Katrina
I want to start this blog off by saying that I think the Government has totally mishandled this situation. It is unacceptable that the main focus seems to be Marshall Law tactics rather than search and rescue. People are dying fom lack of water, food, and a place to safely go. The Government needs to do SOMETHING, not just more. This could have the effect of causing nationwide riots due to the lack of action of the Government.
Hurricane Katrina has been a devastating event. It has been (and will continue to be) a defining moment in our history - like the assassination of J.F.K. ; the falling of the Berlin Wall; the end of the Cold War; the events of September 11, 2001; or the two Space Shuttle tragedies. This is an event that will have you remembering where you were when it happened. I am saddened by the loss, and my heart goes out to those who have lost their homes, possessions, and their family members.
I also am sickened by some of the actions I have seen on tv as a result of the massive flooding in New Orleans. I know some people will try to justify the looting as people just doing what they had to do, just to survive.
I say that is a load of crap. People make choices, and choices have consequences. It is sad that some people are choosing to use this tragedy to justify criminal behavior. People need to accept responsibility for their actions.
I have seen people looting, not the essentials, but luxury (so-called "big ticket" items that cost alot of money) items that they could use to profit from later on. Why does someone need to steal dozens of fishing rods, or tvs, or other electronics? We aren't talking food, or clothing here, we are talking about greed.
What is worse is that I have seen police officers who not only look the other way to the looting, but have joined in. This theft (by civilians & police alike) has been well documented on video. One sad note is that the faces you see on video are of African-Americans almost exclusively. I saw one caucasin looter. Maybe I haven't seen all the footage, maybe the networks haven't shown caucasin looters... or maybe it's just the fact in this matter.
When you see the stranded people in New Orleans, it's the same thing - a sea of black faces.
This shouldn't be the case, but it seems to be that way. It all comes back to what I said about choices.
The city of New Orleans was ordered to evacuate. There were place for people to go if they couldn't afford a hotel. THOUSANDS of people CHOSE not to leave. I'm not going to say what their intentions were, but it's possible that some thought it would be bad enough for them to get away with looting. Nobody could have seen that the devastation would be this bad. But the bottom line is that people chose to stay... and then they chose to loot. (using an excuse of "I had to do what I had to do just to survive")
Those who stayed after a mandatory evacuation was ordered have nobody but themselves to blame if they were stranded as badly as we have seen on tv.
Today we have seen that violence has broken out at the Superdome, a place where refugees flocked for their safety. Gunfire has happened. People have even taken to shooting at the helicopters trying to help with the rescue efforts. This is unexcusable, not to mention criminal. This tragedy can not be used as an excuse to shoot at the authorities trying to help.
The rebuilding efforts will probably take years, but the scars left behind from this type of criminal behavior will take much longer. The mob mentality won't wash away the sins of the few who have chosen to step outside of a civilized society and break the law. The soul of this wonderful city has been wounded by such lawlessness. Hopefully it can fully recover.
People make choices every day. All choices have consequences - some good, some bad. It is sad that so many have chosen to choose poorly. These people deserve to be prosecuted. Anyone who tries to profit from this tragedy deserves to be prosecuted. This means looters, criminals, and price gougers. Taking advantage of these hard-hit people should also be a crime.
This is a time when the Government needs to step up to the plate on many fronts. Will they answer the call properly? History will tell us if we have done right by the people affected by this tragedy. Where were you, and what did you do to help?
Hurricane Katrina has been a devastating event. It has been (and will continue to be) a defining moment in our history - like the assassination of J.F.K. ; the falling of the Berlin Wall; the end of the Cold War; the events of September 11, 2001; or the two Space Shuttle tragedies. This is an event that will have you remembering where you were when it happened. I am saddened by the loss, and my heart goes out to those who have lost their homes, possessions, and their family members.
I also am sickened by some of the actions I have seen on tv as a result of the massive flooding in New Orleans. I know some people will try to justify the looting as people just doing what they had to do, just to survive.
I say that is a load of crap. People make choices, and choices have consequences. It is sad that some people are choosing to use this tragedy to justify criminal behavior. People need to accept responsibility for their actions.
I have seen people looting, not the essentials, but luxury (so-called "big ticket" items that cost alot of money) items that they could use to profit from later on. Why does someone need to steal dozens of fishing rods, or tvs, or other electronics? We aren't talking food, or clothing here, we are talking about greed.
What is worse is that I have seen police officers who not only look the other way to the looting, but have joined in. This theft (by civilians & police alike) has been well documented on video. One sad note is that the faces you see on video are of African-Americans almost exclusively. I saw one caucasin looter. Maybe I haven't seen all the footage, maybe the networks haven't shown caucasin looters... or maybe it's just the fact in this matter.
When you see the stranded people in New Orleans, it's the same thing - a sea of black faces.
This shouldn't be the case, but it seems to be that way. It all comes back to what I said about choices.
The city of New Orleans was ordered to evacuate. There were place for people to go if they couldn't afford a hotel. THOUSANDS of people CHOSE not to leave. I'm not going to say what their intentions were, but it's possible that some thought it would be bad enough for them to get away with looting. Nobody could have seen that the devastation would be this bad. But the bottom line is that people chose to stay... and then they chose to loot. (using an excuse of "I had to do what I had to do just to survive")
Those who stayed after a mandatory evacuation was ordered have nobody but themselves to blame if they were stranded as badly as we have seen on tv.
Today we have seen that violence has broken out at the Superdome, a place where refugees flocked for their safety. Gunfire has happened. People have even taken to shooting at the helicopters trying to help with the rescue efforts. This is unexcusable, not to mention criminal. This tragedy can not be used as an excuse to shoot at the authorities trying to help.
The rebuilding efforts will probably take years, but the scars left behind from this type of criminal behavior will take much longer. The mob mentality won't wash away the sins of the few who have chosen to step outside of a civilized society and break the law. The soul of this wonderful city has been wounded by such lawlessness. Hopefully it can fully recover.
People make choices every day. All choices have consequences - some good, some bad. It is sad that so many have chosen to choose poorly. These people deserve to be prosecuted. Anyone who tries to profit from this tragedy deserves to be prosecuted. This means looters, criminals, and price gougers. Taking advantage of these hard-hit people should also be a crime.
This is a time when the Government needs to step up to the plate on many fronts. Will they answer the call properly? History will tell us if we have done right by the people affected by this tragedy. Where were you, and what did you do to help?
posted by Scandal MacKenzie at 7:03 AM
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