Wednesday, September 07, 2005
The Emperor Has No Clothes
Thanks to Kimya Dawson for providing this link.
Neck Deep in Red Tape
Alicia Vohs 07 Sep 2005 00:30 GMT
Begging for an end to the finger pointing because they are all to blame.
SHIT STORM
Ever since Bush and his cohorts came into power many of us have known just how dangerous they were and are. We spoke out against their politics, theology as a way of governance, tax breaks for millionaires, raiding the budget and repealing decades of environmental regulations in favor of their personal investment interests. We spoke out against the war on "terr-r" and the hemorrhage of American jobs to third world slaves. The media has called us "chicken little" and liberal special interest groups out to bring Satan and Allah into public schools. For me personally, it has been cold comfort that history will bear us out. Only after tens of thousands of deaths caused by backasswards foreign policies that will keep most of the Middle East as an occupied territory long after the "war on terr-r" is over. And then comes a big shit storm, er... hurricane to expose the fact that the emperor wears no clothes.
Today, eight days after the storm of the century wiped out a good portion of the southern coast, the toxic flood waters are receding enough to expose the real cause of the disaster, red tape and the ever inefficient government approach of, "what a big mess, someone really ought to do something!"
The endless preparations to halt the next 9/11 have not only kept Americans on the verge of panic for years, but have funneled billions of dollars, man power and public attention away from the ever deplorable conditions that many people live in here at home. For those who rely on FOX news to learn about the world I am sure it is shocking to realize what a fragile system keeps many American towns and cities from becoming third world moonscapes that make post-tsunami Thailand look like the picture of order and efficiency. The simple fact is that all Americans should be shaking in their shoes and hoping that the next big disaster doesn’t happen in their town.
This hurricane has laid bare the complete breakdown of any government agency to act either independently or as a team to bring even a bottle of water to a city drowning in its own filth. When NBC cameramen accidentally discover 20,000 people trapped in the middle of a city 4 days after the storm with no supplies, relying on 1 nurse and self rule and still have it take three more days to drive in a convoy with food and water while the elderly and infants die in the streets, who is to blame? When there are orders for a mandatory evacuation and those without car or money are left to die, who is to blame for not sending busses to the nursing home, or the projects? When two New Orleans cops kill themselves in one day because they were ordered to guard K-mart while their families drowned in shit and children were raped in the shelters, who is to blame? Sadly, everyone is. Bush, with his empty words of hope and his promise that "Trent Lott's home will be rebuilt, and he and I will sit on the porch and have a drink." Poor Trent, will you have to stay in one of your other homes now? I can only imagine your sense of loss and outrage. And Dick Cheney, in Montana, hiking and enjoying nature while Halliburton sucks up another uncontested contract to rebuild the Marine and Naval bases. Condi Rice shopping for GODDAMN shoes on Fifth Ave. and enjoying a Broadway play after assuring us that her family in Mississippi was fine. And the rest of them, from FEMA to HOMEland security, whose homeland do you secure exactly? And whoever ordered the troops to point machine guns at American families knee deep in water while their babies cried for food.
There is, of course, enough blame to go around. The local politicians have spoken out and called for heads to roll and that should have you all worried. But you should also be worried about us, the ordinary citizens who have watched you all stand by and shake hands and congratulate each other while your paperwork and policies have murdered our fellow Americans. There is nothing like the fear of being killed by your own government to get people motivated and from what we have all seen this last week no person, well, no poor and/or black person should feel safe here anymore.
I could go on, but for once I don’t need to, the news is actually reporting the real story and realizing that their job can and should be used for the public good and simply reciting the latest White House press release. Come to think of it, the news has been there begging for relief from the start. Perhaps we should divert funding from FEMA and hire NBC and CNN to respond to the next big disaster? For those of us who saw the need for change long ago, there is no sense of victory in the exposure of the empty promises and lies, only the empty knowledge that it did not have to be this way.
Alicia Vohs
Neck Deep in Red Tape
Alicia Vohs 07 Sep 2005 00:30 GMT
Begging for an end to the finger pointing because they are all to blame.
SHIT STORM
Ever since Bush and his cohorts came into power many of us have known just how dangerous they were and are. We spoke out against their politics, theology as a way of governance, tax breaks for millionaires, raiding the budget and repealing decades of environmental regulations in favor of their personal investment interests. We spoke out against the war on "terr-r" and the hemorrhage of American jobs to third world slaves. The media has called us "chicken little" and liberal special interest groups out to bring Satan and Allah into public schools. For me personally, it has been cold comfort that history will bear us out. Only after tens of thousands of deaths caused by backasswards foreign policies that will keep most of the Middle East as an occupied territory long after the "war on terr-r" is over. And then comes a big shit storm, er... hurricane to expose the fact that the emperor wears no clothes.
Today, eight days after the storm of the century wiped out a good portion of the southern coast, the toxic flood waters are receding enough to expose the real cause of the disaster, red tape and the ever inefficient government approach of, "what a big mess, someone really ought to do something!"
The endless preparations to halt the next 9/11 have not only kept Americans on the verge of panic for years, but have funneled billions of dollars, man power and public attention away from the ever deplorable conditions that many people live in here at home. For those who rely on FOX news to learn about the world I am sure it is shocking to realize what a fragile system keeps many American towns and cities from becoming third world moonscapes that make post-tsunami Thailand look like the picture of order and efficiency. The simple fact is that all Americans should be shaking in their shoes and hoping that the next big disaster doesn’t happen in their town.
This hurricane has laid bare the complete breakdown of any government agency to act either independently or as a team to bring even a bottle of water to a city drowning in its own filth. When NBC cameramen accidentally discover 20,000 people trapped in the middle of a city 4 days after the storm with no supplies, relying on 1 nurse and self rule and still have it take three more days to drive in a convoy with food and water while the elderly and infants die in the streets, who is to blame? When there are orders for a mandatory evacuation and those without car or money are left to die, who is to blame for not sending busses to the nursing home, or the projects? When two New Orleans cops kill themselves in one day because they were ordered to guard K-mart while their families drowned in shit and children were raped in the shelters, who is to blame? Sadly, everyone is. Bush, with his empty words of hope and his promise that "Trent Lott's home will be rebuilt, and he and I will sit on the porch and have a drink." Poor Trent, will you have to stay in one of your other homes now? I can only imagine your sense of loss and outrage. And Dick Cheney, in Montana, hiking and enjoying nature while Halliburton sucks up another uncontested contract to rebuild the Marine and Naval bases. Condi Rice shopping for GODDAMN shoes on Fifth Ave. and enjoying a Broadway play after assuring us that her family in Mississippi was fine. And the rest of them, from FEMA to HOMEland security, whose homeland do you secure exactly? And whoever ordered the troops to point machine guns at American families knee deep in water while their babies cried for food.
There is, of course, enough blame to go around. The local politicians have spoken out and called for heads to roll and that should have you all worried. But you should also be worried about us, the ordinary citizens who have watched you all stand by and shake hands and congratulate each other while your paperwork and policies have murdered our fellow Americans. There is nothing like the fear of being killed by your own government to get people motivated and from what we have all seen this last week no person, well, no poor and/or black person should feel safe here anymore.
I could go on, but for once I don’t need to, the news is actually reporting the real story and realizing that their job can and should be used for the public good and simply reciting the latest White House press release. Come to think of it, the news has been there begging for relief from the start. Perhaps we should divert funding from FEMA and hire NBC and CNN to respond to the next big disaster? For those of us who saw the need for change long ago, there is no sense of victory in the exposure of the empty promises and lies, only the empty knowledge that it did not have to be this way.
Alicia Vohs
