We're like a fucking Third World country responding to this.

[friesianrider]

I'm watching the news and cannot believe what I'm seeing - how unbelievably unorganized this relief/rescue effort is. I hate to just start jumping on Bush, but you know what? His response to this hurricane is absolutely disgusting. It is inexcusable that in the United States of America victims of a hurricane we KNEW would be bad on SATURDAY are dying because of lack of FOOD AND WATER. More people will die because we can't get our rescue efforts together than from the actual hurricane itself! This mobilization Bush just started getting underway should have started fucking SUNDAY. He springs into action what...on Wednesday night? He couldn't even be bothered to actually physically tour the devastation and meet with victims. As usual, he sits in the sheltered lap of luxury aboard the plane we all pay for and expects me to believe he "understands" what a tragedy this is. AND he cut his vacation short by 2 days! 2 fucking days!

I realize that it is difficult to access where people are stranded and sick and this is a multi-faceted, multi-problem situation we've got here. But you're the fucking PRESIDENT. Get your ass out of your $500,000-a-plate fundraiser and tear yourself away from your god damn 67th vacation this year and START WORKING. PEOPLE ARE DYING while your selfish ass rides bikes and plays cowboy on your ranch. You should have been all over this problem on Saturday or Sunday so that we could start rescuing people from rooftops first thing Tuesday morning and getting medication, generators, food and water to victims two days ago - NOT Wednesday night.

I'm sorry for the foul language but I can't fucking believe what I'm seeing from this piece of shit in the White House. He is a disgusting disgrace to the country.

[Frances]

1. Incompetent

I think Bush is the most incompetent president in our country's history.

My guess is that the reason Iraq is such a mess is that the people running it are no more capable than Homeland Security is in New Orleans.

[SammyWinstonJack]

31. Incompetent, I just really think he doesn't give a shit! He has no

capacity for empathy. He's too absorbed in his own reality whatever that maybe be to focus on the misery around him, most of which is of his own making.

[lwin]

2. I'd like to second that sentiment and nominate.

Just when I thought I couldn't possibly be any more disgusted or outraged at that worthless POS chimp...:banghead:

[ClusterFreak]

3. Worst. President. Ever.

....no apologies necessary.....swear your fucking head off, I don't blame you one bit.:toast:

[enough]

4. Our country has been severely, perhaps fatally, weakened by this regime.

The disaster has exposed the weakness.

The same weakness is exposed by the disaster in Iraq. Whatever strength this country had has been sucked away.

[SmokingJacket]

5. What you said.

It wouldn't be like this under a normal president.

NO LEADERSHIP, WHATSOEVER!!

Shameful.

[Nikki Stone 1]

6. It's more than incompetence. It's the neocon dream

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=104x4534618

[converted_democrat]

33. I would like to thank you for directing me to that thread...........

One of the best works I've seen on DU to date. Brilliant.

[ReadTomPaine]

7. Actually, we are worse than a Third World nation with our response.

Third World nations accept aid when it's offered. Bush won't.

[DIKB]

9. His pride and arrogance

is CRIPPLING our country !!!

[leftchick]

13. very true

we need the ICRC but bush wont let it happen.

[deadparrot]

15. He's not accepting aid?

You serious? :crazy:

[Kurovski]

17. There has been questionable information about this

making its way around the internet.

I will wait before accepting such info as the truth.

[deadparrot]

Thanks for the info.

:)

[CrispyQ]

42. Do you have a link to any story about offers of aid

that have been turned down? I've googled several times & cannot find anything. If you have something, I would appreciate it!

TIA


on edit: I found one.

[Neecy]

8. his game is up...

People were beginning to become clued in to his incompetence due to the Iraq quagmire, but what they're seeing on the news in New Orleans hits closer to home.

There's no excuse for the incompetence we've seen - gross negligence, really - in the last three days.

[LiberalCompassionate]

10. Don't be sorry

You said it just right.

BUSH=POS=:puke:

[KayLaw]

11. Did anyone see the woman. . .

whose husband died? When she begged the police for help she was told to move the body away so it wouldn't smell so much?

[ReadTomPaine]

20. LE was told to be ruthless. They are apparently taking that advice.

[friesianrider]

24. YES! This is what I mean! People in this country dying from cholera...

People in the United States of America will likely die of cholera before all is said and done. SHAMEFUL! Absolutely shameful. It is disgusting that anyone in the year 2005 died from cholera, but even more sickening that it will happen here, and because it could absolutely have been prevented with an ounce of foresight by our fearless leader.

Couldn't tear yourself away from your month-long vacation for our soldiers dying, why would I ecpect you to tear yourself away for a colossal national tragedy like this. Just couldn't cut your vacation more than 2 days short could you, you piece of fucking shit??

[One_Life_To_Give]

12. Turf Wars

Somebody needs to tell him that.. As Commander in Chief, he is the only one who can put an end to the turf wars that keep the various agencies from freely communicating with each other. This disaster needs 1 Rescue Coordination Center to direct all the actions of all agencies, Federal, State, Local and Private.

[lancdem]

14. Couldn't have said it better myself

I'm so angry I can't see straight. :mad:

[onecent]

16. Well said..this should be sent to the media. n/t

[Window]

18. I'm thinking the same thing.

How in hell can this happen....here??? Rhetorical.

[MinneapolisMatt]

19. Afuckingmen!

You speak the truth, friesianrider.

Matt

[Just Me]

21. He springs into action if it's profitable. WE are "ASSets". No more.

The BushCO/neoCON profiteering cult invests billions into manipulating our will towards policies that hurt us. That cult shows its disregard and repugnance for American lives in need. If you are an American citizen that can't profit this cult, you WILL BE LEFT BEHIND.

[friesianrider]

23. Just like on fucking 9/11, I swear. It takes him 2 days to comprehend...

everything that is happening.

Get the fuck off your ass NOW. Not tomorrow, not until you've got a script, not two days from now....fucking NOW!!

What the fuck excuse will the neo-cons come up with now? Did he not want to "scare the Louisianans" by actually fucking getting relief to the area on Tuesday?

:argh:

[ananda]

30. he's the war preznit..

I guess he just can't figure out how to make hay out of a war on natural disasters .. only on "terrah."

Sue

[donheld]

22. We have a third world administration

:grr:

[jarnocan]

26. But Harlan L. Watson, the U.S. envoy (an idiot)

for negotiations on climate change, denied any link between global warming and the strength of storms.
"Our scientists are telling us right now that there's not a linkage," he said in Geneva. "I'll rely on their information." http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,168002,00.html

Sir David King, the British Government's chief scientific adviser, has warned that global warming may be responsible for the devastation reaped by Hurricane Katrina.
"The increased intensity of hurricanes is associated with global warming... the intensity of hurricanes is related to surface sea temperature ...B]"So it is easy to conclude that the increased intensity of hurricanes is associated with global warming."
http://www.commondreams.org/headlines05/0831-05.htm
Other factors involved too of course, elimination of the Clinton mitigation program 'Impact' and decreasing other funding for upkeeping the levies etc. -Money needed from the war in Iraq.

[Jack Rabbit]

25. Is Venezuela going to send foreign aid?

??

[nookiemonster]

27. Nominated.

eom

[Karmadillo]

28. Compare US efforts to those of Cuba.

http://www.oxfamamerica.org/whatwedo/emergencies/asian_floods_2004/background/cubalessons

<edit>

While its neighbors are battered, losing lives and property, Cuba is unusually good at withstanding these calamities, and suffers much fewer dead.

Oxfam’s report, entitled Weathering the Storm: Lessons in Risk Reduction in Cuba cites a number of attributes of Cuba’s risk reduction program that can be applied by other countries. Three in particular are transferable to Asia and other regions:

*Disaster Preparedness: Cuba was especially good at mobilizing entire communities to develop their own disaster preparations. This involves mapping out vulnerable areas of the community, creating emergency plans, and actually simulating emergencies so people can practice evacuations and other measures designed to save lives. When disaster strikes, people know what to do.

*Commitment of Resources: Cuba’s strong central government prioritizes resources for its civil defense department. This helps the country to build up a common understanding of the importance of saving lives, and the citizens trust that their contributions to the government are well used for this purpose. Their collaboration on developing emergency plans helped build confidence in the government, so people trust in the plan they helped develop.

*Communications: The communications system for emergencies in Cuba builds on local resources. Using local radio stations and other media to issue warnings on potential hazards also reinforces the disaster preparations. Since the local population is already involved in mapping risks and creating emergency plans, they are more inclined to act on emergency bulletins. Good communications, packaged simply, and built on existing, commonly used resources, is another way to build trust in disaster preparations.

Cuba is a unique example. There is a strong central government committed to protecting all its citizens, even the poorest and most isolated who are typically the most at risk. The most common natural disaster in Cuba is a hurricane, a threat visible for days and even weeks in advance. Yet building a culture of disaster preparedness, and involving local communities in mitigating risks, are strategies that can be applied in many other places, regardless of how rich or poor a country might be.

[Norwood]

29. Great post

You have absolutely no reason to apologize for anything you said. I would say that just about everyone on this forum wholeheartedly agrees with every word.

The incompetence of * is truly breathtaking, he could not have handled this any worse than he has. As people die from the hurricane itself and the effects of it afterwords, our "President" strums a guitar and eats cake. What in the fuck honestly? I want to know how come more people aren't pissed off at this joke of a president. I want to know why America as a whole hasn't called for his impeachment.

Then earlier today I read somewhere, probably here, that wolf blitzer praised bush for cutting his month long vacation short by two days. He didn't have any problem relaxing, riding his bike, and playing cowboy while over 40 soldiers died in 2 days.

I dunno what the hell to think and I'm sick and tired of seeing the media and other people continue to support him no matter how bad he fucks everything up.

Now I hear someone on fox news claiming we shouldn't be using tax dollars and charity to help these poor people that remain in NO. These people should be ashamed of themselves.

[mzmolly]

32. Well now let's go easy on *. He WAS on vacation Saturday.

:eyes:

Clinton would have been on top of this. This is simply one more deadly national disaster Bush should have acted upon. But he's too busy killing people and taking vacations in between to worry about "saving" lives.

PS

do you notice how the nation doesn't even look to * for leadership? Clinton was a leader - this guy is a f**cking walking disaster himself. This is surreal.

[Lone_Star_Dem]

34. When I saw all the people on the overpass

A concentrated group, not one or two missed by rescuers. These people are waiting for someone, anyone, to help them.

This is a fiasco of epic proportions and it doesn't appear as if it's going to get under control anytime soon.

I keep hearing reports of attempts to repair the levy system being mishandled. Blame being passed from one person to another. All the while people are dying who could have been saved. Masses of people are wading through infested waters in shock looking for someplace safe to go.

This is America, we're supposed to better than this, we're supposed to be prepared. It would appear it's time we put that idea to rest and accept our new place in the world. We are a Nation without true leadership, in a way we are all wading in shock through those infested waters.

[Hailtothechimp]

35. He just doesn't care. That's all. n/t

[Mabus]

36. SNAFU has an all new meaning now

It just keeps getting worse. It's like nothing I could've ever imagined in my wildest dreams.



Can you imagine if this type of a response had occurred under a Democratic administration. Pugs would be howling at the moon like a rabid werewolf. But it is apparently okay with them that Bush would rather workout and nap than to act like a leader.
:rant:

You know what? He should start LOOKING the fucking papers - he can surely still read the headlines and hopefully comprehend what the pictures and the words mean. It might even encourage him to actually read a paper. I just wish he would support the American people (both here and abroard) as much as he does his steriod-taking, oxycontin-swallowing, CIA-outing, price-gouging pals.

[Karenina]

37. And INTENTIONALLY so.

Please, wake up.

[doc03]

38. They should have C-130's dropping food and water to NO

[tlsmith1963]

39. If the Republicans Excuse Bush This Time...

...I am going to completely write them off. They are hopeless. What happened in NO is the result of years of "Social Darwinism". The Republicans have vilified poor people for so long that *of course* they would cut off disaster funding to a city like NO. We should be deeply ashamed of ourselves as a nation. Our greed & selfishness got us here. It's time to abolish Social Darwinism. Recently I was saying that we should gradually pull the troops out of Iraq, but I changed my mind after seeing the devastation from Katrina. Bring them home *now*! Too much money is being wasted on a war that was built on lies. If the Iraq situation were like WWII I would be willing to sacrifice, but Iraq is nothing like that war. The money being wasted over there would be better spent on the people suffering here. Let's start having some compassion for each other! Is that really such a bad thing, Republicans? If you *do* think it's a bad thing, then you have no soul or heart. You are just a mindless robot for Bush.

Tammy

[Doctor_J]

40. Let's see, ruling upper-class minority, phony elections, one-party

govenment, and now no money or organization for disaster relief. we ARE a 3rd-world country.

[Jamison]

41. I wonder if Bush would have responded quicker...

If Katrina would have hit his "pet democracy" Iraq instead.:sarcasm:

[KatyaR]

43. Something else I don't understand . . . .

Where are the prayer vigils and the food and supply drives? Every times there's a disaster, you can bet that someone will be having a prayer service or collecting food and water for the victims. Living in Oklahoma, with our history of tornados, this always happens. But where are these things now? I haven't seen or heard of one church having services or anything more (here, anyway) other than "donate to the Red Cross, etc."

This country has lost its heart. It's sickening.

[friesianrider]

44. People are just like Bush...care more about gas prices than others.

Bush doesn't care. He doesn't give a flying fuck about what happened. That's sickening in and of itself.

[KatyaR]

45. I think you're right.

So much of what I'm hearing is that "why should my tax dollars go to help those people?", etc., that kind of crap. How the HELL can people say that about a situation like this? My God, if they were in that position and someone said that to their faces, they'd be madder than hell! It's me, me, me, all about me and nobody else.

This is not my country anymore.

I have to quit thinking about this or I'm going to have a stroke, I swear.