Katrina survivors: Have you got the "right stuff"?

The "right stuff"-- a hurricane postscript!

Shame on you who are watching and commenting, from the comfort of your armchairs and TV sets, about the tragedy caused by Hurricane Katrina--and blaming those unfortunates for becoming victims of a tragedy not of their making!

"Why didn't they get out when they were warned?" you ask. For crying out loud! Those 40,000 souls who didn't have vehicles or the money to buy bus, plane, or train tickets or the means to sustain themselves away from home (some of these unfortunate and unlucky souls included the sick and elderly evacuated from their care facilities, as well as some unlucky tourists) -- they did take shelter! They made their way to the Superdome and the Convention Center, exactly as they were supposed to do! To find no lights, no security, no food, no water, stopped-up toilets, no medical aid--zero, zilch, nada! No siree, Bob, New Orleans wasn't about to let some poor Third World country outdo the world's wealthiest country--the country that habitually crows about its moral, technological, material and spiritual superiority.

Like wharf rats! So after the storm passed and the breached levees began to flood their city and homes--an event not of their making--these poor souls were isolated. And those who were able, couldn't even walk out of town. They were trapped. They found themselves abandoned. The sick, the old and the young--left to fend for themselves. Where was their governor? Their mayor? Answer: They sure weren't in New Orleans--we know that now.

Malfeasance: the real culprit. The moment the storm had passed, the city mayor, the state governor, and their first-response disaster teams should have moved immediately to send in security and minimal pre-positioned life-sustaining water, shelter, food, and basic medical care! If they didn't have those minimal resources (and they should have), then why didn't the governor immediately pick up the phone and ask Washington for federal assistance? FEMA was standing by, ready to move. Instead, we now hear that the governor balked and, for whatever reason, insisted on another day before agreeing to "federalization." Presumably, she must have finally consented, because federal troops began to move in Friday morning--four days later.

No, it's very clear--the two elected Louisiana "leaders" abandoned their most basic responsibilities--for reasons yet to be investigated. I suspect that post-mortem inquiries (if they are conducted without political interference) will reveal that corruption peculiar to Louisiana politics, long a tradition since the days of Huey Long, was at the bottom of what is, in my view, criminal malfeasance.

"I'm pissed," blustered the mayor of New Orleans on a TV interview, after returning to his city from his comfortable accommodations in Baton Rouge. Well, Mr. Mayor, so am I and millions of Americans who are outraged and embarrassed by your (and your governor's) incompetence.

The tragedy became a massive accident, caused by the levee breaches after the passing storm! To turn on the trapped unfortunates for their failure to "help themselves" is like blaming victims of a catastrophic automobile accident. Would we say to the bleeding, broken bodies waiting for rescue in mangled vehicles: "Why don't you get out of your cars and get yourself to a hospital!--Why do you just lie there, helpless, moaning for someone to help you? Be brave! Be an individual! Quit looking to someone else to help you!"

Libertarianism and Individualism: I'm about as close as anyone to being a libertarian who believes in minimal government interference in the ordinary rhythm of the lives of citizens. But even the most radical libertarian would recognize that as much government as necessary is required in those instances where Man is unable to help himself. How much more deeply a society wants its government to interfere in the lives of its citizens (that is, creating "dependency" attitudes, etc. ) is a different subject altogether and has no place in our assessments of this tragedy. Let's get our priorities straight!

Shame on you self-serving, condescending, so-called "individualists" out there! I should be so unfortunate someday when you might come upon me or mine after suffering a catastrophic accident! If we should be severely wounded, we might not have enough of your brand of "right stuff" to save ourselves. I hope you would have a change of heart and lend us a hand, whether we be black, yellow, brown, white, rich, or poor.

A postscript: Have you bold individualists, sitting at home and criticizing from afar, done anything at all to help relieve their plight? If you have not, shame on you again! Go to this link immediately and begin your apologies by contributing: Red Cross