Katrina

[BombaySapphire3]

I just don't understand how there could be so many delays in so many arenas there.In one of the wealthiest and most technologically advanced nations on this Earth New Orleans might as well be a city in the most impoverished third world country in the world with the response time and interventions that have occured there in the last week.I don't know if this is just due to incompetence or something more sinister like incidental genocide by the Bush adminisration .I think Bush needs to understand that the buck still stops at the oval office and if he is not held fully accountable for his part then this is no longer the America that I once knew and loved.

[gldstwmn]

Originally Posted by strandinthewind

I just do not understand why FEMA just does not say YES to every offer. What harm could it do. I think anyone that offers knows there are inherent dangers involved so that cannot be an issue. I mean isn't it better to have this shiitte there and not use it then have to wait five days for it to get there after its nedd proved exigent enough to merit requesting it

I know. Look at how well the citizen volunteers did at the WTC in the first days after 9/11.

[GypsySorcerer]

Guardsmen 'played cards' amid New Orleans chaos: police official
32 minutes ago

NEW ORLEANS, United States (AFP) - A top New Orleans police officer said that National Guard troops sat around playing cards while people died in the stricken city after Hurricane Katrina.

New Orleans deputy police commander W.S. Riley launched a bitter attack on the federal response to the disaster though he praised the way the evacuation was eventually handled.

His remarks fuelled controversy over the government's handling of events during five days when New Orleans succumbed to lawlessness after Katrina swamped the city's flood defenses.

The National Guard commander, Lieutenant General Steven Blum, said the reservist force was slow to move troops into New Orleans because it did not anticipate the collapse of the city's police force.

But Riley said that for the first three days after Monday's storm, which is believed to have killed several thousand people, the police and fire departments and some volunteers had been alone in trying to rescue people.

"We expected a lot more support from the federal government. We expected the government to respond within 24 hours. The first three days we had no assistance," he told AFP in an interview.

Riley went on: "We have been fired on with automatic weapons. We still have some thugs around. My biggest disappointment is with the federal government and the National Guard.

"The guard arrived 48 hours after the hurricane with 40 trucks. They drove their trucks in and went to sleep.

"For 72 hours this police department and the fire department and handful of citizens were alone rescuing people. We have people who died while the National Guard sat and played cards. I understand why we are not winning the war in Iraq if this is what we have."

Riley said there is "a semblance of organisation now."

"The military is here and they have done an excellent job with the evacuation" of the tens of thousands of people stranded in the city.

The National Guard commander said the city police force was left with only a third of its pre-storm strength.

"The real issue, particularly in New Orleans, is that no one anticipated the disintegration or the erosion of the civilian police force in New Orleans," Blum told reporters in Washington.

"Once that assessment was made ... then the requirement became obvious," he said. "And that's when we started flowing military police into the theatre."

On Friday, New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin denounced the slow federal response as too little, too late, charging that promised troops had not arrived in time.

"Now get off your asses and let's do something and fix the biggest goddamn crisis in the history of this country," the mayor said in remarks aired on CNN.

Blum said that since Thursday some 7,000 National Guard and military police had moved into the city. President George W. Bush on Saturday ordered an additional 7,000 active duty and reserve ground troops.

Blum said any suggestion that the National Guard had not performed well or was late was a "low blow".

The initial priority of the Louisiana and Mississippi National Guard forces was disaster relief, not law enforcement, because they expected the police to handle that, he said.

The police commander was unable to give a death toll for New Orleans.

"We have bodies all over the city. A federal mortuary team was supposed to come in within 24 hours. We haven't seen them. It is inhumane. This is just not America."

Riley said he did not even know how many police remained from a normal force of 1,700.

"Many officers lost their homes or their families and there are many we have not heard from. Some officers could not handle the pressure and left. I don't know if we have 800 or thousands today."

[strandinthewind]

Katrina's growing economic impact
Gas prices only tip of the iceberg, as deadly storm will affect real estate, trade, heating costs.
September 2, 2005: 6:06 PM EDT
By Chris Isidore, CNN/Money senior writer

NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - The human toll of Hurricane Katrina is already far too evident to anyone watching news reports this week, and the economic impact is evident to anyone who's pulled up to a gasoline pump.

But experts say that higher gasoline prices aren't the only economic fallout from the devastating storm.

Real estate and home construction, trade, agriculture and livestock -- even the purchasing power of the dollar -- are all likely to be impacted by the storm in the coming months.

And energy price increases will be felt by U.S. consumers, businesses and the broader economy, even beyond the sudden spike in gasoline prices.

Energy
Gasoline has seen a spike to a record national average of $2.86 a gallon on Friday, and $3 a gallon gas is now common in many markets around the country. Many speculate that $4 a gallon gas could be seen in some markets soon.

Crude oil prices retreated somewhat on Friday, but higher crude prices could be ahead, perhaps above $80 a barrel by some estimates, by year-end.

"If we look at Hurricane Ivan (which hit the Gulf in 2004), oil prices continued to go up for more than a month," said A. F. Alhajji, associate professor at Ohio Northern University. "Companies continued to work on their facilities but there were always delays restoring production."

As colder weather comes, heating oil and natural gas price hikes could replace concerns about prices at the gas pump for some consumers.

Natural gas prices, which were already expected to rise 15 to 25 percent from last winter even before Katrina, saw futures prices jump about 20 percent during the last week. Home heating oil is essentially the same product as diesel fuel, which has soared nearly 50 percent in the last year and more than 15 percent in the last month alone.

Real Estate
Real estate and home building have been major drivers of the U.S. economy in recent years. The impact of Katrina on those important sectors are difficult to gauge, economists say.

On the one hand, the sharp fall in interest rates in the wake of the storm could keep mortgage rates low and continue to support home prices and building around the country.

But the demand for goods for rebuilding could cause shortages and price spikes for some goods, according to economists in the sector. The problem could be worsened by the fact that many imported building materials enter the country through the now closed Gulf ports

"I think the impact is going to be nationwide for construction," said Ken Simonson, chief economist for the Associated General Contractors of America, the trade group for non-residential builders.

Simonson said that the rebuilding effort could draw labor to the Gulf region.

"Contractors will have to raise wages to keep their workers in place," he said.

Dave Seiders, chief economist for the National Association of Home Builders, said he's not as concerned about labor shortages as he is about price increases for lumber and other building materials, which he estimates could mean $10,000 or more in higher costs for a new home.

Trade
The gap between U.S. imports and exports, already headed to a new record in 2005, is likely to grow even faster due to Katrina, according to experts.

The American Farm Bureau Federation estimates that there could be a $500 million export loss for U.S. producers who normally export through the Gulf ports. That loss could be longer term if international buyers to look to other sources, such as China for corn, or South America for soybeans.

"My expectation was the trade deficit would increase anyway into the low 60 (billion dollar a month) range," said international economist Jay Bryson of Wachovia Securities. "A $70 billion (monthly trade gap) sounds like a stretch, but we could be looking at the mid to high 60s now."

A growing trade deficit, coupled with any increase in the federal budget deficit due to emergency spending, would put downward pressure on the value of the dollar, which in turn could raise the price of imports for Americans.

A recession in the works?
The prospect that the U.S. economy will significantly slow is one reason many investors and analysts now believe the Federal Reserve may not raise rates at its Sept. 20 meeting, which would be the first time since May 2004 it left rates unchanged.

But there are growing concerns that the combination of higher energy prices and some transportation disruptions, coupled with lower economic activity in the Gulf region itself, could be enough to plunge the economy into an actual recession.

Higher energy costs are likely to be felt by businesses across the board, but probably first and foremost by industrial companies and the already struggling airline industry, which could see several new bankruptcies due to soaring jet fuel prices. Northwest Airlines (Research) cited the increased jet fuel prices Friday when it warned of increasing losses that could force it into bankrupcy.

While energy is not as important to the U.S. economy as it was during the oil shocks of the 1970s and early 1980s, it still can take a big bite out of consumer spending, which fuels more than two-thirds of economic activity.

"I don't think it's too soon to talk about a recession, even if I still think there's less than a 50-50 chance," said Doug Porter, deputy chief economist of BMO Nesbitt Burns. "Every other recent recession has been preceded by an energy shock. Certainly at the least there is a risk that growth will be curtailed."

One estimate puts the economic cost of Katrina at more than $100 billion.

Find this article at:
http://money.cnn.com/2005/09/02/news...ex.htm?cnn=yes

[gldstwmn]

http://www.cnn.com/2005/WEATHER/09/0...tro/index.html

Castro offers medical aid to U.S.

Saturday, September 3, 2005; Posted: 4:33 a.m. EDT (08:33 GMT)

HAVANA, Cuba (CNN) -- Cuban President Fidel Castro has offered to send help to the United States in the wake of Hurricane Katrina.

At a nightly roundtable program on state-run television Friday, the Cuban leader said his nation was ready to send 1,100 doctors and 26 tons of medicine and equipment.

Castro -- an enemy of U.S. President George W. Bush and frequent subject of condemnation from the White House -- said he would not comment on the U.S. government's response to the tragedy because "this is not the time to kick an adversary -- while he's down."

Castro said the doctors he was offering have international experience.

The United States has no diplomatic relations with Cuba. It remained unclear whether the White House would take Castro up on his offer.

After a massive earthquake in Bam, Iran, in December 2003, the United States sent aid -- even though the United States has no diplomatic ties with Iran.

[GypsySorcerer]

Mississippians' Suffering Overshadowed
By EMILY WAGSTER PETTUS, Associated Press Writer
9 minutes ago

JACKSON, Miss. - Mississippi hurricane survivors looked around Saturday and wondered just how long it would take to get food, clean water and shelter. And they were more than angry at the federal government and the national news media.

Richard Gibbs was disgusted by reports of looting in New Orleans and upset at the lack of attention hurricane victims in his state were getting.

"I say burn the bridges and let 'em all rot there," he said. "We're suffering over here too, but we're not killing each other. We've got to help each other. We need gas and food and water and medical supplies."

Gibbs and his wife, Holly, have been stuck at their flooded home in Gulfport just off the Biloxi River. Water comes up to the second floor, they are out of gasoline, and food supplies are running perilously low.

Until recently, they also had Holly's 75-year-old father, who has a pacemaker and severe diabetes, with them. Finally they got an ambulance to take him to the airport so he could be airlifted to Lafayette, La., for medical help.

In poverty-stricken north Gulfport, Grover Chapman was angry at the lack of aid.

"Something should've been on this corner three days ago," Chapman, 60, said Saturday as he whipped up dinner for his neighbors.

He used wood from his demolished produce stand to cook fish, rabbit, okra and butter beans he'd been keeping in his freezer. Although many houses here, about five miles inland, are still standing, they are severely damaged. Corrugated tin roofs lie scattered on the ground.

"I'm just doing what I can do," Chapman said. "These people support me with my produce stand every day. Now it's time to pay them back."

One neighbor, 78-year-old Georgia Smylie, knew little about what's happening elsewhere. She was too worried about her own situation.

"My medicine is running out. I need high blood pressure medicine, medicine for my heart," she said.

Larry Sabato, a University of Virginia political scientist, said he's been watching hours of Katrina coverage every day and most of the national media attention has focused on the devastation and looting in New Orleans.

"Mississippi needs more coverage," Sabato said. "Until people see it on TV, they don't think it's real."

Along the battered Mississippi Gulf Coast, crews started searching boats for corpses on Saturday. Several shrimpers are believed to have died as they tried to ride out the storm aboard their boats on the Intracoastal Waterway.

President Bush toured ravaged areas of the Mississippi coast on Friday with Gov. Haley Barbour and other state officials. They also flew over flooded New Orleans.

"I'm going to tell you, Mississippi got hit much harder than they did, but what happened in the aftermath — it makes your stomach hurt to go miles and miles and miles and the houses are all under water up to the roof," Barbour said.

Keisha Moran has been living in a tent in a department store parking lot in Bay St. Louis with her boyfriend and three young children since the hurricane struck. She said National Guardsmen have brought her water but no other aid so far, and she was furious that it took Bush several days before he came to see the damage in Mississippi.

"It's how many days later? How many people are dead?" Moran said.

Mississippi's death toll from Hurricane Katrina stood at 144 on Saturday, according to confirmed reports from coroners and the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency. Barbour had said Friday the total was 147, but he didn't provide a county-by-county breakdown.

In a strongly worded editorial, The Sun Herald of Biloxi-Gulfport pleaded for help and questioned why a massive National Guard presence wasn't already visible.

"We understand that New Orleans also was devastated by Hurricane Katrina, but surely this nation has the resources to rescue both that metropolitan (area) and ours," the newspaper editorialized, saying survival basics like ice, gasoline and medicine have been too slow to arrive.

"We are not calling on the nation and the state to make life more comfortable in South Mississippi, we are calling on the nation and the state to make life here possible," the paper wrote.

[GypsySorcerer]

President Clinton is speaking via phone to Larry King. Bush-Clinton Katrina Foundation

[gldstwmn]

Originally Posted by GypsySorcerer

President Clinton is speaking via phone to Larry King. Bush-Clinton Katrina Foundation

He'll be in Houston visiting the folks at The Astrodome on Monday.

[dissention]

Originally Posted by GypsySorcerer

President Clinton is speaking via phone to Larry King. Bush-Clinton Katrina Foundation

Did you hear what he said about Denny Haster's recent remarks?

"I'm afraid I would have assaulted him."

[GypsySorcerer]

Originally Posted by dissention

Did you hear what he said about Denny Haster's recent remarks?

"I'm afraid I would have assaulted him."

I did read that. It appears that Hastert is trying to backpedal now. The Republican Strategy: open mouth, change feet.

[GypsySorcerer]

Originally Posted by gldstwmn

He'll be in Houston visiting the folks at The Astrodome on Monday.

I had heard he was going to Asia Monday. I could have misunderstood, though.

[gldstwmn]

Originally Posted by GypsySorcerer

I had heard he was going to Asia Monday. I could have misunderstood, though.

Hmmmm. I don't have a link so I don't know. That's what I heard though.

[dissention]

Originally Posted by gldstwmn

Hmmmm. I don't have a link so I don't know. That's what I heard though.

He is, I heard the same thing on F*cker Carlson's show.

[strandinthewind]

The situation in MS is certainly very bad and they certainly need help cleaning up as well as medical assistance, etc. But, to my knowledge, there were not several thousand people there trapped in attics or on rooftops or in a city with no food or water and in contaminated surroundings. Thus, the situation in NOLA is more dire than the very very bad situation in MS. The point is though that there should have been enough people to take care of everyone in a timely manner - if they can get the troops there in a week or more, why couldn't they get them there in a day or so when everyone knew what was coming. Interestingly, notice Fox is not attacking the GOP Gov. of MS

[Livia]

Creepy sidebar: NOLA is such a spiritual, haunted place already, with its history and voodoo subculture. I can't help but wonder what this will do in that sense.