vacation. When he finally gets around to acknowledging the scope of
the unfolding disaster, he delivers only a photo op on Air Force One and a
flat, defensive, laundry list speech in the Rose Garden.


So: A crony with no relevant experience was installed as head of FEMA.
Mitigation budgets for New Orleans were slashed even though it was known to
be one of the top three risks in the country. FEMA was deliberately
downsized as part of the Bush administration's conservative agenda to reduce
the role of government. After DHS was created, FEMA's preparation and
planning functions were taken away.

Actions have consequences. No one could predict that a hurricane the size of
Katrina would hit this year, but the slow federal response when it did
happen was no accident. It was the result of four years of deliberate
Republican policy and budget choices that favor ideology and partisan
loyalty at the expense of operational competence. It's the Bush
administration in a nutshell."

[JoesHO]

Amen

[Newton]

Just watching this on the BBC now .. Civil engineers being interviewed about the levees .. Bush going to be taking a visit there today to 'survey the situation' .. people dying and being left where they are .. where the fuck is the food, water and medical attention these people so desperately need, its been four days now!!.

[Dravyk]

I read the headlines that said Bush surveyed the disaster area. Not until I got into the stories did I find out all he did was look out the window of Air Force One on his way back to Washington. Talk about "spin". What a total fuck!

And we were just talking on this board several days ago about the President and vacation. And how he doesn't need to be in Washington he can handle everything there. So he flies from a neighboring state all the way up to DC and doesn't even stop in Lousianna???

Shit, Bush Sr and Clinton have been and/or are there already!

Then Cory mentioned elsewhere that the FEMA director said on TV: "The lawlessness that is being reported is few and far between.....everything is under control ..."

Another wonder from looking at the articles was about the Reserves enmassing in Baton Rouge. I swear some high official somewhere (not sure if this was a federal guy, governor's office, military or who) said they wouldn't be sending them into NO yet because things were currently too dangerous there! .....

WTF??? Has everyone lost their minds?!?!

[Rox]

Buff posted an interview with a local ("Bigfoot") who's at the Convention Center. Unbefuckinglievable.

The feds didn't even KNOW there were people at the Convention Center til today... goddamned incompetents!

[Newton]

Fuck i love the BBC .. They have one of the chief guys from ARUP speaking from the London Stock Exchange, explaining that they need to do controlled draining first which could take a minimum of 4-6 months before power can even be considered being turned on and pumps turned on. BBC is spot on and no bullshit ..

The looting will get worse and the disease leavels will esculate beyond all control, this is mainland USA not some tiny island in the middle of nowhere

What I dont understand is why he needs to visit there at all today, if he knows what is happening via tv/radio/internet and his advisors .. it reminds me of the story concerning King Canute who placed his throne on the edge of the beach and commanded the sea to go back, by his words alone.

This is fucking crazy ..

[Rolo]

Always expect politicians (no matter what side of the political spectrum they are from) to fuck things up. Politicians today are not visionary or real leaders - they are media puppets schooled in rhetoric - not in thinking or responsibility.

[ThrobX]

Why do I have the feeling that this guy is now an employee of OUR government's PR machine?

[Dravyk]

Originally Posted by ThrobX

Why do I have the feeling that this guy is now an employee of OUR government's PR machine?

Sadly, I think he really is in charge of FEMA.

[melody]

I fear you are right, Drav.

Thank heavens for the BBC - it's wonderful to have news that actually communicates with its audience as if we are adults. At this point, it's the only news source I'm listening to with a modicum of faith in its Gulf Coast crisis information.