In Reply to: Point well taken Cliff! posted by rds1 on Friday, 2. September 2005 at 06:48 Bali Time:
You've really got to wonder about people's priorities when they're stealing guns and TV sets -- the two most abundant and useless commodities in the US.
I do have some sympathy for the people who chose to stay. Ever since 2001 they've been hearing about threats and warnings every day. Maybe the government has cried wolf once too often.
I've never been to New Orleans, and I'm finding it hard to get a mental picture of it (other than vague memories of the film 'Angel heart', which mainly centre around Lisa Bonet). The town is below the level of the lake, right? And the levees stop the lake flooding the town? So... what? They built that part of town during low tide? Don't worry... I'll look it up. But I'm thinking maybe they should just leave the lake in its natural place and build around it this time.
If any good at all can come from this, maybe Bush and his goofy mates will have to face the reality that global warming isn't all fun in the sun. And all the new drilling in Alaska's formerly protected national parks isn't going to help much. Alaska is 4 degrees warmer that a decade ago, and the houses are sinking into the melting permafrost. Those huskies are going to have to learn how to pull sleds doing the doggy-paddle.
And, yeh... whatever resources anyone has in the area should definitely go towards helping the victims. And the hundreds of thousands who were left behind during the evacuation should be the first to be helped back into a home and given jobs.
And don't waste too much energy being proud or ashamed of what people outside your sphere of influence do or don't do. Just stay one of the good people and be proud that you do what you can, and that others may be encouraged to do the same, wherever they're from.