The Plame Game

A Bright Spot in Bush World

Amid the Miserable Failures on the Same Planet
A Message from Cindy Sheehan

It has been one month and one week since I sat in a ditch in Crawford, Tx. I can hardly believe it when I think of it myself. So much has happened in that time, and really, so little.

I got to Camp Casey III in Covington, La today, after getting up at 3am to head for the airport. Now it is 3am the next day and we are driving in a car to try and find a hotel to sleep anywhere around Jackson, Miss. I was prepared to be shocked by what I saw in Louisiana, but I guess one can never really fully prepare for such devastation and tragedy. After living in a country your entire life it is so difficult to see such callous indifference on an immense scale. When I reflect on how the mother of the imbecile who is running our country said that the people who are in the Astrodome are happy to be there, it angers me beyond comparison. The people in LA who were displaced have nice, if modest homes that are perfectly fine. I wonder why the government made them leave at great expense and uproot families who have been living in their communities for generations.

After we arrived at Camp Casey III, we took the Veterans for Peace "Impeachment Tour Bus" into New Orleans after stopping at the distribution center to pick up some supplies in Covington. The stench and the destruction are unbelievable. I saw some hurricane zones in the panhandle of Florida last year that were pretty bad but that couldn't have prepared me for this.

I saw in the paper that George Bush said the recovery in the Gulf States would be "hard work." That's what he said about sending troops to Iraq and looking at the casualty reports everyday: "It's hard work." That man has never known a day of hard work in his life. The people on the ground in Covington scoffed at George's little junket to Louisiana yesterday. He stayed in the French Quarter and a Ward that weren't even damaged a bit. The VFP took me to the city of Algiers on the West Bank. The part of Algiers we went to was very poor and black. The people of Algiers know what hard work is.

Algiers had no flooding. All of the damage was from winds. There are trees knocked over and shingles off of roofs. There are signs blown over and there was a dead body lying on the ground for 2 weeks before someone finally came to get it. Even though Algiers came through Katrina relatively unscathed, our federal government tried to force (mostly successfully) the people out of the community. Malik Rahim, a new friend of ours and resident of Algiers, told us stories of the days after the hurricane. The government declared martial law, but there was no effective police presence to enforce it. Malik said the lawlessness was rampant. People were running out of food and water and they were being forced to go to the Superdome. They didn't want to go to the Superdome, because their homes were pretty intact: they wanted to stay and have food and water brought to them. A town of 76,000 people dwindled down to 3,000. The die hards were rewarded last Wednesday when the VFP rolled into town with food and water. The Camp Casey III people were the first ones to bring any relief to Algiers. The people who were supposed to look after its citizens, our government, failed them.

In Algiers, in the space of 2 short weeks, Malik and his community has opened a clinic which also doubles as a food and supply distribution center. We need more help in Algiers. Malik and the other dozens fine volunteers are planning on opening 2 more clinics in Algiers and Malik would dearly love someone to give him a flat bottomed boat so he can go to the flood drenched poor communities that still have not been helped and bring them food, supplies, and medical attention. Medical professionals are dearly needed. Malik has also set up a communications center in an apartment next to his house which is for the community to use. The aid that is being given in Algiers is completely driven by the needs of the community. They have a saying in Algiers: Not Charity, Solidarity.

The citizens of Algiers desperately needed help and hope before the hurricane. When I think of how many other poor neighborhoods are being decimated and made so desperate and hopeless by the failed policies of the Bush administration, it makes me so angry. But when I see what the people of Algiers are doing to help themselves and the people of America are doing to help them help themselves, it gives me hope. I think Algiers can be a model for all of our communities.

One thing that truly troubled me about my visit to Louisiana was the level of the military presence there. I imagined before that if the military had to be used in a CONUS (Continental US) operations that they would be there to help the citizens: Clothe them, feed them, shelter them, and protect them. But what I saw was a city that is occupied. I saw soldiers walking around in patrols of 7 with their weapons slung on their backs. I wanted to ask one of them what it would take for one of them to shoot me. Sand bags were removed from private property to make machine gun nests.

The vast majority of people who were looting in New Orleans were doing so to feed their families or to get resources to get their families out of there. If I had a store with an inventory of insured belongings, and a tragedy happened, I would fling my doors open and tell everyone to take what they need: it is only stuff. When our fellow citizens are told to "shoot to kill" other fellow citizens because they want to stay alive, that is military and governmental fascism gone out of control. What I saw today in Algiers lifted up my spirits, but what I also saw today in Algiers frightened me terribly.

The people who are running the clinic in Algiers gave me a list of desperately needed supplies:

Blood pressure medication---properly packaged.
Allergy medication---properly packaged
Vitamin B
Pens, paper, sharpies, index cards
Glucometers and test strips
Full O2 tanks
Power strips and extension cords
Non-DEET insect repellent
Mini bottles of Hand Sanitizer
A copy machine is urgently needed
People: Call: 512-297-1049

Send supplies to:
Fed Ex or UPS
Veterans for Peace Ch 116
C/O 645 Kimbro Dr.
Baton Rouge, La. 70808

Mark them: For the Medical Clinic in Algiers

The children in Algiers have also been out of school. Malik would like to open a school and they need school supplies and teachers.

I have a testimony from a Doctor that came to Louisiana to help that I will post tomorrow. The failure in every level of our government is criminal negligence. Tens of thousands of families in our country have been devastated because of the incompetence and callousness of our so-called leadership. America is stepping up to the plate to help Americans. America stepped up to the plate to hold George accountable for the abomination in Iraq. One thing George has taught us is that we are self-sufficient and we have a country that is worth fighting for and we are not going away.

I was told that Pat Boone was on a conservative radio talk show in San Francisco (yes they do exist) with Melanie Morgan (who has a vendetta against me) and he told the listeners that after we "stole the supplies" from the Red Cross, we gave them to the "enemies of America who are like the people who want to fly airplanes into our buildings." Boone says that we were giving them to enemies of America, because we were distributing the supplies from a Mosque. First of all, accusing me of stealing is slander, I think, and second of all: we were helping Americans. Just because their government abandoned them, we shouldn't feed them and give them medicine and supplies? I thought Pat Boone was supposed to be a Christian man? Thirdly, isn't Freedom of Religion one of our Constitutional guarantees?

It is a Christ-like principal to feed the hungry, clothe the naked, and shelter the homeless. That's what is happening in Algiers and other places in Louisiana…but by the people of America, not the so-called "Christians" in charge. If George Bush truly listened to God and read the words of the Christ, Iraq and the devastation in New Orleans would have never happened.

I don't care if a human being is black, brown, white, yellow or pink. I don't care if a human being is Christian, Muslim, Jew, Buddhist, or pagan. I don't care what flag a person salutes: if a human being is hungry, then it is up to another human being to feed him/her. George Bush needs to stop talking, admit the mistakes of his all around failed administration, pull our troops out of occupied New Orleans and Iraq, and excuse his self from power. The only way America will become more secure is if we have a new administration that cares about Americans even if they don't fall into the top two percent of the wealthiest.

Indy and all,

Did you notice how strikingly similar the needs list that Cindy posted is to the needs list for families to send to the troops in Iraq?

That the federal government has brought conditions in Iraq to Louisiana is both disturbing and enlightening.

As John Colbert recently said on TDS, apparently we are fighting them over there, so people can die over here.

Cindy's post made me think of something and I was wondering if anyone else had this impression.

From watching the coverage of the aftermath of Katrina, I could easily get the impression that the people helping the Katrina survivors are white people.

Has anyone seen any coverage that includes the many, many things that the African American community is doing?

Power crews diverted
Restoring pipeline came first

By Nikki Davis Maute
The Hattiesburg (MS) American

Shortly after Hurricane Katrina roared through South Mississippi knocking out electricity and communication systems, the White House ordered power restored to a pipeline that sends fuel to the Northeast.

That order - to restart two power substations in Collins that serve Colonial Pipeline Co. - delayed efforts by at least 24 hours to restore power to two rural hospitals and a number of water systems in the Pine Belt.

At the time, gasoline was in short supply across the country because of Katrina. Prices increased dramatically and lines formed at pumps across the South.

"I considered it a presidential directive to get those pipelines operating," said Jim Compton, general manager of the South Mississippi Electric Power Association - which distributes power that rural electric cooperatives sell to consumers and businesses.

"I reluctantly agreed to pull half our transmission line crews off other projects and made getting the transmission lines to the Collins substations a priority," Compton said. "Our people were told to work until it was done.

"They did it in 16 hours, and I consider the effort unprecedented."

Katrina slammed into South Mississippi and Southeast Louisiana on Aug. 29, causing widespread devastation and plunging most of the area - including regional medical centers and rural hospitals - into darkness.

The storm also knocked out two power substations in Collins, just north of Hattiesburg. The substations were crucial to Atlanta-based Colonial Pipeline, which moves gasoline and diesel fuel from Texas, through Louisiana and Mississippi and up to the Northeast.

"We were led to believe a national emergency was created when the pipelines were shut down," Compton said.

White House call
Dan Jordan, manager of Southern Pines Electric Power Association, said Vice President Dick Cheney's office called and left voice mails twice shortly after the storm struck, saying the Collins substations needed power restored immediately.

Jordan dated the first call the night of Aug. 30 and the second call the morning of Aug. 31. Southern Pines supplies electricity to the substation that powers the Colonial pipeline.

Mississippi Public Service Commissioner Mike Callahan said the U.S. Department of Energy called him on Aug. 31. Callahan said department officials said opening the fuel line was a national priority.

Cheney's office referred calls about the pipeline to the Department of Homeland Security. Calls there were referred to Kirk Whitworth, who would not take a telephone message and required questions in the form of an e-mail.

Susan Castiglione, senior manager of corporate and public affairs with Colonial Pipeline, did not return phone calls.

Compton said workers who were trying to restore substations that power two rural hospitals - Stone County Hospital in Wiggins and George County Hospital in Lucedale - worked instead on the Colonial Pipeline project.

The move caused power to be restored at least 24 hours later than planned.

Mindy Osborn, emergency room coordinator at Stone County Hospital, said the power was not restored until six days after the storm on Sept. 4. She didn't have the number of patients who were hospitalized during the week after the storm.

"Oh, yes, 24 hours earlier would have been a help," Osborn said.

Compton said workers who were trying to restore power to some rural water systems also were taken off their jobs and placed on the Colonial Pipeline project. Compton did not name specific water systems affected.

Callahan's visit
Callahan is one of three elected public service commissioners who oversee most public utilities in the state. Commissioners, however, have no authority over rural electric power cooperatives.

Nevertheless, Callahan said he drove to Compton's office on U.S. 49 North in Hattiesburg to tell him about the call from the Department of Energy. Callahan said he would support whatever decision Compton made.

Callahan said energy officials told him gasoline and diesel fuel needed to flow through the pipeline to avert a national crisis from the inability to meet fuel needs in the Northeast.

Callahan said the process of getting the pipelines flowing would be difficult and that there was a chance the voltage required to do so would knock out the system - including power to Wesley Medical Center in Hattiesburg.

With Forrest General Hospital operating on generators, Wesley was the only hospital operating with full electric power in the Pine Belt in the days following Katrina.

"Our concern was that if Wesley went down, it would be a national crisis for Mississippi," Callahan said. "We knew it would take three to four days to get Forrest General Hospital's power restored and we did not want to lose Wesley."

Compton, though, followed the White House's directive.

Nathan Brown, manager of power supply for the electric association, was responsible for overseeing the delicate operation of starting the 5,000-horsepower pumps at the pipeline.

Engineers with Southern Co., the parent company of Mississippi Power Co., did a dual analysis of what it would take to restore power and Brown worked with Southern Co. engineers on the best and quickest way to restore power.

Work began at 10 a.m. Sept. 1 and power was restored at 2 a.m. Sept. 2 - a 16-hour job.

Night work
A good bit of the work took place at night.

Line foreman Matt Ready was in charge of one of the teams that worked to power the substations and the pipeline. Ready's shift started at 6 a.m. Sept. 1; he received word about the job four hours later and saw it to completion.

"We were told to stay with it until we got power restored," Ready said. "We had real safety issues because there were fires in the trees on the lines and broken power poles."

Ready described working on the lines in the dark like attempting to clear fallen trees out of a yard with a flashlight and a chain saw.

"Everything was dangerous," he said.

Ready said the crew members did not learn they were restoring power to pipelines until after the job was done.

How did they feel about that?

"Is this on the record?" Ready asked. "Well, then, we are all glad we were able to help out."

Compton said he was happy to support the national effort. But he said it was a difficult decision to make because of the potential impact in the region had the plan not worked and the area's power restoration was set back days.

"It was my decision to balance what was most important to people in South Mississippi with this all-of-a-sudden national crisis of not enough gas or diesel fuel," Compton said.

"In the future, the federal government needs to give us guidelines if this is such a national emergency so that I can work that in my plans."

Posted by Casey Morris at September 16, 2005 10:51 AM

I agree with you Casey.

When my eldest daughter was born, I remember Oliver North was testifying before Congress about Iran-Contra.

Then despite all his crimes, he received immunity from prosecution.

I'm perfectly content to let this play out in a criminal court of law, as long as it is being investigated by a legitimate person and not a party hack.

It seems Fitzgerald is exactly the right person!

from talking points memo today:

Interesting use of DOJ resources. From The (Mississippi) Clarion-Ledger ...

Federal officials appear to be seeking proof to blame the flood of New Orleans on environmental groups, documents show.
The Clarion-Ledger has obtained a copy of an internal e-mail the U.S. Department of Justice sent out this week to various U.S. attorneys' offices: "Has your district defended any cases on behalf of the (U.S.) Army Corps of Engineers against claims brought by environmental groups seeking to block or otherwise impede the Corps work on the levees protecting New Orleans? If so, please describe the case and the outcome of the litigation."

Who sent out this email? And who was going to use it? Needed for analyzing new environmental law issues? Part of the 'takings' debate? Did we mention that Karl Rove has been put in charge of the reconstruction effort?

(ed.note: Thanks to TPM Reader EE.)

I am amazed that they can keep sinking lower yet....

Posted by: Indy at September 16, 2005 11:06 AM

Thank you for sharing Cindy Sheehan's letter, Indy.

When I get to DC next week and join some of the Code Pink functions, I will make sure that Cindy Sheehan gets to hear about all the nasty, inhumane things my father said about the "lazy" blacks of Louisiana - and what his country has done to help out Bush's illegal war.

And right-wing talk is not only alive, but well, in San Francisco. Plenty of Republicans in the Financial District. I used to work for them. My alter ego in my novel will work for them too.

Framing & important issues to be addressed from the Dems - Good quotes, IMHO...

"The families in the Gulf don't need to hear a speech from me and, frankly, they don't need to hear another speech from the president," said Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada. "What they need is leadership."

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi of California said Democrats envisioned "a partnership with the people in the region to build new housing, revive farmland, repair infrastructure, construct schools -- to rebuild your communities, to rebuild your lives, to restore your economies."

Reid said Democrats also want an independent "ethics watchdog" with investigative power "to police this spending and make sure everyone plays by the rules."

"We Democrats want to be certain that the money goes to help the victims, not to enrich the contractors," the senator said.

"We want to make sure that the well-connected get treated no better than the carpenters, the plumbers and electricians who do the work."

Pelosi said local residents "must have priority for the tens of thousands of jobs building new homes, schools and businesses."

"Local small businesses and workers, not just giant corporations with no-bid, cost-plus contracts, should take the lead," she said.

"The American people deserve to know the truth about how their government prepared for and responded to this crisis," Pelosi said.

"The Bush administration and the Republican Congress should not investigate themselves, and partisanship has no place in this inquiry."

Reid said Katrina "was a failure of leadership."

"The day before the hurricane made landfall, the president of the United States received a briefing on the enormity of the storm," he said.

"But when floodwaters poured into America's Gulf Coast, America's government sat on its hands."

http://www.cnn.com/2005/POLITICS/09/15/katrina.democrats/index.html

Ira - this will make you happy!

Casey puts heat on Santorum
Democratic state Treasurer Bob Casey Jr. has increased his lead over Republican U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum in his likely 2006 showdown for Santorum's seat, according to a new Pittsburgh Tribune-Review/WTAE-Channel 4 Keystone poll.
--snip--
In the Senate race, the telephone survey of 518 registered voters showed Casey beating Santorum, of Penn Hills, by a 50 percent to 37 percent in a hypothetical election, with 13 percent undecided. The margin of error was plus or minus 4.3 percentage points.

A Keystone poll in June showed Casey, the likely Democratic nominee, ahead of Santorum by 44 percent to 37 percent. Recent surveys by other polling organizations also have shown Santorum trailing Casey who, like Scranton, lives in Scranton.
http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/tribune-review/regional/s_374704.html

OT

Personally, I would like to see Fitzgerald do what is necessary to convict whomever is guilty of treason. Getting Congress involved will undoubtedly slow the process down, if not totally derail it. Makes me wonder if Congressional Republicans are trying to protect the White House from the Justice Department. I am shocked, I tell you, just shocked that Congressional Republicans would try to pull such a stunt.

Scandals, Corruption, & Lies. Oh My!
By Scott Shuster

It must’ve been a long hot summer for George W. Bush, plagued with so many detrimental events that made his approval ratings plummet. Now that the summer is over, I thought it would be a good time to review and ‘summer-ize’ what happened in the name of neo-conservative governance.

What I found particularly ironic was that each time a scandal broke out and made George & Co. look bad; they got bailed out… by another scandal! No really – when was the last time you heard about the Downing Street Memos? Not since the Valerie Plame/Karl Rove scandal dominated the headlines. And when was the last time you heard about Val & Karl?

So, here’s my summary of the summah…

Read the rest here ===>
http://www.dubyad40.com/html/guests/scott09162005.html

Oncall...

How shocked are you?

Camp Casey Memorial Stolen
Casey Sheehan's Boots Are Gone

By Deborah Mathews
Staff Writer

September 15, 2005 3:23 PM

CRAWFORD — The Camp Casey Memorial on Prairie Chapel Road was removed by thieves earlier today. Not a single item is left at the memorial site.

Crew members working for McLennan County said they witnessed items being removed by an unidentified individual and contacted their office to inform commissioners.

Upon arrival at Camp Casey, honor guard members who had been at the Crawford Peace House immediately called McLennan County Sheriff’s Deputy R. Polansky to report the theft.

Among the items stolen were numerous crosses, Casey Sheehan’s boots, tents, and other items.

The 26-day vigil of Cindy Sheehan outside the Bush ranch ended with a cross-country tour to spread the anti-war message. Camp Casey became a semipermanent memorial, to remain until the Veterans For Peace organization could establish a solemn removal ceremony.

Items that remained at the Camp Casey Memorial following Sheehan’s departure were the three original tents under a pavilion, crosses of the war dead, signs, and personal items of the individuals involved.
Members of the guard filed a report with the McLennan County Sheriff Office.

The three honor guard volunteers diligently listed, item by item, the belongings that were stolen from the site. Tents, pillows, signs, books, a box of literature, sleeping bags, an air mattress, flowers, plants, tarps, memorial crosses — even Casey Sheehan’s boots that stood in front of the small wooden cross bearing his name. Virtually every item that was at Camp Casey is gone.

Veterans For Peace member and honor guard volunteer Paul R. McDaniel said, “My role here was as caretaker. Now it’s gone.”

Honor guard volunteer Linda Foley cried as she said, “Casey’s boots are gone! His boots are gone. You tell me that we’re not being respectful. Those crosses are probably in a trash can somewhere right now! His boots are gone. What kind of people would do that.”

Honor guard member Sarah Oliver said, “His boots were one of the last things that Cindy had of Casey. I can’t believe that anyone would take something like that.”

Continues in Lone Star Iconoclast...

http://198.65.14.85/News/2005/37-38/37news10.htm

Indy youve got mail

What do you think? Post it and as always, please keep it clean.
Posted by Casey Morris at September 16, 2005 10:51 AM

I've also further considered this resolution. I want the house to investigate the Downing Street Memos, but I did not realize until now that they could destruct Fitzgerald's case.

On the other hand, I think they made the right decision to make the resolution and to get the Representatives on the record as to how they stand against possible White House corruption.

Do I think they were grandstanding? Absolutely not! But I do feel that they are fighting tooth and nail to hold this corrupt administration accountable and to show the American People that they will not let war crimes go without punishment.

Ron Insana with CNBC just suggested in his interview with a Bush official that Republican efforts to make tax cuts permanent, especially now, would be "like throwing gasoline on the fire" (of inflation, recession and the exploding budget deficit,now threatening to rage out of control).

How shocked are you?

Posted by: monkey at September 16, 2005 12:56 PM

Monkey,

I am so shocked, you can plug me into my kids toys and never need a AA battery again. (lame, I know).

I was so shocked, I found Ann Coulter funny... AND apparently, stunning... but just for like, a nano-second.

(...and they said it wouldn't last!)

I've been busy catching up on the last two threads and have not yet made it to my Inbox to check out e-newsletters, so maybe I'm missing something that's covered in one of the newsletters......

HOWEVER, the first thing conspicuous by its absence in any mention of Nitwit's address to the nation last night is building a levee, dike, canal and/or lock system that could keep the residents of NOLA and the surrounding communities in the Mississippi Delta safe when they get the next Cat. 3 or 4 or 5 hurricane... like they have in Holland which has kept the North Sea out of their Lowlands (and their people safe from flooding during storms) for several decades now. It's a workable system that needs to be looked into to see if something similar can be adopted and adapted to keep the people safe from flooding in the Mississippi Delta when the next hurricane bears down on them. It is only a matter of when, not if, the next hurricane arrives on their doorstep as everyone knows. Might be a few more decades, but at the rate of global warming and increasing intensity of hurricanes... maybe not. It could happen as early as this season or next hurricane season....

The second thing noticeable by its absence is any mention of what's going to be done with the topsoil that has been polluted to levels off the charts before any rebuilding efforts begin. If that toxic sludge is allowed to just sit on top of the soil, it will cause health problems for the people (and pets and wild animals) who live in the areas where it is the worst. Are there any plans to remove the topsoil to a dump site that can be somehow neutralized and/or monitored for years to come? That toxic sludge is a bio-hazard for humans and animals alike, and I'd like to think the residents of the Mississippi Delta who got hit the hardest with that toxic sludge won't have to get sick from living with that hazard in the soil around (or in) their homes, now or for generations to come.

I didnt' listen to Nitwit's address or to any LameBrain Media spinmeisters, so maybe I missed something. The few seconds of spin I caught was speculation about Nitwit's ratings. I don't give a rip about Nitwit's ratings.

I want to hear about what efforts may go into protecting the safety and health of the residents of the Mississippi Delta, now and for generations to come.

How about a Katrina Tax, or as our first Lady would call it, a Korina Tax, to pay for rebuilding in N.O. rather than exploding our deficits to pay for the $200 billion dollars W is using to buy better poll numbers.

Viewers skeptical of Bush
Reaction to president's speech mixed

Two refugees had nothing but profanities to utter after President Bush's speech from New Orleans. A casino dealer said Congress was to blame for the slow response to the hurricane, not the president.

Americans watched Bush's speech Thursday with mixed expectations. Some were glad the president acknowledged again the government's failure in its initial response to Hurricane Katrina; others were angry, saying the speech was too little, too late.

"He had no intention of coming to help us," said Samuel Lewis, 31, an evacuee who watched the speech in a Houston shelter. "He should have been there 24 hours after. He is telling me he is going to rebuild my city. Still, when I go back home, you are going to rebuild my city, but what about all the stuff I lost? What about jobs?"

Speaking from New Orleans' French Quarter, Bush promised the government would pay most of the costs of rebuilding the hurricane-ravaged Gulf Coast in one of the largest reconstruction projects the world has ever seen.

"A day late and a dollar short," said 18-year-old Wayne State University student Rachel Aviles in Detroit. "I think he's more responding to the negative media than responding to fix the problem."

Jason Sawyer, 30, added his sarcasm as he watched at the Eastlake Zoo tavern in Seattle. When the president offered toll-free help numbers, Sawyer responded: "Oh yeah, pick up that cell phone that doesn't work and call FEMA."

In Rochester, New York, students gathered around a television in a residence hall at the University of Rochester. Nat Powell, 21, wasn't confident the money to rebuild New Orleans will be well spent.

"It's going to be geared toward rebuilding the city -- it's not going to be geared toward building up the population, and that I think is the main problem," he said. "The poor are going to stay poor unless the problem of poverty is actually addressed."

The speech left Kevin Melton, 54, a retired Marine from Biloxi, Miss., disgusted. He lost his home and car in the storm and is now staying at a Red Cross shelter in Gulfport, Mississippi.

"I'm constantly seeing on TV that money is being allocated, and we're not seeing it," he said. "There's lots of talk, no action. It just seems to be a showcase now."

Yolanda Johnson, a 39-year-old single mother of four, was looking for a bit of inspiration, but was also left disappointed. She watched Bush on a tiny television in a Houston shelter.

"I really thought he was going to say something beneficial, something for us to look forward to," she said. "It's the same thing we've been reading in the paper. Every politician makes promises and the promises are never kept."

But Scott Parker, 44, a casino dealer from Ocean Springs, Miss., doesn't blame Bush at all. "He knows what happened here," Parker said. "He's been here. But he's just the middle man. Congress has the say-so."

In Albuquerque, New Mexico, members of an extended family who fled their homes in New Orleans following Katrina's wrath sat silently as the president spoke, gesturing in agreement when he mentioned the hardships faced by the refugees.

"I think it was a positive message, and I think it will be done," said 21-year-old Christopher Freeman. "It just takes time."

Copyright 2005 The Associated Press.

http://www.cnn.com/2005/POLITICS/09/16/bush.americareacts.ap/index.html

Posted by: monkey at September 16, 2005 02:48 PM

Monkey,

You were just waiting to tell that one weren't you?

NECK DEEP IN TOXIC GUMBO
Nicole Makris, AlterNet
Water quality in New Orleans -- and throughout the South -- has been deplorable for years. In Katrina's wake it just got dramatically worse.
http://www.alternet.org/envirohealth/25552/

This is a good article - and don't forget to read the comments after that describe what happened in Ohio with the River of Fire, and with the comment about the wetlands in the Mississippi Delta after that. The article mentions "Cancer Alley" in Louisiana and I remember watching a TV show about it quite a while ago - I think on NOW with Bill Moyers last year.

When Native Americans make decisions affecting their people the elders have to keep in mind how it will affect the next seven generations after they're dead. IMHO, that's the beginning of how the situation in the Mississippi Delta will have to be thought of... how it will affect people for generations to come.

We are usually too focused on instant gratification and have failed to think of how decisions affect people far into the future, long after we're dead. We need a major shift in our thinking processes....

Posted by Casey Morris at September 16, 2005 10:51 AM

IMHO, nothing... but NOTHING... should be turned over to neoCon Republicans for the next 25 years, minimum. They will always absolve themselves of any culpability in the harm they've done.

If ever the Dems find their spines and become a majority in Congress again, we need to undo all the damage that's been done to this country since 2000. It will be a monumental task, and we'll have to make sure the Dems don't become as corrupt as the neoCons.

I'm old and VERY tired of corrupt politicians!!!

Gulf Coast Insurance carrier trying to wheasel out of paying for losses from rising water damage where evacuees have paid a separate premium sometimes 3 X the normal homeowners' cost, for a separet insurance rider with language from the insurance carrier calling it Hurricane Coverage. There is also word that Nationwide Insurance Co. is offering $3,000 to desperate and vulnerable insured in Miss. and N.O. to now sign a waiver of coverage for these policies says CNBC reporter a few minutes ago. And W wonders why poor people who have seen weakend consumer protections and feckless state board's of insurance in the last 5 years, are so outraged by this administration terrible relationship with poor people. It goes way beyond Hurricane Katrina. Consumer Protection-that is something that has been decimated by this Administration and this is the result.

signed separate insurance riders

Did everyone else get the newsletter from Rep. Conyers about his hate crimes legislation passing in the House yesterday? If you did, I won't post it, but it sounds like a piece of good news in an otherwise bad news week.

Katrina forecasters were remarkably accurate
Levee breaks, catastrophic damage predicted, contrary to Bush claims

Alan Diaz / AP
Max Mayfield, director of the National Hurricane Center, checks on Hurricane Ophelia Thursday in Miami. Mayfield's agency and the National Weather Service forecast Katrina with remarkable accuracy, calling into question Bush's claims that Katrina was a catastrophe that no one envisioned.

MSNBC staff and news service reports
Updated: 3:58 p.m. ET Sept. 16, 2005
MIAMI - For all the criticism of the Bush administration’s confused response to Hurricane Katrina, at least two federal agencies got it right: the National Weather Service and the National Hurricane Center.

They forecast the path of the storm and the potential for devastation with remarkable accuracy.

The performance by the two agencies calls into question claims by President Bush and others in his administration that Katrina was a catastrophe that no one envisioned.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9369041

"The House and Senate tax plan, among other steps, waives penalties for hurricane victims who tap into their retirement savings accounts,"

wow they can forfeit all of their retirement savings but still silence regarding extending the Bankruptcy filing date until Oct 17, 2006.

maybe they can borrow against their 401Ks to pay for house notes for homes under water, car payments for vehicles that have no value, and medical bills and not have to file for bankrupcy.

Guns and Butter that's what the folks want.

Someone on DU is recommending that we start a campaign to get Jimmy Carter to oversee the reconstruction of N.O. (instead of Rover).

Not a bad idea, IMHO.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=104x4796189

Just heard this on my local hip hop station guys....
Go to Google, type in FAILURE, then hit the “I’m Feeling Lucky Button”, not the Search button, and watch what pops up.

Good stuff.

If ever the Dems find their spines and become a majority in Congress again, we need to undo all the damage that's been done to this country since 2000. It will be a monumental task, and we'll have to make sure the Dems don't become as corrupt as the neoCons.

Posted by: NonnyO at September 16, 2005 03:28 PM

2000? More like 1978, when the anti-tax movement began in California. It resulted in Proposition 13, which crippled the state's public education system. And you can of course add all the stuff Reagan did, such as firing all the air traffic controllers, smearing the word "liberal," using the likes of Pat Buchanan as advisors, etc, etc. Even the immigration policy has been tweaked to favor socially conservative Third World nationalities, instead of skilled workers America really needs.

There is a LOT of damage to undo. We'll need power for at least three decades to undo everything.

defarge my choice would be Louisiana icon John Breaux.

Democrats in the group want what Sen. Mark Pryor of Arkansas calls "a nominee who will unite us, not divide us." They hope Bush will consult them, as he did before nominating Roberts. Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La., said Bush aides asked her about Edith Clement, a judge on the U.S. appeals court that covers Louisiana, Texas and Mississippi. Clements' lack of controversial writings on abortion could make her an appealing candidate.

Others say that supporting the Roberts nomination could make Democrats appear reasonable, giving them more credibility to oppose the next nominee."
And then Sen. Clinton immediately gets to work at debunking those theories with this priceless quote: "'I have found it is very difficult for Democrats to influence this White House on anything, and so I don't count on them paying attention to our legitimate concerns,' Mrs. Clinton said, adding, 'They will do what they think is in their interest, however they define it.'"

Hillary is absolutely right.

Posted by: NonnyO at September 16, 2005 02:50 PM

Nonny go to http://www.epa.gov/katrina for info on soil contamination and what is being done about it.

For info on the levee system go to http://www.usace.army.mil (the Army Corps of Engineers site).

IMHO rebuilding the levees and expanding the system is a difficult subject as the very existence of the levee system has contributed to the demise of the barrier islands and the continued sinking of the city of NOLA, in terms of how many feet below sea level it is. Compound that with rising sea levels and increased freqency/intensity of hurricanes and you have a tough situation.
I know there is a big political and emotional push to rebuild, rebuild, rebuild, but at some point you wonder why we are fighting nature with our tax dollars.

Did any of the Judiciary Committee members question Roberts on Hamdan vs. Rumsfeld and Roberts' opinion four days before Nitwit's nominating him? I didn't hear all of the C-SPAN stuff because when I had to switch to C-SPAN-3 the transmission was breaking up so badly it was pointless to listen for long.

IMHO, this was grounds to filibuster the original nomination, more especially now that Nitwit nominted him as Chief Justice it's ground to filibuster and get the few moderate Repubs to kick their consciences into working for a change and vote for what's best for the people of this nation... and against the Roberts nomination.

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/091405Z.shtml
Roberts' Bad Decision
By Stephen Gillers, David Luban and Steven Lubet
The Los Angeles Times

Tuesday 13 September 2005

Just four days before the Bush administration named John G. Roberts Jr. to fill retiring Justice Sandra Day O'Connor's seat on the Supreme Court, the District of Columbia federal appeals court decided a case called Hamdan vs. Rumsfeld. In a crucial victory for the administration, the court upheld President Bush's creation of special military tribunals for trials of alleged terrorists and denied them the protection of the Geneva Convention. Roberts was one of the judges who decided that case, but he should have recused himself.

While the case was pending in his court, Roberts was interviewing with high White House officials - including Atty. Gen. Alberto R. Gonzales, Vice President Dick Cheney and Deputy Chief of Staff Karl Rove - for a seat on the Supreme Court. In the words of the federal law on judicial disqualification, this placed the judge in a situation where "his impartiality might reasonably be questioned."

It is not too late to correct this error, and with Roberts slated to become the next chief justice, it is especially important that he do so.

In Hamdan vs. Rumsfeld, a three-judge panel upheld the use of military tribunals to try detainees held at the U.S. base in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. But the decision didn't stop there. Roberts and a second judge also ruled that the Geneva Convention - which guarantees basic human rights - does not protect alleged Al Qaeda members. The third judge disagreed on the question of the Geneva Convention. Thus, Roberts cast a deciding vote on an issue of central importance to the president, just as administration aides were holding out the possibility that the president might choose him for a place on the highest court in the American legal system.

Previous federal cases, as well as advisory opinions of the Judicial Conference of the United States (the official policymaking body for the federal judiciary), have uniformly held that a judge must recuse himself when a lawyer in a case or a party to it is in a position to influence the judge's job prospects. In some instances, the judge was considering leaving the bench to work as a lawyer. In others, the judge was seeking reappointment within the judiciary.

Some legal scholars have defended Roberts' participation in the Hamdan case, arguing that it would be impractical and unnecessary to require Supreme Court hopefuls to recuse themselves in any case in which the federal government is party. That makes sense as a general proposition - after all, administrations usually cast a wide net for potential nominees, and the process may take months. But the Hamdan case was no ordinary appeal.

First, Bush was a defendant in the case, because he had signed orders setting up the military commissions and removing them from the coverage of the Geneva Convention (following the advice of Gonzales, then the White House counsel). The president had also personally determined that there was reason to believe that Hamdan was an Al Qaeda member engaged in terrorism, and thus was outside the Geneva Convention's protection. Secondly, the Hamdan case set a precedent for interrogations and trials of other Guantanamo detainees. By rejecting the Geneva Convention's protections, the case eliminates an important legal safeguard against humiliating or degrading treatment of prisoners.

No doubt during his interviews for the Supreme Court, Roberts avoided all discussion of pending cases. But conflict of interest can be about appearance as much as reality. A reasonable person may wonder whether a judge, even with the best of intentions, could remain impartial in those circumstances.

Let us be clear that we do not question Roberts' integrity, or his qualifications to serve on the Supreme Court. We believe that he decided the Hamdan case as he thought the law required. We do think, however, that he erred by continuing to sit in the case. Even if he considered disqualifying himself but decided against it, he should at least have notified Hamdan's attorneys once the administration showed serious interest in promoting him to the Supreme Court. That would have given them an opportunity to file a formal recusal motion and argue the point.

As chief justice of the United States, Roberts will set the standard for recusal throughout the federal judiciary. It is regrettable that he failed to disqualify himself in the Hamdan case (or notify counsel), but that need not diminish his distinguished record.

Roberts can now demonstrate his leadership by retroactively withdrawing his vote in the case - the procedural rules are arcane, but other judges have recalled or vacated their opinions on the basis of new information or arguments. That would leave the crucial issue - whether the president must honor the Geneva Convention in the treatment of detainees - for decision on another day.

Stephen Gillers is a professor of law at New York University; David Luban is a professor of law and philosophy at Georgetown University (and a faculty colleague of Hamdan's attorney) and Steven Lubet is a professor of law at Northwestern University.

Hello all,

Greetings from the Gulf Coast (Fla), where I am at a dance conference.

Many here are clearly aware of the Katrina issues, and the failures of the current administration.

But, the issues of survival do tend to supercede the altruistic concerns about the poor people.

It is difficult for me to not attend to the occasional glimpses of Bush's speech last night on the TV, or to peek at the blog, as I am doing right now while the dance administrators discuss how to enroll more boys in ballet, to glance at the newspaper and see headlines about more deaths in Iraq--I find the multiple levels of reality a bit jarring. But on occasion, someone asks me about what I an doing politically and I can share my recent journeys through this strange landscape of electoral politics and social change.

Then, they nod sagely, and say "thank you", and then I know we are doing good work, here, on this website.

Tomorrow morning I am planning to go see where the Guardian newspaper comes from, since i've been reading it since 9/11/01.

Thanks for all the news updates people.

Indy, you may be southern but you also qualify as a world citizen, based on what you wrote. right on!

news about America that I am finding;

Britney's baby

Arnold may run against - could be against Rob Reiner - oh great - 2 actors

Cheney is having knee surgery - who gets an aneurysm behind the knee? Fat pig!

Karen

talk about different levels of reality - am sitting at the kitchen table in Ledwell Oxfordshire UK & it's 11:15 PM here. am listening to adventures of travel in Amsterdam from our 19 year old "foster son" who worked for the Kerry campaign in WA. we just went out for Indian food & we're also reading Google news. have been peeking at blog & email off & on when have computer access. The keyboard is a little different and I can't really cut & paste or get things to open properly. It's kind of hard to keep up, on one level, yet I'm also being exposed to viewpoints and perspectives that I wouldn't be had I stayed home. Will catch you all later. Hope you got the photos I sent.

Ok..my head may not still be screwed on straight but I finally was able to talk to someone at my representatives office.

The questions asked:

1. Would the Representative support John Conyer's ammendment to the bankcruptcy bill?

2. Would the Representative support a nonpartison commission to investigate Katrina similar to 9-11 commission or did they support the Ok...we'll say, majority party 11 to minority party 9 investigation of the majority party investigating the President of the same party! (don't refer to it as the '"misrepresention one of Frist and Delay" commission. ")

3. Does this Representative support the President's lifting of the Davis-Bacon Act? AND does this Representative feel any profits earned by companies during the repeal of this act should go back to the taxpayers?

Ok..other stuff was touched upon, but as it was off the record, I am not allowed to say! AND I do not have the answers yet, to those three questions but I hope they will come soon.

(Excuse the only verb choice of would--just easier to type the gist of my questions than my 'exact wording'.)

I can't stand it...I just have to put this up...

Jeb Bush son arrested for public intoxication, resisting arrest
http://www.kltv.com/Global/story.asp?S=3861132

Posted by: madame defarge at September 16, 2005 07:06 PM

Madame,

It's really important to see if they give Jeb's son special favors as a result of his relationship with the President. That is where my concern would be.

No man is above the law, and right now, they don't seem to be doing special favors for him, BUT I'm highly suspicious given some of the other incidences of favoritism (nepotism) in this administration.

No man is above the law, but I know a few that are beneath it.

Well now...the WSJ is actually reporting something worthwhile... And of course, it's related to economics.

Katrina Erodes Support In U.S. for Iraq War
Bush's Rating as Crisis Manager Declines in Poll as Pessimism About the Economy Grows

WASHINGTON -- Hurricane Katrina has accelerated the erosion in public support for the Iraq war as President Bush's core of supporters dwindles and economic pessimism turns Americans' attention inward.

A new Wall Street Journal/NBC News Poll1 shows that cutting spending on Iraq is Americans' top choice for financing the recovery from Katrina. Shaken by high gas prices and bracing for further jolts, Americans have turned negative about Mr. Bush across the board -- on handling the economy, foreign policy, and even the war on terrorism.

--snip--
Yet the poll's findings about Americans' priorities show the work facing Mr. Bush, who is scheduled to deliver a nationally televised address tonight on the recovery from Katrina. Some 60% say rebuilding the Gulf Coast should be a higher national priority than establishing democracy in Iraq; 5% say Iraq, while 34% say the two are equally important.

The White House says the administration can handle both at once, but by 51%-37% Americans say the Iraq war wasn't worth its human and financial costs.

--snip--
The proportion of Republicans disapproving of Mr. Bush's job performance has doubled to 15% from 7% in January, with pronounced defections among moderates within Mr. Bush's party.

--snip--
Hispanics are divided evenly on the question. But the president's overall rating among Hispanics, who were split on his job performance in January, is now negative by a two-to-one margin.

--snip--
Beyond Social Security, the domestic political landscape has been buffeted in a way that complicates challenges facing the White House and Republicans in the 2006 midterm elections. Following the gas-price spikes immediately after the hurricane, six in 10 Americans now expect pump prices to continue rising.

In fact, the public now ranks gas prices as the country's top economic issue. Just 6% assign top importance to federal taxes, the issue that Mr. Bush and Republicans planned to elevate next year through a yet-unspecified overhaul of the tax system.

Of particular concern to lawmakers facing voters next year, Americans have turned pessimistic on the outlook for the economy. Some 49% expect the economy to get worse over the next 12 months, triple the 16% who expect it to improve. In January, those numbers were essentially reversed.
http://tinyurl.com/93hub

Most vacuous conversation ever
Condoleeza Rice and Bill O'Reilly:

O'Reilly: The truth of the matter is our correspondents at Fox News can't go out for a cup of coffee in Baghdad.

Rice: Bill, that's tough. It's tough. But what -- would they have
wanted to have gone out for a cup of coffee when Saddam Hussein was in power?

Bill: No, no-but after three years you expect a little security in the country...

Condi: ...there is security...

Bill: They can't get coffee...
http://www.antiwar.com/blog/index.php?id=P2370

Here is something interesting I just learned today:

Before his election, Nagin was a member of the Republican Party and had little political experience; he was a vice president and general manager at Cox Communications, a cable communications company and subsidiary of Cox Enterprises. Nagin did give contributions periodically to candidates, including President George W. Bush and former Republican U.S. Representative Billy Tauzin in 1999 and 2000, as well as to Democratic U.S. Senators John Breaux and J. Bennett Johnston earlier in the decade.
Days before filing for the New Orleans Mayoral race in February 2002, Nagin switched his party registration to the Democratic Party. Shortly before the primary election, an endorsement praising Nagin as a reformer by Gambit Magazine gave him crucial momentum that would carry through for the primary election and runoff. In the first round of the crowded mayoral election in February 2002, Nagin received first place with 29% of the vote, against such opponents as Police Chief Richard Pennington, State Senator Paulette Irons, City Councilman Troy Carter and others. In the runoff with Pennington in May 2002, Nagin won with 59% of the vote. His campaign was largely self-financed.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ray_Nagin

Say what you will, but Ray Nagin is not what he portrays himself to be.

Posted by: oncall at September 16, 2005 09:10 PM

The whole thing stinks, from POTUS to bottomus.

In that odor.

Big Dog Clinton on Larry King tonight said he would have met with Cindy Sheehan...

He said he met face-to-face with one of the fathers of the men who died in the downing of the Black Hawk. The father lit into him, and he said all he could do was take it like a man.

That about says it all, doesn't it...

September consumer sentiment slumps after Katrina
CHICAGO, Sept 16 (Reuters) - U.S. consumer confidence plummeted to a 13-year low in early September, battered by record gasoline prices and the full force of Hurricane Katrina, a report showed on Friday.
--snip--
The University of Michigan's closely-watched consumer sentiment index eased to 76.9 in September from 89.1 in August, well below Wall Street forecasts and even the 81.8 recorded after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on New York and Washington.

Current conditions dropped to the lowest level since December 2003 while the expectations index plummeted to its lowest point since February 1992.

"If these declines were part of the normal economic cycle we would now call for a recession in the United States. But they aren't. The index is responding to a shock, and we expect it quickly to rebound," said Ian Shepherdson, chief U.S. economist at High Frequency Economics.
--snip--
"I think there's probably also a degree of loss of confidence in the government," said David Sloan, economist at 4CAST Ltd. in New York.

Analysts said the Michigan index suggested consumers, after months of stoicism in the face of rising gasoline prices, have reached a tipping point. For some Americans, gas prices well over $3 per gallon in some areas threatens the sustainability of the suburban SUV-shopping mall lifestyle.
--snip--
Analysts note that consumers often sing the blues but rarely cut back on spending as a result -- the link between sentiment and spending is tenuous. Still, the latest drop in confidence was termed a worry for retailers.

"We expect a couple of very rough months for consumers spending," Shepherdson said.
http://tinyurl.com/boz5c

Anderson Cooper will have on a FEMA whistle-blower, who apparently warned of what would happen, but was ignored.

Loved Ed Schultz today when he called Bush's back drop (last night):"Disneyland"

Leo Bosner is blowing the whistle on CNN right now.

Nancy Grace, CNN Headline News every night at 7:00 Central, and repeating again at 9:00 and midnight, is still very amazed and angry about what happened inside the convention center in NO.

(Again I was gone the week of the flood, and am not sure you knew this, too.)

There were gang members who came in and took women and children in the bathrooms and raped them, them killed some of them. One little girl, 4, died during the rape.

Nancy Grace is upset because, she said "Why are we NOT hearing this? Why is this so hush-hush?"
She also said "something should be done about it, but, of course, nothing will be done."

Hey everyone--this is big news:

I just got an email from MoveOn that they are encouraging everyone to come to Washington Sept. 24-26.

Last I heard, they were not going to become part of it--but this means it is HUGE.

Who's in NOW?

Posted by: Karen at September 16, 2005 10:30 PM

That is good news! Any idea of the numbers expected?

For some odd reason, I decided to find out how much Congressmembers earn.

How much Senators earn?

U.S. Senators will earn $141,300 this year, up from $136,700 in 1999. The majority and minority leaders and the president pro tempore earn slightly more, at $181,400 a year.

House members earn close to the same amount but they may earn a more with leadership positions.

Why did I post this? Because, we have to cut corners somewhere. Between their incomes, the war, the handover fist spending of the majority party, I'm just thinking it's time these leaders lead by example!

If President Bush thinks it's fair to suspend the Davis-Bacon Act for contruction workers in the hurricane devestated areas, then I think it's even MORE fair for these Congressmen and the whole White House's administration--including Darth and Dumber--to cut their income to the same wage as the people affected by the suspension of the Davis-Bacon Act.

TSP,

I think the permit is for 100,000 but I hope for more. Everyone counts. 500.000 would be a statement. I million would be a movement.

Get on a plane, take a train, rev up the boat, Greyhound/Peter Pan/Trailways, sail here--but COME!

Sept. 16, 2005, 7:41PM

Gov. Jeb Bush's son arrested in Austin
Reuters News Service

John Ellis Bush, the son of Florida Gov. Jeb Bush and nephew of President Bush, was arrested in Austin today on charges of public intoxication and resisting arrest, police said.

ADVERTISEMENT
He was held at the Travis County Jail and later released on $2,500 bail, they said.

Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission Capt. David Ferrero told the Austin American Statesman that Bush, 21, approached a group of police officers on a street corner in downtown Austin at 2:30 a.m. today to ask about an earlier arrest of people he knew.

He appeared to be drunk, so police detained him and tried to handcuff him. While they put the cuffs on young Bush, he pushed against the officers and ended up suffering a cut on the chin, the newspaper said.

"He was observed to be a danger to himself and others," Ferrero told the Statesman.

Alia Faraj, spokeswoman for the governor, said: "Governor Bush and First Lady Bush are concerned about this incident. This is a personal family matter which they are dealing with privately."

It is not the first time one of the governor's children has had a run-in with the law.

Jeb Bush's daughter Noelle was sentenced to 10 days in jail in 2002 after cocaine was found in her shoe at a court-ordered drug rehabilitation program.

President Bush's daughters Jenna and Barbara were both charged in 2001 with drinking underage.

http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/metropolitan/3357363

America’s Battered Wife Syndrome

Dear America

As a friend of the family I can’t sit back and watch you do this to yourself without saying something. Consider this a long distance intervention.

Your man is no good. He treats you like crap, lies to you, abuses you, bullies you, exploits you, takes your money. As a friend I want to tell you that you deserve better. You deserve a person that treats you with respect, cares about your welfare, and your children’s welfare, but that’s not George and it never will be.

Do you tell yourself that he’ll stop, or that it won’t get worse? He won’t ever stop, every insult, injury and death he has caused are a line that once crossed will never be uncrossed. Forget the dream. You will never have the American dream with George. You have to forget about what might have been, what George might have been, and realise that at the end of the day you are what you do, and look at George’s track record.

Notice how he’s alienated all your friends? Who can blame them, they can’t understand why you stay with him when he treats you like shit and embarrasses you in front of everybody. The more his public behaviour overshadows yours, The more doubt creeps over them, they wonder if they knew you as well as they thought they did. You seem to have changed - if you condone his behaviour- and your silence can create the impression that you do. People are more inclined to take things at face value when they feel alienated. Your friends remember the good times you had together, the heroic battles you fought together, all of the intricate interweavings between their families and yours through time and space. Do you even recognise yourself anymore America? He is a drunken, coke-addled loser and he always will be, you should kick him out of your house today before he can destroy any more members of your family, your history, your culture, before he decimates your bank account so irretrievably that China and Saudi Arabia repossess all your stuff.

YOU CAN DO BETTER! You are an amazing country, beautiful, interesting, funny, positively glamorous, you wouldn’t stay single for five minutes, you know that suitors would be competing for your affections and any one of them would be ten times better than George. And how can you stand his god-awful Stepford’s answer to Marie-Antoinette mother, piping up with another casual atrocity every time she opens her mouth.

Because of George and his friends global warming is now upon us - I know what it has cost your family already, combined with George’s complete uselessness and indifference in a crisis. It would probably now be possible for a mathematician to calculate exactly how much of all of our futures we are losing for every minute you stay with that sick,twisted, idiot.

I see you doing what everyone in your position does - you end up looking to the perpetrator for comfort because theres no one else left, and look at how he reacts for Christ’s sake, look at what he did to New Orleans, and you should know that yet again he did it in front of all of your friends, all of us saw nothing happening whilst thousands died, all of us heard Ray Negen and the president of Jefferson Parish (I must heard him 30+ times now and I still cry every time) and all of us heard George’s bloody mother. We have been trying to help and he won’t let us. We are all appalled and aghast, it breaks our hearts to see him hurting you like this, and you not fighting back, you just take it and take it as it slowly spirals down into the pits of hell. What will it take America, will you let him kill you before you’ll kick him out? This is not rhetoric America, he is killing you every day you stay with him. If I had described your relationship with George to you back when you were still with Bill you never would have believed me. He degrades you in little increments, every day he erodes your assets as well as your dignity, your reputation, your legacy and your life America.

All of our TV crews were rescuing survivors as they filmed the devastation because there was nobody else there to help them, all of us saw the victims being treated like some sudden new insurgency. with suspicion and hostility. Those poor people, the heart & soul of New Orleans, the very people whose culture and history made New Orleans beloved around the world, He just left your brothers and sisters to die. Can you really continue in your relationship with George after this? There is a degree at which cognitive dissonance becomes outright delusion. He is a maniac, he is destroying your life, please, please leave him, just leave him, only you have the power to make it stop.

He is selling out your family business, if you let him continue like this how are you going to live? How are you going to feed your children, what happens if you get ill? Everything he has ever touched has turned to shit, he puts any idiot that’ll kiss his ass into positions of power and New Orleans is the result. Kick him out America! Do it today! I know it feels like you would be leaping into a void, but I promise you, you will be leaping out of one. Your friends will come back as soon as they see you are back to your old self, they really miss you. I know that less than 36% of your heart is still in it. Go with the 64% of you, that 36% is just that vestigial, primitive part of the brain that clings to the familiar no matter how badly the familiar sucks.

It all comes down to you, America. I know no-one likes other people passing comment on their relationships but this is an extreme situation. You are in very real danger, he is hurting you everyday and he is hurting us, your friends as well. But only you can make it stop. We are all rooting for you, although we don’t get to talk to you very often anymore, because he cuts us off from you. We are on your side, we will all be over the moon the day you finally kick him out. You know he really should be thrown in jail for the things he has done to you. Him and all of his gangster friends.

Please, please, do it America, you know I am right. If not for yourself then do it for your brothers and sisters and children. Do it before he kills any more of your family or anyone else’s. We are all really worried for your welfare.

Your friend,

Gail

http://12thharmonic.com/wordpress/index.php/2005/09/07/americas-battered-wife-syndrome/

Posted by: Veritas at September 16, 2005 05:31 PM

I just finished watching a one-hour NOW on PBS that had a town hall meeting style. One of the people in the audience was quite eloquent about how the wetlands must be allowed to come back in the Mississippi Delta because the wetlands are a natural barrier to slowing down hurricanes when they get to land, while still incorporating something like the Dutch have that keeps the North Sea out of Rotterdam - they, like N.O., are below sea level and had a horrible flood in the late 1950s and learned their lesson. Without politics involved, the Dutch were practical in their solutions, built an efficient system, and it's not broken down. It was expensive and took years to build, yes, but they believe it was worth it (according to Dutch people interviewed on at least two MSM networks who were thinking clearly for a few days that first week and a half before they went back to spouting propaganda).

The most inarticulate person who spoke was from FEMA.... and he dodged the first question.

"Check your local listings," but if you get NOW on PBS, see if the program will be repeated this weekend and watch it. It will be repeated locally on Sunday afternoon.

http://12thharmonic.com/wordpress/index.php/2005/09/07/americas-battered-wife-syndrome/
Posted by: rossiann at September 16, 2005 11:37 PM

Apt and correct.....

Problem: The second and third "husbands" waiting in the wings as mandated by our Constitution are just as bad as the "abusive husband" who is already in office... and our "support system" (Congress) is also controlled by the "abusive husband" and his cronies....

We're getting raped without so much as a kiss in return.

Now what?

Too much military – Too little humanity:
What we are watching today, I believe, is a culmination of 10-15 years of mounting barbarism of the American culture the world over, crowned by the achievements of science and technology as a major weapon of mass destruction.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article10304.htm

America Has Fallen to a Jacobin Coup
by Paul Craig Roberts
In the US today nothing stands in the way of the arbitrary exercise of power by government. Federal courts have acquiesced in unconstitutional detention policies. There is no opposition party, and there is no media, merely huge conglomerates or collections of federal broadcasting licenses, the owners of which are afraid to displease the government.
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article10303.htm
{ EXCELLENT piece of writing!}

44 Oil Spills Found in Southeast Louisiana
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/091605Y.shtml
More than 500 specialists are working to clean up 44 oil spills ranging from several hundred gallons to nearly 4 million gallons, the US Coast Guard said in an assessment that goes far beyond initial reports of just two significant spills.
{ One of the people on the PBS NOW show was from one of the towns mentioned in this piece, and she did talk about the oil spill which affected her home along with the flood waters.}

Posted by: NonnyO at September 17, 2005 02:24 AM

Nonny-O...

For the last time...I love you Babe, but...

Many have failed to realize the severety of the state of the Nation.

41 million failed to vote.

So if you are so insitant upon heaping blame for war and destruction upon the male gender...

Please go re-read the Constitution and take into account the time in which it was written.

"All men are created equal"

And women too.

Take responsibility instead of throwing blame.

Peace.

Indy

Battered American Syndrome

Basic Instinct

We the unwilling, lead by the unknowing are doing the impossible for the ungrateful...We have done so much for so long with so little we are now qualified to do anything with nothing...

Let us not forget the prime (or in this case primal) instinct that allows tyrants, despots, fanatics and lunatics to gain control over a group of individuals...a church...a community...a nation.

Fear.

It is the lowest common denominator...it is one of the greatest motivators...it has been used to abuse and subjugate mankind since our sentient awakening as a species.

We, as human beings, all process the world around us differently...we all are created from a complex diversity of environment, nourishment, deprivation, spirituality, education and a desire for self-fulfillment...each one precious and rare and unique...but one of the most powerful basic instincts we all possess is the fight or flight response.

In reviewing our heritage we can find innumerable instances of man's inhumanity to man...we happen to be living in such a time...September 11, 2001 was real.

The inhumanity we now face as a people…as a Nation and indeed as a species within our global civilization did not come from beyond our shores, but from within our own government as is reflected in the writings of many of our Forefathers. Feeding that fear and feeding upon basic human instinct, the current administration has tapped into the unconscious drive for survival...to be one of the tribe...for self-preservation and the continuation of our species...our civilization.

Within this misguided menagerie that has become our beloved America and the complexities of human nature exists the will to thrive...not just survive...and to live within our natural rights...to be free. This and other factors are the variables in the equation Karl Rove and his minions could not factor into their diabolical plans…as Americans...as human beings...it is also within our nature to face our fears...to overcome our fears and to stand boldly in defiance of those who would lead us astray across the rivers of self-loathing and hubris.

Are we so different from the ancient masses who willingly sacrificed their children in order to appease the angry gods?

The answer is quite simple.

No.

We as a species are not.

Should this lead us to despair and feelings of helplessness and humility before the fatted calves of power?

Hell NO!

We are the inheritors of the greatest civilization to have walked this Earth, and as our Constitution and our Declaration of Independence teaches us, as a people...we must have a decent respect for the opinions of ALL of mankind.

The jaded few who seek riches and power upon the backs of the weary, the downtrodden, the meek...who would place religiosity before religion...who would deny the rights and condemn the spirituality of all who do not pray to an angry god or gilded cross...who dare to know the will of God...those who thrive upon their desire to strike fear into the hearts of humanity for selfish and transient causes...these are our enemies...not those who blindly follow their instinct to survive and to live as a free people.

We are all only being what we were born to be...human.

To survive just one more day...

We are the children of every nation…of every culture and civilization to have risen and fallen across the desolate sands of time. They are our brothers and sisters...they are our American Family...our Global Family...our Human Family. They are us as much as we are them and we must not let this great human diversity and individuality be squandered at the hands of madmen.

Hope is alive and well...the dream is still alive as is apparent in the dedication and tireless efforts of Americans such as yourselves'...and not only Americans, but fellow human beings around the world. The Fires of Freedom still burn brightly within our hearts.

The Pendulum of Right and Wrong has begun to swing back towards the center of all existence once again. The course of our civilization has yet to be determined. Whether our current leaders are bent on the destruction of our nations, the depletion of our natural resources or the annihilation of every living creature upon the face of this fragile planet, we shall fight until there is once again unity and peace and coexistence and freedom within our world.

We are not the first to have faced such midnight moments...nor are we likely to be the last...and in the words of a great human being:

"I refuse to accept the cynical notion that nation after nation must spiral down a militaristic stairway into the hell of thermonuclear destruction. I believe that unarmed truth and unconditional love will have the final word in reality. This is why right temporarily defeated is stronger than evil triumphant."

"I believe that even amid today's motor bursts and whining bullets, there is still hope for a brighter tomorrow. I believe that wounded justice, lying prostrate on the blood-flowing streets of our nations, can be lifted from this dust of shame to reign supreme among the children of men."

"I have the audacity to believe that peoples everywhere can have three meals a day for their bodies, education and culture for their minds, and dignity, equality and freedom for their spirits. I believe that what self-centered men have torn down, men other-centered can build up. I still believe that one day mankind will bow before the altars of God and be crowned triumphant over war and bloodshed, and nonviolent redemptive goodwill will proclaim the rule of the land."

"And the lion and the lamb shall lie down together and every man shall sit under his own vine and fig tree and none shall be afraid."

"I still believe that we shall overcome."

"This faith can give us courage to face the uncertainties of the future. It will give our tired feet new strength as we continue our forward stride toward the city of freedom. When our days become dreary with low-hovering clouds and our nights become darker than a thousand midnights, we will know that we are living in the creative turmoil of a genuine civilization struggling to be born."

~Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. (excerpt from his acceptance speech when receiving the Nobel Peace Prize)

Know in your hearts that if each one of us makes a positive difference in the lives of one single person...we have already begun to dare to create a better world.

Be at Peace.

Here it comes...privatization of FEMA...And who will be surprised when Halliburton gets the contract?

FEMA, Slow to the Rescue, Now Stumbles in Aid Effort

--snip--
"I don't think federal bureaucracy can handle the next disaster," said Toye Taylor, the president of Washington Parish, one of the hardest hit areas in Louisiana, who met with Mr. Bush this week.

"I expressed to the president that it would take a new partnership between the military and private sector," Mr. Taylor said. "Because there will be another one and I don't think the federal government is going to be able to help." Indeed, Mr. Bush said in his address to the nation from New Orleans on Thursday night that the military would play a new role in federal disaster relief.

http://tinyurl.com/doyvy (from today's NYTimes)

I agree with you too Casey. We will not get a fair hearing on this case in Congress anyway, and after the hearing is over, all the guilty parties will have been granted immunity from prosecution. The American people need to KNOW that a member of the Bush administration has committed a federal crime and been arrested for it before they are going to realize the total corruption of this administration. Congressional investigations go nowhere- no one watches, and no one listens to their findings. There are simply too many of them to keep track of these days. And since Ken Starr, they're viewed by the public as political witch hunts and nothing more. But a criminal charge- that's another thing. I want Karl Rove indicted before he can do any more damage to New Orleans or to this country. I want a criminal conviction of a Senior Staff Member of the White House. Then let the Repugs try to run on restoring honor to the White House again.

Posted by: Indy at September 17, 2005 05:00 AM

Indy,

Wonderful post. I think the main question we have to ask ourselves is why did 41 million people not vote in the last election and what can we do to help them understand that their votes do make a difference? How do we appeal to the millions who can help us change our country for the better? Where are the leaders that can motivate people to understand that the future is in the people's hands?

Battered spouse syndrome is one of co-dependency. Many people have come to believe that no matter what they do (i.e voting), their lives can not become any better. We have to show them that by doing nothing, their lives are actually getting worse. How do we do this? How do we break through to people with little hope? These are questions for which I don't have the answers. Do any of us?

What Noble Cause
by CindySheehan [Subscribe]
Sat Sep 17th, 2005 at 05:05:14 PDT
It has been one month, one week, and 4 days since I sat in a ditch in Crawford, Tx. My request was very simple: I wanted to speak to the man who has sent over a million of our young people over to fight, kill, and die in a country that was absolutely no threat to the United States of America. I wanted to ask him: "What is the Noble Cause that you keep talking about?"

CindySheehan's diary :: ::
Well, we all know now that George Bush never came down the road to talk to me. Thank God! Many people have been saying that I am the "spark," "catalyst," "face of the anti-war movement" etc. I beg to differ. George Bush and his arrogant advisers are the spark that lit the prairie fire of peace activism that has swept over America and the entire world. If he had met with me that fateful day in August it would not have been good for him (because I knew he was going to lie and I would have advertised that fact) but it would have had less of an impact on the peace movement if he had.

Upon reflection on the events of this past August, I have come up with two reasons why George could not meet with me: He is a coward and there is no Noble Cause. If George had as much courage and integrity in his entire body as Casey had in his pinky, he would have met with me. But, ironically, if George had that much courage and integrity he never would have preemptively invaded a practically defenseless country. His syncophantic cabinet and hangers-on are also incontrovertible evidence that he is a coward. No one better dare disagree with him. How dare a mom from Vacaville, Ca. have the nerve to contradict the emperor of Prairie Chapel Road!!??

All of the "Noble Cause" reasons that George has variously given for the invasion and continued illegal occupation of a sovereign nation are also patently false and ridiculous. He has been claiming recently (since he admitted a long time ago that Iraq had no WMDs or links to 9/11) that this occupation of Iraq is spreading "freedom and democracy" in the Middle East. Really? Does he have any idea that the constitution that the Iraqi governing body is working on is based on Sharia and that it undermines the freedoms of women? Does he realize that for over 50 years women had equal rights with men in Iraq? Does George realize (of course he does) that the puppet government the US put in place in Iraq is comprised of the very same people who encouraged the invasion to line their own pockets? What kind of freedom and democracy is this? If George is so hell bent on freedom and democracy for Iraq, then why doesn't he practice it here in America? Up to 62 percent of Americans believe that what George has done in Iraq is a mistake and we should begin to bring our troops home. Well, George, 62 percent is a clear majority and you should begin to listen to the people who pay your salary.

He has also claimed that what we are doing in Iraq is "making America safer." Another statement that is easier to disprove than the "freedom and democracy" baloney. To disprove this little bit of deception, all we have to do is look at the Gulf States. Ask the people of New Orleans, especially, if they feel safer. By misappropriating all of our personnel, equipment and pouring billions of dollars into the sands of Iraq, George has made our country more vulnerable to attack by outside forces. Also, from the cold and callous statements of people like Michael Chertoff and George's own mama, the people of New Orleans seem to be "acceptable" collateral damage to the ruling elite of this country. It is my humble opinion that the only thing that will make America safer is to get George and his unfeeling and dangerously incompetent supporters out of our White House.

We all now know the reason that we are in Iraq. George told us so from a break he was taking from Crawford in San Diego on the same day that Katrina was hitting the Gulf States: it is for oil. It is so George, Dick, and their evil buddies can rape more profits from our children's flesh and blood. This is not a Noble Cause, as a matter of fact, it is the most ignoble cause for a war that has ever been waged. We as Americans knew either in the front of our brains, or in the back of our consciousness, that this war was to feed the corporations. 15 brave young Americans have been killed so far this month while our attention has been focused, and rightfully so, on the Gulf States. Over 200 innocent and unfortunate Iraqis have been killed in this week alone. How much more blood are we as Americans going to allow George, Congress, and the corporations to spill before we demand an end to this war and an accounting for the lives that have been needlessly ruined?

It is also time to stop hemorrhaging money in Iraq. I witnessed the abject poverty and sense of abandoment the less fortunate people of New Orleans were living in even before the levees broke. It is time to start pumping hope back into our own communities. It is time to start taking care of Americans. How many millions of our tax dollars are we going to allow George, Congress and the corporations to misuse and waste in Iraq?

Not one more drop of blood. Not one more life. Not one more penny for killing.

If you love our country and want to see a change for the better, come to DC on the 24 th of this month and stand up and be counted for peace. The entire world is counting on you.

Battered spouse syndrome is one of co-dependency. Many people have come to believe that no matter what they do (i.e voting), their lives can not become any better. We have to show them that by doing nothing, their lives are actually getting worse. How do we do this? How do we break through to people with little hope? These are questions for which I don't have the answers. Do any of us?

Posted by: oncall at September 17, 2005 10:49 AM

They do not vote because no matter how much they vote it will not get better for them anyway. Even when we do vote they just steal it so why bother?

the best way to break through to people with no hope is to offer them some. Not empty promises but a real hope that is both obtainable and basic.

Let us not forget more people voted for Kerry than any president ever elected before. So to say they just will not go vote is selling them short.

And about an earlier post about Ray Nagin turning dem at the last moment and picking up a swell, they do that down here CONSTANTLY

During the kerry blog days THAT is why i was compelled to write to kerry because alexander did the same thing, went from dem to repell in the last 5 minutes...EVERY TIME they do that, they are doing it to jump start well known election theft methodology.

By turncoating alexander garuanteed the entire 5th district was being rigged in favor of repellicans.

I was called everything but white for even mentioning it.

Sow the wond. Reap the whirlwind.

Ofcourse when it infected Ohio everyone was so shocked so surprised, just devestated.

If you just would have listened, you would have already knew the fix was in.

But hope springs eternal. It just dont do shit to make the problem go away.

I know there is a big political and emotional push to rebuild, rebuild, rebuild, but at some point you wonder why we are fighting nature with our tax dollars.

Posted by: Veritas at September 16, 2005 05:31 PM

New Orleans was at its current location before the United States was born.

It has always been human nature to defy mother nature...to push the limits of our ingenuity and daring.

I would personally like to see New Orleans not only rebuilt and restored, but revitalized in the very people...the culture of life that has made the city of New Orleans world famous.

The levees are to contain the Mississipi River from overflowing her banks...and are a necessary evil in maintaining strategic control of the mouth of the Mississippi.

New Orleans is not only a city of life and culture, but she is one of the largest ports in the world, nurturing not only her own people, but feeding the Heartland of America and the world and in providing for all goods shipped into and out of our fair Crescent City.

Be "Fiscally Responsible" if you must, but how can one be concerned with dollars when we are speaking of the indescribable and priceless gift to humanity that is New Orleans.