It's 11:34 pm. EDT And I just saw a report on CNN from the Pentagon. About the DoD response to Katrina.
The reporter, whose name I don't know, is the regular Pentagon guy for CNN.
Standing in front of the obligatory blue curtain with an American flag and the Pentagon logo, he pointed out that the DoD has been heavily criticized for their lack of timely response to the catastrophe.
There were the typical denials. And some puffery and pomposity.
And then .... a sucker punch. A statement so absurd and repulsive that I actually had to catch a breath when I heard it.
The CNN reporter said that the general mood in DoD was that they couldn't understand why reporters, even CNN reporters, "had more sympathy for the victims, and their side of the story, than the difficulty the government has in responding.:
If I'm lying, I'm dying.
Aaron just shook his head and said something flip about the bureaucrats. He couldn't believe his own ears.
That's the topper.
There are a couple more. PR gaffes, that is.
For instance, the cots, laid out in the Astrodome, resemble in eerie precision the infamous layout of Auschwitz. It doesn't look the least bit inviting. Or humane. Even under emergency conditions. In fact it's disgusting.
It brings to mind Ambrose Bierce's pithy Devil's Dictionary. He defined the word : distance = the only thing the rich will allow the poor to keep
Thank you. If you've read this far.