Ever since the Haiti earthquake happened, it has invited quite a few comparisons to the disaster brought about in New Orleans by the federal flood. There are even those in the mainstream media who have asked if this quake is going to turn out to be Obama's "Katrina."
This is not surprising because there are some similarities in the situations--for example, the slowness in rescuing and getting aid to the survivors--which reminds casual observers of the way New Orleanians had to wait a week for food, water and rescue after her levees failed. Also, these catastrophes are manmade--Haiti's because of shoddily-constructed buildings, New Orleans' because of poorly-built and maintained levees--both of which had been disasters waiting to happen.
Nearly four and a half years ago this nation experienced the two worst disasters of this past decade: Hurricane Katrina and New Orleans' federal flood. Today many consider them old news, if not history, but they still are present in the lives of those who survived them.
A commenter @ Oyster's site recommended that we read pages 148-150 of the Judge's opinion (pdf alert) for some choice excerpts:
On page 148 of the 189 page pdf:
It is the Court's opinion that the negligence of the Corps, in this instance by failing to maintain the MRGO properly, was not policy, but insouciance, myopia and shortsightedness. For over forty years, the Corps was aware that the Reach II levee protecting Chalmette and the Lower Ninth Ward was going to be compromised by the continued deterioration of the MRGO, as has been exhaustively discussed in this opinion. The Corps had an opportunity to take a myriad of actions to alleviate this deterioration or rehabilitate this deterioration and failed to do so. Clearly the expression "talk is cheap" applies here.
In the event the gross negligence of the Corps in maintaining the MRGO would be regarded as policy, then the discretionary function exception would swallow the Federal Torts Claim Act leaving it an emasculated statute applying to automobile accidents where government employees are involved or medical malpractice where a government physician is involved. This was clearly not the intent of Congress.
Safety concerns are not a talisman in deciding whether to apply the discretionary function exception, but certainly are a very significant consideration. Here, there was no balancing or weighing of countervailing considerations. The failure to maintain the MRGO properly compromised the Reach 2 Levee and created a substantial risk of catastrophic loss of human life and private property due to this malfeasance. Nothing the Corps has introduced into evidence tips the balance in its favor.
On pages 149-150:
As to the second inquiry, here it is manifestly evident that the Corps had a duty not to negligently expose the levee system along Reach II to harm, and it is likewise quite evident that if that levee system were harmed that there was great risk or harm to both people and property. In answer to the third question, such duty was obviously breached as extensively set forth in the findings of fact and conclusions of law set forth herein. Clearly, as to the fourth question, the risk of harm was within the scope of protection afforded by the duty breached as levees are designed to protect persons and property. The fifth question is like-wise manifestly evident in that there were catastrophic damages that resulted from the breach. Therefore, this Court finds that the Corps of Engineers was negligent under the La. Civ. Code arts. 2315 and 2316 and is thus liable for damages arising from the destruction of the Reach 2 Levee.
The Judge damns the Army Corps of Engineers for its' malfeasance, negligence, breach, shortsightedness, and failure to properly maintain MRGO, which led to a breach of the levees. The vast majority of the damage in New Orleans from Hurricane Katrina came from the Federal Flood, not the hurricane itself, which is why it has been next to impossible for homeowners to get the money needed to repair their homes.
Now the question becomes - will the federal government finally pay up for their negligence in protecting New Orleans?
Today Obama will be making an extremely short stop in New Orleans. Or what my favorite NOLA blogger calls a "tinkle-stop tour." In New Orleans, he'll be visiting a charter school and participating in a town hall meeting in the Lower 9th Ward.
In contrast, his next stop will be San Francisco, where he'll be spending four times as much time--16 hours. This has caused Harry Shearer to say,
Total elapsed time in SF: sixteen hours. They must have experienced a hell of a federal disaster there. Four times worse, you figure?
Often when people including those in government and the mainstream media who should know better refer to the events of 8/29, it is merely as "Katrina" or "Hurricane Katrina".
There were actually two catastrophes that happened that day: the storm, which passed to the east of New Orleans, devastating the Mississippi and eastern Louisiana Gulf Coasts, which was a NATURAL disaster, and the falling apart of New Orleans' federally-built and maintained levees, which was a MANMADE disaster due to poor engineering.
While the use of Katrina as shorthand to cover the two events is easy (I've even done that at times) it's misleading because of the implication that the flooding of New Orleans was a natural disaster. And this matters--more below the fold.
This PBJ re-telling of the Harry Lee story has been highlight by Josh Marshall over at Talking Points Memo as another instance where Governor PBJ puts himself right in the middle of the story, not, as his aides claimed, hearing Lee recounting the story to another person on the phone in PBJ's presence. In light of all this, it is only natural to wonder if Governor PBJ embellished/lied about his role in getting Ford to donate some trucks to the relief effort:
To make it clear, Governor PBJ is claiming that he personally convinced Ford to donate 50 trucks to the Hurricane Katrina relief efforts in St. Bernard Parish. Anyone out there to corroborate this? If so, scroll down to the bottom of the page for my contact information, or simply post a reply!
The devastating detail in this [NOAH] thing though-- the killer political "hook", as it were-- is in the "remediated" properties that were actually gutted by fresh-faced Christian teenagers who came down to NOLA and busted their asses to help out this stricken city. When the public learns that corrupt cronies used the labors of Christian teenagers to scoop federal recovery dollars... well then we have us a national story.
One of the firms that billed the city for work down by those fresh-faced Christian young men and women is Smith & Associates, which is owned by C. Ray's brother-in-law, Cedric Smith. Alas, Smith & Associates only billed the city for $350, according to the Times-Pic.
Could it be that Nagin, knowing what a boondoggle that his remediation program was likely to become, or already was, told his brother-in-law to get the hell out of it? These quotes in the Times Picayune's story from Amanda Davis, the Homeowner Coordinator for the Episcopal Diocese Disaster Response office certainly grabbed my attention:
"The idea of this program always seemed silly to us, because we have hundreds of volunteers each month," she said. "There's no reason to hire professional demolition crews to gut houses for old people."
"It was always kind of funny, though," Davis said. "We knew at the time that something weird was going on. They wouldn't e-mail the lists. You had to drive by City Hall and pick it up from somebody."
§9(k) was created to award capital funds to public housing authorities affected by natural disasters. In the last several years, however, Congress has not allocated funds for disaster relief under § 9(k), which effectively bars Gulf Coast public housing authorities from accessing FEMA grant money when there is a pre-existing account at HUD.
Congressman Cazayoux stated:
"As we have seen too often, the biggest obstacle that Gulf Coast residents face is not the will to rebuild; it is red tape from the federal government. My bill provides a common-sense fix to HUD that improves FEMA's ability to directly assist public housing authorities trying to rebuild affordable and quality housing for those who need it. This measure is an important step in the long-term recovery of Louisiana and Mississippi."
Now before all y'all conservatives go crazy about a Democrat bashing the red tape of government ... this fits in quite well with the idea that most Democrats share that government ought to be efficient. It's not so much that it ought to be small, but efficient. For historical examples of this belief within the Democratic Party, I point y'all to then- Senator Harry Truman's "Truman Committee" during World War II, which saved American taxpayers some $15 billion in wasteful spending during the war.
Could you imagine the Bush Administration allowing a subcommittee of Congress to challenge the billing practices of KBR or Halliburton? If you can, I have a bridge in Brooklyn I'd like to sell ... please contact me.
And one more thing ... this is Congressman Cazayoux's first bill in the House, and it deals with helping people in a positive way. We elected another Congressman the same day to fill out the remainder of Governor PBJ's term - Congressman Scalise.
Pray tell, what was Congressman Scalise's first bill about? A resolution to express support for the designation of National D-Day Remembrance Day. That's all fine and dandy, but when you've got folks in your district struggling to rebuild their lives and their homes after Katrina, shouldn't your priority be to help make it easier for them to do so?
Over the last week, many Louisianans have been watching another part of our country flood. We've been there, as some of y'all might remember. Images like the one to the right are all too familiar to Louisianans ...
Bloggers up and down the MississippiRiver basin have been wondering just when the BSM would come to the realization that all that water has to go somewhere ... called the Mississippi River.
FEMA finally admitted that they are concerned about downriver sites, like Quincy, IL and St. Louis, MO today. That link will bring you to a press release that FEMA sent out highlighting all the things they are doing to get ready to help the folks deal with the flooding. Woulda been nice to see that kinda preparation 3 years ago. Must be something about an election coming up in 5 months, I guess.
I wonder when they'll tell us to start getting ready. The day before, perhaps? Let's not wait for them, Louisiana. Hopefully, the flooding won't be as bad it was in the Upper Midwest when it gets down here, and the Corps will open up the Bonnet Carre Spillway and the Atchafalaya Basin Spillway prior to any flooding, however minimal, occurs. But it doesn't hurt to be prepared. So, if y'all don't have a plan, go to the FEMA Red Cross site to come up with one. Better yet, follow these common sense recommendations from a disaster preparedness/homeland security consultant who diaried over at Daily Kos under the user name Deep Harm:
Plan Ahead
For anyone living along the Mississippi, this is a good time to test the family emergency plan. Don't have one, yet? Then, prepare one now. There's plenty of guidance on the Internet, from FEMA, the Red Cross and others, and I won't duplicate all of it here. However, I would plan to have on hand a week's worth of food and water, not just the three days some sources recommend. Even those not threatened by floodwaters may find their utilities interrupted and shipments to stores may be affected by closed transportation routes.
Make contingency arrangements for shelter for yourselves and your animal friends. Ensure that each household member has a copy of the addresses and telephone numbers for the places where you can meet up if separated. If possible, include one location that is out of state.
If you may need to go to a public shelter, find out where you will go, how to get there, and what you can take along. Very likely, pets will have to stay at a facility designated just for them. Bringing along the pet's favorite food and toy (and any medicine) available will make the temporary separation easier.
If a member of your family is in a local nursing home, hospital or other full-time care facility, ask about the facility's evacuation plans. Knowing that loved ones are safe will make it easier for you to concentrate on other emergency tasks.
Shop Now
Many supplies will disappear when a disaster threat is imminent, so shop now for any items missing from your emergency kit. Buy that battery powered NOAA weather alert radio, lantern and flashlight you know you need. (I like the kind that include a hand-crank, as well.) And, don't forget the batteries! (Tip: get stuff that uses the same-size battery.)
Refill that prescription and the first-aid kit you've been depleting for everyday hurts. Gather critical papers, such as birth certificate, passport, citizenship or residency papers, insurance, photo IDs, deeds, car title, and documentation of local residency. Keep the car's gas tank about 3/4 full, make sure to keep some cash handy, and get a carrier for the cat or dog if you don't already have one.
Pack the Pics
Now's a great time to get out those family photos and take steps to keep them safe. If the photos are digital or you have a scanner, upload them to one of the free Internet photo sharing sites, like Picasa and PhotoBucket. Burn them to a disk that you can put with your critical papers. If that isn't possible, consider taking the pics down to a one-hour photo shop. Make copies of the best and mail the copies to family or friends who live out of the area. Whether or not you are able to take any of these precautions, you will still want to tuck some of your favorite photos next to the critical papers, and
keep them close at hand for the next few days.
Stow It
Some sources recommend plastic tubs, duffle bags, back packs, and other items for storying emergency supplies. But, a plastic cooler with a tight lid may be a better choice, because it will float if somehow it gets away from you. The waterproof, floatable bags designed for use by kayakers are good, too, and are available at many sporting goods stores. Where you stow the critical items depends on where you might be when an evacuation becomes necessary. Two options are the coat closet near the front door or the car trunk (or both).
If your home has an upper story, now would be a good time to move that heirloom bureau and other treasures upstairs until the threat has passed.
Reach Out
If you are disabled, have no transportation at hand for evacuation, or for other reasons cannot make the necessary preparations, now is the time to contact your neighbors, church members, local emergency management agency or social service agency to see what help can be provided. If you know someone who might need help, consider offering it, in case they are shy about asking.
Tune In
Begin following weather updates and listening for alerts on NOAA Weather Radio. If possible, check out NOAA's web page where you will find a map of current flood conditions and the areas where flooding is expected over the next 48 hours. The latter will give you a valuable heads up on what's coming your way. (Note: clicking on the maps will take you to a map with more detail.) [Especially, go to this link provided in the comments by billlaurelMD.)
I know the NewOrleansbloggers have been all over it. But I want to highlight some grafs that caught my eye, as they show how Karl Rove installed Governor PBJ in the Governor's chair with the actions of the White House in the aftermath of the Federal Flood:
On Monday, August 29, 2005, at about 6:00 a.m., Hurricane Katrina slammed into the coasts of Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama. A category 5 hurricane until just before landfall, it was one of the worst storms ever to hit the Gulf Coast. Kathleen Blanco, the governor of Louisiana, had been briefed extensively about what to expect when the storm hit, which was why, on the Friday night before the storm reached the coast, she signed papers declaring Louisiana to be in a state of emergency. Based on what she had been told by her advisers and what she knew from being a native Louisianan, she understood that Katrina, creeping gradually toward land with sustained winds of a strength rarely seen in a hurricane, could prove to be catastrophic for Louisiana, and particularly for New Orleans.
The first evidence of Rove's involvement in the Katrina disaster occurred on Tuesday afternoon. "Rove understood what a nightmare this was for the president," Senator Mary Landrieu of Louisiana says, "so he went into high gear on the spin thing they're so good at in the White House. Rove had David Vitter, the Republican senator from Louisiana. I was at a press conference and David Vitter walked up to the mike and said, 'I just got off the phone with Karl Rove.' I looked at the governor and she looked at me, like, 'Why is David Vitter on the phone with Karl Rove?' I mean, he could have been talking to generals, the president himself, but Rove is just a political hatchet man."
I remember hearing in the BSM at some point that the Administration was saying that Governor Blanco had not signed the papers that would declare Louisiana to be in a state of emergency. I also find it interesting that Sinator Vitter would be more concerned with chatting with the White House's political advisor, rather military generals to help coordinate the federal government's relief mission in New Orleans.
In short, Rove was going to blame Blanco for the failure of the response in Louisiana, and to do that he was going to use Nagin. He had already set the plan in motion on Tuesday with Nagin, who, even though he was a Democrat, was so close to the Republican Party that some members of the African American community in New Orleans called him "Ray Reagan." In 2000, Nagin had actually contributed $2,000 to Bush's campaign when he ran for president.
Rove knew of Nagin's ties to the Republican Party, so more than likely Nagin could be convinced to level his criticism at Blanco and to support Bush when he could. Here was Rove's strategy: Praise Haley Barbour, the Republican governor of Mississippi; praise Michael Brown and FEMA; blame Blanco, the Democrat. It was not a stretch for Nagin. He and Blanco so disliked each other that in Blanco's last race Nagin had endorsed her opponent.
C. Ray seems to be a changed man after Katrina, at least with respect to his party loyalties. He's actually endorsed Obama, and is amazingly enough, a superdelegate to the Convention. His effectiveness as Mayor is altogether another story.
So, Louisiana, you can thank Karl Rove and the BSM for installing wonder-boy Governor PBJ in the Governor's mansion. Had they NOT played politics with people's lives, PBJ might just be another ineffective Republican congressman. Alas, we're going have to deal with him for at least 3 more years.
It turns out that presumptive Republican nominee John "McSame" McCain has scheduled a major speech to emphasize his differences with President George W. Bush for tonight.
But that's not the point of this post ... the point is that John "McSame" Bush is coming to Louisiana to emphasize his differences with George W. Bush in a speech at the same time that all the networks will be televising Hillary's speech. Does that strike you the action of someone who is being sincere? Or someone who is trying to hide those "differences"?
But even more damning ... there are no differences when it comes to John McCain and President Bush when it comes to rebuilding Louisiana ... from the Orleans Parish Democratic Executive Committee:
But when Louisiana really needed John McCain he was off eating cake with George W. Bush. And when Louisiana needed John McCain to support us in our recovery efforts, he criticized us for wanting to eat pork.
At every turn, John McCain has opposed Louisiana's recovery efforts, from voting against $28 billion in Hurricane relief, opposing granting Medicaid and unemployment assistance to victims of the storm and funding to help small business recover. To him, it was all just pork.
"What we call an attempt to recover from the most devastating disaster in our nation's history, John McCain calls pork," James Gray, chairman of the Orleans Parish Democratic Executive Committee said. "How in the world can we trust someone with such a misguided view to support Louisiana as President?"
"John McCain cannot have his cake and eat it too," Gray said. "He cannot dismiss our recovery efforts as pork one day and then come down here pretending that he understands what we went through.
"He still will not commit to full funding for Hurricane five levees, he just wants to use our destruction as a backdrop to separate himself from the President," Gray said. "This is not just an offense to Louisianans but to all Americans who believe that we need a President who will be there for them in times of crisis."
(While I do not recall fondly the high gas prices I paid working for the Lamont for Senate campaign in '06 in CT, I am unsure if drilling is the only answer. I realize it may be part of the answer, but we also need to do more than just drill ... such mandating higher gas mileage (40 mpg minimum by 2010) from Detroit automakers, investing in alternative energy sources (such as solar, wind, and biofuels), among others. I do not believe that nuclear power is the answer, as we will have to deal with radioactive waste, and where to store it. That's a headache I'd rather not argue over. - promoted by ryan)
Has America become so homogenized that we are thinking more alike regardless of what part of the country we come from? We all get the same evening news, the same TV shows, and the same radio talking heads telling us what, in their opinion, our opinion should be. Are Louisiana's interests and priorities along the same track as those expressed by locals along the east coast? I decided to take a look ...
I make it a habit of taking a road trip somewhere around the country every few months, to get a sense of outside perspectives on Louisiana, and what we do or do not have in common with other parts of the country. In New York, Connecticut and Massachusetts this week, I found the same issues on the front burner that concern many Louisianians, but often different opinions.
Katrina and Rita were catastrophes that have faded from memory, and are stories for the history books for most of these easterners. They had "moved on" from any major concern a long time ago. This might well be as much a reflection on Louisiana leaders who failed to develop a major public relations effort to keep the hurricane protection problem on the front burner.
On Thursday and Friday, there was a NOLA/Gulf Blogathon over at Daily Kos to bring attention to the issues that folks down here are still dealing with two and a half years after Katrina.
It is the Great Forgetting. After thirty-odd months, the nation has moved on. Katrina and all that it wrought has fallen out of the national conversation. The devastation caused by both the storm and the incompetence of the government are just dim, uncomfortable memories for most of the nation.
Which is exactly how the insurance industry likes it.
The insurance industry doesn't want you paying too much attention, because what's happening on the gulf coast will probably be coming soon to a town near you. While the nation's distracted and insurance reform is now bottled up in the Senate, the industry is once again moving to protect profits at the expense of the rest of us, particularly those living on the gulf. And make no mistake: these are not isolated cases- This is an industry-wide effort.
One of the best Mississippi bloggers, Ana Maria, who writes A.M. in the Morning, notes that Mississippi Congressman Gene Taylor, has been kicking ass and taking names on this issue. He introduced a bill in the House that the insurance industry is fighting tooth and nail. As for the rest of the blogathon ... see below.
As well as just, fair compensation for federal flood survivors who lost family members in the manmade disaster of New Orleans' levee breaches.
With the start of hurricane season a little over a month away, New Orleans' storm preparation and flood protection deserves a close look. These things are far more important than Wrightgate or Bosniagate. Because unlike these tempests in teapots, human lives depend on the safety and strength of New Orleans' levees.
While nationally, Bosniagate and Wrightgate have been keeping the mainstream media busy, Louisiana and the rest of the Gulf Region are being tortured by the after-effects of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, the Federal Flood, and by PTSD. It's time we got over the relative trivia of both Bosniagate and Wrightgate and asked our candidates what really matters--why they've been downplaying the continued suffering of the Gulf Region, and what each plans to do if he/she becomes President.
From the AP today, we learn that Governor PBJ is going to be introducing legislation to:
"strengthen mental health services in the New Orleans area after Hurricane Katrina."
Lord knows the New Orleans area has a need for better mental health services in the wake of the Federal Flood, but what about the rest of the state? There are still folks living at Renaissance Village just outside Baton Rouge who could use better mental health services. And something tells me that Southwestern Louisiana could use some help in that area too.
Where's the desire on Governor PBJ's achieve the "gold standard" of mental health care all over the state?
LA-01 needs someone who is going to work full-time for their needs, one that will stand UP and FIGHT for her people in Congress on a full-time basis, not look to abandon the seat for "bigger and better things" like the U.S. Senate or the Governor's mansion, as former Congresscritters Sinator David Vitter and Governor PBJ did. That person is Gilda Reed.
For those of you who have never met me, I have a bilateral hearing loss. I have a cochlear implant in my left ear, and wear a hearing aid in my right ear. And when I met Gilda for the first time last year at the Yearly Kos Convention in Chicago, I knew that this was a woman who just doesn't give up.
I say that because she hasn't let polio, which she contracted after swimming at Pontchartrain Beach in 1949, when she was but two years of age, slow her down. She had to learn how to sit up and walk again, and dealt with 17 surgeries along the way. Yet, she has never stopped - raising 7 children with her husband, a Navy veteran and a retired electrical inspector for Shell; earning her B.A., Masters and Ph.D. in 1991, 1994 and 1996 from the University of New Orleans; and teaching at UNO starting in 1994, and serving on the School Board of her Church Parish, despite the fact that all of her children attended public schools.
When I met her, and I saw how she interacted with people at Yearly Kos, I knew that we needed to get her elected. She's a Wellstone, people. You'll always know where she stands, because she's not afraid to speak her mind.
On Saturday, the Times-Picayune printed the a news story with the following headline:
Private insurers again ready to compete in south La.
I find it interesting that not ONE of the twelve companies that have "expressed interest in taking over Citizens policies," nor any of the five companies given incentive grants from the Department of Insurance, were named.
Are homeowners even going to know who's bidding on taking over their insurance? Or are they just going to know what the policy terms are, and what they would have to pay? I think knowing the name of the insurance company is EXTREMELY important information to know, as we all know that Allstate essentially gave the finger to its' Louisiana policyholders after the hurricanes.
And if people think that we've forgotten that ... think again. Here are just some of the comments posted on this article over at NOLA.com:
Switch to anyone except ALLSTATE. Remember how poorly they treated Louisiana policy holders after Katrina. The state did not have the courage to take them on, so consumers were left to fight them alone. BOYCOTT ALLSTATE! Insurers when selling investments always state returns are based on "past performance". Based on ALLSTATE's past performance after Katrina, they will not live up to the terms of their policies and you will have to file suit to get them to honor their contracts. Link!
We got cancelled by Allstate in 2003 because of having a claim and had to go with Citizens at almost triple the cost. We live in Texas now, and guess who cold-called wanting us to switch insurance companies?! My husband told them that he would NEVER use Allstate again because of the shabby way they dealt with their customers in Louisiana after the storm. BOYCOTT ALLSTATE! Link!
I work for Allstate and wouldn't insure my dog's poop with them...Link!
Over the last week, many Louisianans have been watching another part of our country flood. 
It turns out that presumptive Republican nominee John "McSame" McCain has scheduled a major speech to emphasize his differences with President George W. Bush for tonight.
LA-01 needs someone who is going to work full-time for their needs, one that will stand UP and FIGHT for her people in Congress on a full-time basis, not look to abandon the seat for "bigger and better things" like the U.S. Senate or the Governor's mansion, as former Congresscritters Sinator David Vitter and Governor PBJ did. That person is 
I say that because she hasn't let polio, which she contracted after swimming at Pontchartrain Beach in 1949, when she was but two years of age, slow her down. She had to learn how to sit up and walk again, and dealt with 17 surgeries along the way. Yet, she has never stopped - raising 7 children with her husband, a Navy veteran and a retired electrical inspector for Shell; earning her B.A., Masters and Ph.D. in 1991, 1994 and 1996 from the University of New Orleans; and teaching at UNO starting in 1994, and serving on the School Board of her Church Parish, despite the fact that all of her children attended public schools. 
