Stripes letters: Shame for Katrina Response/What went wrong?

[lebkuchen]

‘Shame’ for Katrina response

On Sept. 9 in the New York Times, Laura Bush was quoted as being upset with the press and American people for blaming her husband’s slowness in responding to the New Orleans disaster.

What did she expect? That they would pat him on the back and say, “Good job”?

On Sept. 10, Bush suspends the law governing local wages for workers in the disaster area. All a politician has to do to get in trouble is to appoint a horse judge as director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency and then let Congress cut FEMA’s budget to the bone. For shame!

Robert P. Kaldunski
Winona, Minn.


‘What went wrong’?

The federal response to Hurricane Katrina has me completely shocked. Why did it take our government so long to respond to this emergency? Our emergency response in the last couple of weeks cannot compare to the response after the Sept. 11, 2001, tragedy; they are as different as day and night. We had warnings for days before Katrina came on shore. No warnings for the World Trade Center and Pentagon.

Responding agencies should have acted quicker in the aftermath of Katrina. We need to find out and investigate the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the other agencies involved. What went wrong?

Recently, Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., called for legislation to create an independent commission modeled after the 9/11 Commission. I urge everyone to contact their senators and representatives to act on making this happen.

Four years ago it was New York, a couple of weeks ago it was Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida. We don’t know where the next emergency will occur, we just need to make sure that we are ready. As one of the wealthiest superpowers in the world, I have been embarrassed that our citizens were treated as if they were from an impoverished nation. News agencies referred to them as refugees! When Third World countries feel they need to come to our rescue, this undermines our effectiveness as a world superpower.

Our allies are asking the same questions, what went wrong? Now it’s time for America to stand together and make it right. Let’s correct the problems by finding out what went so terribly wrong. Shame, shame, shame!

Liesel Woodard
Kaiserslautern, Germany

http://www.estripes.com/article.asp?section=125&article=31592

[Erika]

1. Yep and it continues

W has no credibility and no moral authority and it is now proven he has no concern for U.S. citizens, especially the poor.

[lebkuchen]

2. He's turned America into a country of "sitting ducks"

whether in Iraq or stateside.

[Erika]

3. Yep, of corporate interests

[lebkuchen]

4. Which means it's no longer a democracy

even though Bush was touting the importance of democracy to his administration before the UN Security Council just yesterday. I would have loved to see the world's eyes roll back on that whopper.

[Erika]

5. Believe, their eyes did roll back

I watched it.