Heartbreaking
September 2nd, 2005Katrina’s aftermath has struck our house silent with emotion. With every news report and today’s posting of a heartbreaking radio interview with New Orleans mayor, Ray Nagin, it just seems to get worse. I’ve been afaid to post anything for fear of backlash about not saying something earlier or to ask why we haven’t pledged monetary support. Let me say it here: we’ll be donating whatever we can to the aid of residents and the rebuilding of the Gulf Coast and other areas hit by Katrina. It will likely span several charities and organizations and span months.
It’s all we can do from here for now. There is a big part of me that wants to fire up the truck and head down there to volunteer, but that is not possible or realistic on so many levels. Perhaps if we lived closer. I so want to help, but have no clue what to do in the short term. There is such a sense of hopelessness. If ever there was time for a strong, courageous leader in the White House, it is now.
The Bush response to this horrible disaster has been pathetic up to this point. I hope that he can find it within himself to get out of his bubble of cronies and roll up his sleeves. He has the power to affect great change. I hate to say this, but if we weren’t in Iraq, would we have the military resources to have devoted more people more quickly here at home? I can’t help but think about this as I watch people struggle to survive.
I fear that the death toll from Katrina will eclipse that of any other tragedy in my lifetime. What a horror. Such a paralyzing sight to see so many without any place to go, except where they are told. That constant vision from the television is almost as tragic as the storm itself.
We have a long way to go in this country. Such a long way to go. o
September 2nd, 2005 at 2:31 pm
True, what’s going on in the south is horrid. Never in a million years could I have imagined something so awful happening in this country. Refugees. Here! In America!? WTF?
The response from the government was slow, and the repercussions of that are obvious. Though, instead of talking about what happened days or hours ago, let’s focus on what’s happening right now. Troops are coming in, billions have been pledged by the government. Millions from the private sector. Yes, the Bush administration was wrong to wait to respond, I do not argue that. But I do wholeheartedly agree that this should not be about politics. This should be about helping people in absolute desperate need of help.
Political talk now is uncalled for.
Though, Jon, I adore your blog and Heather’s too! SO don’t take it personally….not that you would.
September 2nd, 2005 at 2:39 pm
I have seen tons of Bush Bashing, but what about the LA state government. Don’t they hold responsibility for the way matters have been handeled? Are their hands totally clean from all that has happened? I think a lot of blame goes to them as well. of course, we don’t want to talk about that though. Any chance we can take a stab at Bush we will and will forego looking at the mistakes of others. But you know what? There are much bigger issues than hating on the politics of this country. I am so sick of how people want to criticize everything, dichotomize everything. Okay, so maybe you hate the Bush admin. Maybe there are a million things you hate… but put it aside. Stop making this all about politics. People are literally doing all they can. We have never suffered a physical tragedy of this maginitude. Bush is not sitting around biting his nails. He is taking action. He himself has said there have been problems with the way things were handeled with New Orleans- but you know what? Sadly and unfortuantely we can’t change the terrible thing that has happened and the way it has been played out. It is now time to get over pointing fingers and bashing people and talking politics. We need to be better than that. I am currently living in Kuwait and it has been embarrassing to hear what these people think about the way we have all but come together at a time of crisis. Where is our unity? Can we not put down our right wing vs. left wing politics just for a few days? There will be plenty of time to bash Bush and what he didn’t do and what he should have done… after we get these poor people out of the hell they have been experiencing. It is time to look at the voices of those suffering. Those hurting. Those who have been wiped out entirely. How selfish is it for us-sitting in our comfy houses with plenty to eat and drink with our family- to make this about “us” and what we think and Bush this and Bush that. It is about the thousands needing help. Please put aside your political mindset and take action. There are power in words, but so much more power in action. Quit typing crap about “should have…” and “they need to…” and go volunteer. Make a donation. Take action.
September 2nd, 2005 at 2:44 pm
I’m a long-time reader of Blurbomat and Dooce. I respect you both very much, always enjoy what you have to say, and think you have the cutest child in the free world.
That being said, you are totally on point with today’s post. I haven’t ever been a fan of Bush - didn’t vote for him the first or second time, and always knew that he would be completely inadequate in the face of a tragedy such as this (especially one that comes at a time when he doesn’t need to “impress” the American people in order to secure a reelection). I am amazed at how little we will do for our own people, when we do so much for other countries. And this feeling of helplessness - of being thousands of miles away and not being able to do anything - is horrible. Depressing and aggravating, to say the very least.
If it makes anyone feel better, please know that help IS on the way as we speak - even though it should have been on the way days ago. I work for the military and we’re sending troops from Michigan to do what we can to make things better. We certainly won’t be able to “fix” the problems, but we’re ready and willing to help in whatever way we can. I worry that things are going to get worse before they get better - because that seems to be the way it’s headed. But, help IS on its way. We’re all lending a hand up here, and donations of food, water, clothing, etc., are being gathered and shipped right away. Every little bit helps, right?
I think that, when all is said and done, there will be a commission assembled to investigate this whole situation. Somebody dropped the ball. BIG TIME! This NEVER should’ve happened in the wealthiest nation in the world. Never.
September 2nd, 2005 at 2:54 pm
I think that what makes the disaster even worse is that all along, DHS (& Bush Co.) have been proclaiming that they can meet the demands of a terrorist attack.
Well, yeah right. If this is how the government reacts to a “natural” disaster, can you imagine what it would be like if terrorists had struck NOLA?
September 2nd, 2005 at 3:00 pm
As Americans we have viewed devastation in other countries and have seen the pictures, this is one of the first times we have understood the language. Human violations of this magnitude aren’t supposed to happen in the land of the free, the land of Starbucks on every corner, WalMarts withing 50 miles of all of us…..
That to me is why this all seems sooo outrageous and surreal. It’s one thing to see third world nations struggling to deal with a catastrophy, it’s another when it’s just down the street…..
September 2nd, 2005 at 3:06 pm
I feel as you do the helplessness of the situation; however, I also believe that blaming Bush is misplaced. The Mayor knew this was coming, he knew it was going to be catastrophic - he made no attempt, to my knowledge, to ensure that everyone, the poor and indigent included, had heeded the call to evacuate.
There was a man whose name I do not recall on the news last night. He was Mayor of N.O. about 15 years ago and said he had advised the city then that the levees were in need of repair and were being compromised. He then blamed the current Bush administration and the involvement in Iraq for it not being done. I was not a math major, but I don’t think George W. was at fault for this 10 years ago.
The locals should have ponied up many years ago if the levees needed repairs - the blame game being played now is not helping any of these families who have lost everything. Compare the way Guliani handled 9/11 with Nagin’s hand-wringing. While this man may be in the throse of turmoil, terror and frustration, he certainly isn’t leading this city. Times like this call for infinite character, integrity and diplomacy - none of which he has displayed.
Ther is a much bigger issue here and it has nothing to do with your political leanings - it has to do with the nature of man and the moral corruption of a city. The underbelly of N.O. has been filthy for a long time and busy making it’s fast money. Now when they are in desperate need, which has been in the offing for years, they cry foul.
September 2nd, 2005 at 3:22 pm
Katherine, I think you really summed it up–the really sad issue is that none of this should have happened, especially with all of the “preparation” polito-babble we’ve been hearing. Nothing can stop the devastation of a natural disaster, but *good* planning and *good* leadership can reduce the aftereffects. I don’t think anyone can honestly argue that the recovery, security, and healthcare efforts after the hurricane have been adequate, sufficient, or even remotely well structured.
In my eyes, this is *exactly* what happened post-invasion Iraq–our nation’s leadership threw up a lot of figures on a press-conference board, promised us they had it under control, but in reality had no concrete and forward-thinking plans for dealing with the chaos to follow. It’s typical of our leadership now, and very depressing–they are willing to bank on people doing and caring for themselves (keeping out until things get so bad it’s impossible to ignore), willing to risk lives on it, in order to do things on the cheap.
And innocent lives are paying the forfeit of the bet.
September 2nd, 2005 at 3:24 pm
I’m in Germany and as far as I know our government and all the other european countries have been offering help - be it money or personell - to Condi Rice and President Bush. But they havent actually taken us up on the offer yet. I’m sure that all the europeans would send help as soon as Washington tells them to.
just wanted to say that we’re all thinking of you over here. the pictures on tv are apocalyptic.
September 2nd, 2005 at 3:25 pm
It seems to me that those of us who are criticizing Bush are not talking about levies that should have been fixed 15 years ago. We are upset at the very delayed response in helping out people both with food, medicine, water and also evacuation. The hurricane has been over for days and only NOW is help arriving. Yes, the states of Mississippi and Louisiana need to help there people. But look, this is a MAJOR national disaster, not just a state disaster. We need federal leadership and help? Why else should we pay taxes?
September 2nd, 2005 at 3:26 pm
I’m sorry ahead of time, and I’m probably out of place here, but every time I see “this isn’t supposed to happen in America,” I cringe. Things like this shouldn’t be allowed to happen ANYWHERE, not just in America.
I feel for the families in Katrina’s wake, but I also feel for families devastated by war, starvation, genocide and AIDS all over the world. Those of us who are privileged should do what we can to help those who are not, regardless of where they live.
September 2nd, 2005 at 3:27 pm
that pretty much sums up my feelings on this.
i’m still reeling from the emotional backlash of it all.
September 2nd, 2005 at 3:28 pm
I will be completely honest and state that I am quite middle of the road when it comes to politics, but I don’t think this is the best time to debate politics. Personally, I just want aid to get to the people and cities in need as quickly as possible. We need to come together at this time and donate our time, money and anything else possible to those who need our help. Right now is a time about the love of humanity, and hopefully we’ll see more humanity from all corners of the US and the world in the coming days.
September 2nd, 2005 at 3:30 pm
Justin, in all due respect, New York did not lose the entire city, water, electricity, police force, jailspace, etc. on 9/11. It was a tragedy, to be sure (I was there, I remember very vividly), but nothing on the scale of what has happened in New Orleans. You need to read more articles, and do more research about the warnings issued and the levy protections, pumphouse protections, and additional staff that were requested (and promised) pre-hurricane that were never delivered before placing blame on the mayor. The NO mayor has no office, few staff, and no infrastructure at all–he has been begging for marshall law, and no one has heeded his call.
September 2nd, 2005 at 3:32 pm
This is lengthy, but I think necessary…just to let some of you know how truly sad this is, this is an email we FINALLY got (after many days of intense worry) from a cousin who lives in the area:
We are safe.
The eye of the hurricane blew over Bay Saint Louis, Mississippi, and right into our back yard. We lived about 1000 feet from the beach. Our home was washed away. It’s gone. We have nothing but the clothes on our backs and a few pictures. My car is also gone. Everything just evaporated. If you saw the video of Bay Saint Louis, there is a church steeple/bell tower resting in the middle of a lot. I lived across the street from that church. It was Christ Episcopal.
Boo! and Rudy are fine and with us, but Socks and Lily didn’t make it. They are gone. We thought they would be safe, so we left them tons of food and said our good-byes around 5 a.m. Sunday morning.
On the Gulf Coast, life was always discussed in terms of Hurricane Camille, that is, before Camille or after Camille. Sort of like B.C. and A.D. Camille was the barometer that measured other storms. People died and there was destruction, but so many homes and buildings survived that Category 5. If we lived through that, we can survive this one. Our home survived Camille, and it didn’t even get much water damage. So we were mostly concerned with the roof and getting water from above. We never, ever expected a 30 foot wall of water to wash over it.
I fear for a girlfriend’s life. Holly would babysit Boo and Rudy when we’d go out of town. She lived one block away. One block further from the beach than we lived. She decided to stay. She thought she was safe. Her house is gone.
Of course we are very grateful for what we do have, and we our counting all of our blessings. We have it so much better than most people down here. But it’s so difficult when I begin to think of what we also lost. Mostly, I’m devastated over the joyful memories I have lost in that house that have YET to be. And I’m devastated for my one year old daughter, our only child, who has been uprooted from her tiny little environment. Her room, her crib, her rocker and her routine that we finally established. All the beautiful cards and gifts we received are gone. All the little keepsakes I was saving for her. This is how I will remember her first year of life. And it’s just not fair.
It hurts to know that I’ve lost sentimental family valuables. When I think of the time it took my grandmother to hand crochet a dining table coverlet only to be washed away in a storm … I feel sick. A brooch pin that someone gave me for good luck. Letters from friends that go all the way back to junior high through college. My high school year book. A message in a bottle that a college friend gave me when he saw me on campus one day looking very blue. My parents’ wedding picture. And my grandparents’.
There are people, neighbors, friends at the gym that I know I will never see again. I don’t even know if they are alive or they evacuated. The last time I talked to my next door neighbor Sherrie, she came over to see the baby and tell me she and her daughter were going out to Philadelphia for a few days. That’s the last time I saw her. She was there when the storm hit. If we only had a crystal ball, I could have said a proper good-bye.
Harry and I will be relocating permanently. Getting out of the South. We just don’t know where.
***
George Bush can suck it. There’s a military base less than an hour away from the hardest hit areas and the soldiers have been SITTING with no directive this entire week while Bush was vacationing. How can he live with himself or sleep at night. I’m disgusted at the lack of his use of power. People should want to be president of this country to help it’s people for the betterment of their lives and surroundings. I’m not really one to tell people to go to hell…but in this case he can suck it and burn.
September 2nd, 2005 at 3:33 pm
I live in Houston, and I’ve been volunteering at the Astrodome. It’s like a third world country down there. Imagine the worst, and the worst is what you see. Thank you to all of you who are donating and volunteering. That’s what is going to make a difference to the refugees, not all of the politico talk. Don’t get me wrong, I’m all for expressing opinions, I just want to push the point home: these people need actual help, not just rhetoric.
Jon, thank you for your post. You and Heather have the burden of a lot of people looking to your reactions to the world, and I think that you are both handling the situation admirably. Hugs to your family.
Thanks for letting me spill my guts. Keep up the good work, people!
September 2nd, 2005 at 3:44 pm
I agree that everyone could have done more, but blame no one. I have to disagree with Justin on both painting N.O. as a Sodom and Gommarah that is crying wolf (because devasatation is the great equalizer and humanity deserves compassion in times like these ) but also the levee point - funds were appropriated by the federal government and then cut several times. It’s not the locality’s (state, city) fault if the money for the industrial repairs are “in the budget” federally and are then re-appropriated at the last minute. Highways, dams, tunnels and other basic infrastructure that requires huge capital investment is quite often paid for by the federal government starting with the WPA in the Depression (e.g. Hoover Dam, Interstate Freeways). However there has been a decline in funds for flood management at all levels of government - so hopefully this will serve as a wake-up call to invest in the aging infrastructure of levees across the nation.
My heart is breaking for the people of the Gulf. I am doing what I can monetarily and in more tangible donations.
I encourage everyone else to do the same, as the Armstrongs have. Finally, I encourage you all to take a couple hours to stock an emergency kit. I live in CA so I will prepare for earthquakes - others have tornadoes or hurricanes - and please heed all emergency warnings and instructions. Don’t “wait it out.” Please.
September 2nd, 2005 at 3:44 pm
I so appreciate your comments Jon, Heather, and everyone…feeling the same way in the midwest, with no way to help but donate some money.
I for one am frustrated that there’s so much media focus on ‘looting’ when BABIES and OLD PEOPLE are DYING on the flooded streets of New Orleans. Because A) I can’t say for sure I wouldn’t go steal some shoes and clothes, or what the hell, a plasma tv, when I was in complete shock after losing everything and seeing dead bodies floating down what used to be the streets of my town and B) I am quite sure I would ’steal’ food, water, diapers, and vitamins for my kid. I hope I would also ’steal’ insulin for a diabetic neighbor, or food or whatever, with absolutely no second thought about it.
I just can’t stand all the “looting” talk on TV. People are trying to survive, for the love of god.
September 2nd, 2005 at 3:48 pm
I, too, am upset at our governments lack of action following this week’s events. Isn’t this something that they should have been prepared for… WORST-CASE SCENARIO, style? They should have had those national guards, those supplies and everything else on the read two days before the hurricane struck.
And where is the leadership of the state? Who is in charge down there? Why is it that at these evacuation sites (SuperDome/Convention Center) there is no one there that is in charge? This is something that they should have been prepared for… maybe not in the magnitude that it was… but America just got caught with its pants down and our government has not stepped up to the plate until it’s almost too late.
I am outraged and wish I could do more than donate. As you said, it’s not feasible to go down there for many of us. It’s unbelieveable to me that in America today, we’ve got American citizen being called refugees. It’s such a terrible event, the likes of which I can only pray we don’t see again.
September 2nd, 2005 at 3:48 pm
I live (or lived, heh) in New Orleans, and it is people like you and Heather that make this process just a little easier. Thank you for your generous amounts of support and hope. We need that more than anything else right now.
September 2nd, 2005 at 3:51 pm
Yes, this is a horrible disaster, but it probably won’t turn out to be as bad as the tsunami. We’re talking about a quarter of a million people dead in SE Asia. I hope it’s not going to be that bad on the Gulf Coast.
Also, I am not surprised that there hasn’t been a lot of talk about international aid and things like that. America is hated by the international community. Maybe the reasoning is: you go to war unilaterally? Fine. You clean up after your hurricanes unilaterally.
Also - does anyone else besides me see the class/race difference between the way this hurricane is being “handled” vs. 9/11? So the buildings that were bombed during 9/11 happened in big cities, yes, but those cities were filled with some of the richest people. Washington DC and the NYC business district has a lot of rich white people running around. The people stranded in New Orleans seem to be overwhelmingly black and poor. I feel like the attitude is “OK, let’s get all the rich white folks up in NYC fixed up right away. Poor black people in New Orleans? Nah, we don’t care about them so much.” I feel horrible even typing that opinion, because I don’t want to believe that it’s true. But maybe it is.
September 2nd, 2005 at 3:54 pm
Frankly, I’m far more appalled by the animalistic and sleazy things that some in the affected areas are inflicting upon their fellow refugees than I am by anything going on government-wise. Raping women & children? Carjackings? Shooting at helicopters that are trying to help? Shoving aside the weak, sick and elderly so that you can be the first one out?
Those are the things that disgust me, not the fact the government has been a little slow in their actions. However, the convoys that are making it into N.O. today had been on the road for days. Yes, this is America but when has America ever seen a natural disaster so devastating?
September 2nd, 2005 at 3:57 pm
Sorry Jon, forgot to add this in to the above.
‘I honestly don’t see how anyone could have reacted any faster unless all the relief efforts had been completely mobilized before Katrina even hit.’
September 2nd, 2005 at 3:59 pm
Jon, there is no need for you to apologize for sharing your thoughts in whatever time-frame you choose. You are not an elected official. Wish you were.
Rose
September 2nd, 2005 at 4:08 pm
I’m Canadian and my heart goes out to the incredible suffering that is going on for all of those along the Gulf Coast, especially the city that was New Orleans.
Someone said they wish the talk about the looting would stop, that it’s just people trying to survive. If they were looting grocery stores and drug marts, I would understand. But clearing a Walmart of its guns? Electronics stores of DVD players and TVS? When you don’t even have a damned house or electricity? That isn’t survival. That is hubris. That is selfishness of the worst kind.
I’ll tell you what is seen from the outside, when we see your news:
Snipers shooting at rescue helicopters
Talk of gangs refusing to let people evacuate, of rapes and murders
Snipers shooting at hospitals as they try to clear out the critically ill
Someone said that this isn’t like 911, because they didn’t lose electricity, water, the basics of life. No, that’s true. But when there was a catastrophic explosion and a gargantuan building began to collapse in front of them, and people ran, they stopped to help up those who fell trying to flee. They helped each other. They sheltered each other.
In New Orleans it seems, at least to this outsider, that it’s become a cutthroat basics of survival.
You came through 911 with courage and unity.
It’s a shame to see things differ now.
September 2nd, 2005 at 4:10 pm
Oh yeah
One more thing (sorry, I forget a lot).
As for international aid, this is from the CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation) news website:
“More than three dozen countries, besides Canada have pledged assistance to the United States in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.
Cuba and Venezuela have offered to help despite political differences. The list also includes Saudi Arabia, Dominica, Russia, France, Japan, China, El Salvador, Israel, Paraguay, the U.K., the United Arab Emirates, the Netherlands, Honduras, Germany, Venezuela, Jamaica, Australia, Switzerland, Greece, Hungary, Columbia, The Dominican Republic, Mexico, South Korea, New Zealand, Guatemala, Belgium, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Italy, Guyana, Indonesia, Austria, Lithuania, Spain, Norway and the Bahamas”
To my knowledge, the US government has turned down several of these offers.