Bush Supports Conference for Tsunami Aid (Thousands Of U.S. Missing)

[Khephra]

WASHINGTON -- The Bush administration lent its support Thursday to a European-hosted international conference designed to accelerate pledges of assistance to victims of the Asian and African tsumanis and added the United Nations to a four-nation coalition organizing humanitarian relief.

Responding to persistent criticism that U.S. pledges have been slow to materialize and deliveries of aid not fast enough, State Department spokesman Richard Boucher ticked off a string of relief flights and declared: "Any implication we are not leading the way is wrong."

"Our effort is strong and it is active," he said at a State Department briefing that touched on the grisly efforts to find missing Americans and to identify victims.

Boucher said American diplomats, for instance, were visiting morgues in Indonesia as part of their search. The U.S. death toll was officially raised from 12 to 14, with seven dead in Thailand and seven in Sri Lanka.

Some 600 Americans who were listed as missing have been found, Boucher said, but several thousand had not been located four days after the disaster struck.

In Sri Lanka, Boucher said, Americans have been showing up at U.S. consular offices wearing bathing suits, with no money and no clothes.


http://www.newsday.com/news/politics/wire/sns-ap-tsunami-us,0,7284073.story?coll=sns-ap-politics-headlines

Gee, now that it's getting their attention that thousands of U.S. citizens are missing do you think they'll actually ramp up their level of concern?

Nah....

Wouldn't it be ironic (in a dark Satanic sort of a way) if more U.S. citizens died in the tsunami than from 9/11?

[Skidmore]

1. How CEO and MBA of him...

Let's have a conference or a seminar.

SHIP FOOD, WATER, AND MEDICINE, YOU MORON!!! Talk about death by committee.

[chookie]

7. Make that a LTTE

That is a very powerful denunciation, and certainly exposes the laughable myth that His Chimperial is a Man of Action, who just KNOWS instinctively what the Right Thing is.

[RoeBear]

14. Did you even read the article?

The conference wasn't Bush's idea:
"Bush administration lent its support Thursday to a European-hosted international conference"

[Skidmore]

23. Lending is support to a conference isn't exactly what I call

providing crucial and essential emergency assistance. Any semblance of that has come about a week late and more than a few dollars short. No, I don't cut him any slack on his continued tone deafness to the basic needs of most of humans nor for his propensity to politicize every nth situation based on his self-aggrandizing psyche. As a self-annointed "compassionate conservative", he is neither compassionate or conservative, but a fraud. Doing the decent thing would have been fairly simple--extend a helping hand in sincerity to people whose lives have decimated. His actions speak louder than all the political mumbo-jumbo he deigns to be willing to spout at any conference. Many more countries and private organizations were out there lending meaningful suppport way ahead of our Caligula.

[bpilgrim]

21. that's why he gets paid the BIG-BUCKS - n/t

peace

[democracyindanger]

2. For the Bush administration's part,

they will provide the backdrop that says, "Rescuing Freedom for the Future," over and over.

[oneighty]

3. "Leading the way"

Why do these arrogant bastards always have to be on top, be number one, be the leader? Why are they so wonderful?

180

[Spazito]

5. The US is working WITH the UN not the UN working under the...

auspices of the US. As usual, half-truths are published by the US media as facts because the lying bush admin says so.

[oneighty]

9. The concept

of world wide cooperation (Among Nations) is socialist in nature. A really serious no no to many Conservative thinkers as well as those that do not think at all. A pity.

180

[chookie]

8. If only!

I wish our country would have taken the lead in rushing emergency aid in!

But the reason they are hesitating, in my view, is because His Chimperial Highness and his Vulcans are seeing how they can turn this horrific tragedy to their political advantage, and use it as leverage in forcing their worldview upon the world.

Hey -- they did it after Sept 11, didn't they? What worked then will work now, so they think. But we KNOW they will only succeed in making things worse. I shudder at the thought of the repercussions of their "actions."

[kostya]

10. You got it! Bingo! Right on the money! That's what they do with

absolutely EVERYTHING that comes across their radar. - K

[asjr]

4. All Shrub has to do is fly in there, land on an aircraft carrier

and he will be welcomed with open arms and flowers strewn in his path.

[ixion]

6. leading the way... it's just that everyone else got there first, and

is giving more aid. :crazy:

[Historic NY]

11. I can't believe how stupid this administration is.............why the hell

not send some high official to the area to assess whats needed. The worlds almost richest country. The country that has enough experience & resources and skill to muster more. Are they so ho hum to see what exactly has happened on the ground. To determined what is needed immediately. Our VP has been usless lately put him on a plane or at the very least a under or deputy Secretary of State.

[RoeBear]

15. You don't send high officials

to "assess whats needed". You send high officials for photo ops.

[bpilgrim]

18. Powell and Jeb Bush to tour devastated region

eb Bush to head to Tsunami ravaged areas

The United States will send a delegation of experts, headed by his brother Jeb to tsunami-ravaged areas this weekend to assess the amount of additional aid the US will to send to assist with recovery, food, housing and reconstruction.

Tens of thousands have been killed after a wall of water pounded Indian Ocean nations over the weekend.

The delegation will be led by Secretary of State Colin Powell and Florida Governor Jeb Bush, according to White House spokesman Trent Duffy.

Duffy says the president chose his brother as a member of the delegation because of his experience with handling the aftermath of natural disasters.
http://www.tampabays10.com/news/news.aspx?storyid=11392

peace

[Virginian]

19. Jebby's first campaign trip for his 2008 run for the White House.

He will have Colin there to tell him what to do and how to pose for the photo ops. How Conveeeenient.

[Historic NY]

24. Wonder if some freepers read my post..................

God its about time!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[cliss]

12. Several thousand?

This is getting more horrific by the day. I had no idea that it would be this many Americans.

My take on the slowness of this government to get going: It's Darwin's law, baby. Think survival. Survival of the fittest. Because the people we pay our taxes to are not going to take care of us.

[sandnsea]

22. Lots of countries

I've read several thousand are missing from Australia, Sweden and Britain as well. Each country. Some were on vacation or working and sort of "over there somewhere". This is looking to be catastrophic beyond our wildest imaginations.

[Stinky The Clown]

13. A fucking Conference? Sure George, take a fucking year to jawbone

and the fucking need for even a fucking penny in aid will fucking disappear.

Fuck you George Bush, you fucking unfeeling motherfucker.

[bpilgrim]

16. DUMB FUCK MESSED UP NOW!

now he'll get off his a$$ lot's of rich folk in that tragic crowd i bet :argh:

i hope this finnaly is the TIPPING POINT!

peace

[bpilgrim]

17. there probably trying to bum a dollar to make a call or get a passport pho

and i truly hope nothing worse :cry:

American diver underwater during catastrophe

At the airport in Bangkok, other governments had set up booths to greet nationals who had been affected and to help repatriate them, she said.

That was not the case with the U.S. government, Wachs told her mother. It took the couple three hours, she said, to find the officials from the American consulate, who were in the VIP lounge.

Because they had lost all their possessions, including their documentation, they had to have new passports issued.

But the U.S. officials demanded payment to take the passport pictures, Helen Wachs said.

source...
http://money.cnn.com/cnn/2004/US/12/29/tsunami.diver/

:argh:

peace

[daleo]

20. Bush would like to do more.

But first he has to make sure someone will be willing to cover the loans he will have to float, to raise this money.