Katrina II: Gustav

As Gustav nears New Orleans seems rattled. People are leaving. And I wonder, why didn’t they leave before Katrina? Why did they go back after the devastation? Why did they put their lives in the hands of the inept and corrupt city leadership? How can they be so stupid?

It is easy. Ray Nagin and his ilk appealed to their baser desires. First he offered a handout, something for nothing. The federal government would house them, protect them, feed them, rebuild for them, keep them dry even thought they were below sea level. Why not go back? He promised them a chocolate city. Imagine if a mayor of a devastated city had promised his citizens a vanilla city? Think about that one.

Most people who see flooding live above sea level, above the level of the river nearby, and often above the usual high water mark but not a significant portion of New Orleans. They live BELOW SEA level. And they wonder why it floods. The answer is very simple. Everything has to work right for them to stay dry. And it did for a long time. Until Katrina. The local politicians stole the money for levees. The contractors built them with inferior steel but were paid for premium. Katrina was a planned disaster, planned by dishonest politicians. And worse, those dishonest politicians were also inept at leadership.

Some of the police, gone soured by seeing the leaders of the city steal and without effective leadership left their posts. Let me say this. It wasn’t their fault. It was predictable. It is amazing that many of the police did belly up to their jobs and did them well. New Orleans should get down on their knees and thank God for them rather than engaging in depravity.

Much of the city was a morass of depravity, when courage and fortitude was needed, it was not there. Many didn’t even have the good sense to leave AFTER the flood waters rose. And Nagin and Blanko discouraged them from leaving! I’m not a big Ed Rendell fan but he came through for the victims of Katrina. He had the state of Pennsylvania open centers to take the refugees in, help them find permanent or temporary housing, jobs, schools, until such time as they wished to return. He opened the door for people to come, not to take them captive but to give them a place of safety. Mayor Nagin and Governor Blanko nixed that after several centers were set up. Only a few people came while many were crying they had no home, no job, no school for their kids. In addition to what the state did, churches and charities geared to help. Some of those people would have come to Pennsylvania and returned to New Orleans. Some would have stayed. The ones who did would not be running from Gustav today.

And we wouldn’t be getting ready to bail out New Orleans again. NO way….