Just got this email from a conservative friend

[berni_mccoy]

All I have to say is, how do you like your Bush? Extremely Well Done, or Charcoal Briquette?

Here’s how OTHER leaders have handled a crisis like this:


President: Nixon

Danger: Category-5 Hurricane Camille (August 1969)

Area: About the same area as that affected by Katrina


Response: Nixon prepared the National Guard in advance, ordering rescue
ships from Tampa, FL and Houston, TX to stand waiting along with over a
thousand regular military, 24+ helicopters to assist the Coast Guard
and National Guard about as soon as the hurricane passed.




President: Bush the Elder

Danger: Hurricane Andrew (August 92)

Area: Florida


Response: In the middle of a re-election campaign, Bush ceased
campaigning the day before the hurricane, went to Washington, and
assembled one of the largest military forces ever mustered on U.S.
soil. Seven thousand National Guard and 22,000 regular military were
sent in with the necessary equipment shortly after the hurricane passed
through.




President: Clinton

Danger: Category-3 Hurricane Floyd (September 1999)

Area: Virginia and Carolinas


Response: Meeting with China's president Jiang in New Zealand, Clinton
immediately declared the hurricane-affected areas as federal disasters,
allowing the military and National Guard to move in and help. Clinton
flew home immediately, one day before the hurricane hit, to help
coordinate the rescue.




President: Bush the Lesser

Danger: Category-5 Hurricane Katrina (August 2005)

Area: Gulf Coast


Response: National Guard troops are down about 8,000 members because
they are in Iraq with much of the necessary rescue equipment needed.
Bush was on vacation, riding his bike for two hours the day before the
hurricane lands. On the day Katrina landed, Bush attended a birthday
party for John McCain. The levees began to crack. While emergency
1.5-ton sandbags were ready to be placed to steady the levee and absorb
water, there were insufficient numbers of helicopters and pilots to set
them before the levees break. Nagin, the mayor of NO, pleaded for
federal-level assistance and got none. Bush went to San Diego to play
guitar with a country singer and end his vacation early -- but not
until the next day, because he had tickets to a San Diego Padres game.

[BrklynLiberal]

1. hmmmm Do I smell smoke?

[havocmom]

2. bush the lesser is still living at frat parties

well into his 50s. Ah, yes, the grown-ups indeed. :puke:

[The Traveler]

3. True conservatives

are different from the evil men we have criticized here these past few years. You can have an honest debate with true conservatives. You can find an effective middle ground through that dialog.

I knew several who are as outraged as we.

[wtmusic]

8. Nothing conservative about the neos

The most radical agenda in American history.

[SnowGoose]

15. If Bush is so "conservative" how come:

We have the largest deficits in history?
We have the government intruding into people's private lives?
We have constitutional rights weakened like never before?
We have expensive and extensive foreign adventures?
Infant mortality is up (culture of life?)

I think conservativism is founded on an overly simplistic view of the world, but at least it has *some* kind of intellectual underpinnings. Bush is just an empty (hypocritical) suit.

[Lochloosa]

41. They are not Conservative nor republican..they are Fascist

[stevietheman]

53. Exactly right... how can anyone call this president a Republican...

when he is a clear and present danger to the republic?

He's really anti-Republican!

[Hello_Kitty]

16. It was always said, in the old days

That liberals and conservatives had the same goal, just different ideas as to how to accomplish it. Nowadays, that idea has been blown out of the water. The neo-cons don't give a goddamn about anyone but their own little elite group.

[tsuki]

37. No, they are not. If they do not follow the corporate Bushco line, they

are MODERATES.

MODERATE Republicans are as outraged as we are. CONSERVATIVE Republicans are outraged that the poor are being treated like human beings.

Example: No Republican woman that is pro-choice is a CONSERVATIVE, period, end-of-discussion. She is a MODERATE.

But, you are enabling her to vote Conservative because she thinks that she is not voting the NEOCON agenda. Conservative Agenda=NeoCon agenda. Roe v Wade gone. And further, there is no such word.

Every time NeoCon comes out of your mouth, you are enabling another MODERATE to vote CONSERVATIVE with a clear conscience. And that is why we lose elections.

We must MAKE Moderate Republicans label themselves as Moderates, not Conservatives.

[The Traveler]

45. Hey! I like the way you think!

An EXCELLENT point! I stand corrected. Thanks, man.

[tsuki]

46. Hey, only 76,000+ more to go. ;-)

[Pacifist Patriot]

42. Absolutely!

I used to have delightful discussions with a group of liberals and conservatives. Neocons are conservatives the way AlQuaeda are Muslims.

[dweller]

4. tickets to a San Diego Padres game?

that's a new twist, i didn't know that.

or is it an internets rumor?

dp

[niyad]

12. it was donald rumsfeld at the padres game, covered by the san diego paper

[xray s]

5. HOLY SHIT! Is this true?

The levees began to crack. While emergency 1.5-ton sandbags were ready to be placed to steady the levee and absorb water, there were insufficient numbers of helicopters and pilots to set them before the levees break.

That is the first I have heard of this.

[bobbieinok]

10. on DU a report that heli ready to drop sand bags, but left for....????

NO mayor furious.....promised a plugging of leak and then didn't do it

[byronius]

20. I heard a rumor that the helicopters were loaded with sandbags

and ready to go. When the request came through, the helicopters had already dumped their sandbags and were heading for a church to rescue a hundred or so people, all still on dry ground. The levee (17th St.) broke a half an hour later.

[bluedawg12]

52. I heard Nagin or Blanco say that helo's were

diverted from the pathching levee's. But this happened early on, when the floods had just broken through and the communication was toast. So, it just went to showhow the fema help did not co-ordinate with the local gov. I heard it live that night.

[EC]

17. What that doesn't say is that if that crack were

repaired, the pumps would not have failed. By the time the mayor even heard the helicopters were diverted to "save someone" the water had reached a level to overwork and burn out pumps. I don't remember if the Mayor said this or if it was one of the other Parrish Officials, there were so many interviews, but that stuck in my mind. I think the helicopters came 2 hours after pumps failed...

[ignatius 2]

40. Yes,that is true..Nagin had the sandbags there,had called for the black

hawks and they were supposedly on their way but somebody dispersed them to a church to get people off the roofs.

This was reported the next day, it would be interesting to know who gave that order.

[buddysmellgood]

6. That's what I thought. Thanks for posting that.

[nadinbrzezinski]

7. Do not, I repeat DO NOT

send in the fire trucks

[LoZoccolo]

9. It'd be interesting to see how H. W. Bush was doing...

...in the polls around that time. Was Clinton behind but gaining on him? Had he just made it ahead? The reason why it'd be interesting to find out is, I wonder if it was really important for him to be campaigning at that time; it'd add to the greater importance he put on tending to the disaster.

[pbartch]

11. THIS IS ENOUGH TO IMPEACH THE CHIMP

Or.,.....send him to Mars with Cheney and leave them there to rule (ruin) the planet.

[Jack Rabbit]

13. Now I know what I miss about Nixon (when compared to Bush the Frat Boy)

Good grief, even Nixon could be presidential in a pinch. Bush can't.

[fricasseed_gourmet_rat]

34. I'd give anything

to have Nixon be President now if it was the only thing that meant no more Bush.

[stevietheman]

54. Yeah, isn't it incredible? Nixon *was* a better president than Bush...

it's shocking and sickening to think it, but alas, I'm afraid that's the way it is.

[Infomaniac]

14. Holy-Moly

There's another breach in the levee system. Dubya support is crumbling. Quick send the choppers. Drop the sand bags. Drop Shrub's insanely insensitive twit of a mother in to plug the hole. Anything.

[blue neen]

24. OMG

:rofl: That made me spit out my coffee.

"Drop Shrub's insanely insensitive twit of a mother in to plug the hole."

Oh, that's priceless. You deserve some kind of an award for that one! :thumbsup:

[Infomaniac]

28. Thanks

[stevietheman]

55. Yeah, let some of her blue blood mix in with some of the red.

Her girth would have pluggged in the 17th st. levee... Why *didn't* they use Babs? :)

[Usrename]

18. It's not his fault. His frat buddies at FEMA had it all under control.

[BikeWriter]

19. A conservative sent this to you? Right on!

[NuttyFluffers]

21. i prefer plasmic, but will settle for vaporized. n/t

:evilgrin:

[progressoid]

22. Doh!!

[leftchick]

23. nuked

in a microwave! :nuke:

[DemsUnited]

25. This is an amazing compilation and should be shared far & wide.

Kicked and thanks for posting.

[tallahasseedem]

26. Holy Moly!

I suggest we all copy this and send it to everyone we know. Hell, even Nixon did a bang up job.

[ComerPerro]

27. Wow. Damn.

[linazelle]

29. This is GOOD. Needs a media blast along with school bus issue.

School bus issue link: http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=104&topic_id=4715653

[FlaGranny]

30. Bush the Elder - absolutely untrue

those units DID NOT show up in Miami until 4-5 days later. Miami-Dade had descended into lawlessness with looters and residents carrying shotguns - just like New Orleans and Miami was totally on it's own. There was much pleading for help before the troops arrived.

Edit: I'll never forget one woman - some official (I don't know who) on TV in tears, pleading for the troops to come in to save Miami-Dade from starvation and dehydration - about 3 days after Hurricane Andrew. Bush Sr. may have had the troops mobilized, but he DID NOT send them right in.

[Viva_La_Revolution]

32. At this point, I'm not going to quibble with their facts....

Too busy jumping for joy. :bounce:

The Sheeple are awakening - wait till Georgie hears them roar!

BBBWWWAAAAAAHHHHHHAAAAAAAA!

:evilgrin:

[FlaGranny]

33. I won't quibble with them either - just wanted

to make sure everyone knew that Sr. didn't do a whole lot (if any) better.

[wryter2000]

31. Hot damn

It's a :cry: shame it took this to wake some folks up, but maybe now we can get something done.

[tsuki]

35. From a Conservative? Are you sure he is not a moderate

Republican? I have heard that those creatures exist, but down here they are on the endangered list.

[Gregorian]

36. It'll take more than teflon to spin this one.

[Vektor]

47. Egads! Your cooking smiley upsets me.

Terrifying!

[ignatius 2]

38. Sweet Jesus,that is one hell of a letter and very damning of Chimpy

and his total failure to do anything at all except play. Nero and Bush played while their countries died.

I hope and pray that Americans are waking up to this maniac finally. From his mockery of of the woman on death row, to his looking for wmds under the chair,to his silly nicknames he gives his cabinent and press, to the stupid jokes he makes about every single thing..surely all can see that he is nothing but a psychopathic,spoiled,arrogant and mean spirited juvenile delinquent.

[indigonation]

39. Very effective comparison.. thanks. n/t

[Bethany Rockafella]

43. Now that's one email I wouldn't mind spamming everyone with.

Are you sure that's from a conservative? I'll bet it really pisses other conservatives off that Clinton is mentioned.

[berni_mccoy]

44. LOL, Yep, a true Conservative

Doesn't like the spending and big gov that's been going on... and though he didn't even vote for Bush in 2004, he wouldn't vote for Kerry either. He never liked Clinton... and still watches Fox (and yes, I've tried to detox him :-)). Yep a true Conservative, but he feels the GOP has left him without a party.

[Ms. K]

49. Most of my Republican friends

feel that the GOP has left them without a party.

They are OUTRAGED that the middle-class tax cuts never materialized.

They are OUTRAGED at the price of gas.

They are OUTRAGED that the war in Iraq has not only lasted this long, but that we also have no exit strategy.

And now, they are furious that hurricane relief efforts in New Orleans just haven't seemed to be their President's first priority.

So, I'm hoping that they will wake up and smell the coffee. I'm just waiting....they're coming around, and hopefully it will be sooner rather than later.

[Hello_Kitty]

51. 2 Repukes I know

Compared the response of the Chimp's admininstration to the hurricanes in Fla. last year to his response to Katrina. They see the difference in his interest where his brother's state and an election year were a factor as compared to his indifference to the Gulf States now. And they are pissed about it. They realize they don't give a shit about them.

[mzmolly]

48. Woah.

:wow:

[arikara]

50. Do you want to be a purist and only include Americans

because Cuba's evacuation was pretty darned impressive last year:

September 2004 a Category 5 hurricane battered Cuba with 160-mile-per-hour winds. More than 1.5 million Cubans were evacuated to higher ground ahead of the storm. Although the hurricane destroyed 20,000 houses, no one died. Shelters all have medical personnel, from the neighborhood. They have family doctors in Cuba, who evacuate together with the neighborhood, and already know, for example, who needs insulin." They also evacuate animals and veterinarians, TV sets and refrigerators, "so that people aren't reluctant to leave because people might steal their stuff,"

[stevietheman]

56. It's definitely a strange time indeed when the Pres can look like sh*t...

compared to Nixon and Castro.