Posted on 09/02/2005 6:20:49 PM PDT by HAL9000
NEW ORLEANS, Sept 2 (Reuters) - With the rotors of President George W. Bush's helicopter sounding overhead, New Orleans' poor and downtrodden recounted tales of murder, rape, death threats and near starvation since Hurricane Katrina wrecked this city.Ending days of abandonment since the hurricane struck on Monday, the U.S. National Guard handed out military rations and a bottle of water to thousands of evacuees -- the first proper meal most had eaten in days.
But as the masses lined up outside, herded by Army troops toting machine guns, inside the convention center where these people slept since Monday was the stench of death and decay.
Leroy Fouchea, 42, waited in the sweltering heat for an hour to get his ration -- his first proper food since Monday -- and immediately handed it over to a sickly friend.
He then offered to show reporters the dead bodies of a man in a wheelchair, a young man who he said he dragged inside just hours earlier, and the limp forms of two infants, one just four months old, the other six months old.
"They died right here, in America, waiting for food," Fouchea said as he walked toward Hall D, where the bodies were put to get them out of the searing heat.
He said people were let die and left without food simply because they were poor and that the evacuation effort earlier concentrated on the French Quarter of the city. "Because that's where the money is," he spat. A National Guardsman refused entry.
"It doesn't need to be seen, it's a make-shift morgue in there," he told a Reuters photographer. "We're not letting anyone in there anymore. If you want to take pictures of dead bodies, go to Iraq."
As rations were finally doled out here on the day President Bush visited the devastated city, an elderly white woman and her husband collapsed from the heat.
"I had to walk two blocks to get here and I have arthritis and three ruptured discs in my back," said Selma Valenti, 80, as her husband lay beside her, being revived by a policeman in riot gear. The two had eaten nothing since Wednesday.
Valenti and her husband, two of very few white people in the almost exclusively black refugee camp, said she and other whites were threatened with murder on Thursday.
"They hated us. Four young black men told us the buses were going to come last night and pick up the elderly so they were going to kill us," she said, sobbing. "They were plotting to murder us and then they sent the buses away because we would all be killed if the buses came -- that's what the people in charge told us this morning."
Other survivors recounted horrific cases of sexual assault and murder. Sitting with her daughter and other relatives, Trolkyn Joseph, 37, said men had wandered the cavernous convention center in recent nights raping and murdering children.
She said she found a dead 14-year old girl at 5 a.m. on Friday morning, four hours after the young girl went missing from her parents inside the convention center.
"She was raped for four hours until she was dead," Joseph said through tears. "Another child, a seven-year old boy was found raped and murdered in the kitchen freezer last night."
Several others interviewed by Reuters told similar stories of the abuse and murder of children, but they could not be independently verified. Many complained bitterly about why they received so little for so many days, and they had harsh words for Bush.
"I really don't know what to say about President Bush," said Richard Dunbar, 60, a Vietnam veteran. "He showed no lack of haste when he wanted to go to Iraq, but for his own people right here in Louisiana, we get only lip service."
One young man said he was not looking forward to another night in the convention center and wondered when conditions would improve. "It's been like a jail in there," he said. "We've got murderers, rapists, killers, thieves. We've got it all."
i wonder how it's Bush's fault there was no security in the dome. It's the state govts job to call up the guard and provide security, not the Presidents.
I'm sure the laws will be changed after this to federalize every aspect of disaster preparedness and relief and take it out of the hands of state officials and after this disaster, even though I hate federal intervention in state affairs, it will be fully justified.
Take some of these stories with a grain of salt... rumors spread fast in a crisis. Note if anybody actually eyewitnessed these rapes and murders, or if they just heard about them from somebody who heard about them.
"Four young black men" That's an excerpt from the article.
Men do not rape, pillage, extort, threaten, rob or commit murder upon those that are the most vulnerable.
I look forward to seeing this gang of four get their just desserts.
They will, maybe not in this lifetime.
Valenti and her husband, two of very few white people in the almost exclusively black refugee camp, said she and other whites were threatened with murder on Thursday.
"They hated us. Four young black men told us the buses were going to come last night and pick up the elderly so they were going to kill us," she said, sobbing. "They were plotting to murder us and then they sent the buses away because we would all be killed if the buses came -- that's what the people in charge told us this morning."
And this is the President's fault because ? ? ?
I am sorry for these people, but why is it personally Bush's fault? Is he just supposed to snap his fingers and deploy 40,000 National Guardsman to help a city fifteen feet underwater? Is Bush supposed to have a magic 8-ball to tell him the levees will break?
Im not sayin its Bush's fault, I dont think it is. But on fox news, they are sayin that they now got check points up between orleans and I 10, and that they arent letting people leave from Orleans to I 10. That doesnt sound like such a great idea. Im bettin there will be a major attempt to impeach Bush over this disaster.
Damned good question!!
I'm afraid we're going to see a lot of caring, generous people fall victim to "imported" riffraff.
Akin to Castro and his "Marielitos" episode...
Making mention of ugly facts has gotten threads pulled all day long. I'll be shocked if this one stays...
Nothing.
Leroy...give thanks that you have your life.
I've got yer leroy right here.
Never let it be forgotten or subverted.
Because this group was the poorest, the homeless, etc. wonder what % were alcoholics and druggies having to go cold turkey. That would have put a strain on things.
Among this group are God-fearing, church-going poor and the criminal type poor thrown together by circumstance.
vaudine
The mayor of NO and the Governor of LA should have been concerned about that possibility as soon as the weather planes reported category 5 winds. The levees were only built to handle hurricanes of category 3 or less. The mandatory evacuation should have occurred as soon as the it was known Katrina reached or exceeded category 4 status.
Pretty bad when people cant take the "facts" (your words) huh?
35For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in:
36Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me.
37Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink?
38When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee?
39Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee?
40And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.
41Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels:
42For I was an hungred, and ye gave me no meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me no drink:
43I was a stranger, and ye took me not in: naked, and ye clothed me not: sick, and in prison, and ye visited me not.
44Then shall they also answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto thee?
45Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me.
The end is coming...for you at least.
Say hello to the prince of darkness (your boss)...sorry, air conditioning is out of order in hell.
Unbelievable! The state did not prepare for a major disaster - period. This all lands on the state government.
They were told to get out - twice. They ignored the warnings. Some say "the poor" couldn't get out, so where was the governor with buses, volunteers, or vans? They can get them to the voting booths down there just fine!!!
NY went through 9/11, and the people worked together, and were grateful for the aid they received.
NY was hit with hurricane Agnes years ago when I was a kid. The water covered our house without warning. A dam broke upstate. Again, the people joined together, and were grateful for any aid they received.
I watch what's going on down south on TV, and I see people doing nothing but looting, killing, complaining about the food and water they've been given, and shelter they're receiving. They're doing nothing to help themselves, nor are they grateful for the help they're getting.
I do feel for them, because my family has been there and done that, but damn it. Shut up, help your fellow man, and say thank you to those who've gone out of their way to help. I have never seen so many people do nothing to help themselves or others and so many ungrateful people in all my life.
Sadly the honest, good people of New Orleans are not unfamiliar with criminal behavior. Check out this article from the American Spectator and you'll see that they have been victimized for a long time...the race vigilantes never gave a damn before. http://www.spectator.org/dsp_article.asp?art_id=8684
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