Tonight we are witnessing slow-motion 9/11. No, no angry foreigners attacked us. But maybe we merely attacked ourselves. What is being witnessed in New Orleans and elsewhere along the coast is a terrible tragedy, many people's lives, those that survived, will change irrevocably. Acts of nature, acts of god if you will, are what they are.
But beyond acts of god,
we are witnessing other things - a national government whose leader cavorted on the golf course while the gulf coast writhed in agony; whose resources have been squandered in a foolish and fruitless pursuit on the other side of the world. A city that could have been better protected (had Congress chosen to do so), now suffering the consequences of the choice not to do that. A "national guard" guarding what?
A city, a region that grew in a way that served the almighty dollar at the expense of ignoring the known risks that loomed, wetlands destroyed, levees built to control what ultimately cannot be controlled. And now, we watch a poor population left behind in the rush to evacuate, struggling to survive any way they can. Looters? Maybe yes. Or, surviors? Maybe that too. The city that care forgot met care head-on today, and so maybe, did the rest of a nation. We all remember where we were on 9/11. I suspect we'll remember today that way too.
Today there are no "towelheads" to blame." Fate maybe, greed and short sightedness, this has been predictable for a long time. This didn't need to be this bad.
Did global warming add to this? - We'll argue that for years and we may never really know. But there are many things we do know and those have to do with taking care of our own, not just ourselves. It's a sad day today.
Forgive me for venting but....