Stupdity Reigns Supreme

I know, for a topic I promised myself I wouldn't blog on, I'm back for a second go around. But I'd much rather break a promise to myself than break one I made to someone else.

The more and more I watch the events in the Gulf unfold, the more I want to knock myself silly with a spoon. I'm sure I have a different view, as someone who is merely watching live on CNN (actually, I'm not watching on CNN, I'm just picking up these things from channel surfing), but it seems to me that those who are trying to help are only making things worse.

I know the Mayor of New Orleans has extremely good intentions by asking for a forced evacuation of anyone who reamins in the city. But it is a bad idea. I completely understand the rationale of those who refuse to leave the area. Just take a look around at the events of the past week.

Those who went to the Superdome were subjected to much worse than the storm itself. Those who took refuge in the Superdome were subjected not only to the elements and wrath of the storm, they were forced to witness gang fights, rape, and even murder. Now, they've been displaced. They have been forced to move to places miles away from where they really want to be. I'm sure some families were seperated in the mix, and lets not forget about those whose pets were forced to be left behind in the Superdome, while they were herded onto busses, to skip town.

If people who reamined in their homes are surviving on their own, there is absolutely no reason we should force them to leave. If they want out, get them out. If they want to stay, leave them in place-- just don't forget about them. Check in with them as often as possible, to make sure they are still wanting to be there. They have made the decision to stay, they know the consequences of their actions.

I'm not saying that they've shit their own bed, and now they must sleep in it. I'm saying we should not shit the bed for them, and then make them sleep in it? They have their reasons for staying. And you know in these forced evacuations, families are again being forced to leave pets behind. Do I need to show you the stairwells of the Superdome, where pets are being left to die, then rot? Bob Barker would be proud, they've found a way to control the pet population-- but seriously, how can you be so inhumane?

I understand the mayor's concern that those who remain in the city are now subjecting themselves to disease and other sicknesses. But they've been there a week, whatever we're fearing they might contract, they probably already have it. If you're fearing an outbreak of West Nile or the Plague, then we should be thinking quarentine. Let them stay where they are-- away from the healthy, and contained to an area where we know where they are. When the time comes to start allowing the residents back into the city, we round up these people, take them to a medical center, give them a free checkup, and if they are healthy, let them return to their homes to clean up. If you force them to leave, you subject many more people to whatever they might have, and dying doctors and soldiers are not going to be a help. It is contained as it is, leave it be.

My intention is not to bag on the Mayor of New Orleans. But I doubt he is calling the shots as it is. I think he is getting orders from a higher power-- you know, the guy who goes on vacation for 5 weeks. (Is it so hard to go 4 or 8 years without a vacation? I mean, you get to see the world as it is. Days off were NOT a perk of your job.)

During his first term, I kept silent. I was unable to vote back in 2000, long story, so I kept my mouth shut. But I can sum up the last 5 years for you right here: Reign of Stupidity. We're lucky George realizes the French Quarter is in the United States-- I'm sure he started to look for New Orleans in France, before someone turned the globe to North America.

Unfortunately it has taken several disasters for the illigitimacy of this president to surface. During this presidency, we have faced the shear terror of 9/11, two energy crises, and several natural disasters. And while you can not blame the President for any of those events, you can blame him for the poor responses by the government.

As much as the attacks of 9/11 made Rudy Giuliani a strong leader, Bush has faltered on the same level. Bush's did nothing but thrash around, venting his anger in all the wrong places, and then he orchestrated a reshuffling of the government much in the likes of the Archdiosces of Boston-- it was that mundane-- it accomplished nothing. In the face of two energy crises, he has done nothing but make matters worse. And now, he has the government so weak when it comes to domestic issues, that even FEMA looks like the French attempting to hold off the Germans.

Kanye West was closer than he thought. George Bush doesn't care about anybody but George Bush (and maybe his friends). He is too busy pushing his own agenda, that he has failed at his primary objective-- to govern at the will of the people of the United States.

The nightly newscast on our televisions used to be informative. It is now simply the blooper reel of those we have elected to lead us (locally, regionally, and nationally). We need to stop, take a moment, and think. Until we begin to reach that final step, we can make no progress to overcome adversity.