That supposed article from the NO Times-Picayune doesn't exist.

[Bouncy Ball]

I saw that circulated email that's going around blaming everyone but bush that has an article at the end that supposedly appeared in the New Orleans Times-Picayune on August 28. No such article exists, except in the mind of the hateful racist asshole who wrote it. I noticed no one is pointing this out even on Kos, so I thought I'd point it out here. I've searched the NOLA website over and over for this article, and then I took specific sections of it and pasted it into search engines to see what it would pull up.

Guess what it pulled up? Nothing but citations of this fictional article on right wing websites and left wing sites who are debunking it. But I don't see anyone pointing out that it NEVER APPEARED IN THE NEW ORLEANS TIMES-PICAYUNE.

Now, if the racist asshole who WROTE this article would like to step forward and admit he or she is lying about the attribution of it, that would be nice.

Here is the fictional article. You can tell they took a few paragraphs from an actual article, then added in some commentary in the last 3/4 of it. It is usually attached at the end of an email going around that is so full of misinformation and lies, it's hard to know where to start. But here's a good place: the levees are maintained by the Corps of Engineers, they are not maintained by private landowners, you stupid goobers.

Anyway, the made-up article:
(stupid email part has been taken out to focus on the "article")

For those who missed item 5 (where the President's
level of accountability is discussed), it is made more
clear in a New Orleans Times-Picayune article dated
August 28:

NEW ORLEANS (AP) - In the face of a catastrophic
Hurricane Katrina, a mandatory evacuation was ordered
Sunday for New Orleans by Mayor Ray Nagin.

Acknowledging that large numbers of people, many of
them stranded tourists, would be unable to leave, the
city set up 10 places of last resort for people to go,
including the Superdome.

The mayor called the order unprecedented and said
anyone who could leave the city should. He exempted
hotels from the evacuation order because airlines had
already cancelled all flights.

Gov. Kathleen Blanco, standing beside the mayor at a
news conference, said President Bush called and
personally appealed for a mandatory evacuation for the
low-lying city, which is prone to flooding.


The ball was placed in Mayor Nagin's court to carry
out the evacuation order. With a 5-day heads-up, he
had the authority to use any and all services to
evacuate all residents from the city, as documented in
a city emergency preparedness plan. By waiting until
the last minute, and failing to make full use of
resources available within city limits, Nagin and his
administration screwed up.

Mayor Nagin and his emergency sidekick Terry Ebbert
have displayed lethal, mind boggling incompetence
before, during and after Katrina.

As for Mayor Nagin, he and his profile in pathetic
leadership police chief should resign as well. That
city's government is incompetent from one end to the
other. The people of New Orleans deserve better than
this crowd of clowns is capable of giving them.

If you're keeping track, these boobs let 569 buses
that could have carried 33,350 people out of New
Orleans-in one trip-get ruined in the floods. Whatever
plan these guys had, it was a dud. Or it probably
would have been if they'd bothered to follow it.

As for all the race-baiting rhetoric and Bush-bashing
coming from prominent blacks on the left, don't expect
Ray Nagin to be called out on the carpet for falling
short. You want to know why? Here's why:

It's more convenient to blame a white president for
what went wrong than to hold a black mayor and his
administration accountable for gross negligence and
failing to fully carry out an established emergency
preparedness plan.

To hold Nagin and his administration accountable for
dropping the ball amounts to letting loose the shouts
and cries of "Racism!". It's sad, it's wrong, but it's
standard operating procedure for the media and
left-wing black leadership.

Mark my words: you will not hear a word of criticism
from Jesse Jackson Sr., Randall Robinson, the
Congressional Black Caucus, the NAACP, or Kanye West
being directed toward Clarence Ray Nagin Jr. Why?
Because he is just another liberal black politician instead of
a responsible elected official who happens to be
black. In the mindset of more-blacker-than-thou
blacks, black politicians who are on their side can do
no wrong.

************************************************************

Compare that to a couple of ACTUAL New Orleans Times-Picayune articles that came out on August 28 (notice this has a BY-LINE you stupid reich wingers!):

Nagin orders first-ever mandatory evacuation of New Orleans

By Gordon Russell
Staff writer

New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin called for a first-ever mandatory evacuation of the city this morning, saying that Hurricane Katrina’s devastating power may well create the sort of cataclysmic damage that residents have long worried that a killer storm could cause in a city that lies mostly below sea level.

“I wish I had better news, but we’re facing the storm most of us have feared,” said Nagin, flanked by city and state officials, including Gov. Kathleen Blanco. “This is very serious. This is going to be an unprecedented event. ”

Nagin said Katrina’s “awesome” winds are likely to create storm surges that overwhelm the city’s system of levees, causing water to pour into lower-lying areas. Blanco said the water could get as high as 20 feet in places.

The city has 30 boats at its disposal, the mayor said.

The governor also said that President Bush had telephoned shortly before the 9:30 a.m. press conference began. She said Bush said he was “very concerned about the storm’s impact” and urged Blanco and Nagin to order the evacuation.

“We need to get as many people out as possible,” she said.

Around 112,000 Orleanians do not own cars, according to census data. Nagin urged those people to seek rides with friends, family, neighbors and church members. Those who could not find rides were urged to get to the Superdome as quickly as possible.

Regional Transit Authority buses were scheduled to ferry people to the dome from 12 locations around the city beginning at noon today.

Meantime, to make sure word of the mandatory evacuation gets out, Nagin said that police and fire crews would be driving through neighborhoods Sunday with bullhorns, directing people to leave.

The evacuation order contained exemptions for certain people, including city, state and federal officials, inmates of the parish prison, those in hospitals, tourists staying in hotels and members of the media.

An emergency order Nagin announced Sunday in declaring the mandatory evacuation gives authorities the right to commandeer private buildings and vehicles — including boats — as they see fit.

The mayor did not say which buildings might be seized for public use. For the time being, the Superdome will be used as a “shelter of last resort” for those unable to evacuate the city. If the dome fills to capacity, other buildings could be appropriated, Nagin said.

Nagin said the dome’s availability to residents doesn’t mean that going there is a good idea.

“I want to emphasize, the first choice of every citizen should be to leave the city,” he said. He noted that the Dome is likely to be without power for days — and possibly weeks — after the storm fits, and said it will not be a comfortable place.

At the same time, the mayor said, going to the dome is a better option than staying home. Many homes are likely to suffer serious damage and flood. Nagin said staying in one’s house would be a violation of the law, although one unlikely to result in any punishment.

The mayor urged residents to check on their neighbors and offer them help, in particular senior citizens.

“This is an opportunity for us to come together in a way we’ve never done before,” he said.

City and state officials also discussed the best ways to get out of the city. Sunday morning, traffic on Interstate 10 going west was “gridlock” until around Kenner, Blanco said.

She and other officials urged residents to consider alternate routes, including U.S. 90, U.S. 61 and I-10 east toward Slidell, which had litle traffic Sunday morning.

While officials were mostly concerned about preparing for the storm’s impact, there was also some discussion of its aftermath.

Dan Packer, CEO of Entergy New Orleans, said extra crews from other areas Entergy serves are already in the area, ready to begin repairs to what the company expects will be devastating storm damage.

The storm “may destroy the electrical distribution system in New Orleans and a good part of southeast Louisiana,” he said. Packer said it may take weeks or months to rebuild the system.


Print | Send To A Friend | Permalink (Learn More)


President Bush promises aid to storm victims

In an audio address today at 11:30, President Bush vowed to help those affected by Hurricane Katrina.

He called for residents to listen to orders from local officials.

There's also this:

Mayor Nagin issues mandatory evacuation for New Orleans

As of 9:30 a.m., Mayor Nagin has issued a mandatory evacuation for New Orleans.

The Superdome has been opened for people with special needs and as a shelter of last resort. Residents should call [phone] to reserve space in this shelter.

The city has set up ten pickup areas to take people to emergency shelters. RTA buses will be picking up citizens for free and take them to these shelters. The number to call for pickup areas is 1-800-469-4828.

The pickup locations are

McMain High: 5712 S Claiborne Ave New Orleans, LA 70125

Rabouin High: 727 Carondelet St New Orleans, LA 70130

Mondy George O Elementary: 2327 Philip St New Orleans, LA 70113

O.P. Walker: 2832 General Meyer Ave New Orleans, LA 70114

Abramson: 5552 Read Blvd New Orleans, LA 70127

S.T. Reed : 5316 Michoud Blvd New Orleans, LA 70129

Sylvain Williams: 3127 Martin L. King Blvd. New Orleans, LA. 70125

Augustine Middle:425 S. Broad St. New Orleans, LA. 70119

Warren Easton: 3039 Higgins Blvd. New Orleans, LA. 70126

MLK Jr. Elementary: 1617 Caffin Avenue New Orleans, LA 70117

N.O. Mission, address not available at time of publish.

Mondy Center, address not available at time of publish.

William Franz , address not available at time of publish.

Residents are asked to bring food for 3-5 days, pillows, blankets, and any other supplies needed.


Anyway if you get that stupid email, a refutation is REAL simple. Ask the person who sent it to you to give the name of the author of this article and a link to it on the Times-Picayune website. Hit reply all while you're at it. They can't give you that information because it isn't an article that was printed by that paper.

These guys are fucking pathetic. And this was FAR too easy to figure out. It doesn't even READ like an article or even like an opinion piece. It's far too strident and shrill for that.

That is all.

[Bouncy Ball]

1. Kick for truth (man it's busy here tonight!)

[blitzburgh55]

2. Thanks. Here's another they're passing around as the truth

at least this one is debunked though. Evil little freepers.

On Friday night before the storm hit Max Mayfield of the National Hurricane Center took the unprecedented action of calling Nagin and Blanco personally to plead with them to begin MANDATORY evacuation of NO and they said they'd take it under consideration. This was after the NOAA buoy 240 miles south had recorded 68' waves before it was destroyed.

President Bush spent Friday afternoon and evening in meetings with his advisors and administrators drafting all of the paperwork required for a state to request federal assistance (and not be in violation of the Posse Comitatus Act or having to enact the Insurgency Act). Just before midnight Friday evening the President called Governor Blanco and pleaded with her to sign the request papers so the federal government and the military could legally begin mobilization and call up. He was told that they didn't think it necessary for the federal government to be involved yet. After the President's final call to the governor she held meetings with her staff to discuss the political ramifications of bringing federal forces. It was decided that if they allowed federal assistance it would make it look as if they had failed so it was agreed upon that the feds would not be invited in.

Saturday before the storm hit the President again called Blanco and Nagin requesting they please sign the papers requesting federal assistance, that they declare the state an emergency area, and begin mandatory evacuation. After a personal plea from the President Nagin agreed to order an evacuation, but it would not be a full mandatory evacuation, and the governor still refused to sign the papers requesting and authorizing federal action. In frustration the President declared the area a national disaster area before the state of Louisiana did so he could legally begin some advanced preparations. Rumor has it that the President's legal advisers were looking into the ramifications of using the insurgency act to bypass the Constitutional requirement that a state request federal aid before the federal government can move into state with troops - but that had not been done since 1906 and the Constitutionality of it was called into question to use before the disaster.

Throw in that over half the federal aid of the past decade to NO for levee construction, maintenance, and repair was diverted to fund a marina and support the gambling ships. Toss in the investigation that will look into why the emergency preparedness plan submitted to the federal government for funding and published on the city's web site was never implemented and in fact may have been bogus for the purpose of gaining additional federal funding as we now learn that the organizations identified in the plan were never contacted or coordinating into any planning - though the document implies that they were.

The suffering people of NO need to be asking some hard questions as do we all, but they better start with why Blanco refused to even sign the multi-state mutual aid pack activation documents until Wednesday which further delayed the legal deployment of National Guard from adjoining states. Or maybe ask why Nagin keeps harping that the President should have commandeered 500 Greyhound busses to help him when according to his own emergency plan and documents he claimed to have over 500 busses at his disposal to use between the local school busses and the city transportation busses - but he never raised a finger to prepare them or activate them.

This is a sad time for all of us to see that a major city has all but been destroyed and thousands of people have died with hundreds of thousands more suffering, but it's certainly not a time for people to be pointing fingers and trying to find a bigger dog to blame for local corruption and incompetence. Pray to God for the survivors that they can start their lives anew as fast as possible and we learn from all the mistakes to avoid them in the future.

http://www.snopes.com/politics/katrina/nagin.asp

[Bouncy Ball]

5. Good to see it's debunked. That fake Times Picayune article

needs a Snope link too, so people who get it can just say "um in your face, Spreader Of Lies, this isn't even a REAL article, you asshole."

What people will stoop to to try to convince themselves their drunk ass president is actually competent is amazing.

[skygazer]

21. Thank you for this

My father sent me this one today. I'd already pointed out that it's convenient that these things are always credited to "some fellow" who is never named - now I've sent him the snopes article and link. Good work!

[Kurovski]

32. Written by "some fellow" by the name of

Karen Hughes?

It would not suprise me in the least.

[dweller]

3. is it busy?

we are at level 0 from what i see. in fact, there is no level notice on Latest page.

but got the message on the fake story. i'm not suprised.

dp

[Bouncy Ball]

6. Maybe GD is. I posted this, then it fell so fast, I actually

laughed out loud. I guess a lot of activity right now.

[BrklynLiberal]

4. It should be obvious that the Times-Picayune would not use that language

If you're keeping track, these boobs let 569 buses
that could have carried 33,350 people out of New
Orleans-in one trip-get ruined in the floods. Whatever
plan these guys had, it was a dud. Or it probably
would have been if they'd bothered to follow it.

[Bouncy Ball]

7. That's right about where I said "nope, someone is lying."

In fact, I used that part, along with several others, to hit search engines with to see if it showed up anywhere but reich wing sites. Like an actual newspaper. But of course it didn't.

Little fucking liars, the lot of 'em. Desperate too, apparently.

[karlrschneider]

8. That stuck out for me too. But it's exactly what we'd expect from an

inbred freeper moran...

[Zenlitened]

9. Well, we really can't expect Republicans to argue using facts and truth.

They'd have absolutely nothing to say.

Republicans cannot be trusted to govern.

[ThoughtCriminal]

10. Some blogs where it was posted

http://www.blogsforbush.com/mt/archives/005284.html
http://www.dcthornton.com/?p=2047

Google "569 buses" and discover some of the internet's best cesspools.

[tinfoilinfor2005]

11. Wow! Nice save Bouncy Ball!

BTW, how is your new family faring? Settling in yet?

Kick for truth!!

[starroute]

12. The time-frame they claim is also seriously messed

The fake section you quote says, "The ball was placed in Mayor Nagin's court to carry out the evacuation order. With a 5-day heads-up, he had the authority to use any and all services to evacuate all residents from the city, as documented in a city emergency preparedness plan."

But if you check Dr. Jeff Masters' weather blog at http://www.wunderground.com/blog/JeffMasters/archive.html?tstamp=200508 you get a very different story.

Five days before Katrina hit New Orleans, it was no more than a tropical storm out in the Atlantic Ocean.

On the afternoon of Thursday, August 25 -- just three and a half days before it reached New Orleans -- the storm had not yet even made landfall in Florida. At that point, it was strengthening rapidly, and Masters suggested that it was likely to become at least a Category 2 when it reemerged in the Gulf and could hit anywhere between the Florida Panhandle and New Orleans. This is the earliest indication I know of that New Orleans might be at risk, and it was still entirely hypothetical.

On Friday, August 26, it became obvious that Katrina could reach Category 4, but it still seemed to be aiming at the Panhandle. In the course of the day, the computer projections moved steadily towards Alabama and Mississippi, and by evening Masters was saying, "It would be no surprise if later advisories shift the forecast track even further west and put Katrina over New Orleans."

But it was not until Saturday morning -- less than two days before landfall -- that Masters blog took on a note of genuine alarm. At 5:23 AM:

Emergency management officials in New Orleans are no doubt waiting to see where Katrina makes her turn before ordering evacuations. However, if I lived in the city, I would evactuate NOW! The risks are too great from this storm, and a weekend away from the city would be nice anyway, right? GO! New Orleans needs a full 72 hours to evacuate, and landfall is already less than 72 hours away, so I would get out now and beat the rush. If an evacuation is ordered, not everyone who wants to get out may be able to do so.

And at 11:25 AM:

I'd hate to be an Emergency Management official in New Orleans right now. Katrina is pretty much following the NHC forecast, and appears likely to pass VERY close to New Orleans. I'm surprised they haven't ordered an evacuation of the city yet. While the odds of a catastropic hit that would completely flood the city of New Orleans are probably 10%, that is way too high in my opinion to justify leaving the people in the city. If I lived in the city, I would evactuate NOW! There is a very good reason that the Coroner's office in New Orleans keeps 10,000 body bags on hand. The risks are too great from this storm, and a weekend away from the city would be nice anyway, right? GO! New Orleans needs a full 72 hours to evacuate, and landfall is already less than 72 hours away. Get out now and beat the rush. You're not going to have to go to work or school on Monday anyway. If an evacuation is ordered, not everyone who wants to get out may be able to do so--particularly the 60,000 poor people with no cars.

The evacuation was finally ordered late on Saturday and didn't really get underway until early on Sunday -- far too late. But what should the mayor have done? On Friday morning, the computer models were still unanimous that Katrina would make landfall in the Panhandle, and most likely as a Category 3. And any point after Friday morning was already too late.

The mayor does seem to have done a certain amount of dithering between Saturday morning and Saturday evening. An extra 12 hours warning would have probably reduced the chaos and loss of life to an extent. But that's the limit of how far you can blame him -- and even Masters acknowledged it was a tough decision.

[Stinky Bushes]

13. whoever did this should be prosecuted for

misrepresentation and libel.

[DoYouEverWonder]

25. Might be a good idea to notify the Times Picayune

I doubt if they will be very happy about this at all.

[JerseygirlCT]

14. Keeping this kicked! nt

[I Have A Dream]

15. I wonder how something like this would be submitted to Snopes...

so that it could be added to the debunked Katrina stuff.

[Catherine Vincent]

16. Good work!

Thanks!

[Turn CO Blue]

17. Perhaps Snopes.com would be interested in your research...

For anyone who hasn't heard or doesn't recall, Snopes debunks urban legends, email scams, etc.

[Hissyspit]

18. Rove probably wrote it. n/t

[me b zola]

31. It does have that stench about it. n/t

[roseBudd]

19. No editor would allow: "Nagin and his administration screwed up"

or:

If you're keeping track, these boobs let 569 buses
that could have carried 33,350 people out of New
Orleans-in one trip-get ruined in the floods.

and Kanye West had not said what he said yet on Aug. 28


And if it were an opinion piece it would not say AP

[roseBudd]

20. On second thought send this to Editor & Publisher and the Times-Picayune

[garthranzz]

22. Um, Gee, but the hurricane didn't hit New Orleans until August 29th

and it wasn't a real threat until August 25th. And there was a regional timetable for the evacutaion process, coordinated at least at the state level and I think Fema may have been involved.

Now, who else gained and maintained power through the BIG LIE? Someplace across the Atlantic, I think, fifty or sixty years ago. Who could it be?

[mom cat]

23. Excellent analysis, well doctumented anf focused...kudos!

[teknomanzer]

24. It reads like a rant...

No person with a education in journalism would write a piece like that... its not professional in any, way, shape or form.

[MADem]

34. Jeff Gannon!!!! Jim Guckert!!!! OF COURSE!!!

They probably gave him this little assignment, gotta do something to keep him in lockstep...

[The Witch]

26. Kick, and can you ital the "actual" fictional article?

Because it's hard to tell where their fictional "AP" ends and the commentary begins...

[KaryninMiami]

27. Found a site some of this crap might have originated...

http://www.chronwatch.com/content/contentDisplay.asp?aid=16666

The Chain of Responsibility in the Katrina Disaster
Thursday, September 08, 2005

September 7, 2005

Friends and Colleagues:

The following message was sent to us by Kit Sanders, a military veteran and conservative colleague. The initial e-mail was sent to Kit by Mr. Obra Bourgoyne who lives in Jonesville, Louisiana. It is important reading in light of the flap over "who didn't do what."

Jack Patterson, ChronWatch reader

________________________
There's a first portion about Who's to Blame which was fabricated from an article (an ABC news piece that Daily Kos debunked earlier this week http://www.dailykos.com/story/2005/9/7/03232/64789

But here's the part that's allegedly from the Pieayune:

"For those who missed item 5 (where the president’s level of accountability is discussed), it is made more clear in a New Orleans Times-Picayune article dated August 28:

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — In the face of a catastrophic Hurricane Katrina, a mandatory evacuation was ordered Sunday for New Orleans by Mayor Ray Nagin.

Acknowledging that large numbers of people, many of them stranded tourists, would be unable to leave, the city set up 10 places of last resort for people to go, including the Superdome.

The mayor called the order unprecedented and said anyone who could leave the city should. He exempted hotels from the evacuation order because airlines had already canceled all flights.

Gov. Kathleen Blanco, standing beside the mayor at a news conference, said President Bush called and personally appealed for a mandatory evacuation for the low-lying city, which is prone to flooding. (emphasis mine)

The ball was placed in Mayor Nagin’s court to carry out the evacuation order. With a 5-day heads-up, he had the authority to use any and all services to evacuate all residents from the city, as documented in a city emergency preparedness plan. By waiting until the last minute, and failing to make full use of resources available within city limits, Nagin and his administration missed the boat.

Mayor Nagin and his emergency sidekick Terry Ebbert have displayed lethal, mind-boggling incompetence before, during and after Katrina...

SNIP
Etc. Etc. Etc.

[The Witch]

28. Hate to say it, but the article is legit

It's just that it's the first 4 grafs of what you wrote that's the actual AP newswire release... the rest is commentary by whoever sent the article around.

http://www.nola.com/newsflash/louisiana/index.ssf?/base/news-18/1125239940201382.xml&storylist=louisiana

Sorry to burst your bubble....

I'd link to the actual AP site but to search past the past week is 7.

I figure we should police ourselves. That way we don't seize on something & turn it into a meme without knowing it's true... :---(

don't kill me.

[lala_rawraw]

29. Who owns chron watch?

This is all I found for ".org"

SSL Cert: No valid SSL on this Host, Get Secure
Alexa Trend/Rank: Not Ranked
Website Status: Active
Reverse IP: Web server hosts 326400 websites (reverse ip tool requires free login)
Server Type: Apache/1.3.26 (Unix) PHP/4.2.3
(Spry.com also uses Apache)
IP Address: 198.65.115.93 (ARIN & RIPE IP search)
IP Location: - Colorado - Englewood - Verio Inc



Here is ".com"

OrgName: Vortech Inc.
OrgID: VTC1
Address: 106 S. Semoran Blvd.
City: Orlando
StateProv: FL
PostalCode: 32807
Country: US

NetRange: 216.157.128.0 - 216.157.159.255
CIDR: 216.157.128.0/19
NetName: VORTECH-BLK-1
NetHandle: NET-216-157-128-0-1
Parent: NET-216-0-0-0-0
NetType: Direct Allocation
NameServer: DNS.ANONYMOUS-SERVERS.COM
NameServer: DNS2.ANONYMOUS-SERVERS.COM
Comment:
RegDate: 2002-08-09
Updated: 2004-07-12

TechHandle: BAP16-ARIN
TechName: Pugh, Brad Alan
TechPhone: [phone]
TechEmail: [e-mail]

OrgTechHandle: BAP16-ARIN
OrgTechName: Pugh, Brad Alan
OrgTechPhone: [phone]
OrgTechEmail: [e-mail]

[KaryninMiami]

30. What they've done, is snip segments from various pieces,

doctored them up and sent out what looks like a credible AP report. Isn't there some law about doing this? Perjury maybe?

[pnorman]

33. You're definitely right. We HAVE to "police" ourselves.

But I don't see any "burst bubbles" here. You've dug deeper into that and pointed out where the bogus "editorial rant" was tacked onto the first four paragraphs, but with NO mention that it was an add-on. That's deliberate disinformation, and shows how desperate they've become. There's a definite Rovian stench about it, but his days are numbered.



My day isn't complete until I post that photo!
:rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl:
:rofl:

pnorman

[bloom]

35. And how many doofusses will fall for it...

:argh: