The Horror

Photo from CBC NEWS

I've watched more CNN in the last 5 days than I have in my entire life. Unfortunately that is the only english news channel we get here in South Korea.

I was just prompted to post because of a radio interview with the New Orleans Mayor that brought me to tears. He is so disgusted with what has NOT happened in the past 5 days - There isn't nearly enough help. Then this shit about Bush not being able to do anything until the Govenor formally "asks" him to step in. As the new Orleans Mayor points out - did Iraq asked Bush to go in THERE? They were in there in a second after 9/11. But it's taken him 5 days to fly over the damn disaster area in New Orleans?!? People are dying by the minute and they say they can't go in to help people because of violence. A man at the convention centre was on his cell phone telling reporters that the only people at the convention centre are the dying ones. There aren't any gun toting lunatics. I can't imagine how anyone there feels. The Government isn't even trying to save their own people....is it any coincidence that all these people trapped and dying are poor?!? Fucking Capitalist PIGS!!!!!

If anyone's interested......here's some of the interview I just heard. It was the mayor speaking to a local radio station (WWL) At the end it is written in that there are some pauses - that was the radio host and the mayor getting emotional. This was taken from the transcripts available here. I've cut out quite a bit. You'll find the whole interview somewhere on the page.....maybe mid way down.

ROBINETTE: Do you believe that the president is seeing this, holding a news conference on it, but can't do anything until Kathleen Blanco requested him to do it? And do you know whether or not she has made that request?

NAGIN: I have no idea what they're doing, but I will tell you this, you know, god is looking down on all this and if they are not doing everything in their power to save people, they are going to pay the price, because every day that we delay, people are dying. And they're dying by the hundreds, I'm willing to bet you.

They are -- we're getting reports and calls that is breaking my heart, from people saying I've been in my attic. I can't take it any more. The water is up to my neck. I don't think I can hold out. And that's happening as we speak.

ROBINETTE: If some of the public called and they're right, that there's a law that the president, that the federal government can't do anything without local or state requests, would you request martial law?

NAGIN: I've already re -- I've already called for martial law in the City of New Orleans. We did that a few days ago.

ROBINETTE: Did the governor do that, too?

NAGIN: I don't know. I don't think so. But we called for martial law when we realized that the looting was getting out of control. Then we redirected all of our police officers back to patrolling the streets. They were dirt, dead tired from saving people, but they worked all night because we thought this thing was going to blow wide open last night. And so we redirected all of our resources and we held it under check.

Most people are looking to try and survive. And you've got -- one of the things people have -- nobody's talked about this. Drugs flowed in and out of New Orleans and the surrounding metropolitan area so freely it was scary to me. And that's why we were having an escalation in murders. People don't want to talk about this, but I'm going to talk about it.

You had drug addicts that are now walking around this city looking for a fix. And that's the reason why they were breaking in hospitals and drugstores. They were looking for something to take the edge off of their jones, if you will.

NAGIN: Well, did the tsunami victims request, go through a formal process to request? You know, did Iraq? Did the Iraqi people request that we go in there? Did they ask us to go in there? What is more important? This is -- you know, I'll tell you, man, I am probably going to get in a whole bunch of trouble. I'm probably going to get in so much trouble that it isn't any funny. They probably won't even want to deal with me after this interview is over.

NAGIN: But we authorized $8 billion to go to Iraq lickety (ph) quick. After 9/11, we gave the president unprecedented powers lickety (ph) quick, to take care of New York and other places. Now, you mean to tell me that a place where most of your oil is coming through, a place that is so unique -- when you mention New Orleans anywhere around the world, everybody's eyes light up -- you mean to tell me that a place where you probably have thousands of people that have died and thousands more that are dying every day that we can't figure out a way to authorize the resources that we need? Come on, man.

You know, I'm not one of those drug addicts. I am thinking very clearly. And I don't know whose problem it is. I don't know whether it's the governor's problem. I don't know whether it's the president's problem. But somebody needs to get their (EXPLETIVE DELETED) on a plane and sit down, the two of them, and figure this out right now.

NAGIN: This is ridiculous. I don't want to see anybody do anymore (EXPLETIVE DELETED) press conferences. Put a moratorium on press conferences. Don't do another press conference until the resources are in this city and they come down to this city and stand with us when there are military trucks and troops that we can't even count. Don't tell me 40,000 people are coming in! They're not here! It's too dog gone late.

Now, get off your (EXPLETIVE DELETED) and let's do something, and let's fix the biggest (EXPLETIVE DELETED) crisis in the history of this country.

NAGIN: I am just -- I'm at the point now where it don't matter. People are dying. They don't have homes. They don't have jobs. The city of New Orleans will never be the same in this time.

(PAUSE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We are both pretty speechless here. I don't know what to say.

NAGIN: I've got to go.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK. Keep in touch. Keep in touch.

(END VIDEO CLIP)