Am I Wrong?
 

Maybe I am being naive or just plain stupid, but I am watching some of this Katrina stuff on CNN and I want to ask one question?

if things are SO BAD there, why are people going back and why are they suffering so much. I mean, if they have a job, why not save enough to live for one month, rent a car and drive 1,000 miles north and find a town hiring, and establish.

I just think that if I were to go through something like that, I would just be like '**** it' and go establish my family somewhere safe and clean.

For some people, N'awlins is home.

That is crap. If your life is in danger or living is unbearable, you pack your family or yourself up and you find peace and quiet, and build a 'home'. It isn't like New Orleans is going anywhere, go back in 10 years if you want. You see these kids down there struggling only because their parents are too stubborn to pack up and leave. Just set up for problems down the road.

I will tell you this, if this would have happened to me, I would have been on the bus going to a big city, going to a police station to tell them the situation and see how I can get on my feet as soon as possible.

There's no place like home and that's especially true for New Orleans. :D

So you would make your 3 young children suffer through all that, when you could simply drive north and provide a good life for them?

No thank you, if I ever had kids, I wouldn't want them living like that, and I would do EVERYTHING in my power to prevent it. Nor would I want to live like that.

It's easy to say what you would do if you were in their situation but the truth of the matter is you have absolutely no idea what their situation is and what they're going through. A dramatic piece on cnn or fox news is not going to offer any insight whatsoever into the day to day lives of the people on the gulf coast and in N.O.

You can speculate and what I gather is that the majority of those affected by the hurricane were buttf ucked by p&c carriers like state farm, the government, the media, construction companies, etc. And from what I read in an article last night, the government is only alloting $5 billion of the $7.6 billion needed to rebuild the levees CORRECTLY and that the earliest they'll complete the project is 2015. To me, that is criminal that they're allowing people to rebuild when they can't even provide protection from another storm. It shows how inhumane our leaders are.

Moving doesn't solve the problem. Say if they move to a city like St. Louis and the New Madrid Fault goes nuts...they're f.ucked again.

This was just waiting to happen.
So you build a city on a river delta,
pump enough water out from underneath so
that it sinks and is 13 feet BELOW sea level
(when you gotta bury people above ground
because the water table is right underneath
a warning signal should go off)
and then you come back in a build again.

If you live on a coastline anywhere in the Gulf, Southeast
Atlantic, you gotta know whats waiting. New Orleans will
have to pretend its a charming palm tree waiting for its
big leaves to get torn off, grow back, get torn off...

The storm surge was not even that bad. They had a heck
of a lot of rain, but put a 20 foot storm surge with that...
levees wont help a bit.

Buy stock in a company that makes body bags.

Exactly, I imagine many people are not making enough in a month to be putting anything away for a move. Most 'experts' say you should have at least 3 mos. worth of living saved before moving across country or out of state.

The pioneers did it. They went West with a horse and a carriage. You can get a $25 bus ride from New Orleans to Carbondale, IL, and have a job in three days, and have a $300 livable 2 bed room apartment (per month) in a day.

Pillow, I agree. What these insurance companies and the government, on all levels, has done is extremely inhumane. And I also agree that I really don't know the situation. But I would like to think i would make the best decision for my family and myself. One that would get them away from the destruction and all the bs.

In college, I had a two bedroom apartment for $400, it was clean and in a good area. Easily big enough for 3 kids and a wife, maybe a little uncomfortable, but none more then the crap they are dealing with now.

You go into these small towns and you will get a job, doing something, right away. I don't think this is naive.

Sure it would take alot of balls to leave 'what you know' but again, why make these kids or yourself for that matter suffer through this, when 200 miles north is a solution?

If the question is still "am I wrong?" the answer is yes. At this point it's not about a better life it's about home and principal. The people and the city of New Orleans were totally forgotten about and they want their life back. Not some imitation in a place where they have no interest in being. It's an absolute disgrace that this went on in our country and they deserve to get their lives back. The lives they lost when Katrina hit. I totally understand your point with the relocation dollars, rent, etc...but it's not about that. It's about New Orleans. It's about pride, and it's about the right thing to do.

People are creatures of habit and they may even hate thier daily life, but they choose to go back to it because they know what to expect from it.

Maybe they can all go be hotwalkers at Belmont. . .

Good heavens... lol.

Maybe I should just keep my mouth shut on this one. But like Scavs, this one hits a nerve with me too. #1. Moving for a lot of these people might require effort. That's a lot to ask. These are the same people who were warned to get out of dodge before the storm hit and didn't. Like I've said before, if you would of told some of these people that if they were to head 100 miles north, there would be a box full of $100 bills and a keg of beer they would have been sprinting out of New Orleans. #2. They are just biatching, but the bottom line is, they are getting a HUD apartment and monthly welfare check. That's why they don't want to leave. There are a few down there I feel sorry for. The elderly, The disabled, etc. Being FAT and LAZY is not a disability. That's why we need illegal immigrants to do the dirty jobs.

I live in the middle of Upstate, NY. Upstate received a record amount of Lake Effect snowfall duiring a four day period this past winter. I'm not going to equate this to what happened in New Orleans, but let me tell you something....It was bad. People were without power, utilities, and couldn't get to the store. Why? NO roads. Have you seen the pictures?? It was REAL BAD. Did they complain?? No. WHY? These people are not lazy. They look out for one another. Was there looting? None. Why? They wouldn't. You take these same people from New Orleans and put them in this environment. It would be just like the flood. Now, as I said before, I feel bad for the elderly and the disabled, but being fat and lazy is not a disability.

Being snowed in, cooking on a grill and keeping warm by the fireplace is not exactly the same thing as taking your last breath in the attic as you drown with your face against the rafters. I'm sure 99% of the people in N.O. would have gladly burned a couple pieces of furniture in lieu of drowning to death. It's not the same. It's not close.

It's not exactly apples and oranges Hoss. It was real bad in the snow belt region. Nobody sat and waited for help, they got through it without many complaints. No, I don't want to leave my home, but I don't live below sea level either. I know you're not far from me, so you know about the floods we had here last here. The mighty Mohawk took over half our town. Not even 1/1000 on the scale of New Orleans, but we (I'm in the fire department)evacuated people quickly. The stubborn ones that stayed had to be taken out by boat or front loader later. It all comes down to choices. Some people in New Orleans made bad choices.

Oh C'mon. Are you that naive to think it was easy as that. Hello? The liberal media just panders to people like you. I'm not completely insensitive, but much of what happened in New Orleans was avoidable. CHOICES!!
Good Choices, Good Consequenses. Bad Choices, Bad Consequenses.

I'm as conservative as the day is long. I've been through upper Michigan "snow-outs" and also SoFlorida hurricanes, going 5+ days in each with no electricity. The aftermath of a serious hurricane is FAR more serious than that of a blizzard. Like I said, it ain't close.

Well, OK. Like I said I'm not going to try to equate the two, but the blame game that went on after this was just crazy. I'm not big on running to the Federal governments defense, but this idiot Mayor and even bigger idiot governor almost lost their fingers from pointing the blame so quick. There were definitely mistakes made and it was a tragedy unmatched by much in the history of our country, but I don't feel the least bit sorry for one single sole living there today.

What about the flounder?

:)

Interesting to see what this thread has to say. Well I guess some one from here should respond. I hardly watched yesterday and knew it would either be wonderful things happening or just horrible. I did catch the woman from St. Bernard Housing project whining that they are not rebuilding it. But those are the ones that get attention, mainly hard working people have picked up and regained their lives whether it be in NOLA, or the Miss. Gulf or moved over here to my side of the lake.

So now here's my take on things, from someone that lives here.

Katrina is not just New Orleans it is a 90,000 sq. mile area from Louisiana thru Mississippi and into Alabama, we just get all the attention. Then came Rita to wipe out the rest of the gulf and part of Texas. You should see what is going on in western Louisiana and Eastern Texas.

I will tell you that most of you never want to see the things I saw in the aftermath of Katrina, EVER.
And I will never understand many things that happened, from people not leaving to the government not coming for 4 days. We can get to Achea in 24 hours but couldn't get to the Superdome. I saw the busses lined up on Tuesday in LaPlace and not moving. I watched the helicopters not come until Thursday nite 4 days later.
We have multiple generators so I watched the whole thing on TV, didn't miss one minute, in air conditioning and stocked up for a CAT 5. We knew over here that when they said NOLA was spared the levees would probably fail.

It has been a failure of every governmental agency from the Fed down to our State and local government. Private industry and volunteers are the ones that keep things going. NO red tape just hard work.

However, how anyone can say a major metropolitan city of the United States and one of the oldest settlement in the US should not be rebuilt, well I just don't get that at all.
I expect the people experiencing flooding in the midwest would want their homes and towns rebuilt. Or the people who have losses from mudslides, earthquakes and fires every year. Almost every place in America has some kind of vulnerability. You should hope it never happens to you.
New York and Philly could easily flood in a Cat. 5, should we not rebuild?

I live on the northshore was never going to experience flooding from the man-made disaster of the levees failing, but I'm only 30 minutes out of NOLA, I'm the next town on the interstate. They all came here.

They only show the people biatching because the rest of the hard working folks dont have the time.

Until it happens to you, you don't know how you will think or feel. How many of you responded? I know a few on here that did. Are you prepared? While the pundants from local, state and fed fuss, the citizens suffer.

Easy for those that said it is all the mayor and the governor. Having travelled the world I never dreamed the lack of response and preparedness in the US could happen like this. I've been in military coups and the US came immediately half a world away, but couldnt get to NOLA.

But you should be very aware prior to Katrina no US government agency was ready for a disaster of this magnitude. Now agencies are realizing they are not prepared. You should be very afraid and get prepared. Are you FEMA certified in the event of a disaster of any type in your area, I AM.
We can bomb and rebuild Baghdad every day, but part of America should just die out.....I just don't get it.

For those that responded here and get it, we thank you !

All I can say is....
Do you know what it means to miss New Orleans....I DO.
Attachment 507

Oh and to respond to the topic of the thread, yes you are wrong.

Umm...I don't miss New Orleans. I heard it was for the most part a dirty place before the flood. I think many people have seen devastation. Do you remember 9/11? Many of my brother firefighters do. My brother firefighters in that skank city in Louisiana were being shot at by a bunch of hoodlums.
The city was built below sea level. The flood only brought attention to the shiathole it was and from all media reports it still is. Prepared for catastrophe? Nope we aren't. Dirty Bomb.....Death and much of it. Chemical attack..the same. Most of these people in New Orleans had a chance to get out and didn't. Why? 1. Lazy.....have had things done for them their whole lives. 2. Entitlement....Come get us Federal government.
3. Money Grubbing...To heck with leaving, we have welfare checks coming tomorrow.

The funny thing about it is the fact this douche bag president goes and visits. What is wrong with him? They hate them there. This dipshiat idiot Mayor rips him constantly. No man, No sympathy here. No Way!!

I really am an idiot for starting this thread. :)

I don't think you are an idiot...I just wish I never read it. As you can tell this really gets me going. You have to remember, I'm in a profession(teaching) where I hear excuses and crap all of the time. You have parents who as Bill Cosby says, buy their kids a $300 pair of sneakers, but ask them to pay for a $5 field trip or buy a notebook and it's an infringement on their rights.

No Hoss...Just a real sensitive topic with me. I just read his post again and made a little more sense out of it and was attempting to respond in a little more of a resonable manner but since you ask....

1. Two years ago(before the flood) I had family members who have traveled the country together tell me that New Orleans was by far the most disgusting city they've ever visited.

2. My power was fine during the storm because Fort Plain is not in the snowbelt. I have several people I know that live in those areas. But, as I'm sure you remember we were hit with a blizzard in February. But, unlike the people in New Orleans, we prepared for it.

3. You've never heard me ask for sympathy and most likely never will.

FG FAN,

I re-read your post and my apologies. I'm sure it must have been awful to experience what you did. Nobody deserves what you and the people of New Orleans went through. I remember how helpless I felt watching the whole thing unfold in front of me on TV. There were some real acts of heroism during that entire ordeal. I can't help to think of what it was like for those folks in that retirement/nursing home. What an awful way to die. There are many things that went wrong with that whole catastrophe, but to play the blame game and biatch and moan and try to get hard working american people to feel sorry for lazy people is a little hard to take.

Hope your glass house never shatters. Oh that's right you as a firefighter are not prepared. And we won't have to worry about helping anyone rebuild, New York or LA or Philly, or anywhere in the US.

All I'm saying is that for a country as great as ours we should be able to handle disasters in a more efficient manner. But we are not prepared. Thankfully that is changing as a result of Katrina/Rita.
As I said I have been all over the world, I love the US, I choose to settle here near NOLA, that could change. But I still LOVE New Orleans and I miss what it used to be as I would miss New York, Philly, DC, LA, San Fran, Chicago and many other cities around this world.
Poverty is here in the US,all over the US, drug addicts exist and old people need help. If we can police and rescue the world we should do the same for our own citizens.
I'm going to watch the Saints game now.

Might help if Dubya brought back some of the Nat Guard & equipment don't ya think?

Wasn't it this spring when the tornadoes ripped thru the midwest and they could do **** because the only about 40% of the NG equipment(dozers, loaders, personel) still remained in the US...the rest were rebuilding what we have destroyed in Iraq. Billions to build a country we don't belong in and $000
to help our own good folk and even the bad in our own USA.

I'm sure by now you read my other post. I'm once again sorry for your devastation and here's hoping you make a fully recovery. I will tell you again that we are in no way prepared for a chemical/biological catastrophe. God forbid it ever happens.

DID you help during our flood. No,you were drinking beer. So take your dozer and pipe down. Are you golfing tomorrow?