New Orleans and the Triangle Shirtwaist Fire....

[Postman]

The Triangle Shirtwaist Fire in NYC back in the early 20th century shocked the nation and helped fuel the "Progressive Era"

When the death toll comes in from the New Orleans disaster will the shock be enough that it will have a similar effect in regards to rejecting the "conservative" agenda of "limited gov't"?

Paul Krugman addressed this issue somewhat in his opinion titled "Can't do Government." The Grover Nordquist ideology of downsizing gov't to the point of destroying it's use except for the privileged few.

I can't help but imagine that the lack of response was intentional to give the impression, and to feed their ideology, that government action on behalf of the people can't do anything right.

When it comes to "helping" the privileged few it is very efficient.

[Lifelong Protester]

1. I am sitting here with a copy of a book on the Triangle fire

book by Dave Von Drehle.

Sparked the progressive and labor movements (gave them a focal point to rally around) and gave us the first female cabinet member, Francis Perkins. Perkins witnessed the horror of that fire, and vowed to dedicate her life to advancing the cause of the poor and powerless worker. She became Labor Secretary under FDR.

The Triangle fire occured in March of 1911. Triangle had a lot of organizing unrest in the years leading up to the fire.

the owners of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory were acquitted. Power and money trumps humanity.

[Land Shark]

2. can you imagine a rescue effort organized for PROFIT?

if not, then you must embrace the critical role only the govt can play and reject the Norquist position.

[Bernardo de La Paz]

3. Also Johnstown flood from the robber baron's private lake killed 2000

The Johnstown flood happened because robber barons wouldn't let water out of sluice gates in their private lake because they had stocked it with expensive fish.

[NYC]

4. I hadn't known that.

I'll look around on Google, unless you have a book you can recommend.