THINNING THE HERD: ETHNIC CLEANSING ON THE UNITED STATES GULF COAST

Everyone should be appalled and outraged as the ever mounting death toll rises in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.

The assets of our federal government, FEMA and Homeland Security did not respond for days. BBC interviews of US military leaders have revealed that thousands of troops who were staged and ready to move into immediate action the day after the storm ended, remained inactive. In order for our military to take action within our borders a specific Presidential empowerment is required. None occurred for days. There was an aircraft carrier sailing behind the hurricane that was ready to sail to New Orleans right after the storm with airborn assets to assist in mass rescues and relief. It remained at sea. There were no orders from our President for them to move to provide domestic assistance.

In 2003 Louisianna State University housed and facilitated a disaster simulation bringing together FEMA, The office of the President of the U. S., Homeland Security, and private non-profit assets like The American Red Cross, The Salvation Army, etc. to plan for catastrophic eventualities in the Gulf and particularly New Orleans. They predicated their plans on a level 4 hurricane hitting the area. They predicted the effects and impact with great accuracy (a hypothetical storm they labeled PAM). They planned for immediate and massive rescue and relief to those who were unable to evacuate the region. It was predicted that most loss of life could be avoided if there were 30,000 rescues per day for 10 days immediately following the storm. The LSU Professor who hosted the planning simulation was enraged when the day after the storm the sky was not filled with waves of helicopters removing stranded victims from the area hit. They had predicted that evacuees would be housed immediately in tent cities out of the area where there would be food and medical care and sanitation. Ironically the reaction of the Office of The President's representative to the tent city idea was that U. S. citizens don't live in tents. Obvioulsy, they live in football stadiums and convention centers without food, water, sanitation, health care, or security. The Forces were staged and mustered for rescue and relief to occur. Our President chose to not activate them.

The typical incompetence of the Bush administration, the Preisident's own charactersitic dullardliness, and the leadership of his FEMA and Homeland Security Departments by men who have no previous experience in disaster management, or homeland security prior to assuming their posts, could seduce one to imagine the lack of response was simply the typical Bush administration's lack of leadership and confusion. The contradictory reports of what relief will occur, and when, seemed like typical Bush administration dishonesty, the same as the continual cacophony of lies that has issued forth about IRAQ since the earliest days of the administration.

FEMA continues to say they had no idea how the area would be effected by a level 4 hurricane and that no one could have predicted the breech of the levis at New Orleans. This is clearly false and is either a lie or gross incompetence. There were military forces ready and asking to move immediately after the storm. They were held in check for days while victims died.

This is not a result of inaction or inability. The delays in rescue and relief in the Gulf Coast were intentional. That intention was the President's and that of his top level advisors. Those area residents who had resources, education, valued job skills, and able bodies evacuated the Gulf Coast under their own power and at their own expense. They will rebuild or relcoate and go on with their lives. They are mostly representative of the Business Class--Bush's folks. Those who could not, you know those others who are not quite white and polite, those who are disabled, poor, weak, dependent, ignorant, unskilled, aged, and sick, remained. These are the bane of the Bush administration. They cost money. The existence of each one will result in huge future expense through programs like medicaid, social security, welfare, public health, etc. and their presence will complicate the recovery and rebuilding effort and will add to its cost. BTW, these are not folks who vote Republican if they vote at all.

It was clear what the effects of this storm would be. It was clear the additional deaths that would result from delaying rescue and relief services.

Now that most folks who survived the delayed rescue and absence of relief, have been plucked from the area a week after the storm, the effects of the delays in their rescue will continue. It is predicted by public health experts that a large segment of those who have been rescued in the last 3 days will likely die from myriad diseases that they will have contracted during their ordeals in the aftermath of the storm.

So now the administration can claim, "See we did it, it was just such a big storm it took a while." They won't count the dead that ensue after the fact, just as they don't count as Iraq War dead those who die in hospital in Germany.

We can all go to bed tonight knowing that our herd is slimmed. We are leaner and meaner and will become more so as the weeks and months ensue. There will be less need for support of the impoverished in the Gulf coast region. And we all know who to thank.

Folks have commented on how, when they land in the airport near Crawford, Texas their are signs everywhere saying "THIS IS BUSH COUNTRY." I thinks signs should be erected on the New Orleans Convention Center and the Superdome saying "THIS IS BUSH COUNTRY." Let's give the devil his due.

Tom

Go confidently in the direction of your dreams. Live the life you've imagined.