Politicizing Katrina

Yeah, I’m doing it. You gonna do something about it?

You see, it’s not like I look at the devastation down there and blame Bush first. First I blame a cruel and vengeful God. Second I blame the evil sinners living and traveling in Gomorrah New Orleans. Then I blame Bush. Now, I’m not yet wacky enough to say that our fine president is capable of controlling the weather. No, of course not. But something of which he is capable is making preparations around the country to help mitigate the consequences of any disaster. In fact, I would argue that is one of his primary duties.

You may recall a presidential briefing memo entitled Bin Laden Determined To Strike in US. Ring a bell? For you, probably. Not for Bush, because he ignored it and went off fishing. And then what happened?

To today - as far back as 2001, experts have been warning him that New Orleans is a disaster just waiting to happen.

New Orleans is sinking. And its main buffer from a hurricane, the protective Mississippi River delta, is quickly eroding away, leaving the historic city perilously close to disaster.

So vulnerable, in fact, that earlier this year the Federal Emergency Management Agency ranked the potential damage to New Orleans as among the three likeliest, most catastrophic disasters facing this country. The other two? A massive earthquake in San Francisco, and, almost prophetically, a terrorist attack on New York City.

The New Orleans hurricane scenario may be the deadliest of all.

In the face of an approaching storm, scientists say, the city's less-than-adequate evacuation routes would strand 250,000 people or more, and probably kill one of 10 left behind as the city drowned under 20 feet of water. Thousands of refugees could land in Houston. Economically, the toll would be shattering.

FEMA, eh? Who do they work for? Right, forget it. The real question is what has our esteemed President Bush been doing in his infinite wisdom, to keep us safer?

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has identified millions of dollars in flood and hurricane protection projects in the New Orleans district. Chances are, though, most projects will not be funded in the president's 2006 fiscal year budget to be released today.

In general, funding for construction has been on a downward trend for the past several years, said Marcia Demma, chief of the New Orleans Corps' programs management branch.

In 2001, the New Orleans district spent $147 million on construction projects. When fiscal year 2005 wraps up Sept. 30, the Corps expects to have spent $82 million, a 44.2 percent reduction from 2001 expenditures.

Demma said NOC expects its construction budget to be slashed again this year, which means local construction companies won't receive work from the Corps and residents won't see any new hurricane protection projects.

Sounds eerily familiar to Bush’s plan to protect our chemical plants and ports, and to keep Wyoming safe from terrorist attack. Hold on... Actually with that last one he's been quite good.

I would love it if you would go into the comments section and tell me one good thing he’s done in five years. And if you say how wonderful he is to cut his five week vacation short by two days because thousands of people are dead, I swear to that spiteful Christian God of his that I will leap through your computer and strangle you where you sit.