Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Brooks

On Sept. 3, this diary http://www.dailykos.com/story/2005/9/3/161344/5839
reported David Brooks impassioned comments on PBS's The News Hour as evidence of a concientous conservative.  Some of us demurred.  I have followed Brooks over the past few years, so I was not surprised to read his current sophistry. http://www.nytimes.com/2005/09/11/opinion/11brooks.html?n=Top%2fOpinion%2fEditorials%20and%20Op%2dEd %2fOp%2dEd%2fColumnists%2fDavid%20Brooks

It goes like this:

1. Government made elaborate plans for a hurricaine hitting New Orleans.

2. The plan didn't work.

3. Therefore Government is not the answer.

The money quote: "But liberals who think this disaster is going to set off a progressive revival need to explain how a comprehensive government failure is going to restore America's faith in big government."

Brooks fails to mention that the plan didn't work because the funds to implement it were unavailable.

This is obviously one of the current lines of defense, but also a right wing pattern - We'll show you government doesn't work, just watch us! They appoint incompetants and underfund government agencies they don't believe in and then, when disaster strikes say, "See, government only makes things worse.  Why waste your money, when you could be giving it to my political friends?"

David Brooks is promoting this ridiculous theory of the Katrina disaster.  He is NOT a principled conservative.