Comments on: Katrina Smoking Gun (or Not)

By: Gary

Gary — Thu, 27 Apr 2006 19:19:46 +0000

1. This need not be a Left-Right cage-debate. Bush seems to be backing Hillary, and Willy golfs with Poppy.
2. Problem-Reaction-Solution. Create a crisis (or turn a problem into a bigger crisis). Let the crisis moulder and grow until people scream.
3. Offer a solution: More funding, more power.
Not only was FEMA actively blocking doctors, water, and other aid, private military contractors like Blackwater thugs (www.stangoff.com ret Special Forces) with exclusive contracts acted as private mercs shooting civilians.
Instead of massive federal help — including people to drive the busses — NOLA got to experience a military police state drill — turning one American city into Fallujah.
The same thing was done in Seattle, as Clinton was preparing to turn the US over to Global Govt via NAFTA — hired “black bloc” thugs who were given free housing and free reign to loot, caused the suspension of normal First Amendment activities by normal citizens, and detention of said mainstream middle class civilians into Sandpoint Naval Brig. A training exercise for the public.
This was why REAL Conservatives hated Clinton — a dictatorship in the making. But when Bush does the same type of thing, it’s glorious.
I’ve heard and seen that Bush also uses Secret Service and local police to arrest middle aged, middle class dissidents. With this kind of “freedom” who needs to worry about communism?

By: bubba

bubba — Wed, 08 Mar 2006 19:03:31 +0000

actually there is more similarities between a topping and a breach than you are letting on… to be fair.
it is totally conceivable that a major topping would flood the pumping stations as the breach did. making the pumps inoperable. turning a temporary flooding into a more permenant affair. the government would still be needed to respond and help with getting things going. of course as we well remember the MEXCIAN federal government did almost as good of a job getting military “assets” into New Orleans as the US military.
so i am not sure if this is as big an oversight as you make it out to be.

By: Noah Shachtman

Noah Shachtman — Sat, 04 Mar 2006 22:18:14 +0000

Dan:
I wouldn’t read into things too much. My “lack of correction” shows that I was busy on other projects — deadlines for Fast Company, the NYT, and Pop Sci. It doesn’t have a thing to do with “partisanship.” The AP’s clarification is up now.
I do my best to update stories as new information comes around, and admit mistakes as I make ‘em. Here are two quick examples:
* http://www.defensetech.org/archives/001525.html
* http://www.defensetech.org/archives/001604.html
There are many — and will be many — more, I’m sure. In the future, the quickest way to be a correction or clarification is to e-mail me, defense-AT-defensetech-DOT-org.
nms
ps What’s with the spaceship?

By: John

John — Sat, 04 Mar 2006 21:40:45 +0000

Give it up guys. Noah is one Kos short of joining the Michael Moore tinfoil hat brigade. Anyone so drenched in partisanship that he’s still taking swipes at the “Mission Accomplished” speech after Baghdad fell, will never admit that everything under the sun, including this unpredictable thing called “the weather”, is not the fault of George Bush or some Halliburton inspired oil conspiracy.

By: Dan Sherman

Dan Sherman — Sat, 04 Mar 2006 18:22:14 +0000

Your lack of correction regarding your accusations about Bush knowing about “breeching” possibilities as opposed to what he was actually briefed on which was possible “topping” shows your partisanship.
I don’t mind thoughtful and honest discussions, but please belly up to the table when you’ve misspoken.
Cheers!
Dan

By: Buddy

Buddy — Fri, 03 Mar 2006 00:36:39 +0000

Regardless of administration or how well you like that administration, lets simplify the facts. Somebody that knows stuff told the pres.
“It’s big, its bad, it has a big storm surge as well as a lot of moisture inside the hurricane itself.” If the pres. says anything like, ” well then, maybe we better do this, or do that”, shouldn’t everybody down the line do something?
Instead, those that had the power on different levels down the line, sat there and watched it on CNN go from bad to worse and then after the hurricaine watched the levee’s breech,
and then suddenly there’s way too many people in the superdome and then watched as they sat there waiting for the rescue which took the better part of a work week to happen. Duh people!!!
I blame everyone that had anything to do with the decision making process all together!
Get off your duffs and do your darn jobs!
You certainly get paid enough to serve in your positions! Certainly any decision would be better than none!!! Are you qualified to do your jobs? Do you need somebody to tell you when to really, really go to work? You should all know when to go above and beyond the call of duty! It isn’t just for the military! Those people that pay your salaries, whether you do a good job or not, may really need you help one day!!!

By: sglover

sglover — Thu, 02 Mar 2006 23:49:39 +0000

Aw hell, this site doesn’t read HTML tags. Please put quote marks around the first paragraph of my 6:47 post, which is a reply to max’s splutter.

By: sglover

sglover — Thu, 02 Mar 2006 23:47:22 +0000

You’ve confused breaches of the levees with overtopping of the levees. Bush said it wasn’t anticipated that the levees would be breached; the famous video that everyone is watching doesn’t contradict that statement-It talks only about the possibility of levee overtopping.
Riiiight. And of course to Bush, whose background in engineering and hydrology is well-known, this is a crucial distinction, not mere semantic masturbation. Gotcha.
This is sad because of people like Sglover and James, that you guys would be pathetic enough to comment about other people’s noggings and not even admit that Louisiana leadership screwed up and for the most part people liked Bush SAVED THEIR ASSES!
If you calm down, you might find grammar easier. Here’s a mental exercise that might help you collect yourself: Ponder what Bush’s Homeland Security Department spent four years doing. It obviously wasn’t disaster planning.

By: Paul

Paul — Thu, 02 Mar 2006 23:39:38 +0000

Katrina was a test of our ability to respond to a major disaster/attack. Imagine if there was just a minor category one or two hurricane to swell the rivers and terrorists set off bombs breaching the levies. The result would have been much the same.

By: James

James — Thu, 02 Mar 2006 20:50:33 +0000

If Katrina had nothing to do with defense, then why were there so many troops there? Search and rescue, disaster response, domestic breakdowns of law and order, these are all defense issues since the military and especially the National Guard are going to be called out for them.
If you read the tabs on the left side of the screen you’ll see a catalog of everything the site covers. It is Mr Shactman’s site, after all, and it’s about whatever the hell he says it’s about.
Katrina was a spectacular test of FEMA, the Homeland Security apparatus, and the DoD. What it revealed was considerable disarray at all levels. Up until now the Administration and its apologists have maintained that the scope of the disaster was unexpected and, in the hours immediately after the breaching of the levees, largely unknown outside of New Orleans. These excuses have steadily eroded: there were plenty of warnings about what was likely to happen in the event of a major hurricane, some going back years, and it is now known that FEMA was immediately aware of the crisis but was unable to respond effectively.
In short, Katrina revealed that the US Government, and especially the military, is stretched painfully thin, with few reserves available. Blaming it all on the locals is foolish. Local law enforcement and the local governments were the victims of the same hurricane that destroyed the levees. The police stations and city offices had to be evacuated along with everything else. They simply weren’t in any condition to make intelligent decisions about what was going on. You’re acting like an emergency room doctor who petulantly wants to know why a gunshot victim didn’t stop his own bleeding.
What is the logic of FEMA after all, if it is not to step in and support local governments that are collapsing under the strain of unprecedented disaster? And the loss of New Orleans was unprecedented, the worst event in the sad history of the Gulf cities. Sniping at the locals for not sending their forms in correctly is moral cowardice, but we’ve seen so much of that from this Administration that it hardly registers anymore.