Wednesday, August 29, 2007

KATRINA ANNIVERSARY


I don't mean to be harsh, and I'm certainly not insensitive to the destruction and grief that resulted from Hurricane Katrina two years ago. My only problem is that New Orleans is still whining and wondering why the Federal Government hasn't already made them whole. My question to them is, why haven't you made YOURSELVES whole?

The Federal government should not ever be considered a universal Nanny for every single slacker who gets into trouble. The political leaders of the State of Louisiana and the City of New Orleans have mismanaged the incredible sums of money already provided to them for purposes of rebuilding. The individual people affected have received all manner of direct help, all at the expense of the taxpayers or generous Americans who frequently gave more than they could afford out of a generosity of heart.

It hasn't escaped my notice that Mississippi areas that were as badly damaged as New Orleans have been rebuilt to a substantial degree by people who aren't sitting on their fat asses waiting for someone else to bail them out some more.

Here's the deal. The authorities in New Orleans knew for years that the levees were inadequate. Substantial amounts of money have been provided for many years to upgrade. Taxpayer money - just like the recovery money already squandered.

My heart was touched - and my wallet reflected contributions that were in excess of what I could afford at the time. Massive amounts of taxpayer money were provided. And now they want MORE? Screw it. Time to hold your politicians accountable for the misuse of the massive funds already allocated and delivered. If they haven't spent the copious funds provided in an effective and fiscally responsible manner, perhaps you ought to consider THROWING THE BUMS OUT OF OFFICE? Take responsibility for your own lives and get on with it.

3 comments:

juan said...

Agreed Gayle. My heart and prayers also go out to them. I have a college friend who did a lot of volunteer work in that area. There is still a long ways to go. However, I can't help being skeptical as to where all this money is going. Is it really going to help the victims?

Gayle Miller said...

According to an article by Lawrence Kulow, the Federal Government has spent $127 BILLION on New Orleans recovery. That equates to in excess of $450,000 per current N.O. resident!

ANOTHER "let the government do it" boondoggle? You bet!

Unknown said...

It's a sad state of affairs down there. Unfortunately if you listen to the MSM, the people of N.O. were "deserted" by the federal government, and that Katrina actually caused the levees to fail--it was actually poor design by the Army Corp of Engineers that caused the flooding. I don't think people understand the magnitude of the damage from that hurricane in other areas of the country as well.