TheSpleen
09-05-2005, 01:16 PM
Dissent in this country is sorely needed right now. This is not about blaming this political party, or that political party. It's about the real consequences of what governments do and don't do about their responsibilities; and about who winds up paying the price for those policies.
One of the main reasons New Orleans is so vulnerable to hurricanes is the gradual disappearance of the wetlands on the Gulf Coast that once stood as a natural buffer between the city and storms coming in from the water. Many environmentalists will tell you more than a century's interference with the natural flow of the Mississippi is the root cause of the problem, cutting off the movement of alluvial soil to the river's delta. Last year, four environmental groups cooperated on a joint report showing the Bush administration's policies had allowed developers to drain thousands of acres of wetlands. It is a fact that the Clinton administration set some tough policies on wetlands, and it is a fact that the Bush administration repealed those policies - ordering federal agencies to stop protecting as many as 20 million acres of wetlands. Bush's total lack of concern for the environment of the world we live in is all too obvious. The United States was virtually alone in rejecting the Kyoto protocols - and it's important to note that this was against the will of the majority of Americans, who indeed support the Kyoto protocols.
Some of you might recall a headline a couple of weeks ago, about John Bolton - who was appointed UN ambassador without Senate approval - and his last-minute 750 amendments to the UN reform draft. The document was only 39 pages long. One of his amendments was his scratching out the line "respect for nature" on page 1. ( http://www.un.org/ga/59/hlpm_rev.2.pdf ) This just further illustrates our administrations complete lack of concern for the Earth, and it's all too easy to continue.
One of the more errant remarks Bush has made recently, was when he said on Good Morning America, "I don't think anybody anticipated the breach of the levees". He is obviously either denying the truth, or unaware of the massive documentation that showed that the levees badly needed upgrading, and it was well known that they could not withstand more than a category 3 hurricane. If Katrina hadn't hit New Orleans, then people might have eventually forgotten all about this important fact - In June of this year, 2005, Bush took his axe and chopped $71.2 million from the budget of the New Orleans Corps of Engineers, a 44 percent reduction. As was reported in New Orleans CityBusiness at the time, that meant "major hurricane and flood projects will not be awarded to local engineering firms. Also, a study to determine ways to protect the region from a Category 5 hurricane has been shelved for now." I don't know if there is a clearer illustration of Bush's indifference to the New Orleans situation, or his burden of responsibility. When Bush observed the devastation around New Orleans, he said that "the Gulf Coast looks like it has been obliterated by a weapon.". He was correct. Indifference is a weapon of mass destruction.
Unfortunately, the war in Iraq is directly related to the devastation left by the hurricane. About 35 percent of Louisiana's National Guard is now serving in Iraq, where four out of every 10 soldiers are guardsmen. Recruiting for the Guard is also down significantly because people are afraid of being sent to Iraq if they join, leaving the Guard even more short-handed. The levees of New Orleans, two of which broke and flooded the city, were also victims of Iraq war spending. Walter Maestri, emergency management chief for Jefferson Parish, said on June 8, 2004, "It appears that the money has been moved in the president's budget to handle homeland security and the war in Iraq." The Louisiana National Guard also notes that dozens of its high-water vehicles, Humvees, refuelers and generators have also been sent abroad.
It's all to easy to find fault with our federal government, whose job it is to prevent these kinds of disasters from happening. We have the Department of "Homeland Security", whose "primary mission is to protect our homeland". (http://www.dhs.gov/dhspublic/display?theme=59&content=378) It was created in early 2002 by the President, whose "most important job is to protect and defend the American people". (http://www.dhs.gov/dhspublic/interweb/assetlibrary/book.pdf) That's the first line in the DHS statement released by the President in June 2002, and it's even underlined. It was made a massive bureaucracy, which now includes FEMA. The threat of natural disasters, like hurricanes, has been greatly overlooked, and funding for those threats greatly depleted, due to the pressing "threat of terrorism". You can read right on FEMA's website: "Billions of dollars of new funding were directed to FEMA to help communities face the threat of terrorism.". (http://www.fema.gov/about/history.shtm paragraph 9)
The threat of terrorism is minuscule - actually, microscopic, compared to the potential devastation of a hurricane - which is now quite obvious. What does the DHS exist for? Primarily to remind us of this awesome "threat" of terrorism, and to keep the country in fear. And it costs billions of dollars to run it. You can look on the front page of the DHS website, and right there in the upper right-hand corner, you can check the terror threat level. Right now we are at yellow, which I think we've been at for a while. It is necessary to manipulate fear, and keep the country frightened, so that the President can gain support to use force in areas of the world to achieve his objectives. (Those objectives are important to pay attention to, but a topic for another discussion.)
Saddam Hussein was not feared anywhere in the world. He was despised, and rightly so, but not feared. His own neighbors, Iran and Kuwait, countries that he invaded, didn't fear him. It is only in the United States that he was feared, and that didn't happen until after a massive propaganda campaign started by Bush in September 2002. He had to create this evil monster, who would certainly destroy us tomorrow if we didn't get him today. 200 billion dollars later, look where we're at. Funds for prevention of real, genuine threats have been depleted, and now, many Americans are suffering, and many are dead, from a catastrophe which could have been avoided. This, from the richest country in the world. The world's only superpower. I know we can do better. The real question is, when will the rest of America wake up, and start paying attention to politics? We need to keep talking about it.
One of the main reasons New Orleans is so vulnerable to hurricanes is the gradual disappearance of the wetlands on the Gulf Coast that once stood as a natural buffer between the city and storms coming in from the water. Many environmentalists will tell you more than a century's interference with the natural flow of the Mississippi is the root cause of the problem, cutting off the movement of alluvial soil to the river's delta. Last year, four environmental groups cooperated on a joint report showing the Bush administration's policies had allowed developers to drain thousands of acres of wetlands. It is a fact that the Clinton administration set some tough policies on wetlands, and it is a fact that the Bush administration repealed those policies - ordering federal agencies to stop protecting as many as 20 million acres of wetlands. Bush's total lack of concern for the environment of the world we live in is all too obvious. The United States was virtually alone in rejecting the Kyoto protocols - and it's important to note that this was against the will of the majority of Americans, who indeed support the Kyoto protocols.
Some of you might recall a headline a couple of weeks ago, about John Bolton - who was appointed UN ambassador without Senate approval - and his last-minute 750 amendments to the UN reform draft. The document was only 39 pages long. One of his amendments was his scratching out the line "respect for nature" on page 1. ( http://www.un.org/ga/59/hlpm_rev.2.pdf ) This just further illustrates our administrations complete lack of concern for the Earth, and it's all too easy to continue.
One of the more errant remarks Bush has made recently, was when he said on Good Morning America, "I don't think anybody anticipated the breach of the levees". He is obviously either denying the truth, or unaware of the massive documentation that showed that the levees badly needed upgrading, and it was well known that they could not withstand more than a category 3 hurricane. If Katrina hadn't hit New Orleans, then people might have eventually forgotten all about this important fact - In June of this year, 2005, Bush took his axe and chopped $71.2 million from the budget of the New Orleans Corps of Engineers, a 44 percent reduction. As was reported in New Orleans CityBusiness at the time, that meant "major hurricane and flood projects will not be awarded to local engineering firms. Also, a study to determine ways to protect the region from a Category 5 hurricane has been shelved for now." I don't know if there is a clearer illustration of Bush's indifference to the New Orleans situation, or his burden of responsibility. When Bush observed the devastation around New Orleans, he said that "the Gulf Coast looks like it has been obliterated by a weapon.". He was correct. Indifference is a weapon of mass destruction.
Unfortunately, the war in Iraq is directly related to the devastation left by the hurricane. About 35 percent of Louisiana's National Guard is now serving in Iraq, where four out of every 10 soldiers are guardsmen. Recruiting for the Guard is also down significantly because people are afraid of being sent to Iraq if they join, leaving the Guard even more short-handed. The levees of New Orleans, two of which broke and flooded the city, were also victims of Iraq war spending. Walter Maestri, emergency management chief for Jefferson Parish, said on June 8, 2004, "It appears that the money has been moved in the president's budget to handle homeland security and the war in Iraq." The Louisiana National Guard also notes that dozens of its high-water vehicles, Humvees, refuelers and generators have also been sent abroad.
It's all to easy to find fault with our federal government, whose job it is to prevent these kinds of disasters from happening. We have the Department of "Homeland Security", whose "primary mission is to protect our homeland". (http://www.dhs.gov/dhspublic/display?theme=59&content=378) It was created in early 2002 by the President, whose "most important job is to protect and defend the American people". (http://www.dhs.gov/dhspublic/interweb/assetlibrary/book.pdf) That's the first line in the DHS statement released by the President in June 2002, and it's even underlined. It was made a massive bureaucracy, which now includes FEMA. The threat of natural disasters, like hurricanes, has been greatly overlooked, and funding for those threats greatly depleted, due to the pressing "threat of terrorism". You can read right on FEMA's website: "Billions of dollars of new funding were directed to FEMA to help communities face the threat of terrorism.". (http://www.fema.gov/about/history.shtm paragraph 9)
The threat of terrorism is minuscule - actually, microscopic, compared to the potential devastation of a hurricane - which is now quite obvious. What does the DHS exist for? Primarily to remind us of this awesome "threat" of terrorism, and to keep the country in fear. And it costs billions of dollars to run it. You can look on the front page of the DHS website, and right there in the upper right-hand corner, you can check the terror threat level. Right now we are at yellow, which I think we've been at for a while. It is necessary to manipulate fear, and keep the country frightened, so that the President can gain support to use force in areas of the world to achieve his objectives. (Those objectives are important to pay attention to, but a topic for another discussion.)
Saddam Hussein was not feared anywhere in the world. He was despised, and rightly so, but not feared. His own neighbors, Iran and Kuwait, countries that he invaded, didn't fear him. It is only in the United States that he was feared, and that didn't happen until after a massive propaganda campaign started by Bush in September 2002. He had to create this evil monster, who would certainly destroy us tomorrow if we didn't get him today. 200 billion dollars later, look where we're at. Funds for prevention of real, genuine threats have been depleted, and now, many Americans are suffering, and many are dead, from a catastrophe which could have been avoided. This, from the richest country in the world. The world's only superpower. I know we can do better. The real question is, when will the rest of America wake up, and start paying attention to politics? We need to keep talking about it.