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Politicians, FEMA blame each other for relief missteps
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/front/6001713.html ^

Posted on 09/15/2008 12:47:42 AM PDT by chessplayer

It didn't take long for the finger-pointing to begin.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency came under fire Sunday as emergency workers were left undernourished and dozens of trucks of water and food had yet to be set up at distribution centers around Houston and surrounding communities.

(Excerpt) Read more at chron.com ...


TOPICS: News/Current Events; US: Texas
KEYWORDS: fema; houston; humanitarianrelief; hurricaneike; ike

1 posted on 09/15/2008 12:47:42 AM PDT by chessplayer
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To: chessplayer

Nagin’s Fault.


2 posted on 09/15/2008 12:57:58 AM PDT by trumandogz
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To: chessplayer

when barack gets elected there will be no more hurricanes, no more rising seas, no more strife, no more struggle; the sun will shine again, the birds will sing once more and fema will always respond perfectly to every emergency and things will be hunky dory.


3 posted on 09/15/2008 12:59:57 AM PDT by ripley
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To: chessplayer

Judging by the comments at chron.com the mantra of we are neither Republicans or Democrats, but Americans was quickly forgotten as people try to make political Brownie Points off Ike.


4 posted on 09/15/2008 1:08:18 AM PDT by sockmonkey
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To: chessplayer
And so the Katrinazation of Ike begins: 24 hours after the storm, some highways still flooded, and alternate routes congested.

Welcome to the club of the aftermath, dear Democrats of Texas -- the government can never compensate for personal responsibility and resourcefulness, nor can it magically restore the power grid overnight, or provide enough ice to keep you cool 24/7. Life's a beotch, sometimes. Deal with it, and put a gag on your mayor, Houston. He's toxic.

5 posted on 09/15/2008 1:10:53 AM PDT by browardchad
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To: chessplayer
So, let me see if I understand this right - less than 24 hours after hurricane force winds are out of the immediate area (but went right into the region where aid is coming from), people want /outside/ aid to arrive, be set up, and distributing?

Well, gee, there's a /flippin’ reason/ why a) people were told to evacuate the area, b) people are told to have three days worth of non-perishable water and food on hand.

Seriously, are people this flippin’ stupid that they didn't notice that Ike slammed them, then made a turn north-east of them and went tearing up there? Do they expect FEMA trucks to be stationed in Mexico? As that's about the only place they could have been stationed and reached Houston prior to tonight.

And even then, THE TRUCKS ARE THERE. Overnight, crews are setting up distribution stations that are supposed to be open tomorrow morning. I think that's the most annoying thing - FEMA pulled off one heck of a logistical nightmare in having the trucks arrive ON SITE per the plan less than 24 hours after hurricane winds left the region.

6 posted on 09/15/2008 1:29:58 AM PDT by kingu (Party for rent - conservative opinions not required.)
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To: chessplayer
I found it interesting that all of those bitching, with the exception of one idiot Republican, were all Democrat politicians! Surprise, surprise! They must be shopping for another “Presidential issue”.

I was pleased and gratified to find this was not ordinary Texans doing the whining. Texans are usually like Okies. They endure tornadoes, grassland fires, the occasional earthquake, and other threats of nature, and they just pick themselves up and do what's necessary to survive—with no whining!

I did hear one Galveston resident was reported to have said, regarding “staying” vs. “leaving”, “I lived through Katrina. I should have known better.” (Duh!) I was hoping this was not a “clue” as to who was complaining!

7 posted on 09/15/2008 1:30:02 AM PDT by singfreedom (Obama's solution to the energy crisis: check the air in your tires! Why didn't we think of that?)
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To: kingu
Yes, yes, and YES to all of the above! ANYONE with the audacity (No, he doesn't “own” the word!) to stay had better have had food and water for AT LEAST three days!

But, I understood, from the article, that it was EMERGENCY WORKERS who were without adequate food and water. I would have thought someone in local government would have considered this problem? (Oops!) Food and water from FEMA seldom, if ever, arrives sooner than three days. (24 hours is a miracle!) Surely, the local governments realized this fact?

Even if they didn't, it is as, I believe the Mayor of Houston, described it “a mountain from a molehill”.

8 posted on 09/15/2008 1:49:45 AM PDT by singfreedom (Obama's solution to the energy crisis: check the air in your tires! Why didn't we think of that?)
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To: singfreedom

"I was pleased and gratified to find this was not ordinary Texans doing the whining.

Well, for some reason I can't access the article. Who are being referred to as the whiners?

9 posted on 09/15/2008 2:30:41 AM PDT by Mila
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To: Mila
Mila, most of those quoted complaining were Democrat State Senators, you know, local yokels. I think most of them represented the area hit by the hurricane. I don't recall their names though. Sorry.
10 posted on 09/15/2008 2:47:45 AM PDT by singfreedom (Obama's solution to the energy crisis: check the air in your tires! Why didn't we think of that?)
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To: browardchad

“And so the Katrinazation of Ike begins:”

Yup. Give it another week and the media will portray it as even worse than Katrina.


11 posted on 09/15/2008 3:16:38 AM PDT by chessplayer
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To: singfreedom

Ah, the light dawns. Thank you for the clarification.


12 posted on 09/15/2008 3:19:14 AM PDT by Mila
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To: chessplayer
In the feeble minds of all kool aid drinking sandal wearing liberals it's Bush's fault. Period. Let's see, where can I find a case of Heineken?
13 posted on 09/15/2008 3:52:42 AM PDT by RU88 (The false messiah can not change water into wine any more than he can get unity from diversity.)
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To: kingu

The FED needs to make an example of local and state whiners with these hurricanes. They should declare the whole of Galveston and Bolivar pennisulas federal disaster areas; order EVERYONE out then relocate them to FEMA trailers in slums throughout the state. Then they should bulldoze and burn EVERYTHING, plant beach grass and declare it a national park. Next time a hurrican rolls through no one will complain about the FED not showing up.


14 posted on 09/15/2008 4:02:21 AM PDT by Justa (The media lied while Americans died.)
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To: singfreedom
But, I understood, from the article, that it was EMERGENCY WORKERS who were without adequate food and water.

I think the first question is: How are they defining 'adequate' - that could be the central issue - perhaps they're only getting one 2300 calorie MRE a day, and some reporter deems that to be not enough.

Whenever I responded as a Red Cross disaster worker, I /always/ packed water sanitizing tablets and three MREs. The first day of training, the instructor walked up to each person and asked what was the worst thing that a disaster aid worker could do. Loads of ideas, but the lesson the instructor was looking for: Failing to do everything possible to make sure you're not adding to the load.

To her, that meant bring along whatever you'll need, do not bring along something that requires power, bring a bit of food, stick some candy bars in your bag, take a small bottle of water sanitizer tablets, and a sturdy pair of gloves. Above all, DO NOT ADD TO THE PROBLEM.

Is it FEMA's job to feed emergency workers? No, not at all, actually. FEMA only needs to feed FEMA. FEMA brings in supplies to be distributed via existing local agencies and organizations. They bring it to rally points, local groups haul it to distribution points and distribute to the people.

This isn't something hard to understand, but the whole point of all of this is to make FEMA look bad, and somehow have this reflect on Bush and ultimately McCain. As the liberals loved to say on Sunday's talk programs, they're up against McCain-Palin-Bush. If they could get away with it, they'd be shouting 'REMEMBER KATRINA!' -- Well, only the Katrina they want you to remember, vs the 300 miles of coastline cities and parishes completely wiped out. Only remember New Orleans, not the real disaster.

Hey, wait, it's that whole game again, isn't it? Oooh, look at Houston, how people are hurting.. FEMA's not doing enough. Just, you know, ignore Crystal Beach, ignore the north half of Galveston Island, ignore the other areas hard hit, and let's whine about people who are only unable to turn on their televisions and cable boxes.

15 posted on 09/15/2008 5:12:58 AM PDT by kingu (Party for rent - conservative opinions not required.)
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To: kingu
I agree totally. I haven't heard a word from dissatisfied citizens (contrast with Katrina). ALL of the citizens there, and now in a position to complain, were told to LEAVE. For them to complain would be an open admission of their stupidity!

My husband has family in Orange, TX. We FINALLY heard from them today through the family grapevine. They left, but have heard from neighbors that their house is heavily, heavily damaged, but they are all O.K. Such a relief! We've said a lot of prayers today—but we've been doing that for days now, especially for our friends in Galveston!

16 posted on 09/15/2008 1:32:31 PM PDT by singfreedom (Obama's solution to the energy crisis: check the air in your tires! Why didn't we think of that?)
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To: singfreedom

I live in the FLIGHT PATH of Ellington Field. Saturday afternoon cargo planes began arriving. They were still arriving today.

Sunday morning 1/2 mile from my house generators were being sold from a semi truck. Pasadena’s finest were there to make sure things went smoothly. I waited in line 2 1/2 hours because our old one wouldn’t work. There was another shipment due Monday morning.

Lowe’s was letting people in 10 or so at a time. They used flashlights to guide customers.

On I45 at Almeda Mall on SUNDAY there were truck loads of ice being delivered.

All of this is B$LL $HIT.

We waited in the lines before the storm for water like lots of other people. The rest of the stuff we keep on hand. Hurricanes are not the only things we face here. Any day of the year we could have a tornado.

Centerpoint had staging grounds set up before the storm. My next door neighbor saw two on Friday. Centerpoint, IMO has done a great job in getting people back on line. We had power back in 38 hours. They started with the largest grids first and worked down.

The Houston area Democrats started whining and carping on Saturday afternoon. (We stupidly had a portable battery powered radio with TV reception) Bill White, Sheila Jackson-Lee, et al were busy drawing the usual political dividing line in the death and destruction of IKE. How typical.


17 posted on 09/15/2008 6:57:36 PM PDT by Jaded ("Eloquence is no substitute for experience" -Joe Lieberman)
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To: Jaded
I hope you guys are O.K? My husband worked in Galveston and we stayed in a condo on Seawall Blvd. It was a wonderful place and we loved it. I haven't been able to tell if the place where we stayed is still there! It looks like everything along Seawall is demolished.

My husband and I had noticed the only folks we heard complaining seemed to be Dem politicians. Typical? Sheila Jackson-Lee? Of course!

You all are in our thoughts and prayers. Take good care.

18 posted on 09/16/2008 12:55:36 AM PDT by singfreedom (Obama's solution to the energy crisis: check the air in your tires! Why didn't we think of that?)
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