Comparing Cumquats and Canteloupes

BOSTON--Today's NYT runs a news analysis about the Bush Administration's not-so-discreet efforts to make the nation forget "Brownie, you're doin a heckuva job" and all the other damning details--the staff had to make him watch a DVD of the coverage--that made "Katrina" a synonym for government fecklessness.

The President made a statement widely believed to be aimed at pushing blame on Louisiana's lame-duck Governor Blanco, and the Times analysis quotes Louisianans pushing back on that front. And writer Sheryl Gay Stolberg does an admirable job comparing the magnitudes of the two disasters, by which measures the New Orleans event dwarfed that in SoCal.

But Stolberg, like so many other national journalists, fails to make the crucial point: the New Orleans event is a stain on the Feds not just because of the response, but the event itself was caused by federal mal- and mis-feasance, i.e., the four-decade-long Corps of Engineers "hurricane protection project" wracked with design and construction flaws that proved catastrophic.

Unless one of the SoCal arsonists is proved to be a DHS employee, the federal involvement in the causation of Louisiana's woes is the primary distinction between the two disasters.

Comments

[deminmo]

I got the impression that New Orleans wanted to
purge certain neighborhoods to "re-vitalize" them before Katrina, but hadn't done it.

In the case of the California fires, rich
folks decided to build their dream homes in
very wooded areas prone to fires.

Maybe there is some justice after all.

[Moralfiberseeker]

Right on, Harry. Talk about oneupmanship. Your article wouldn't have been as good with the old apples and oranges simile.

Of course, anybody with a brain and some moral fiber knows that the scum running our country could care less about any American citizen that earns less than $500K/year. The only way they can justify their impertinence and future demise in their own eyes is to gut the fatted cat while they can. Since they and their fellow crooks have already stolen most of the funds earmarked for the rebuilding of New Orleans, that ship has sailed.

There is probably a marketing plan being devised for the California crisis as we blog.
After all, that is the American way.

[Danny]

Blame the stupid poor, praise the rich insured IS THE MESSAGE.

[Truthortradition]

Bottom line, the rich folks in California got helped asap, while the poor folks in New Orleans were forgotten. No surprise in this world of haves and have nots.

[Levittown]

George Bush has been looking for an out for his failure
with Katrina. He compares a Democratic New Orleans
with a Repblican California. He compares an inept Fema with a restructured Fema. George Bush is only transparent with his empty head where truth lies. His administration has been existing on a bed of lies,misinformation and deceit. When he speaks I expect another fantasy by the most unqualified person to ever occupy the White House. He will be judged by history if we last long enough. He shames us day after day.

[Lasserina]

I believe GW's comment comparing Schwarzenegger to Blanco was our first clue that this administration was going to start the So Cal spin.
Blaming Blanco and Nagin for all of the suffering of the uninsured poor in Katrina. You can bet that he, his administration and FEMA will take credit for rebuilding the wealthy and insured So. Cal. residents.
I guess he forgot to use in his comparison the death toll of PEOPLE in Katrina. For GW it's just not a factor, there was no price tag placed on the loss of lives, especially poor brown lives.
Now, in So Cal, the billions of dollars in property damage, well, now they are speaking his language!!
Both are tragic episodes in our country"s history. It"s reprehensible that GW is banking on the tragedy to grab a few meager approval points.
Trying to compare the two is beyond disgraceful, it"s egregiously shameful.

[Aunt Shecky]

In a way, comparing the two disasters is like comparing kumquats and cantaloupes, but we do have to make a distinction. From what I've read about the Post-Katrina N.O. (most of which comes from Harry Shearer)I got the impression the working class and poor of that city were more or less
"written off," by the powerful and the monied classes long before the Hurricane struck. Also, there was almost an insidious intention that any rebuilding done there would be with an eye toward "gentrification"-- with the bulk of the renewal benefitting the upper classes. If I am wrong, forgive me. I have sympathy for both sets of victims but it's unsettling to realize that it will take longer for New Orleans natives to feel at home again while the folks in Southern California were already in a position to "bounce back" more quickly.

[politicky]

Not too many people who criticize the comparison appear to be getting beyond the black/white, rich/poor comparisons.

The most basic differences were infrastructure failures after Katrina:

You cannot move people and goods through water without boats or vehicles that ride high off the ground. The areas hit by Katrina lost power, water, land line phone service, and cell phone towers.

Most of the basic infrastructure in the most highly populated sections of the County of San Diego was not affected.

[gardengoddess]

Well...cutting funds to the U.S. Forest Service year after year is, in the opinion of many, the same thing as not repairing the levees in Louisiana. The Southern California fires are just the beginning, if the funding cuts to the Forest Service continue. The funding cuts - in every one of Bush's budgets to date - are wreaking havoc with national forest land nationwide. There's not a state in the country that hasn't been affected by those cuts.

Ferret out a U.S. Forest Service employee, and ask them - off the record - what they're facing now. Every one of them will tell you lack of personnel, lack of new equipment, lack of money to fix current equipment, lack of money to do even the most fundamental conservation of national forest lands.

This is national disaster waiting to happen.

[dyannne]

Having options does change the attitude and response to a disaster. Last night I watched the news at my daughter's house (I've killed the TV at my house) and they showed a San Diego couple who put up a sign in front of their burned down house that said, "Finally no termites." I don't think I ever saw a sign with light humor like that in it after Katrina. I had TV then.

[backhandpath]

dyanne, check this out...
The New Orleans Levee
~~"We don't hold anything back!"
http://www.nolevee.com/

[AnOddGirl]

Then you really haven't looked, they were and still are everywhere. Our humor sustains us.

[LoriAnn]

Thank you Sir for once again being to the point and spot on....No comparison should be made or can realistically be spoken. I cant help but think about the one home owner that was interviewed a few days ago that said "I just hated my floors so now I guess I can get that hardwood Ive been wanting....a fire can be a cleansing experience....Uh ...ok! Spoken by someone with too much insurance and so much time on their hands....tragic!

[Reddaddy]

Granted I feel sorry those who lost thier homes in SO CA. However nothing will ever compare to the disater on the Gulf Coast. Over two years later there still people fighting to get their homes back. We are talking about over 100 thousand people. Bush was johnny on the spot in So CA which mostly Republican and weahly. Where as the Gulf Coast are poor and working poor. He did a fly over , he did want to ruin his vacation.

[gevan]

I am thinking of all those pictures of the people trapped on the roofs of their houses, surrounded by burning federal forest lands, waiting for the helicopters to lift them to safety. Because there wasn't a necessity for the SoCal victims of that tragedy to learn how to tread water made a huge difference.

[Durango]

The debate that we are not seeing, and goes far beyond Katrina and New Orleans is: How do we abolish the Army Corps of Engineers and what do we replace it with?

The story of how they became invlove in Mississippi River control is as fascinating as it is corrupt. As I did on another post I direct anyone who is interested to John M. Barry's RISING TIDE The Great Mississippi River Flood off 1927 and How It Changed America. An excellent background study of the Mississippi River and the Corps early involvement.

(He also explains how African-Americans becme Democrats, something I had long wondered about. After all Dems were the party of the South and Republicans were the party of Lincoln. Of course Roosevelt created the coalition that included A-A but it was as much a result of Herbert Hoovers rascism as anything).

Getting back on track . . . the Army Corps of Engineers is, arguably, the greatest environmntally destructive force in American history. And its actions in New Orleans should be the proverbial straw that would see the abolition of the Corps.

[backhandpath]

Yes, Durango, "Rising Tide" is a very very excellent book.
I even learned things about my own family in that story.
Aside from the incredible research he must have done, Mr. Barry wrote a really interesting page turner. I know it sounds silly but I could not put it down. You can find really cheap copies on Amazon and Yes everyone should read "Rising Tide".

Y'all might also want to check out:
http://risingtidenola.com/
It is a great site for New Orleans bloggers. When you get there a page comes up for the August conference "Rising Tide 2", so just click through to the blog.
There are some sharp cookies in that oven.

[Indiana]

Bravo for a first-rate post!

Bush caused the flooding of New Orleans, and saw in the scattering of her people, mainly poor people of color, to the four winds, the chance to ethnically cleanse the city of potential Democratic voters. No need to do that in an Orange County full of potential GOP contributors.

Read all about how Bush destroyed New Orleans and has been abusing Louisiana in the Daily Kos diary www.dailykos.com/story/2007/10/29/91336/673.

[backhandpath]

Thanks Indi. That's a great link.
Aren't You you just so right on right on!

When you leave a link on Huff Post you have to make sure the http:// thingy is in front of the www thingy or it won't leave the site.
However...
everyone can just copy/paste it to their browser bar and go right there.
Gettin' cold up there yet?

[jackox]

Yes Harry-- you are correct. I repeat every chance I get that the WhiteHouse, Fema, and the Army Corps all new on the day of Katrina that the levees were cracking and were going to break but kept it a SECRET from the State of La officials. Therefore, they are responsible for the drowning deaths. Louisiana had stopped evacuation because they were led to believe that New Orleans had missed the bullet. The federal government should be paying to rebuild every single flooded house as it was a result of failing federal infrastructure.

[luziannagirl]

Not only that, but I heard that 12 state-of-the-art Dutch submersible pumps were available from a Netherlands entity, fresh from being used in Africa, and waiting in a cargo plane on the tarmac while the levees were still in the process of breaching. The Washington powers that be refused to procure them because the Corps already had a contract with one of the major defense contracting companies, and they preferred using their own crappy ass-pumps and technical crew that didn't know its ass from a hole in the ground OR a hole in the levee.

Of course weeks later, after all the damage was done, and it was essentially too late, the Corps DID deign to accept help from the Dutch.

That's what I heard, anyway.

Oh, yeah, and jackbox, Louisiana had "stopped" evacuation because everyone who intended to and had the means to leave had left already, and at that late hour, the greater danger was getting caught by the storm while on the road. The roads were open, though. And, for a good 12 hours before high winds arrived, free of traffic.

Most of those who later became trapped in NewOrleans after the flooding were those who chose not to leave for one reason or another, including the inability to take pets to motels and shelters, the inability to move elderly or sick loved ones for hours and hours in traffic.

Tens of thousands of those stranded were alsom simply urbanites without cars. Unlike most modern American sprawling megalopi, New Orleans is a traditional, grid-street, walkable, human-scale city. If there were one car per adult of drivable age, there would be no place to park all of them. Kind of like...Paris. France.

Governor Blanco actually did a superb job with pre-Katrina evacuation.

There are so many inaccuracies and blatant lies regarding Katrina. One can't rely upon the news media to get even the most basic facts right any more.

[AnOddGirl]

If it had only been Katrina! We would have been home in 5 days, friends that stayed were ecstatic that the city had survived, then the levees broke, these are 2 separate incidents. The Army Corps(e) of Engineers and the Levee Board of Orleans Parish along with a bunch of LA politicians have cut cost and corners over the last 50 years. It was bound to happen, too bad that when it did all my democratic politicians in charge were neophytes.

[roneckley16823]

Two people are responsible - the governor and the President. Thats why we vote to put them in charge. Everyone else works for them and can be terminated if not performing up to the standards necessary for the position. The governor and President get paid to hold all other offices accountable. Neither one did a great job. Disgraceful. In California you saw the governor everywhere, and we also know he pointed out all the problems to the feds prior to this terrible event. The State was prepared even if the feds aren't. He didn't drop the ball. This administration is still pinching pennies on the American people and will continue to do so unless they are promised an oil well.

[OckhamsElectricRazor]

I find it odd and revealing that Bush has not whipped up a typical frenzy about the arson in CA being the result of terrorism. Indded, I think it would be interesting for the admin to explain the difference between arson and terrorism; and what factors eliminated the suspicion of terrism SO quickly.

[BaHa]

Kumquat, not cumquat.

[Harry Shearer - Huffpost Blogger]

See Harry Shearer's Profile

HARRY SAYS: The "c" is an approved alternate spelling.

[backhandpath]

Oh Harry! They gave you one of those little box thingies? Cool.
Still, I kinda like the way you would seem to just show up like you were standing right next to our comments.
You're the only person who rocks their blog's comments section and I think that is just sharp as hell.
Oh yeah, and thanks for turning me on to
the Burma News Ladder. It is about one of the best places for current articles on That Other man-made disaster.
They are slamming over on facebook for Burma too.
Keep it up, Noble Mon.