Mickey Z
Cool Observer
Monday, September 05, 2005
Katrina deaths = casualties of war...plus: cops loot, Huey Long, Mike Davis, & replacing Rehnquist
Good morning Mickey...you have a lot here today. It should inspire a lot of us. Great quote from Huey Long. Also, the press it not giving much coverage to the fact the these victims are really casualties of the war in Iraq. It is really something how the government tried to keep it a secret that Cuba has been so generous in offering aid. Actually Cuba had offered to send doctors to poor U.S. communities long before this crisis. Unfortunately, the rich, fat cats in power rejected those offers for help way back, and the result was that many in this country have no access to medical care...........If the U.S. has been reduced to accepting aid from 3rd World countries, does that make this a 4th World country?
Posted by rosemarie jackowski on from crossing the line 09/05 at 08:02 AMMUSLIMS PLEDGE 10 MILLION TO HELP...even while we bomb them…
http://www.islam-online.net/English/News/2005-09/05/article03.shtml
Posted by rosemarie jackowski on from crossing the line 09/05 at 10:53 AMDon’t you just hate it when the evil-doers try to confuse us by doing un-evil things?
Posted by Mickey Z. on from Astoria 09/05 at 10:56 AMHugo “Robertson wants me dead, I must be cool” Chavez is offering aid and oil.
http://ap.tbo.com/ap/breaking/MGBYGYI82DE.html
heh, 4th world country, not even a bronze, just right back in the stone age.
See this article? “Two America’s”? Category 5 in Cuba, everyone evacuated, no casualties, adequate health care, food and shelter. Even there pets were fine.
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/090305Y.shtml
Posted by Luna_C on from whereever 09/05 at 11:33 AMSo the communists are better prepared...and both the socialists and the Muslims are offering help. It MUST be a trick.
Posted by Mickey Z. on from Astoria 09/05 at 12:45 PMIt IS a Trick, And We’re the suckers. :(
Have you read Hoagland’s Blog? He’s making some interesting observations on recent events.http://www.enterprisemission.com/weblog/weblog.htm
Posted by Luna_C on from whereever 09/05 at 01:34 PMTHAT DIDN’T TAKE LONG...the AP is reporting that contracts have already been awarded to Halliburton/KBR for the New Orleans area, etc.
http://www.local10.com/money/4935175/detail.html
Posted by rosemarie jackowski on from crossing the line 09/05 at 02:11 PMHuey Long was right about so many things...too bad he was nutso, as well.
Roberts for SCOTUS Chief Justice scares me even more than Rehnquist in the job, but less than if Scalia had been tapped.
Posted by Richard on from My comfortably air-conditioned, book lined study 09/05 at 02:14 PMWell, now we know where VP Cheney’s been...lining up Halliburton’s bid for some of the paltry $10bn Shrub’s requested for the Gulf Coast.
Is there a reason the whole country’s not inflamed?!
Posted by Richard the Curmudgeon on from 09/05 at 02:27 PMIs there a reason the whole country’s not inflamed?
The college football season just started.
Posted by Mickey Z. on from Astoria 09/05 at 03:07 PMNot to mention those people “aren’t like us”. Recalling from memory, this is what a well heeled Dallas executive said some years ago about dilipadated South Dallas:I don’t pay attention to what goes on over there. I’m not racist, I just never go there and don’t know much about it.
“Benign neglect”, anybody?Posted by sk on from 09/05 at 03:33 PMI really have to differ with the sentiments about Rehnquist and whether or not Kerry would have made a better choice....Now I was not on the ABB bandwagon, but it absolutely stands to reason that there wouldn’t be open spaces for two right wing federalist/theocrats on the court if Kerry was president. Maybe eminent domain corporate centrists who would do damage no doubt - but definitely not people who literally don’t believe in the right of privacy, let alone choice, gay rights, government anti-discrimination legislation, etc.. Now I can buy the argument that worse is better because it will wake people up, but in this case, this is too high stakes to brush off...I suggest checking out Doug Ireland’s take…
Posted by Jordy Cummings on from Toronto 09/05 at 05:05 PMI understand and appreciate your point, Jordy...but I don’t believe I’m brushing it off. I just think it’s crucial to continue pointing out how little difference there is between the two major parties, e.g. http://www.socialistworker.org/2004-2/516/516_08_SupremeCourt.shtml.
Btw, did you see these comments about our interview: http://www.pressaction.com/news/S=26d4de514dee79350b5787b3339653181aa76110/weblog/comments/1821/
Posted by Mickey Z. on from Astoria 09/05 at 05:51 PMABC poll says BUSH not taking most of the criticizm. If there was an election held today. maybe Bush would win???? Explain that.
http://abcnews.go.com/US/HurricaneKatrina/story?id=1094262&page=1
Posted by rosemarie jackowski on from crossing the line 09/05 at 06:16 PMI should have phrased myself better - the socialist worker piece was instructive but my point is the damage that is being done...I think its a huge deal, and one that should be fought. Interesting comments on the PA interview..
Posted by Jordy on from Toronto 09/05 at 06:20 PMActually Rhino Rick’s comments were assinine and indicative of a really skewed mindset.
Posted by Jordy Cummings on from Toronto 09/05 at 06:23 PMFor a moment, Jordy, you had me worried when you called his comments “interesting.”
Posted by Mickey Z. on from Astoria 09/05 at 06:25 PMI originally wrote “interesting,” tried to respond at Press Action, found out that I must be banned (I can’t seem to post,) so I decided to post that here and on my site. I wonder who the “You Know Whos” are. Rhino Rick is a jewbaiter who crosses the line.
Posted by Jordy on from Toronto 09/05 at 06:33 PMUpdate: Last night I went to help evacuees staying at the George Brown Convention Center. I waited in the volunteer registration line outside for over an hour, but finally decided to leave, as the line was at a stand-still. At least 100 volunteers were waiting to get in, but authorities gave no indication of how soon we could get in, or what was going on; nobody “in charge” seemed to be talking.
Watched several people near the front of the line leave in disgust about this fact. They had been waiting for well over 2, almost 3 hours… I’d hate to think help is being turned away, but several seemed to indicate (from their inquiries) that donations were more of a concern now than volunteers. So, a lot of us left and decided to come back later throughout the coming weeks. Regardless, the whole operation is very bureaucratic, and the process of helping people find empoyment, housing etc. will take at least several months…
THE SCENE:
- Outside were makeshift concession stands manned by volunteers, providing food and water to evacuees. A woman was standing nearby, in tears, along with her two children, obviously traumatized by events. A few others were in bandages, etc., apparently injured during the course of the storm. Still others were just camped out on the sidewalk, talking with friends and family. HPD was everywhere. Also, a media enterance was setup near the middle of the Center; the volunteer line just north of that. At any rate, it was a disturbing scene to be in, to say the least…
- Looking inside (through door windows) I could see phones setup on tables, and stacks of boxes full of food and supplies. All of these doors were locked, and therefore blocked to the public. Of course, the majority of evacuees were inside, and I believe most of them were on the ground level of the Center. This is what I could see.
Anyway, if you’d like to help…
1) Houston Red Cross:
Donations:
- By phone: 1-800-HELP NOW
- On the Web: http://www.houstonredcross.org/
- By mail: PO Box 397, Houston, TX 77001, (designate “Disaster Relief”)
* Information line at 713-313-54802) Houston Food Bank
- By Phone: 713-223-3700 (or 713-547-8609 for more info)
- On the Web: http://www.houstonfoodbank.org/
- By Mail: 3811 Eastex Freeway, Houston
* Accepting donations: non-perishable food, paper goods, cleaning supplies, baby supplies, water, heat & eat meals, single serve foods, personal hygiene products.Clothes: summer clothes, sandals, flip-flops, underwear, socks, etc. Please put items for each category (size, womens, mens, etc) in a separate, well marked bag. This will take a little time on your part but make it much easier on the receiving end.
Just FYI.
Posted by RT on from Houston 09/05 at 06:35 PMThanks, as always, RT. What a powerful description of frustrating scene. I’m hoping others here will chip in however they can. I’ve also been told that many such sites need Black hair care products.
Posted by Mickey Z. on from Astoria 09/05 at 06:51 PMSome new ones on Dissidentvoice.....Mickey’s, mine, others, and Bill Blum’s. BillBlum has some interesting things to say about liberals and their support of the war.
http://www.dissidentvoice.org/Sept05/Jackowski0905.htm
Posted by rosemarie jackowski on from crossing the line 09/05 at 07:03 PMI liked your list, Rosemarie...but you scooped me again with Blum. I was planning to post his “liberals” bit here this week.
Posted by Mickey Z. on from Astoria 09/05 at 07:07 PMI think that I scooped DRUDGE with the Halliburton story. It still wasn’t there last time I checked. I sent it to Drudge this afternoon. You should still post Blum. His view is important on the issue of the Liberals and the troops. I am sending it to all of my liberal friends. They will all be mad at me again.
Posted by rosemarie jackowski on from crossing the line 09/05 at 07:16 PMTruism: You’re doing something right when all your liberal friends are mad at you.
Posted by Mickey Z. on from Astoria 09/05 at 07:18 PMThe corporate press has this to say: “The convention center seemed to offer more creature comforts than the Reliant Park shelters — a laundry room, free cigarettes for adults, a play room and sports area for children and teens.”
Free cigarettes, eh? Chalk one up for the drug pushers in the tobacco industry.
In the following paragraph, the article states that “a Walgreen’s has set up shop inside the George R. Brown facility to fill prescriptions.”
You draw the connections…
Article here: http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/front/3340158
Posted by RT on from Houston 09/05 at 07:23 PMWhat I’ve been impressed with is the way people on the ground have risen above the bullshit and worked collectively. Some folks at the notorious Convention Center looted (sic) food, camping stoves, pots, pans, etc. and created an impromptu soup kitchen. The president of a small bank in Gulfport opened his bank and, even though he had no electrical power to monitor transactions, gave out $200 in cash to those with ID who claimed to have an account there. A lower middle class woman took 11 members of a family into her tiny home.
The list goes on. For every government and corporate offense, there were people out there demonstrating what life could be like in a society not based on capitalist greed.
Posted by Mickey Z. on from Astoria 09/05 at 07:43 PMMickey: I agree. And I’ve been rather impressed by the concern and action that many people here have taken…
But back to the other end of the spectrum. The newspaper of record tells their audience that Houston businesses are “already scrambling to profit in the hurricane’s aftermath.”
In fact, they state rather clearly that oil service companies based in Houston are “racing to carry out repairs to damaged offshore platforms in the Gulf of Mexico”, and that “the promise of plenty of work to do sent shares in two large companies, Halliburton and Baker Hughes, soaring to 52-week highs last week.”
Then, the Times goes on to remind us that this is “capitalism at work, moving quickly to get resources to where they are needed most”, and explain that “those who move fastest are likely to do best.” Of course, no mention of disaster prevention in this analysis of “capitalism at work”, nor any discussion of the government’s role in propping up capitalism…
But get this: “If the storm works to Houston’s benefit, it would not be the first time a natural disaster of extraordinary size sparked some economic dynamism here” (in reference to the Galveston hurricane of 1900, which killed more than 6,000).
So in the end, natural disaster = very profitable.
Yup, that’s capitalism at work…Houston Finds Business Boon After Katrina:
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/09/06/business/06goldrush.html?ei=5090&en=f749c76285365363&ex=1283659200&adxnnl=1&partner=rssuserland&emc=rss&adxnnlx=1125979676-+9s+yK13Z8r7m1+7rezrxwPosted by RT on from Houston 09/05 at 11:57 PMQ: How do you get rid of 4,000 unwanted hurricane evacuees?
A: Put ‘em back in the water…4,000 evacuees at Astrodome to be relocated to cruise ships: http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/rssstory.mpl/metropolitan/3340148
Posted by RT on from Houston 09/06 at 12:58 AM“4,000 evacuees at Astrodome to be relocated to cruise ships:”
... and once on the cruise ships .... they sail to ... where? ...... Puerto Rico maybe?
Or maybe they could be put on Nauru like John Howard does with refugees ... with no facilities there either.
Posted by Jim on from 09/06 at 01:26 AMThe flipside:
Hurricane Katrina disaster shows the failure of the profit system
http://www.wsws.org/articles/2005/sep2005/stat-s06.shtmlPosted by Mickey Z. on from Astoria 09/06 at 04:47 AMHeh. the New Deal era showed that, and well before…
But the profit system that we have today is certainly not a “failure” to the class who benefits the most from it, which was my point. So if you’re the CEO of Halliburton, these are very lucrative times.
Of course, it also goes to show that capitalism couldn’t exist for 5 minutes without massive state intervention on its behalf; that’s what things like the military, police and tax cuts are for.
Posted by RT on from Houston 09/06 at 11:36 AMI’ve been monitoring the actual Katrina death toll. as of 9-5-05 it was 246. As of 9-10-05 it was 383. It means that after all that looking and hunting the number has gone up only 137 in 5 days. Doesn’t seem likely that they’re going to find 10,000.
What a bunch of hysterics. So 1.5 millions people build houses in there below sea level paradise against the advise of the rest of the world and then when their worst fears prove right they want the rest of the US to pay for the losses from their bad joices.
If responsible agencies had predicted the disaster which would result from a direct hit, why didn’t the residents and prospective residents of New Orleans take it seriously? Why is it that the levy which was known to be inadequate is the fault of George Bush? It wasn’t built during his administration. It’s not as if the levy was weakened by budget cuts. The disaster could have occurred anytime in the last 100 yrs (200yrs?). Does George deserve the blame for the inept building of residences below sea level and the inadequate levies to protect them?
I’m 55 years old and it’s been commonly known throughout my life that one good hurricane would wipe out New Orleans. But people kept building houses there. That’s not my fault and it’s not George’s fault. It is the fault of the people who built their houses there. Build your house on top of a volcano and you might get burned.
Posted by Ed on from Chicago 09/11 at 05:40 PMIn one way, I agree with you , Ed. Bush is just another in a long line of criminals running this country. What is Bush’s fault is the defunding of programs and agencies responsible for dealing with such natural disasters and his inexcusably slow response to the human crisis.
How did you find the site?
Posted by Mickey Z. on from Astoria 09/11 at 08:02 PM
Next entry: Mickey Z. interview, review & two more anthologies, Gulf news & views, and a Rosemarie update
Previous entry: Condi needs a new pair of shoes, Kanye calls out Dubya...plus: honoring Labor on Labor Day weekend
Copyright © 2005-2007 Mickey Z.
