BCT Editorial – 9/4/05

This page was last updated on September 7, 2005.

America’s disgrace; Editorial; Beaver County Times; September 4, 2005.

Before I begin I want to make it clear the info I include to critique the editorial was true before the subject editorial had to be “put to bed” to make it into Sunday’s edition. This is not a case of things changing after the author(s) wrote the editorial. The author(s) knew the facts yet chose to present a misleading (I’m being kind.) view of the relief effort.

I’m not looking at the disaster effort through rose-colored glasses, but I’m also not viewing through glasses tinted with hate – yes, I really mean hate – for President Bush. While I believe no one should be satisfied with the results to date, it’s completely false to assert the effort has been a “disgrace” and the federal government’s “twiddling its thumbs.”

Some may try to excuse the author by claiming he didn’t understand the magnitude of the disaster and what it takes to deliver relief. For example:

· The declared disaster area covers roughly 90,000 square miles. That’s over twice the size of Pennsylvania.

· The directly affected population is likely in the millions. Estimates indicate those who didn’t evacuate New Orleans when ordered number more than 100,000.

· All but one route into New Orleans was underwater or was destroyed by Katrina. That made getting massive relief into New Orleans a huge challenge.

· Once you got into New Orleans, how did you get around? 80% of New Orleans was underwater.

· There was no communications within New Orleans. Regular telephone service was out as well as cell service. All local radio stations were off the air.

It’s clear the author had an agenda and he wasn’t going to let the truth to get in the way. The editorial reminded me of a piece I saw on CNN on Friday. Wolf Blitzer interviewed a doctor in one of the New Orleans hospitals that needed to be evacuated. Though the doctor noted the conditions were not still good, he also pointed out things had improved since the day before. That didn’t fit CNN’s template, however. Effectively ignoring what the doctor on site told him, Blitzer concluded the piece by stating the interview showed how things were only getting worse.

When I read drivel like this editorial it’s hard to know where to begin to dismantle it. For example, should I emphasize the negativism or the stream of outright lies? Perhaps I should start with pointing out the time will come for a review of disaster planning and relief execution, but heckling from the sidelines right now contributes nothing and actually gets in the way of helping people who need immediate assistance.

It truly is a sad day. At a time when it could have demonstrated responsibility and encouraged everyone to help, the paper instead chose to employ lies to fulfill a pathological need to bash President Bush. The editorial didn’t even take the time to acknowledge the excellent efforts of private organizations and neighboring states. Of course, mentioning neighboring states would have required mentioning the most generous of those states, Texas. That would be unacceptable, however, because Texas is the home of President Bush, Rep. Tom DeLay, and many other evil Republicans in the administration.

When the time is right for an after-action review, I’m sure it will show everyone involved could have done a better job. That’s been true for every natural disaster in history and it will be true for every future natural disaster.

Pieces like this editorial are the true “America’s disgrace.”

Below is a detailed critique of the subject editorial.

“We live in a country built on hope. Immigrants have come, planning to build better lives in the United States.

“That plan of action has served our country and its people well for more than 200 years. We’ve had so much hope in the bank, in fact, that we’ve managed to export it - along with aid to struggling countries, along with troops to fight wars for freedom, along with money, supplies and personnel to piece back together land and lives ravaged by a tsunami.

“And now, during the largest natural disaster in our country’s history, we turn our backs on our own.”

[RWC] From where do the editorial writers get their news? Are we to assume they haven’t watched any TV coverage of the disaster? If you don’t know what I mean, you’ll begin to understand as you read on.

“Hurricane Katrina brutally ripped a hole in the heart of the Gulf Coast. She tyrannically stole loved ones, killing yet-untold numbers. She pounded infrastructure into ruination, rendering the levees as useless as the water, sewerage, electrical and phone systems. Her natural destruction was a sorrowful, overwhelming act of nature.”

[RWC] The author writes about Hurricane Katrina as if it were a person.

“Now, her wake is compounded by man-made destruction.

“Americans who had outlasted the storm are dying, with no oxygen, no food, no drinking water, no medical help. Some survivors have wished for death because the aftermath promises no relief, no hope.

“They have no support from our federal government when they need it the most.”

[RWC] Again I ask, from where do the editorial writers get their news? Anyone who has watched TV coverage for the past few days knows this is an outright lie.

Regarding TV coverage, not all outlets are giving relief efforts reasonable coverage. On Friday I flipped between CNN and FNC (Fox) for a few hours to do a quick comparison. Both cable outlets showed the misery in detail and on-site reporters from both outlets tended to interject a lot of negativism into their reports. In many cases, the video streams were exactly the same. When it came to the relief effort, though, CNN appeared to ignore it while FNC did a much better job of showing that a lot was going on. I don’t believe the different relief effort coverage was unintentional. Indeed, while I was watching, CNN was embarrassed by its own reporter into showing footage showing groups of military helicopters ferrying the stranded to a makeshift medical triage center. If those of us watching hadn’t heard the reporter say something like, “I can’t believe they’re not showing this.” I suspect that video clip wouldn’t have seen airtime.

“Federal Emergency Management Agency officials have said efforts are moving along as well as could be expected.”

[RWC] Though I’m sure the editorial authors don’t want us to know this, FEMA acts at the direction of state and local officials.

“As well as who could have expected? Surely not New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin. Surely not those seeing loved ones and strangers die around them.”

[RWC] No disaster recovery effort will go as well as we expect. As Americans, many of us believe we can do the impossible tomorrow, if not sooner. That’s great for a “can do” attitude, but it also cultivates unrealistic expectations.

Regarding Mayor Nagin, as mayor he was the person responsible for establishing effective evacuation plans and centers and maintaining law and order. Indeed, there was a plan but Nagin failed to execute it. That’s why so many people were stranded in the first place. Beyond that, he’s a story by himself I’ll probably take up another day.

“The military awaits orders. Desperation has turned New Orleans into a Third World country, filled with chaos, looters and fear. People are dying in the streets - and the evacuation centers. Babies cry for food. Hospitals call for drinking water, for supplies.”

[RWC] If by the “military” the editorial means the National Guard, the NG is under control of commonwealth/state governors. Unless the President federalizes the National Guard, only the state’s governor can deploy the NG. If President Bush had federalized the NG, federal law (Posse Comitatus Act) would have prevented the NG from undertaking law enforcement activities. The NG can participate in law enforcement only when under state control.

If by “military” the editorial means active duty forces, we have another lie. The Air Force has been flying in and out of the various disaster areas since at least Thursday. This has included flying evacuees out of the area. The Navy deployed at least one ship (USS Bataan) plus helicopters the day Katrina hit. The hospital ship USNS Comfort was tasked for Katrina relief efforts but it takes about a week to reach New Orleans from its homeport of Baltimore. The Iwo Jima Amphibious Readiness Group out of Norfolk was ordered to the Gulf on Wednesday.

Yeah, the military was sitting around awaiting orders.

“The sick, weak and poor - as well as the stubborn and drug-addicted - were left inside New Orleans after the call to evacuate.

“Since Day One, our government couldn’t hear their cries. As time has passed, the voices from New Orleans have turned to screams. Our government remains deaf.”

[RWC] Another lie. The editorial failed to note President Bush declared Louisiana a disaster area on Saturday, August 27^th, two days before Katrina struck. He did the same for Mississippi the following morning. This allowed FEMA to preposition relief assets to assist in the recovery efforts. According to the AP, the mayor and governor didn’t call for a mandatory evacuation until President Bush urged them to.

On Tuesday, the day the levees were breached, I saw the Coast Guard risk their own lives to save as many people as possible from rooftops.

“We can airlift people safely, quickly, orderly from a falling Vietnam. We can drop food and supplies into war-torn Berlin. We, as a country, have years of experience in dealing with other people’s disasters. We’ve made a name around the world for having a hand - sometimes, for too much of a hand - in righting wrongs elsewhere.”

[RWC] This paragraph reveals an incredible ignorance of history, or outright deception.

“We can airlift people safely, quickly, orderly from a falling Vietnam?” Even if you weren’t alive in 1975, who hasn’t seen video of the evacuation of Saigon? If that is the Times’ idea of “safely, quickly, orderly,” I’d hate to see what it considers chaos.

Regarding the Berlin Airlift, we didn’t “drop” food and supplies. The U.S. and allies delivered food and supplies into West Berlin airports. Also, the Soviet blockade of West Berlin didn’t happen overnight. The escalation to a blockade happened over a period of months. This comment also shows the author’s lack of originality. I heard some other liberal make this same misinformed comment last week. Perhaps it’s now escalated to an “official” liberal talking point.

Even if we had wanted to “drop” food and supplies in New Orleans, where would we have dropped them? 80% of New Orleans was underwater and that’s where most of the people were. If you saw pictures of the few dry areas of New Orleans, you probably remember seeing very few people there. If we had dropped food and water, I can imagine the headlines when the inevitable would happen: “President Bush kills blacks by dropping food and water on them.”

“But this time, the federal government twiddles its thumbs. Time means lives. Time means supplies. Time means sanity. Days later, we are still ‘poised’ to help.”

[RWC] As shown above, this is nothing short of a bald-faced lie.

“We don’t send planes or choppers to rescue residents of New Orleans, to the sick, poor, black Americans stranded by circumstances. We think a few buses making the 350-mile trip to Houston are good enough.”

[RWC] Those “few buses” numbered in the hundreds and took evacuees to multiple cities in Louisiana and surrounding states, not just Houston.

Regarding “planes and choppers,” let’s look at that a couple of ways. First, New Orleans has one major airport and it incurred some damage. It took a day (Tuesday) to make usable and the military has been using it heavily since Wednesday. The airport has been the primary entry point for emergency supplies and personnel and the terminal has been turned into a hospital to treat the injured and sick. That doesn’t leave a lot of room for passenger traffic. Nonetheless, to the extent possible, the military and private airlines have been flying evacuees to relief centers. Helicopters have been flying evacuees from all over New Orleans to relief centers and the airport. This includes rooftop rescues that risk the lives of rescuers.

At least as early as Thursday the Air Force was flying evacuees from various part of the disaster area.

Wow, it took 15 paragraphs for the editorial tried to turn the disaster into a race thing. Maybe my TV is broken, but it appeared to me black Americans weren’t the only stranded people. Why do some people try to divide us over issues that don’t exist? FYI, the 2000 census indicated that blacks made up 67% of New Orleans’ population. As a result, it should come as no surprise that most of the people stranded in New Orleans are black.

Though the editorial tries to interject race into the disaster, it fails to note the racial makeup of New Orleans government officials. As I note below, the mayor of New Orleans is black – as have all NO mayors since the late 1970s – as is the vast majority of New Orleans’ government power structure. If the Times believes the race of the victims was a factor, should it not also acknowledge the race of those primarily responsible for disaster planning? In truth, neither the race of the victims nor the race of the local government was a factor.

“We wait on truckloads of supplies. The crews of the 911th Air Force Reserve in Moon Township are ready to fly in medical supplies. But they wait for orders, while more people die. One of their C-130s could drop loads of up to 42,000 pounds and wing to New Orleans at 366 mph. Plus, it could use high-flotation landing gear. Tourist boats like those that ply the Everglades could be put to practical use.

“Yet, we watch it not happening.”

[RWC] Before giving any credibility to military proposals made by Times editorials, remember this is the newspaper that believes you can fight terrorists with tanks.

“We wait on truckloads of supplies?” On Friday I saw one military convoy of about 20 large trucks delivering supplies to the Superdome and/or Convention Center. A reporter claimed another convoy “went on as far as the eye could see.” Are they enough? Probably not, but to claim a massive relief effort isn’t underway is to lie.

Hmm, a Times article says both the 171^st and the 911^th are contributing and/or on standby. Oh well, as I wrote above, some folks won’t let the facts get in their way. Beyond that, I don’t know what the 911^th is or isn’t doing, but I certainly won’t accept this editorial’s word for anything. It’s likely military assets throughout the country are on standby. After all, the New Orleans airport has a finite capacity and can’t handle everyone coming at once.

“High-flotation landing gear?” The author appears to believe this means the aircraft can land on water-covered and/or mushy airstrips. That’s not true. “High-flotation” landing gear allows C-130s to land on rough, dirt airstrips, not the Mississippi River. HFLG doesn’t turn a C-130 into an amphibious and/or a short take-off and landing aircraft.

The editorial wants glass-bottomed tourist boats used? I hope I never have to depend on the editorial author(s) to rescue me! If the editorial means flat-bottomed airboats, they’ve been in use since day one.

“The news crews, unlike massive relief crews, have managed to infiltrate the area. They allow us to watch people die before our very eyes on TV, waiting. We see people who are angry, people who are hopeless.”

[RWC] Hmm, I guess the authors do have TVs and watch the news. How did they miss all of the relief efforts taking place?

“We see a president strut before news cameras, talking about how poised we are. Yet, we don’t move in a scale commensurate with this disaster. In the face of obvious need, he is merely ‘poised.’”

[RWC] I didn’t see President Bush “strut,” but I guess that’s in the eye of the beholder. I did see President Bush console a mother and daughter in Mississippi and they seemed glad to see him. Of course, they could have been cursing him and I just misunderstood.

If President Bush is “strutting,” what are Gov. Blanco and Mayor Nagin doing? Through Friday, Gov. Blanco seemed about to burst into tears during every press conference. For his part, Mayor Nagin launched into an expletive-laced tirade against everyone trying to help. He was in the Convention Center when he said it was chaos inside. What did he do to help alleviate the chaos? He left! What a leader! Rudy Giuliani he’s not.

Even if President Bush had strutted, I’d rather have that than a teary governor and/or a runaway mayor.

“He gives Americans outside the storm’s terrible path little reason for hope.

“And he gives the Americans stuck inside the vortex caused by Katrina no hope at all.”

[RWC] You probably noted the editorial laid no responsibility at the feet of local and state government. That’s true for several reasons.

First, even in the midst of a natural/national disaster, the Times couldn’t pass up a chance to bash President Bush.

Second, the governor of Louisiana – Kathleen Blanco – is a Democrat. In fact, only two Republicans – 1980-1984 and 1996-2004 – have been elected governor since 1877.

Third, Mayor Nagin is a Democrat and New Orleans has a history of Democrat mayors. Even worse for the Times, Nagin is black as have been his predecessors since the late 1970s. Worse still, according to CNN, most of the city power structure is black. I say the fact that the leadership of New Orleans is black is bad for the Times is because the Times wants us to make the response to Katrina a racial oppression thing. That’s a lot harder to do when you know New Orleans’ leadership is black. Personally, I don’t see race in this. I suspect the local effort would have been the same regardless of the race of local government leaders.

Finally, I expected the editorial to claim human-induced global warming and National Guard deployments in Iraq were contributing factors, but those gems will probably pop up in future uplifting editorials.

On a side note, if its allegations had been true, this editorial would be a refutation of the big government the Times clamors for in its support for just about every socialist cause that comes along.