There is an excellent piece out in the Wall Street Journal (link for subscribers only) written by Bob Williams regarding the blame game that is going on in the MSM regarding Hurricane Katrina. The preface was written by John Hinds, a retired Air Force Colonel who now resides in Seattle, Washington.
Hindsight: There is the ancient story that says if a caveman kicked a brontosauris in the tail it would take the message three days to reach the critter’s pea sized brain. While I think the feds are smarter than a dinosaur–possibly by two or three quintiles but not more–consider what this op ed writer says: I am not attempting to excuse some of the delays in FEMA’s response. Congress and the president need to take corrective action there, also. However, if citizens expect FEMA to be a first responder to terrorist attacks or other local emergencies (earthquakes, forest fires, volcanoes), they will be disappointed. The federal government’s role is to offer aid upon request.
Hinds adds: Downtown Seattle is sitting right on top of one of the most dangerous geologic faults in the the US and the San Juan plate fault is only a few miles away. Do we know what we are supposed to do? Do we have a two week supply of water and food on hand? Are the Feds supposed to tell us to do this or does the Seattle mayor and city council have primary responsibility?
Or is the spot sitting squarely in our own palms as responsible citizens?
Since you have to pay the read the article, I’m only going to excerpt a little bit of it here.
As the devastation of Hurricane Katrina continues to shock and sadden the nation, the question on many lips is, Who is to blame for the inadequate response?
As a former state legislator who represented the legislative district most impacted by the eruption of Mount St. Helens in 1980, I can fully understand and empathize with the people and public officials over the loss of life and property.
Many in the media are turning their eyes toward the federal government, rather than considering the culpability of city and state officials. I am fully aware of the challenges of having a quick and responsive emergency response to a major disaster. And there is definitely a time for accountability; but what isn’t fair is to dump on the federal officials and avoid those most responsible — local and state officials who failed to do their job as the first responders. The plain fact is, lives were needlessly lost in New Orleans due to the failure of Louisiana’s governor, Kathleen Blanco, and the city’s mayor, Ray Nagin.
The primary responsibility for dealing with emergencies does not belong to the federal government. It belongs to local and state officials who are charged by law with the management of the crucial first response to disasters. First response should be carried out by local and state emergency personnel under the supervision of the state governor and his/her emergency operations center.
The actions and inactions of Gov. Blanco and Mayor Nagin are a national disgrace due to their failure to implement the previously established evacuation plans of the state and city. Gov. Blanco and Mayor Nagin cannot claim that they were surprised by the extent of the damage and the need to evacuate so many people. Detailed written plans were already in place to evacuate more than a million people. The plans projected that 300,000 people would need transportation in the event of a hurricane like Katrina. If the plans had been implemented, thousands of lives would likely have been saved.
It is also on page A28 of the September 6, 2005 printed edition. If there is any way possible, you need to get a copy of this article. It truly explains what was supposed to happen versus what acrually happened, and why.
