Finding the Devil in New Orleans

[richlevy]

Glad to hear you're ok. Let us know if we can help.

[Clodfobble]

Glad to hear from you, busterb!

[Elspode]

There was a lot of nailbiting around here wondering how you'd fared, BB. Glad you're safe. Let us know how we can help.

[tw]

Tonight (Monday), Nightline showed the USS Bataan docking in New Orleans. Bataan is a Marine assault ship with beds for hundreds, 100,000 gallons of fresh water per day, six operating rooms supporting a large hospital, a crew of 1200 Marines and sailors, and even electricity so that police could recharge their radios. It is basically a small aircraft carrier to support and transport thousands.

But wait, the USS Bataan was not dispatched from Norfolk VA? The USS Bataan has been sitting in the Gulf of Mexico all this week awaiting orders. The Bataan traveled north along the TX coast in 13 foot seas when Katrina was slowly moving onto New Orleans. The Bataan could have docked in New Orleans on Tuesday or Wednesday to dispatch its 1200 man crew on rescue missions, feed thousands, and house hundreds. But the Bataan sat out this entire week in the Gulf awaiting orders from top management - who we need not name again.

Today the Bataan docked in New Orleans apparently just ahead of its sister ship Iwo Jima and other ships from VA. Maybe Bataan was delayed from docking so that we would not notice it did not come from VA? More of the devil's details. Days after thousands died from lack of food, water, medical supplies, and rescue; suddenly the president is bragging about how he got things moving? Well these neocons did just as much on 11 September. Yet we reelected the mental midget. I need not mention where 85% of all problems come from. That someone is again back in the region for more press photo ops - and avoiding New Orleans.

This story was provided by Chicago Tribune at Navy ship nearby underused

If I had wrote these details weeks ago, you would have called it total fiction - improbable - complete fabrication. No president could be that stupid. But then the president's response to Katrina was just as unresponsive on 11 September. Show me otherwise. Show me where the president did anything useful on 11 September OR while thousands died from Katrina flooding. The USS Bataan was sitting *where* this whole time - not utilized? Who elected these leaders? Were they told to do so by god? It only proves god is punishing a city of sin. Look out Las Vegas. George Jr will save you too from yourselves.

Meanwhile FEMA has declared 13 states under Katrina Emergency Declaration: Utah, N Carolina, Florida, Georgia, Texas, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Arkansas, Tennessee, Oklahoma, and even West Virginia. By declaring so many states on Friday and Monday as victims of a hurricane one week past, then do these states also get no aid? Last time I looked, Katrina did not get anywhere near to Utah.

Meanwhile the county that busterb lives in (as best I can tell) is not designated by FEMA's Emergeny Declaration for Mississippi:

This assistance is for the counties of Covington, Forrest, Hancock, Harrison, Jackson, Jefferson Davis, Jones, Lamar, Marion, Pearl River, and Stone.

Normally I would have done more investigation before reporting this list of states. But why bother any more? At this point, FEMA and the administration are guilty until proven innocent. The only question remaining is what did they do right. FEMA's UnderSecretary is a George Jr political appointee. Need we say any more? Like breeds like.

Just wondering what that Presidential Daily Briefing predicted about Katrina and the levees of New Orleans? Not that this President reads his PDBs. After all, George Jr said nobody expected a Category 5 hurricane to breach Category 3 levees; contrary to what his PDBs would have reported. Just wondering how bad that unread PDB said this hurricane was expected to be. You remember those unread PDBs, such as the one warning of 11 September terrorist attacks.

Anyone want to complain about the term 'mental midget'? It was never an exaggeration. I even read his autobiography before I decided the term was fully appropriate.

[Griff]

Originally Posted by busterb

I'm alive and well. No power or phone, most of roofing gone. Think when the service was ripped from house, 110 went to ground and toasted phones and all things that were pluged in. See "ya" soon? BB

I'm glad you're ok, stay safe. Griff

[Undertoad]

From the comments section of a QandO post

I have a family member aboard the Bataan and they are FURIOUS. We were receiving emails BEFORE Katrina struck, indicating they would be riding the storm out, then heading in for service wherever they were needed.

Yes, they were given the Go Ahead, as in GO AHEAD AND WAIT!!!!! Bataan WAS ordered to prepare - which they did with breakneck speed - and once ready were told to wait, bobbing offshore (less than TEN miles offshore) like a toy the "Big Kids" weren’t ready to play with just yet.

Our family member was to have returned home the Wednesday before Katrina struck, at which time they were going to attend a family reunion in late September - they were told on Sunday —again, BEFORE the aftermath began to be seen—that they could be in that area for up to two months.

We’ve received emails that are heartrending - their medical facilities, personnel and staff, as well as the capacity to generate OVER 70,000 gallons of potable water PER DAY went un-used due to waiting for a GD ’go ahead’. She said the morale onboard - as they all watched news updates via satellite - was the lowest ever seen.

WE HAD A FULLY LOADED - STOCKED - ABLE - ship and full crew ready to go in and help IMMEDIATELY.

I’m tired of all the ’speculation’ as to the truth of Bataan holding back - our family had the news BEFORE the media did.

Don’t blame the Bataan, its crew or commanders. Blame the bureaucratic bastards who kept them from heading in to help. Two days after we got word of this, the ship’s commander, Nora Tyson, was quoted in Navy Newsstand - "We’re waiting but we can’t force ourselves in...." The Barking Dog barked - but its owner wouldn’t untie the fucking leash.

The administration is finger-pointing in every direction, with all ten - but the sad fact remains - all it would have taken was ONE message, ONE word, ONE call - and help - less than ten miles out to sea—would have been given.

[Happy Monkey]

I've heard speculation that it was delayed so it would show up at the same time as the ships from Virginia. I'm not sure why.

[Kitsune]

Everybody <a href="http://www.katrinamistakelist.com/">loves a little conspiracy theory now and then</a>.

Originally Posted by tw

Meanwhile FEMA has declared 13 states under Katrina Emergency Declaration: Utah, N Carolina, Florida, Georgia, Texas, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Arkansas, Tennessee, Oklahoma, and even West Virginia. By declaring so many states on Friday and Monday as victims of a hurricane one week past, then do these states also get no aid? Last time I looked, Katrina did not get anywhere near to Utah.

UTAH!

They really did, too. I clicked on the link just to make sure it wasn't a typo of some sort. How the hell did Katrina make its way WEST, skip over states like Oklahoma and Colorado and wreck havoc in Utah? Damn, those Mormons must have one hell of a lobbying group in DC!

UTAH! Will wonders never cease? Say, I notice its a little cloudy today here in Colorado, think we could be declared hurricane victims, too?

[plthijinx]

OUTSTANDING! glad your alright Busterb!!

within the last 7 days i've logged over 40 hours flight time over Abbeville, La and Sabine Pass. get this: saturday a chopper had to make an emergency landing because it was shot at and hit bad enough to have to force a landing. it was shot down. either friday or saturday a life flight helicopter took 5 hits but did not go down. then on sunday another chopper was hit and went down as well. wtf? this small group of neanderthals is screwing up the rescue efforts for the rest of the people! dumb asses. i hope they get what's coming to them.

Originally Posted by plthijinx

within the last 7 days i've logged over 40 hours flight time over Abbeville, La and Sabine Pass. get this: saturday a chopper had to make an emergency landing because it was shot at and hit bad enough to have to force a landing. it was shot down. either friday or saturday a life flight helicopter took 5 hits but did not go down. then on sunday another chopper was hit and went down as well. wtf? this small group of neanderthals is screwing up the rescue efforts for the rest of the people! dumb asses. i hope they get what's coming to them.

Fucking unbelievable! Reports like that make me rethink my stance on the death penalty. Keep up the good work, plth, and stay SAFE!

[Elspode]

States that are providing housing for Katrina survivors are declaring a state of emergency to open their bureaucracies and make the accodomation of these people more smooth.

I think they're trying to make sure they don't screw the pooch like the Feds did.

[plthijinx]

thanks marichiko. safety is paramount in my flying.

they're opening up two cruise ships to help with the housing relief but some don't want to go. i'm sorry....come again? from the houston chronicle.

[BigV]

busterb, I am so glad you're alive and well. Your posts about your postion on the map and the track of the storm and the well, hell, you saw what happened. We did too, but we could only worry. Thanks for checking in. Welcome back.

[OnyxCougar]

Aug 31, 2005
11:21 a.m.
NORFOLK, Va. (NNS) — The U.S. Navy announces three amphibious ships and a rescue and salvage ship based in Hampton Roads are getting underway Aug. 31 and heading for the Gulf of Mexico to support relief operations along the U.S. Gulf Coast following widespread destruction caused by Hurricane Katrina.

The multipurpose amphibious assault ship USS Iwo Jima (LHD 7) and the amphibious transport dock USS Shreveport (LPD 12), both based at Naval Station Norfolk; the dock landing ship USS Tortuga (LSD 46) and the rescue and salvage ship USS Grapple (ARS 53), both based at Naval Amphibious Base (NAB) Little Creek, Va., will join the Norfolk-based multipurpose amphibious assault ship USS Bataan (LHD 5), which is already off the Gulf Coast.

From http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2005/...in810774.shtml

Sept 1, 2005
6:00 a.m.
The Boston Globe reported Thursday that as recently as this summer Congress denied Louisiana help to protect its eroding coastline from flooding and major storms such as Katrina. State lawmakers were reportedly worried that a huge hurricane could do permanent damage to its coast, and proposed an addition to the federal energy bill that would have given the Cajun state a share of oil-drilling money — up to $1 billion per year.

But Louisiana's congressional delegation was turned down by a "Congress bent on budget-cutting and reluctant to pay for expensive preventative measures," the Globe reports.

From http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2005/...in812561.shtml