A New York Times editorial Friday urges additional aid for New Orleans. Excerpts appear below, with the last paragraph the most compelling. The sad truth is that if our resources - both monetary and military - weren't diverted into the black hole that is Iraq, New Orleans might be well on its way to recovery.
"In the long and sordid story of Hurricane Katrina, a new low may be approaching. In Louisiana alone, tens of thousands of displaced families who rely on the government to provide trailers or rent will lose their temporary housing next month — unless the Bush administration extends the standard 18-month time limit for their federal aid."A year and a half is a long time for anything that is supposed to be transitional, as the families still trapped in cramped, flimsy trailers can testify. But the temporary help from the Federal Emergency Management Agency cannot end until the victims have somewhere else to go. And the federal and local governments have moved far too slowly in providing the necessary reconstruction money and building guidance.
Hurricanes Katrina and Rita destroyed more than 200,000 homes in Louisiana and only a small fraction have been replaced. (Neither the state nor the New Orleans city government knows how many have been completed.) A sky-high murder rate has dominated the news. The success of the Saints professional football team is not enough of a distraction.
"The response to the drowning of New Orleans has been a failure on every level. President Bush’s eloquent promise in Jackson Square to rebuild “higher and better” soothed the nation. But since then there has been no concrete action plan for reconstruction — only a patchwork of programs marked by dithering, bickering and bureaucratic finger-pointing throughout. The federal response was, after great delay, largely to cut a check and let overmatched local officials try to sort it out..."
"...That New Orleans remains a shattered city is a sad monument to impotence for the most powerful country in the world. Our grand plans were never laid, our brightest minds were never assembled, our nation’s muscle and ingenuity were never brought to bear in any concerted way to overcome the crisis of the Gulf."
Tara your words are a painful reminder to us all; this tragedy was handled in the saddest and demeaning of ways on all levels. It saddens me to think many of us have forgotten, or rather shifted our thoughts away from the grief and horror that has affected so many families...and to this day thousands of people remain without a roof over their heads it is unthinkable.
xo
Kristen
Posted by: Kristen R | 22 January 2007 at 07:31
Wendy's comment is spot on. If you have not had the opportunity to watch HBO's WHEN THE LEVIES BROKE please do so. It will break your heart but it is must see viewing.
Posted by: annieelf | 21 January 2007 at 04:41
It is all so very sad. a year and a half of that level of homelessness is unimaginable...
Posted by: AscenderRisesAbove | 21 January 2007 at 03:01
In this land of PLENTY...where women pay $900 for a pair of Manolo Blahnik (Who is this person anyway?) sandals..I find that it is a crying shame that these people are STILL out of house and home! I have donated even though my amount is paltry. If all the movie stars would send the amount of money their dresses and accessories cost for one night at the Oscars and one night at the Golden Globes.......Oh.don't even get me started! grrrrr....
Posted by: Pam Aries | 21 January 2007 at 00:21
January recommended that everyone watch the HBO series When the Levies Broke. I watched. I tried to get all my friends to watch, but the truth is so many Americans don't want to know how low this america has fallen. They don't want the truth. It makes me truly sad.
Posted by: wendy | 20 January 2007 at 23:31
I will never, ever understand any government. ever.
Posted by: miss*R | 20 January 2007 at 22:07
I completely agree with you. The priorities of our leaders are completely messed up. Did you see the Jan. 17 2007 article by David Leonhart in the N.Y. Times? It looked at other ways that $1.2 Trillion U.S. (current estimated cost of the war in Iraq) could have been spent.
You can find it at
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/17/business/17leonhardt.html?&partner=homepage
Posted by: Footpad | 20 January 2007 at 21:50
It's heartbreaking. My folks flew to N.O. yesterday...their first trip there. And I agree...if even a small portion of the BILLIONS spent in Iraq had been diverted to the Gulf...
Posted by: Marilyn | 20 January 2007 at 20:08
It makes me so sad.. I love New Orleans. It breaks my heart when I read anything like this. We can fix so many things (or not) and turn our back on others. It boggles the mind.
Posted by: Holli | 20 January 2007 at 19:29
Katrina will forever be a huge dirty blot on this government's record. One more imcomprehensible thing to come out of the "greatest nation on earth".
Posted by: Colette | 20 January 2007 at 18:10
I agree with you on all points Tara. The government response has been shameful and now this. I hope SOMEONE makes the decision to do the right thing.
Posted by: annieelf | 20 January 2007 at 16:41