Hurricane Katrina

well new orleans will probably be flooded... they already have 6-8ft of water and the storm is only half over.. the storm is just blowing right over the levee.. which sucks for new orleans because if it floods too bad it means they'll have to blow the levee to let water out after the storm... hopefully the pumps will keep most of the water out... I have a lot of friends down there that didnt get out in time..

the superdome is where 25000 people or so evacuated.. they are running into problems as a 6ft hole got ripped out of the roof ..

EDIT: water is breaching the new orlenas levee in the 9th ward area at a rate of about 1ft/hr..

hey ppl... I got my replacement phone today.. so no I have net access... all the other net stuff is down... and im lucky I judt got power back this morning..

things in the region just suck... new orleans is a total loss.. not to mention the 25 other parishes that news isnt covering... along with the mississippi and alabama cost...

1.5 million from the greater new orleans area alone are homeless, jobless, and for the most part hopeless.. I got to meet quite a few at my wifes hotel when we slept on her office floor to get some a/c.. because thingss are returning to normal here, I don't think its really set in with most people... I couldn't imagine watching the news all day hoping to get a glimpse of what's left of my house..

I also can't imagine resuming classes next week... several students sharibg their dorm room with their families who have no where else to go..

I hate to say it but it makes 9-11 seem like simple housecleaning...

the downside is tha thugs are shooting rescuers... and even a few cops were caught looting..

the upside, if there can be one, is that ppl are really trying to pull togehter.. a mom and pop thrift store is giving away their clothes to victims.. and some hotels in lake charles (250+ miles away) is giving out rooms for ..

I just can't describe how bad things suck here.. hell, I've got a friend paralyzed from the waist down whow wasn't allowed to leave the hospital to evacuate and is now part of the over 10000 ppl andstaff in over 9 hospitals in new orleans praying like others that they are rescued soon..

people are dying in their homes.. climbing into attics to escape the water only to be trapped there and drown or die from heat..

many rare animals at the zoo are gone... we can only hope that the aquarium hasn't been vreached... it sucks that many of then will die but we don't need sharks and such in the waters...

the waters have flooded the chemical plants.. so there's talk that the water needs to be contained in new orleans so it doesn't contaminate the gulf..

:sigh:

I think things just need to be put in perspective.. There will be looting.. I mean fuck.. people were without shit for aid for days.. its sad when it took almsot all week to get what we brought to the tsunami or iraq in days.. many people are getting harped on for stealing food and clothes. I cnt say whether I really agree or disagree.. I mean.. These stores should have been opened by police for people to come and get food.. the rescuers didnt have it. but they new where it was. so why wait for relief when you could open these stores to relieve someof the people?? I dont think I'll ever understand that.. I think it would have cut down on some of the looting.. but who's to say.. the police and emergency workers (including the early groups of national guard troops who had no weapons) might not have been able to fend off the mobs.. but by the same token.. those workers could have looted the guns and ammo from the stores before they city did and been well armed.. but are these even thoughts that cross your mind when something like this happens.. or is it just after the fact...

What you are seeing is what I think (regardless of the ethical conseqences) is the greatest civil protest america has put forth in years.. This was a bigger eye opener than 9-11 imo.. What you are seeing here can happen anywhere.. the big quake predcted for the west coast.. the great wall of water predicted for the east coast.. the great floods of the midwest.. avalanches, tornados.. I could go on.. and regardless of what it would have been, FEMA would have failed there too.. Even worse.. what happens if it was a bomb that had done this.. the response would have been even mroe critical, and met the same catastrophic result..

so you have to ask yourself- how much civil unrest would you have? There are soooo many things that need to be addressed.. but everything is twosided..

america's ego.. people are demanding not to be called refugees.. because it makes them feel like they aren't citizens of america.. as if being a refugee is only something that can happen in another country.. That really pissed me off.. I mean hell the definition of refugee is someone who has been displaced form their home and cant go back.. so why are these people bitching.. but by the same point.. they are getting treated like people froma third world country.. they are beggars and thieves at best, at least how theyve been portrayed and treated..

looting.. you have to feed your family and you have to protect your family.. there are gangs that are going around looting and raping etc.. but how do you quantify it? how cna you say dont steal a gun.. that's wrong.. but not havin a gun means that your wife and daughter can get raped while waiting for help.. can we say lesser evils here? yes../ there are people stealing tvs that they cant plug in.. yes there are people shooting cops and rescuers.. THIS IS NEW OLREANS... until baltimore took it, we were the murder capital... New orleans has to pay policemen to move here from other places because noone here will do it.. hell not a month before the storm police drove around new orleans and fired 300 rounds.. not one call came in to report gunshots.. This is not something new.. this is something noone cared to notice outside of louisiana until now.. like the levees.. like the roads..

over 25% of new orleans residents are below poverty..

another thing is that noone cares about aynthing but new orleans.. you see how shitt things are there.. can you imagine what its like when all the resources are pretty much sent there.. while ----25---- parishes need help.. the president of the city council in (I forgot, somewhere in st. benard parish) sat at the OEP there.. his friend with him.. his friends mom was in the nursing home.. everyday she called.. everyday he told her help was coming.. monday... tuesday.. wednesday.. thursday.. friday.. saturday she drowned.. here it was sunday.. fema still hadnt showed up..

I know how the iraqis feel... believe me.. where are all the great promises of the government?? I know everyone here feels abandoned..

but I try my best to find what positve bits i can.. some of those can only be found in tragedy.. because of this.. future emergency efforts will change.. hopefully so that when things happen to others, they do not go through this.. maybe the world will get off our backs for a bit.. cut us some slack.. we cant fix all your problems.. I think its pretty evident that we cant fix our own.. in fact.. I'd say we are better at fixing other peoples problems.. barring iraq (which is in a similar state to us.. no power, food, water, etc) help comes to other placed more efficently than it does here.. I think this also highlights to the US that it needs to reorganize its priorities... stop ignoring the problems here... pretending that we dont have them.. a lot of money will go into rebuilding new orleans.. which will make new orleans one of the most modern citites.. (as well as still one of the most historic..) After all new orleans was the largest port in america.. thepeople that come to rebuild will be a different people.. lot of those that were trapped now have a place to go.. they'll start lives elswhere and when it comes time to move back.. they wont.. why move back into abject poverty if you are doing as good or better where you are at now?

I think the new orleans to come will be nice.. I think this was in a way a wakeup cal for lots of political issues.. hopefully helping to steer america back in a decent direction.. who knows.. its brought out the best and worst in people..

oh and as far as news goes.. go to wafb.com if you want any info about the goings on.. don't watch the national news.. its utter crap.. I guess I'll ahve to live mostly in isolation.. because what comes across national news is so bent, that I'll never watch it anymore..