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September 04, 2005
Sunday NOLA Fragments
The economics and geopolitics of why New Orleans must be rebuilt. It is a port of tremendous significance to the American economy. And guess what, it's not about the oil.
Archpundit speaks common sense about the practicalities of evacuation. Apparently, everybody who keeps thinking that Nagin could have materialized busses for the overflow at the Superdome have never been on an overbooked plane flight. The same class of logistical problems kept the National Guard from getting *to* New Orleans. Similar details are at American Digest.
An excellent timeline is available over at Rightwing Nuthouse. I'm following this to verify my gut that Ray Nagin is not a goat but a hero of these trying days.
I've pulled the story about Good Samaritan Hospital. It was submitted by a friend but there are some corrections to be made.
An all-purpose broadside at the local officials can be found in withering detail at From the Swamp. Mindbogglingly, the Governor asked for a grand total of $9 million in Federal Aid, and the Nagin Motor Pool is posterized. No plan survives contact with the enemy.
Posted by mbowen at September 4, 2005 06:59 PM
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Comments
Scott Rosenberg at Salon:
"I don't doubt that state and local officials made mistakes. And in due time we'll learn much more. But this disaster is epochal in scale; one reason we have a federal government in the first place is to deal with crises when their scale is simply too great for a state to handle. Instead of taking charge, the Bush administration botched its initial reaction -- and now, instead of accepting responsibility and focusing on helping the victims, its officials are covering their posteriors."
"This "CEO president" has repeatedly failed in the realm that was supposed to be his strong suit -- basic management. When crisis management fails on this large a scale, the calamity may only take a quick moment, a day or a week, but inevitably it has been years in the making. In Katrina's case, it's the kind of outcome you get when you have a national leader who never fires anyone for doing a lousy job but who instantly dismisses anyone who breaks ranks or speaks out of line. You end up with a government of incompetents and yes-men placeholders who owe their jobs to loyalty and patronage, not achievement and skill."
Posted by: Bill Benzon at September 5, 2005 06:23 AM