The Rant

You all knew it was coming. Here it is.

My dear friend Emmar called me today to say that she is wearing the colorful beads I brought her from Mardi Gras as a political statement: to protest the devastation still apparent in Louisiana and Mississippi. This is why she is my friend. I'm wearing mine for the same reason AND because it's Fat Tuesday. I made gumbo because I now know how.

What has happened, and continues to happen to those of our brethren is shameful. I passed the big ole Halliburton Company with lots of shiny machinery in the yard. They got the big bucks to clean it up. Why are the machineries just sitting around?

One child I spoke to said his father was staying in a trailer on their property gutting the house in order to rebuild. He's doing the work himself. There's no one else to do it. Mom is working in New Orleans and commuting to be with her children. They stay at Grandma's which was never intended to hold them all. Family tensions are running high. The guests don't do enough/clean up enough/ care enough. The hosts are "picky". Everybody has high expectations that they don't share and it causes trouble. He's not the only one. This was a common theme. Some kids didn't know WHAT was going to happen to them.

Construction costs are have doubled since before the hurricanes, and the big home improvement companies are racking up.

The fact that SOMEbody was on vacay/shopping for $500 pumps/looking at million dollar real-estate (choose all) while children watched the dead bodies of their neighbors float by increases my blood pressure. Good thing it's low or I'd be deadified by now. Check out this statement courtesy of ABC News:

BUSH: "Listen, here's the problem that happened in Katrina. There was no situational awareness, and that means that we weren't getting good, solid information from people who were on the ground, and we need to do a better job. One reason we weren't is because communications systems got wiped out, and in many cases we were relying upon the media, who happened to have better situational awareness than the government."

Huh?Dude you were on vacay! And here's another one:

VARGAS: "When you look back on those days immediately following when Katrina struck, what moment do you think was the moment that you realized that the government was failing, especially the people of New Orleans?"
BUSH: "When I saw TV reporters interviewing people who were screaming for help. It looked Â? the scenes looked chaotic and desperate. And I realized that our government was Â? could have done a better job of comforting people. "

They did not need my Mama's macaroni and cheese, although it beats the bejeezies out of any MRE I can guarantee you that. No they did not need comfort. They needed HELP. They said it HELP HELP HELP. That was the clue as to what they needed. Apparently there was a lack of situational awareness.

What I did was a drop in infinity. It was necessary and good work and I am by no means minimizing it. It was the hardest work of my life. However,it can't have any lasting effect. The need is too great and the resources are nil. Mental health prevention in this country does not exist. If each of those children could be provided with 8-16 sessions of trauma-focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy many problems could be prevented. Teens are so vulnerable.

So when crime is absolutely infesting the hurricane affected area remember who predicted it. And please don't give me the racist business. None of the people I met fit any stereotype at all.


So beads it is. I'm going to wear Mardi Gras beads every day to remind everyone that it is so not over. If you want some let me know-I'll be glad to send you some.

This is it for now on this blog. When I get some photos back I'll put 'em up. Otherwise I'm back to the other side.

I never like saying I told you so when it's bad news. Let's all pray that I'm wrong.

Amen.

Post amended: Here's a surprise! There WAS "situational awareness"! I know you are shocked, as am I.