This is Worrisome

Looks like we indeed are paying for Iraq on our Children's Futures as well as making sure the wealthy still get their tax cuts.

"What Americans need to understand is that ... every single day of the year, our government goes into the market and borrows money from other countries to finance Iraq, Afghanistan, Katrina, and our tax cuts," he said.

"We have never done this before. Never in the history of our republic have we ever financed a conflict, military conflict, by borrowing money from somewhere else."

Clinton added: "We depend on Japan, China, the United Kingdom, Saudi Arabia, and Korea primarily to basically loan us money every day of the year to cover my tax cut and these conflicts and Katrina. I don't think it makes any sense."

Meanwhile, on My AM Run...

You really can't make this stuff up. I started out midway past six AM for my Sunday Long Run. Headed down a vacant street - the one with the stores all closed up awaiting ten AM. Low about one mile in, I spotted a flock of mods (you know, youths dress like they live in the 80s mixed up with hairstyles from the 60s - moptops). Six or a half dozen clogging up the sidewalk like they own it, weaving - perhaps drunk.

So, I slunk out to the street - no cars there anyway and slip back on my usual path just ahead of the boisterous group. And I hear hoots and shouts - and quite surprisingly, they encourage one of their flock to tag along for about two blocks. I look back. One tall, shaggy blonde kid with a fez (yes, a fez) comes sauntering up. I waive him up. This is our conversation:

Me - What's up?

Fez - We've been up all night.

Me - Oh?

Fez - Been snorting coke all night. I don't usually do that, but...(gasp for air)

Me - Oh.

Fez - You get a lot of sleep last night?

Me - well, the kids woke us up about twice last night.

Fez - How many you got?

Me - Two.

Fez - Oh.

Me - I'm going for an hour or hour and a half. Glad to have your company. Don't get too many takers this early. How far you going?

Fez - Oh. To the corner and then slowly make my way back.

Me - (by that time, we had made it to the corner) See ya later (shaking his hand - it was limp, no calluses - like a man of leisure).

Fez - stops, wheezes over, hands onto his knees.

So, Fez occupied a large part of my thinking over the course of the run through the park and trails. The only cogent thought I came up with is that the youth of today have way too much disposable income if they can afford to stay up all night snorting coke. On second thought, they have a fine role model in the Whitehouse, no? What do you think?

Frank Rich Borrows from the Blogisphere

Folks in the Blogisphere have been using the Oz Wizard analogy for quite some time. Frank Rich borrows heavily from blog posters everywhere for today's NYTimes article:

ONCE Toto parts the curtain, the Wizard of Oz can never be the wizard again. He is forever Professor Marvel, blowhard and snake-oil salesman. Hurricane Katrina, which is likely to endure in the American psyche as long as L. Frank Baum's mythic tornado, has similarly unmasked George W. Bush.

And goes on to invent some fine sentences of his own:

This White House doesn't hate all pictures, of course. It loves those by Karl Rove's Imagineers, from the spectacularly lighted Statue of Liberty backdrop of Mr. Bush's first 9/11 anniversary speech to his "Top Gun" stunt to Thursday's laughably stagy stride across the lawn to his lectern in Jackson Square. (Message: I am a leader, not that vacationing slacker who first surveyed the hurricane damage from my presidential jet.) The most odious image-mongering, however, has been Mr. Bush's repeated deployment of African-Americans as dress extras to advertise his "compassion..."

...Some of these poses are re-enacted in the "Hurricane Relief" photo gallery currently on display on the White House Web site. But this time the old magic isn't working. The "compassion" photos are outweighed by the cinéma vérité of poor people screaming for their lives...

Are they going to Beg, Borrow, or Steal from the American Taxpayer?

As to who will pay for the Katrina clean up and the ensuing FUBAR follow up? You guessed it, the almighty American Taxpayer. But does the W, Rove and Co have any clue how that money will be collected and distributed? Nope. Have a look:

Q Al, where's the money coming from for this?

DIRECTOR HUBBARD: Where's the money coming from? It's coming from the American taxpayer.

Q Right, but you're already spending more than you take in, so how much more is there to --

DIRECTOR HUBBARD: Well, if you want to know the --

Q Are we going to have to borrow it, or are you going to raise taxes? I mean, if it's coming from the taxpayer that suggests maybe you're going to have to raise taxes.

DIRECTOR HUBBARD: The most important thing that we need to do is make sure that this economy remains very, very strong. A strong economy is what will provide the resources for the rebuilding for the disaster as a result of the Katrina storm. We're fortunate that the economy is very, very strong now; it will continue to be strong. But the last thing in the world we need to do is raise taxes and retard economic growth.

Q So where does the money come from? Obviously, you've got to borrow it or offsets in the budget, what?

DIRECTOR HUBBARD: Well, again, the money is going to come from the federal government, it's going to come from the federal taxpayer. This President is committed to, as you know, cutting the deficit in half. This in no way will adversely impact his commitment to cut the deficit in half by 2009. At the same time, unfortunately, because of the biggest national disaster I think we've ever faced, we're going to have to spend significant amounts of money on a one-time basis. And that's what's important: it's one time, it's not recurring. But the President is committed, and I know the American people are committed to doing everything that's necessary, but no more than is necessary, and doing it in a very prudent way.

Q -- significant amount? How much?

DIRECTOR HUBBARD: Pardon me? Q How much? Do you have a ballpark figure for how much this is all going to cost the American taxpayer?

MR. McCLELLAN: Are you talking about the overall costs?

Q Yes.

MR. McCLELLAN: Well, one, I think -- and we talked about it the last couple of days, in terms of the longer-term recovery and reconstruction efforts, and the President made very clear last night that we're going to do what it takes to meet the needs of the people who have been affected by this and to meet the needs of the region. But as we do, we need to work with state and local officials to make sure it's done in a well thought out, well planned way. And that's why he emphasized we're going to make sure that the money is spent wisely and it's going to what it's supposed to go for. But in terms of the longer-term reconstruction needs, I think that we're still assessing what those needs are. It's not clear exactly what those longer-term needs are going to be. And so it would be speculating at this point and we're not going to get into speculating about it.

Q Is the $200 billion figure --

MR. McCLELLAN: I mean, it's speculating about it, and we're not going to get into speculating about it. What we are going to do is make sure that the needs of the people are met. Q So there were no internal initial investments for how much this will cost? None?

MR. McCLELLAN: For the longer-term? I think that's something that's still being assessed --

DIRECTOR HUBBARD: Right. I mean, you know, you've got --

MR. McCLELLAN: -- as our OMB Director has said over the last couple weeks, too.

Q Allan, can I just clear this up? So the money will be borrowed, so it will add to the deficit, right?

DIRECTOR HUBBARD: Well, there's no question that this -- the recovery will be paid for by the federal taxpayer and it will add to the deficit. That's right.

Whelp, I think they have grossly underestimated the costs. And, they haven't even begun to calculate all the wrongful death suits that will be executed. Once the first one hits, the avalanch will fall.

Misled

Here's a video clip for your viewing pleasure.

Liability

FEMA = Lawsuit waiting to happen.

Nearly three weeks after Hurricane Katrina cut its devastating path, FEMA - the same federal agency that botched the rescue mission - is faltering in its effort to aid hundreds of thousands of storm victims, local officials, evacuees and top federal relief officials say. The federal aid hot line mentioned by President Bush in his address to the nation on Thursday cannot handle the flood of calls, leaving thousands of people unable to get through for help, day after day.

Shrub to Resign Tonight

Wouldn't it be nice and refreshing if the Prez steps up tonight and says, "I fucked it up. It's time for some one with a clue on how to fix it to step up to the plate. Thus, I and my entire first tier of this administration are turning in our resignations to the American people; effective immediately."

A friend pointed me to an artilce that was a fun read today. Don't hold your breath on the forthcoming resignation, however:

The president will address the nation tonight from the Gulf Coast. He will probably repeat what he said the other day: That he takes "full responsibility" for what went wrong with the federal response to Katrina. The obvious follow-up question: Does this mean he will resign?

...What would be refreshing is if the president could be honest and say, directly to the American people, "I blame my staff. They gotta tell me what's going on. I'm running a war, I got economy stuff goin' on, I'm packing the Supreme Court, you name it, plus I'm on vacation half the time, so I just can't be expected to know about every breeze blowing off the Gulf..."

If you Want A High Paying Government Gig

It helps to know the president. Perhaps Rove is getting himself a promotion. We'll know more this evening after W occupies more airspace and personnel in NOLA.

Republicans said Karl Rove, the White House deputy chief of staff and Mr. Bush's chief political adviser, was in charge of the reconstruction effort, which reaches across many agencies of government and includes the direct involvement of Alphonso R. Jackson, secretary of housing and urban development.

Easy

With a president like W, it's just too easy to make the jokes work. Moxie Grrrl has posted two videos that folks might find entertaining. Have a look.

Speechifying Bush

Ben Cohen on True Majority.

Enjoy.

Lying with Statistics

It's easy to present a whole set of averages (mean, median, or mode) to skew your message. And, you can depend on folks to not bother to check your work if you provide the numbers in small print gathered in large charts. But you can't hide for too long. I have often said that the disparity between schools is atrocious. Here's an article that actually proves it:

Teachers working at San Francisco high schools serving mostly African American and Latino students will, on average, make $8,355 less per year than their more experienced counterparts at mostly white and Asian American high schools across town.

And you wonder why we have a difficult time attracting qualified teachers to work anywhere.

Can You Force Allegiance to a Flag or God?

Interestingly, a Federal Judge stipulated yesterday that forcing children to say the Pledge was unconstitutional. I had posted about this a long while back, but the thing about the Pledge that bugs me is that even if kids say it, they are not feeling or meaning it (likewise for the adults leading it).

How can a child get behind the ideology of the Pledge when our government is falling down on the job, role modeling less than ethical behavior, and publicly demonstrating immorality on a regular basis? We might be better off having them sing a chorus of "You're a Grand Old Flag," which is a bit more secular and focuses on what is great about this country rather than artificially manufacturing allegiance.

You're a Grand Old Flag

by George M. Cohan

You're a grand old flag,
You're a high flying flag
And forever in peace may you wave.
You're the emblem of
The land I love.
The home of the free and the brave.
Ev'ry heart beats true
'neath the Red, White and Blue,
Where there's never a boast or brag.
Should auld acquaintance be forgot,
Keep your eye on the grand old flag.

You're a grand old flag,
You're a high flying flag
And forever in peace may you wave.
You're the emblem of
The land I love.
The home of the free and the brave.
Ev'ry heart beats true
'neath the Red, White and Blue,
Where there's never a boast or brag.
Should auld acquaintance be forgot,
Keep your eye on the grand old flag.

Nothing about god or war in this song - perhaps it would make a fine replacement for the current National Anthem as well.

Swinging Dead Cats and Hitting Homosexuals

Is it me, or hasn't the Catholic Church been a safe haven for gays and lesbians since the dawn of celibacy as a policy? These folks might as well look under their own robes for you can't swing a dead cat near a church without hitting at least one homosexual. The only point to this "inspection" is to prove their bigotry:

Investigators appointed by the Vatican have been instructed to review each of the 229 Roman Catholic seminaries in the United States for "evidence of homosexuality" and for faculty members who dissent from church teaching, according to a document prepared to guide the process.

The Vatican document, given to the New York Times on Wednesday by a priest who was granted anonymity because he feared retribution, surfaces as Catholics await a Vatican ruling on whether homosexuals should be barred from the priesthood...

...It is unknown how many Catholic priests are gay. Estimates range from as low as 10 percent to as high as 60.

To what end? So, if they find that the number is greater than 60% what will they do to the few pipelines for new priests as the old ones pass on to the great beyond?

Al Gore, Hero

No doubt, the repubs will not like the fact that they may have to hang a medal around Al Gore's neck for stepping up to the plate and helping a great deal more than our president following the Katrina aftermath. Martian Anthropologist has a nice post today that led me to Gore's 9 Sept speech. Here are some intersting snips:

...We are now told that this is not a time to point fingers, even as some of those saying, "Don't point fingers," are themselves pointing fingers at the victims of the tragedy...

...We're told this is not a time to hold our national government accountable because there are more important matters that confront us. This is not an either/or choice. They are linked together. As our nation belatedly finds effective ways to help those who have been so hard hit by Hurricane Katrina, it is important that we learn the right lessons of what has happened, lest we are spoon-fed the wrong lessons from what happened. If we do not absorb the right lessons, we are, in the historian's phrase, doomed to repeat the mistakes that have already been made...

...When the corpses of American citizens are floating in toxic floodwaters five days after a hurricane strikes, it is time not only to respond directly to the victims of the catastrophe but to hold the processes of our nation accountable, and the leaders of our nation accountable, for the failures that have taken place. [applause]

The Bible in which I believe, in my own faith tradition, says, "Where there is no vision, the people perish..."

...In the early days of the unfolding catastrophe, the President compared our ongoing efforts in Iraq to World War II and victory over Japan. Let me cite one difference between those two historical events: When imperial Japan attacked us at Pearl Harbor, Franklin Roosevelt did not invade Indonesia [applause].

I personally believe that the very fact that there has been no accountability for the horrendous misjudgments and outright falsehoods that laid the basis for this horrible tragedy that we have ongoing in Iraq, the fact that there was no accountability for those mistakes, misjudgments and dissembling, is one of the principal reasons why there was no fear of being held accountable for a cavalier, lackluster, mistaken, inadequate response to the onrushing tragedy that was clearly visible.

Truth cuts like a knife.

Meanwhile, Our Schools are Slipping

Don't know if many will catch this article given the Roberts hearings, but it looks as though our schools are slipping in comparision to the rest of the industrialized world.

Slice:

The United States is losing ground in education, as peers across the globe zoom by with bigger gains in student achievement and school graduations, a study shows.

Among adults age 25 to 34, the U.S. is ninth among industrialized nations in the share of its population that has at least a high school degree. In the same age group, the United States ranks seventh, with Belgium, in the share of people who hold a college degree.

By both measures, the United States was first in the world as recently as 20 years ago, said Barry McGaw, director of education for the Paris-based Organization for Cooperation and Development. The 30-nation organization develops the yearly rankings as a way for countries to evaluate their education systems and determine whether to change their policies.

McGaw said that the United States remains atop the "knowledge economy," one that uses information to produce economic benefits. But, he said, "education's contribution to that economy is weakening, and you ought to be worrying."

My next door neighbor is a public middle school teacher - you know, 13 year old population - I bumped into him on his way out the door as I was finishing my run this AM. He said, "I recently had to yell at one of them to get him to stop disrupting the whole classroom. It's the only thing that got his attention and him to stop."

My question is this, when a child, 13 years old, acts out in the classroom, who's to blame and who should be held accountable? Is it the student, the teacher or the parent(s)?

How Much For Your Wife?

Aparently, accidents also happen in war zones that are costing taxpayers money as well.
Slices:

Three days earlier, two Afghan brothers had been killed in a collision between a U.S. Army truck and their motorcycle...

...The Americans had been advised on a gesture of somewhere between zero and $2,000 per death. They had brought $500.

Pashtun code has it that parties do not speak directly to each other but instead through representatives. So, in response to the American gesture, Dr. Mohammed Nasir, a medical doctor trained in Kabul who works as Agha's translator, explained the family's expectations.

"You have two options," Nasir stated. "One is by the Quran, by Shariah. In that option, you give the driver (of the truck) to the father, and he can deal with him." One did not need to look at the Americans in the room to know that this was not an option.

"The second choice," he continued, "is our local tradition. You give either 90 camels or 2 women. So for the 2 boys, 180 camels or 4 women. Or the driver."

Not wanting to seem unreasonable, Nasir added that the price of one woman was $8,000, so a payment of $32,000 also would suffice.

...Dressed in an elegant charcoal turban, with his own graying father hunched down behind him, the man broke down almost immediately.

"You have the power. You have the tanks and the airplanes. I had only my two sons," he said, sobbing. "My wife is too old. Now I have nothing. Now I have only to wait for Allah."

Then he added, "You can help me in the way of the Quran."

He wanted nothing of the money. He had seen loss. Now he wanted only possession of the American driver and to see to it personally that loss was shared.

The warlord intervened, as did the uncle, in an attempt to repair the situation. They did not succeed.

Grief comes in many forms, but this poor man won't be getting his sons back. Meanwhile, no doubt, a US family could reap substantially more for another accidential death, this one killed Erika Hills.

The family of Erika Hills, the San Francisco socialite who was killed in a bizarre traffic accident in Napa County, has filed a wrongful death suit against the trucking firm and driver whose heavy trailer nearly ripped her Mercedes-Benz in half last month. The suit, filed Monday in Napa County Superior Court, seeks unspecified damages from equipment and construction businesses owned by Glen and Shirley Ragsdale and from Arnulfo Avina, the driver of the Ragsdales' truck and trailer.

Maybe the father in Afganistan needs the same lawyer. Indeed, many survivors with relatives that were killed by presidential malpractice in the Gulf Coast will be needing similar services.

A House of Cards Usually Tumbles from the Bottom Up

This is the first report I have heard of the legal system engaging in a fixing some of the Katrina situation. No doubt, the W, Rove and Co. house of cards will tumble by it's own failures, unraveling under a tumult of legal challenges, wrongful death suits, and the like. While a house of cards usually tumbles when a small, seemingly insignificant piece falls, an avalanche starts with the smallest of vibrations. Let's hope the whole country does not founder as the legal dominos fall.

The owners of a nursing home where 34 people were found dead after Hurricane Katrina have been arrested and charged with 34 counts of negligent homicide for not evacuating those patients, the Louisiana attorney general's office said on Tuesday.

P.S. I do apologize for all the mixing of metaphors (okay, you're right, they are cliches), but it was fun to write.

The Wit of A President

Excuse me, but there is something rather troubling about the wit and wimsy of a president who makes light of his own ignorance with sarcasm disguised as light hearted banter:

Slice one:

Q (Question is asked in Arabic.) If I may, Mr. President, it's been a scathing attack from top officials of your administration on Syria yesterday for allowing foreign fighters to cross the border. We heard yesterday from Ambassador Khalilizad. Is this an escalation on the pressure that you're putting on Syria? And what more can you do when you say that all options are open?

PRESIDENT TALABANI: May I?
PRESIDENT BUSH: Please, yes. You might want to try it English. (Laughter.)

PRESIDENT TALABANI: Well, I say it in Iraqi because the question was in Arabic. (Answers the question in Arabic.)

PRESIDENT BUSH: Oops. (Laughter.)

PRESIDENT TALABANI: (Continues answering in Arabic.)

THE PRESIDENT: I'm not sure if I agree, or not, but...

Slice 2:

Final question, Mr. President. Q Mr. President, I hope you will excuse me, since you've never had Kurdish -- spoken Kurdish. I put my question in Kurdish. (Question asked in Kurdish.)

PRESIDENT TALABANI: With your permission, Mr. President, he's from America and his voice, American voice in Kurdish -- I must answer in Kurdish. PRESIDENT BUSH: Yes. Answer his question -- perfect.

PRESIDENT TALABANI: (Question answered in Kurdish.)

THE PRESIDENT: On that cheery note, the press conference is over. (Laughter.)

Thank you, Mr. President, good job.

Good Job? If these remarks were meant to be funny, why is my heart sick over them?

Like Water Off a Duck's Back

If W really is taking responsibility, I think we need to hold him accountable and present a long list of consequences worthy of the result.

But answer me this: Why is he still saying he wants to find out what went "right" as a matter of first priority over what went "wrong?" Is this a small symantic issue, or more Rovian speak from the master and puppet? If the man really wants to take repsonsiblity, perhaps he aught find out what went wrong first, and then worried about what went right. The lessons of failure, while more painful, are often the most powerful educational experiences.

Slice:

"Katrina exposed serious problems in our response capability at all levels of government, and to the extent that the federal government didn't fully do it's job right, I take responsibility," Bush said. "I want to know what went right and what went wrong."

Just a Quick Question

Why is it that we can have an entire program of "Embedded" journalism during the opening salvos of the Invasion of Iraq, but the W, Rove and Co doesn't want reporters to follow them around in NOLA? Is it, perchance, that the tally of dead bodies (due to Katrina v. due to Government negligence) , in the Gulf Coast will lead to multiple wrongful death suits and they don't want any record of the process?

Slice:

On Saturday, after being challenged in court by CNN, the Bush administration agreed not to prevent the news media from following the effort to recover the bodies of Hurricane Katrina victims.

But on Monday, in the Bywater district, that assurance wasn't being followed. The 82nd Airborne soldier told reporters the Army had a policy that requires media to be 300 meters -- more than three football fields in length -- away from the scene of body recoveries in New Orleans. If reporters wrote stories or took pictures of body recoveries, they would be reported and face consequences, he said, including a loss of access for up-close coverage of certain military operations...

...Government agencies may still refuse requests from members of the media to ride along, or be "embedded," on recovery boats as crews gather the dead. "But, to the extent the press can go out to the locations, they're free to do that," said Keith Wyatt, an assistant U.S. attorney, according to a transcript of the hearing. "They're free to take whatever pictures they can take."

Army Lt. Col. Richard Steele said the government's position as explained in court Saturday didn't represent a change in policy. Reporters can watch recovery efforts they come upon, but they won't be embedded with search teams.

"We're not going to bar, impede or prevent" the media from telling the story, he said. "We're just not going to give the media a ride."

Oh, from the same article on another issue, could it be that folks doing the work are simply too stressed out to think correctly, or are they just downright racist and disrespectful?

Dean Nugent, of the Louisiana State Coroner's Department, who accompanied the soldier, added that it wasn't safe to be in Bywater. "They'll kill you out here," he said, referring to the few residents who have continued to defy mandatory evacuation orders and remain in their homes."

"The cockroaches come out at night," he said of the residents. "This is one of the worst places in the country. You should not be here. Especially you," he told a female reporter.

Nugent, who is white, acknowledged he wasn't personally familiar with the poor, black neighborhood, saying he only knew of it by reputation...

...After the recovery team took away the St. Anthony Street body, two workers urinated on the side of a neighbor's house....

Vacation, Photoshoped

Oddly enough, I returned from our family venture and was just trying to weed through Emails, and delete collected and corrosive spam, when I found this photoshopped print pasted to a friend's message. Now, correct me if I'm wrong, but I seem to remember the fishing shot as a press blurb from Kennebunkport long ago. The background, of course, we are deeply familiar with.

Two questions for readers:

1) Did you laugh when you saw the shot?
2) If not, what was your reaction?
Explain and discuss.

One More Important Question Not Answered by Scott

The W, Rove and Co will answer no question before its time (apologies to Paul Maisson for ripping off their fine wine pitching slogan). All joking aside, one question that will get no press becuase Scott is busy dodging several other questions reside within the text of the 9 Sept whitehouse press briefing:

Question - by Helen Thomas:

Q Former Secretary Powell, Colin Powell says that his presentation to the U.N. -- which was obviously full of falsehoods about Iraq's arsenal -- is a blot on his career. I wonder whether the administration takes any responsibility for his statement that led us into war in a big way?

MR. McCLELLAN: Look, accountability has been a priority in this administration. This why the President established the Robb-Silberman Commission, because the intelligence was wrong, and we must make sure we have the best possible intelligence as we move forward to confront the threats of the 21st century. And the Robb-Silberman Commission looked at why the intelligence was wrong, so that we can fix the problems and so that we can make sure we have the best possible intelligence. And that's why we have a Director of National Intelligence now, that's why we've taken --

Q The White House takes no responsibility?

MR. McCLELLAN: No, we took responsibility by acting to fix any problems that were there, and we will do so in this instance, as well.

What's the Robb-Silberman Commission? Good Question. Here's slice. You can download the whole report if you like, but I am doubtful you will find any fingers pointing at the same things the Downing Street Memo hints toward.

This failure was in large part the result of analytical shortcomings; intelligence analysts were too wedded to their assumptions about Saddam's intentions. But it was also a failure on the part of those who collect intelligence--CIA's and the Defense Intelligence Agency 's (DIA) spies, the National Security Agency 's (NSA) eavesdroppers, and the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency 's (NGA) imagery experts.1 In the end, those agencies collected precious little intelligence for the analysts to analyze, and much of what they did collect was either worthless or misleading. Finally, it was a failure to communicate effectively with policymakers; the Intelligence Community didn't adequately explain just how little good intelligence it had--or how much its assessments were driven by assumptions and inferences rather than concrete evidence.

Perhaps more importantly, the conclusions suggest that perhaps Iraq was the wrong target in this massive War Against Terror.

Mike Brown?

What, do ya Know? Not much, you? Sorry to borrow from Michael Feldman, but the header for his radio show really fits this post.

Here's what Scotty McMessage McClellan had to say on Friday about Mike Brown:

Go ahead, Helen.

Q It's a non-Katrina question, so I'll defer if --

MR. McCLELLAN: Can we stay on Katrina and then I'll come back to you?

Q Yes. MR. McCLELLAN: I'll be glad to. Go ahead.

Q Has Mike Brown resigned?

MR. McCLELLAN: I'm sorry?

Q Has Mike Brown resigned?

MR. McCLELLAN: No.

Q Has the President asked for his resignation today?

MR. McCLELLAN: No. Q Does the President have full faith and confidence in Mike Brown?

MR. McCLELLAN: Again, what we are continuing to do is to support those in the region who are carrying out the operational activities. We continue to appreciate the work of all those who have been working round-the-clock. As I just mentioned, I think what you need to do is look at the overall situation. There are phases to this response effort, and we've been in immediate needs phase for some time here now, for just over a week now, focusing on the life-saving and life-sustaining missions. And Secretary Chertoff has continued to visit the region, continued to assess things. The President has continued to assess things. And Secretary Chertoff is the one who is overseeing all the operational aspects. And so he's the one who's making all the decisions about how to allocate resources and to allocate people. And we support the decisions that he makes.

Q But you're not answering the question, which is, does the President have confidence in Mike Brown?

MR. McCLELLAN: No, I think that's the way to address the overall question. We appreciate all those who are working round-the-clock, and that's the way I would answer it. ...

...Q There's a Time Magazine report now that there's a discrepancy in Mr. Brown's resume. Can you at least tell us whether or not the administration has looked into the Time Magazine report that there's a discrepancy in Brown's resume or not?

MR. McCLELLAN: Well, I think that FEMA, Mike Brown's office, has put out a statement in response to that, and they disputed the article.

Q Scott, quick question on 9/11 -- 9/11 is around the corner on Sunday, and the President is still fighting this terrorism and still getting high marks around the globe as far as terrorism is concerned. And there was no (inaudible) terrorist attack on the U.S. and also little terror around the globe. My question is that, how is the President going to do different or to say that (inaudible) -- now say victory over terrorism now, after four years?

MR. McCLELLAN: No. The war continues. The war continues. And the President is continuing to move forward on our strategy, which is to take the fight to the enemy, fight them overseas so we don't have to fight them here, and to spread a hopeful ideology based on freedom and democracy.

Q Scott, one on Warren's question. I mean, there's been several stories the past few days -- senior-most FEMA people, whether it's Brown or several of the others that have been named in the stories, have a lot of Bush campaign experience, not as much management experience. Does the President feel confident he's got the right people and the right type of people at each level --

MR. McCLELLAN: I think there are over 2,000 -- I think there -- and I'll have to double check this, but over 2,000 people at FEMA. And those are people that have been working round-the-clock, as of late, in response to Hurricane Katrina. And then there's obviously a small number -- 20, maybe, something around that -- that are considered the political appointees. And in terms of structure, FEMA falls under the Department of Homeland Security, and Secretary Chertoff is the Homeland Security Secretary.

Q Scott, but don't the -- Q Scott, they're not giving the media the information we need to get out there.

MR. McCLELLAN: I need to move to other people's questions. Go ahead.

Q Thank you. Does the President support --

MR. McCLELLAN: Don't get so exasperated, we're continuing to brief you all.

Q No, we're not getting information on the debit cards. How do we tell people where to get them?

MR. McCLELLAN: No, that's -- there --

Q We're not getting information.

Q Does the President --

MR. McCLELLAN: They're continuing to put out information --

Q Can you just tell us, because we can't get it from them.

MR. McCLELLAN: Jessica, I'm going to go on to the next person. You don't need to get --

Q Who do we talk to? Where can we get the information?

MR. McCLELLAN: People are providing that information. I just provided you information that was put out by the Department of Homeland Security.

Q Does the President support his two fellow --

MR. McCLELLAN: You can get dramatic here, but the facts are that people are providing regular updates.

Q Just tell us where to get it.

MR. McCLELLAN: FEMA can provide you with information on the debit cards.

Q They're not. They're not. Our people on the ground are not getting it.

Q Scott, does the President --

MR. McCLELLAN: Tell me who they are we'll get them the information. Go ahead.

PS. You're Fired Mr. Brown. Any one who knows about hiring and firing will realize that Mr. Brown was probably given an option - quit or be fired. It's all the same thing. Indeed.

Brown had been was removed three days earlier from direct control over recovery efforts on the Gulf Coast as complaints mounted that he came to the emergency too late with too little.

In an apparent nod to critics who said the agency needed more expertise at the top, the White House announced that David Paulison, a veteran firefighter who runs the agency's preparedness division, would take over as acting director.

Fifty-four percent of Americans disapprove of Bush's handling of the response to Katrina, according to two polls released on Monday -- one by ABC News/Washington Post and the other by CNN/USA Today/Gallup.

9-11 as Political Pawn

I didn't get a chance to post on 9/11 - on a brief visit to the woods. Coming back into focus, I found Shea over at Constantly Amazed... had a link to a graphic, and powerful video clip that we shouldn't forget. I came away more angry than anything else. But the stark reality is that the W, Rove and Co have turned a national tragedy into a politcal pawn.

I feel played, in a cheap and sleazy way. How about you? I refuse to let them win at this dastardly game they are playing, particularly since it is costing us American lives almost daily. Here's an example of what I am talking about:

Q I have a Katrina question also. It's no secret that a lot of people are saying, four years after September 11th, which is approaching, this kind of demonstration that after the billions upon billions of dollars that have been spent, the nation's response to an emergency is a debacle. What's your response to that?

MR. McCLELLAN: First of all, one of the things that the President said was that he's going to lead an effort to fully investigate the response to Katrina. Like I said, there are a lot of areas there was good response. But this was a storm like we have never seen before in this country. It's one of the worst natural disasters in our nation's history. And we always have to assess things and look at the lessons and apply those lessons so that we make sure that we're fully prepared for any possible attack on this nation, particularly a WMD or weapons of mass destruction attack, to make sure we're fully prepared for other disasters that could be of this magnitude. We all hope, in our lifetime, we never see anything like this again, and -- or to prepare for other potential disease outbreaks. That's an area that we remain focused on, that the President stays focused on, as well.

Q But do you understand those who might question the abilities of our government to adequately prepare, given the --

MR. McCLELLAN: Well, I can understand those that are offering constructive criticism and ideas for moving forward to solve the problems that we have, and those that want to work together with all of us who are focused on solving problems. You make a very broad statement. I think some of the statements you're probably referring to are people getting more into political talk, and that's their business. What we're focused on is helping those on the ground and bringing the nation together to help those in the region. And that's why the President has been visiting the region, hosting meetings with faith-based and community leaders, establishing -- directing his father and President Clinton to lead a charitable effort. Now in terms of September 11th, we all remember very vividly the images of that day, that terrible day. And the President is going to be talking more about it here shortly. He's talking about it in his remarks. The one thing that I think we will remember, as much as the victims and the great work of the first responders, is the resolve of this nation to do all in our power to prevent something like that from happening ever again. That's why the President made the decision that we were going to take the fight to the enemy after the September 11th attack. That's why the President made the decision that we're not going to ignore the Middle East or appease dictators in the Middle East, we're going to help change the Middle East by offering hope and freedom and help change that breeding ground of terrorism.

Q But I think you sort of strayed from the point --

MR. McCLELLAN: No, I don't think we did.

Q -- to the --

MR. McCLELLAN: But I think this all goes to your question.

Q -- of being prepared for an unexpected emergency of a huge magnitude. The public opinion polls, notwithstanding the politicians' criticisms, show that the government and the administration are not held in high regard for their response to Katrina, four years after September 11th.

MR. McCLELLAN: Well, again, there's going to be -- well, we already are assessing things on the ground. People have been in the region. But there's going to be a time to step back and look at this in the broader context. But you have to look at all that we've done since September 11th, Bob, to make this nation safer and to prevent an attack from happening in the first place. Our first priority is to focus on prevention, and that's why the President put in place a comprehensive strategy, and not to pull back or withdraw from the fight ahead. We are in a global war on terrorism, and the President is going to see it through. And our enemies know that.

Go ahead.

The New Orleans Solution

Well, we are about to embark in the long planned family adventure to parts with no internet access. The trouble for W, being the "leader" of the free world, is that you cannot sellect the which model of your behavior that others choose to follow. We don't get five weeks a year or 20% vacation time like W,but we do like to take advantage of the low crowd weekends post labor day. And, this holiday was planned long before the Katrina mess. I do apologize to regular or new readers. I most likely won't be posting for a bit. Back en force when we return, not to worry.

So, while we are gone, I thought I would leave you with my solution for New Orleans. I have posted a similar sentiment as a comment in a variety of locations (by the way, I encourage you to read several of the folks on my blogroll while I am out as they are on top of it in a huge way). Let's call this Windspike's Simple Solution to the Seriously Bad Situtation in New Orleans:

Be it resolved that We, the citizens of the greater USA offer to and help fix all survivors' problems caused by Katrina and the poor response by our seriously deficient governments. More importantly, We, the citizens of these fine United States of America, resolve that each survivor be compensated with some thing that not only replaces what they had, but improves upon it: and that is by their definition, not ours.

My hope is that others with solutions post them in the comments below this post. Blog on friends, blog on.

Typical

Typical juvinile behavior from the W, Rove and Co identified by the folks from Move On, in the event that you don't actually get their emails:

It has been a week since Hurricane Katrina devastated the Gulf Coast, leveled New Orleans and left hundreds of thousands of Americans homeless. We saw the best of America during that time—millions of people stepped forward to offer help. Meanwhile, the Bush administration failed at their most important job: keeping America safe. The federal effort was too little, too late and it is now becoming obvious that hundreds or even thousands of people died as a result.

Then, starting Friday, in a Karl Rove-led campaign, the White House started to blame state and local officials and even the victims who were stranded without transportation when the Hurricane arrived. Sign our petition demanding that the Bush administration stop blaming victims, including state and local officials, and focus on helping them.

The Less-Than-Artful Dodger

My goodness. If nothing else, Scotty McMessage McClellan gets bonus points for dodging all pointed questions with some serious subterfuge. Don't vomit while reading this clip from today's press briefing spin:

Q You have your same point you want to make about the blame game, which you've said enough now. I'm asking you a direct question, which you're dodging.

MR. McCLELLAN: No --

Q Does the President retain complete confidence in his Director of FEMA and Secretary of Homeland Security, yes or no?

MR. McCLELLAN: I just answered the question. Q Is the answer "yes" on both?

MR. McCLELLAN: And what you're doing is trying to engage in a game of finger-pointing.

Q There's a lot of criticism. I'm just wondering if he still has confidence.

MR. McCLELLAN: -- and blame-gaming. What we're trying to do is solve problems, David. And that's where we're going to keep our focus.

Q So you're not -- you won't answer that question directly?

MR. McCLELLAN: I did. I just did.

Q No, you didn't. Yes or no? Does he have complete confidence or doesn't he? MR.

McCLELLAN: No, if you want to continue to engage in finger-pointing and blame-gaming, that's fine --

Q Scott, that's ridiculous. I'm not engaging in any of that.

MR. McCLELLAN: It's not ridiculous.

Q Don't try to accuse me of that. I'm asking you a direct question and you should answer it. Does he retain complete confidence in his FEMA Director and Secretary of Homeland Security, yes or no?

MR. McCLELLAN: Like I said -- that's exactly what you're engaging in.

Q I'm not engaging in anything. I'm asking you a question about what the President's views are --

MR. McCLELLAN: Absolutely -- absolutely --

Q -- under pretty substantial criticism of members of his administration. Okay? And you know that, and everybody watching knows that, as well

Mr. McCLELLAN: No, everybody watching this knows, David, that you're trying to engage in a blame game.

Q I'm trying to engage?

MR. McCLELLAN: Yes.

Q I am trying to engage?

MR. McCLELLAN: That's correct.

Q That's a dodge. I have a follow-up question since you dodged that one. Does the White House feel like it missed opportunities to alleviate or head off some of the damage in the New Orleans area, flood damage? Did it miss an opportunity to head any of that off?

MR. McCLELLAN: In what way?

- Skip to Close of the Press Conference -

Q Scott, you declined in this news conference to express the President's explicit confidence in Secretary Chertoff or Director Brown --

MR. McCLELLAN: Absolutely not.

Q In the past you've said anyone who serves in this administration does so at the pleasure of the President and with his full confidence.

MR. McCLELLAN: This is an attempt by some in this room to engage in finger-pointing and blame game and I'm just not going to do that. I've made it very clear --

Q Can you say the President has full confidence?

MR. McCLELLAN: I've made it very clear -- and the President spoke about them last week, and his comments stand, in terms of what he has said about the great work that they have been doing round-the-clock, 24 hours a day, to help people on the ground. There are some in this room that want to continue to engage in that. We're going to continue to focus on solving problems and getting help to people on the ground.

If you all want to continue to engage in that, that's fine. But we appreciate the efforts of Secretary Chertoff, Undersecretary Brown, and all the others at FEMA and at the state and local level that are working round-the-clock to help the people in the region.

It is impossible to make this shit up. It's astonishing, no? Just wondering how much we taxpayers are paying Scotty to do this kind of bad-dance?

Oh, and by the way, we should all demand a conclusion to the question of Rove's involvement in the Plame scandal. It's about right on track to finish in October and perhaps then, they will actually comment on something besides providing more spin.

Supporting President Bush

Are we sure that we should be supporting an Aministration that suggests they can't multi-task?

Q Right. And there are people who want to know why this government couldn't respond --

MR. McCLELLAN: Hang on. There are people who are suffering, and we've got to respond to their needs, and that's what we're going to keep our focus.

Q So no one is prepared to say what went wrong?

MR. McCLELLAN: We will look at back at the facts and we will get to the bottom of the facts and determine what went wrong and what went right. But right now --

Q Will the President support an outside investigation, or does he want to do it himself?

MR. McCLELLAN: -- but, David, right now, we've got to continue helping the people in the region.

Incidentially, looks like the W, Rove and Co is using the crisis to cover up other treats for us.

..Q In view of the national crisis, will the President withdraw his proposal for this tax cut for the richest people in the country? And, also, my second question is, why did we turn down foreign help?

MR. McCLELLAN: Actually, I'm glad you brought that up. We have not. We have made very clear -- I made clear last week, the State Department made clear last week that we are going to take people up on their offers of assistance from foreign countries. There are some 94 nations and international organizations that have made offers of assistance -- whether that is cash support or I think water pumps from places like Germany or other areas. We said that if this can help alleviate things on the ground, we're going to take them up on their offers of assistance and we appreciate the compassion from the international community and their offers of assistance.

Q And how about my first question?

MR. McCLELLAN: Your first question?

Q Biggest tax cut, permanent tax cut for the richest people in the country -- in view of the national crisis, in view of the deficit --

MR. McCLELLAN: The highest priority for this administration right now is the ongoing response and recovery efforts --

Q No, no, I'm asking you a question.

MR. McCLELLAN: And I'm responding to your question. The highest priority right now for this government is the ongoing Katrina response and recovery efforts and helping the people who need the help. There are other priorities, too, and we'll be working to address those, as well.

Q Has he made up his mind about that, the tax code, changing the tax code?

MR. McCLELLAN: I think he's made clear what his views are on other priorities.

I could continue, but you get the idea. These folks are up to their britches and their underwear is in a twist. And, I'm not getting the sense they have a clue what is going on. Moreover, just wait for the legal shoe to drop. I am waiting for the first reports of the W, Rove and Co getting sued to the hilt for wrongful death. The house of cards is about to tumble.

Oh, There's Dick!

On the odd chance you might be wondering what your VP was up to while NOLA is still bailing out, here's an interesting hand full of paragraphs:

Later this week (no point rushing things) W. is dispatching Dick Cheney to the rancid lake that was a romantic city. The vice president has at long last lumbered back from a Wyoming vacation, and, reportedly, from shopping for a $2.9 million waterfront estate in St. Michael's, a retreat in the Chesapeake Bay where Rummy has a weekend home, where "Wedding Crashers" was filmed and where rich lobbyists hunt.

Maybe Mr. Cheney is going down to New Orleans to hunt looters. Or to make sure that Halliburton's lucrative contract to rebuild the city is watertight. Or maybe, since former Senator John Breaux of Louisiana described the shattered parish as "Baghdad under water," the vice president plans to take his pal Ahmad Chalabi along for a consultation on destroying minority rights...

...But now that the people of New Orleans need an ark, we have to question the president's arc. He's stumbling in Iraq and he's stumbling on Katrina.

Let's play the blame game: the man who benefited more than anyone in history from safety nets set up by family did not bother to provide one for those who lost their families.

Did you Ever Wonder Why...

No, this is not an Andy Rooney sketch. Just been thinking about the disparity between the rich and poor lately. A question popped into my head on my AM run. Have you ever wondered why we have spent so much money on airport security over other forms of security (or at the expense of say, strengthening levees in NOLA)? Perhaps, it's becuase mostly rich folks fly on a regular basis and the poor are left to fend for themselves?

The epiphany? Perhaps the whole expense and the largess that the W, Rove and Co. has lavished all over the Department of Homeland Security was a complete and utter failure. Proof? NOLA response: Q.E.D. Perhaps the monies distributed to the Homeland Security Office could have been better spent on, say, strengthening levees in NOLA?

Does anyone else feel safer for the existence of the DHS?

Not me, sad to say.

The Blame Game

Batter up - Rove's stamp of subterfuge is all over this latest spin by the whitehouse. These people have no shame and are reprehensible. What they really want is for folks to play some kind of "blame game." In reality, we should all demand for those responsible to be held accountable.

Oh, and if you haven't heard the W speaking when he mentions the "Blame Game," note if you will that he always, always starts finishes by saying, "there will be plenty of time to investigate what went RIGHT and what went Wrong." Is it me, of do you think that Rove also suggest he talk first about what went right, rather than what went wrong?

Slice:

Q Scott, the reality at hand right now is that the President said that we still live in an unsettled world. This is an administration that has told us since 9/11 that it's not a matter of "if," but "when" that we could be struck by a terror attack and, obviously, other disasters that are the result of Mother Nature. So at this point, where is the accountability? Is the President prepared to say where this White House, where this administration went wrong in its response to Katrina?

MR. McCLELLAN: You know, David, there are some that are interested in playing the blame game. The President is interested in solving problems and getting help to the people who need it. There will be a time --

Q Wait a minute. Is it a blame game when the President, himself, says that we remain at risk for either another catastrophe of this dimension, that's not manmade, or a terrorist attack? Isn't it incumbent upon this administration to immediately have accountability to find out what went wrong, when at any time this could happen again?

Oh, and incase you are thinking an investigation may be worthwhile, perhaps we aught not have it be an internal one:

No administration could credibly investigate such an immense failure on its own watch. And we have learned through bitter experience - the Abu Ghraib nightmare is just one example - that when this administration begins an internal investigation, it means a whitewash in which no one important is held accountable and no real change occurs.

Meanwhile, Some Politocos are using the Cover of Katrina for Political Gain

Shameless is right. The Folks of the SF Chronicle have picked up on an interesting strategem deployed by various blood sucking politicos:

IT'S NO secret that Hurricane Katrina has upended Washington politics, rightfully making relief efforts the top priority. So re-labeling old ideas as a part of disaster recovery is the new political game.

The first, though not last, Shameless Award in putting the hurricane to other uses goes to Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn. He's tapping the oil refineries shut down by Katrina and higher pump prices to advocate for drilling in Alaska's Arctic edge.

Never mind that these supplies are seven to 10 years away. Never mind that the reserves may amount to only 4 percent of this nation's energy needs. Never mind that conservation and higher highway fuel economy are better answers to oil dependence than invading a wildlife refuge.

It all Rests with the Governator

At least the vast majority of Californians realize that same-sex marriage poses no threat to the heteros who do it. Let's hope the Governator signs it into law.

The state Assembly, in a stunning victory for the gay rights movement, approved a landmark bill allowing same-sex marriage Tuesday night and sent it to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. The measure, which passed with no votes to spare, marks the first time that a legislative body in the United States has approved a bill that legalizes gay marriage.

P.S. update at 8:39 PM - Sad to say, but it looks like the gropenator is going to veto the bill taking the easy way out. It looks like he won't be getting my vote any time soon.:

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said on Wednesday he will veto a bill to allow gay marriage in the state and said the issue should be decided by the courts or by voters directly but not by the Democrat-controlled legislature.

Final Thoughts for the Day

If not being prepared for the response to the Katrina disaster wasn't bad enough, has anyone heard about any legal beagles doing pro bono types of work down in the NOLA area? Lots of potential clients down there. No doubt, many a lawyer is salavating for the chance to represent this class action suit - more than likely it won't be pro bono but for a cut of the settlement.

Two numbers are going to be critically important over the long-term in the Katrina situation. 1) the number killed by the storm, and 2) the number killed after the storm from the lack of response.

In the end, the army of litigious lawyers could begin filing an endless stream of wrongful death suits against the government all they way up to the top of the house of cards. And, that will break our giant piggy bank - leading to a seriously bad economic climate. I don't mean to sound like a doomsday gloomy prognosticator, but I wouldn't be surprised if the mounting legal storm is going to be more like an avalanche.

No wonder the W, Rove and Co. bought themselves more time in making a nomination for the SCOTUS by bumping up Roberts. They want to find someone who will make sure that the Bush family (and his many cronies) is (are) not hurt in this matter.

Just to Piss Off the French!

Sounds like reason enough to mount a come back. Hey, if Jordan can do it, so can Lance. If he does, I'm predicting 8 straight! Lance Armstrong = Tour de France, Victory Machine (if he does it, perhaps we can forgive him for sucking up to W).

WASHINGTON (AFP) - Seven-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong is reportedly considering coming out of retirement in a bid to take revenge on the hosts of the world's biggest race following a spate of doping accusations.

"I'm thinking about it," the Austin American-Statesman quoted Armstrong as saying. "I'm thinking it's the best way to piss (the French) off."

Bon Voyage Gilligan

Just sit right back, and you'll hear a tale. A tale of a fateful trip....

Bon Voyage Bob Denver. Many thanks for the memories and entertainment.

Cause for Chage

Medical mistakes - one study the industry does not want to be widely publicized, no doubt. Even so, the list of Doctor error that results in death is not short. The case for changing how we train/educate our medical doctors starts with this article:

Resident doctors following a "heavy call" schedule that can require a 90-hour work week performed more poorly on a driving simulation test than those on a "light call" rotation averaging 44 hours a week who then drank liquor until their blood alcohol level reached 0.05 percent, the study said.

Drivers with a 0.08 percent blood alcohol level are considered drunk.

The research echoes a previous study that found interns who worked heavy schedules made 50 percent more mistakes with patients and had 22 percent more serious errors on critical care units.

Gee Willikers George, Judge Rehnquist was Such a Nice Guy

Found this article interesting on a tip from a friend. Aparently, not all think Rehnquist was a good guy.

Slice:

My mother always told me that when a person dies, one should not say anything bad about him. My mother was wrong. History requires truth, not puffery or silence, especially about powerful governmental figures. And obituaries are a first draft of history. So here’s the truth about Chief Justice Rehnquist you won’t hear on Fox News or from politicians. Chief Justice William Rehnquist set back liberty, equality, and human rights perhaps more than any American judge of this generation. His rise to power speaks volumes about the current state of American values...

...Rehnquist served on the Supreme Court for thirty-three years and as chief justice for nineteen. Yet no opinion comes to mind which will be remembered as brilliant, innovative, or memorable. He will be remembered not for the quality of his opinions but rather for the outcomes decided by his votes, especially Bush v. Gore, in which he accepted an Equal Protection claim that was totally inconsistent with his prior views on that clause. He will also be remembered as a Chief Justice who fought for the independence and authority of the judiciary. This is his only positive contribution to an otherwise regressive career....

Public Safety, the Primary Purpose of Government

I can't keep up with Moxie Grrrl. She is on a roll, blogging post haste. If you want the best up to date info, don't bother clicking my site - just go there. I found this interesting video clip about six or so posts down on her location. Have a look and if you still support the W, Rove and Co, please, oh please, give us one good reason why.

Incidentially, if public safety is not the primary purpose of governement, what about this?

Our "Most Corrosive Social Problem"

There was an interesting editorial in the NYTimes today. Unfortunately, the stance is not news, or new. I have two questions that follow the slice:

The great achievement of No Child Left Behind is that it has forced the states to focus at last on educational inequality, the nation's most corrosive social problem. But it has been less successful at getting educators and politicians to see the education problem in a global context, and to understand that this country is rapidly losing ground to the nations we compete with for high-skilled jobs that require a strong basis in math and science...

...The United States needs to develop a coherent policy that makes schools better everywhere. That means strengthening teaching and curriculum in poor communities, and it also means improving education for the best American students, who look like geniuses in math and science until they are stacked up against better-prepared foreign youngsters. Unless this country acts, our economy will wind up occupying the same low-performing spot on the global charts that our schools occupy now.

Question 1 - Can we think of at least one other social ill that is more corrosive than the trouble with education across the board? I'll bet the blogisphere can produce more. If you have a suggestion for the NYTimes editors as to what might be more corrosive than the failing of America's schools, place a comment below.

Question 2 - Are they suggesting we federalize the schools? There has to be a set of solutions that will improve our schools. if you have one idea or more, please comment below.

Thought for the Day

Day off? Bah Humbug. Is it me or does it seem like Labor Day is really no holiday for the stay-at-home parent? Note to self: negotiate for a real day off some time in the very near future.

On the Verge

The first 10K were harder than the second. Coming up on 20K hits. Check the site meter in the right hand side and let us know if you are the magical 20K hit, and the fame will follow.

De Facto Execution of American Citizens

Perhaps Mr. Broussard is right. I was commenting over at Moxie Grrrl, and as it sometimes happens, I got to thinking my comment would make a good post. Here it is:

You know, I saw the Chertoff deflection a number of times - "there will be plenty of time for an after action analysis...blah, blah, blah." The trouble is, while Rove et al. are very good and smudging generally upstanding citizens with outright fabrications, I don't think they will be able to handle the sheer volume of critics that will be forthcoming when the real tally of dead bodies start adding up. Let's think about this a bit.

First, there are the hard number of folks we know were killed immediately by Katrina. That number was maybe on the order of hundreds or so.

Then, there are the post storm deaths due to lack of response (via starvation, dehydration, lack of meds etc...)that will hang over the heads of those "officials" who basically fell down on the job or were too busy recreating, making political statements, or entertaining friends rather than drop everything and come to the aid of some very poor folks. That number will trump the other number and word out of NOLA is that it will be on the order of thousands, not hundreds.

Where the W, Rove and Co will try to dance around is that bigger number. They are going to try and place blame, very much in a political way, on those other than themselves or on the force of nature.

The truth of the matter is this: We knew Katrina was coming. Preparations could have been made at a variety of levels. The plan, if there was one, was poorly executed and instead, some genuinely innocent AMERICANS were effectively, de facto executed - which is why the video Moxie points out in earlier posts of Mr. Broussard (sp?) is ever so powerful. This shit will stick, hard and fast to this Administration no matter how much political thrashing and wiggling about they try - mainly, because there is not one iota of wiggle room left for these leaches.

On another angle, I'm wondering - are the post-Katrina deaths the moral equivalent of "friendly fire" tragedies that hit our troops in some forgotten desert? Maybe so.

There is no way that the W, Rove and Co can smudge a man (or woman, or grandmother, or other survivor who calls a spade a spade) who took it upon himself to rebuild the levee the ACoE were not able to reinforce before the hit. And if they do, and I would like to see them try, we will be ready to call their bluffs.

Incidentally, let's all not get distracted about the Plame situation. We await some answers in that matter as well.

Are we Sick of Being Screwed?

Rehnquist died. Are we set to get screwed again?

There are now two vacancies on the Supreme Court, and it will serve the best interests of the nation to fill those vacancies promptly. I will choose in a timely manner a highly qualified nominee to succeed Chief Justice Rehnquist. As we look to the future of the Supreme Court, citizens of this nation can also look with pride and appreciation on the career of our late Chief Justice.

The rights of women are seriously set to get flushed as we type.

You be the Judge

Really, were there no other disasters that match the Katrina mess in New Orleans? I wasn't alive in 1906, but certainly, we don't need a disaster of the same scale to prepare for something worse; do we?

Listen to Chertoff make excuses.

Take a look at San Francisco in 1906 to see if you think the same thing happened. More pics here.

Enough of the Press Conferences and Photo Ops

Found a heart wrenching video over at Moxie Grrrl. She is on top of it, so I suggest readers pop over there as she usually has the scoop before most.

Watch this Video and my bet is that anyone still holding any faith in the W, Rove and Co will have that allegiance tested.

Monday Update from the NY Times:

"Nobody's coming to get us. The secretary has promised. Everybody's promised. They've had press conferences. I'm sick of the press conferences. For God sakes, shut up and send us somebody."AARON F. BROUSSARD, president of Jefferson Parish in Louisiana.

It Could Have Been Different, and It Doesn't Need to Remain the Way it is

It appears as though the credibility of this administration is at an all time low. Does anyone out there trust this adminstration any more? If so, why?

Slice:

The first rule of the social fabric - that in times of crisis you protect the vulnerable - was trampled. Leaving the poor in New Orleans was the moral equivalent of leaving the injured on the battlefield. No wonder confidence in civic institutions is plummeting.

The real tragedy of Katrina is that it could have been played differently, even if the force of the 'cane remained the same. While there is no shortage of blame to spread, and many fingers to point, what the country needs now are solutions.

Frank Rich hits the nail on the head, as usual, but we all could spend some energy thinking about how to help and prepare for disasters in our very own necks of the wood.

Slice:

As the levees cracked open and ushered hell into New Orleans on Tuesday, President Bush once again chose to fly away from Washington, not toward it, while disaster struck. We can all enumerate the many differences between a natural catastrophe and a terrorist attack. But character doesn't change: it is immutable, and it is destiny.

As always, the president's first priority, the one that sped him from Crawford toward California, was saving himself: he had to combat the flood of record-low poll numbers that was as uncontrollable as the surging of Lake Pontchartrain. It was time, therefore, for another disingenuous pep talk, in which he would exploit the cataclysm that defined his first term, 9/11, even at the price of failing to recognize the emerging fiasco likely to engulf Term 2.

The Fact That He Thinks This Is Saying Something

Interestingly, many on the reiching W, Rove and Co protectorate, suggest that we are fools for thinking race had anything to do with the poor response to the Katrina mess. My thought is that it is a classic case of institutionalized economic racisism perpetrated by the usual suspects. Take a look at the once thriving city of Detroit for another good example.

Really, the fact that one person articulates the notion is cause enough for really working through some of the very troubling racial divisions in our country. Again, we see abstinance does not work. Simply refusing to talk about the issue will not will it away.

Slice:

A celebrity telethon for Hurricane Katrina survivors took an unexpected turn when outspoken rapper Kanye West went off script during the live broadcast, declaring America is set up "to help the poor, the black people, the less well-off as slow as possible."

..."I hate the way they portray us in the media. If you see a black family, it says they're looting. See a white family, it says they're looking for food." While allowing that "the Red Cross is doing everything they can,"

West — who delivered an emotional outburst at the American Music Awards after he was snubbed for an award — declared that government authorities are intentionally dragging their feet on aid to the Gulf Coast. Without getting specific, he added, "They've given them permission to go down and shoot us."

After he stated, "George Bush doesn't care about black people," the camera cut away to comedian Chris Tucker.

The W, Rove and Co Sucks Train Gets Bigger

Now, it seems, lots of good folk want jump on board the W, Rove and Co Sucks train. This time, Rove is going to have one heckuva challenge to discredit so many people, but no doubt, that is what he is thinking about doing anyway, such is his modus operandi.

Slice 1:

W. drove his budget-cutting Chevy to the levee, and it wasn't dry. Bye, bye, American lives. "I don't think anyone anticipated the breach of the levees," he told Diane Sawyer.

Shirt-sleeves rolled up, W. finally landed in Hell yesterday and chuckled about his wild boozing days in "the great city" of N'Awlins. He was clearly moved. "You know, I'm going to fly out of here in a minute," he said on the runway at the New Orleans International Airport, "but I want you to know that I'm not going to forget what I've seen." Out of the cameras' range, and avoided by W., was a convoy of thousands of sick and dying people, some sprawled on the floor or dumped on baggage carousels at a makeshift M*A*S*H unit inside the terminal.

Why does this self-styled "can do" president always lapse into such lame "who could have known?" excuses.

Slice 2:

WASHINGTON, Sept. 2 - There was anger: David Vitter, Louisiana's freshman Republican senator, gave the federal government an F on Friday for its handling of the whirlwind after the storm. And Representative Elijah E. Cummings, Democrat of Maryland and the former chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus, declared, "We cannot allow it to be said that the difference between those who lived and those who died" amounted to "nothing more than poverty, age or skin color."

Slice 3:

There are dozens of questions Americans will demand to have answered once this emergency has passed. If the Homeland Security Department was so ill prepared for a natural disaster that everyone knew was coming, how is it equipped to handle other kinds of crises? Has the war in Iraq drained the nation of resources that it needs for things like flood prevention? Is the National Guard ready to handle a disaster that might be even worse, like a biological or nuclear attack?

One thing is certain: if President Bush and his Republican Congressional leaders want to deal responsibly with a historic disaster of this scale, they must finally try the path of honestly shared national sacrifice. If they respond by passing a few emergency measures and then falling back on their plans to enact more tax cuts, America will have to confront the fact that it is stuck with leaders who neither know, nor care, how to lead.

The pre-Katrina plan for this Congressional season was to enact more upper-bracket tax cuts for the least needy, while cutting into the safety-net programs for sick and impoverished Americans. These are the very entitlement programs most needed by the sudden underclass of hundreds of thousands of hurricane refugees cast adrift like Dustbowl Okies. Will Congress dare to go forward with these retrogressive plans in the face of the suffering from Katrina? Its woeful track record suggests that, shockingly, the answer may be yes.

And the spoils go to...you guessed it - Halliburton!

Thanks to Moxie Grrrll for wrecking my weekend with more bad news. Halliburton gets yet another no-bid government contract to feed off the Katrina mess.

The Mayor of New Orleans speaks his mind, and tells it like it is for those who care. Shove it!

The American Spirit May Very Well be Broken

The news out of New Orleans is not good.

"We're just a bunch of rats. That's how they've been treating us."
EARLE YOUNG, among thousands awaiting rescue outside the Superdome.

On my AM run, I was very much thankful I didn't live anywhere near the mess Katrina caused, but I do have family living on the Gulf Coast. They said they were still mentally recovering from last season's battering by the whole series of hurricanes. Even so, they were spared the great brunt of the storm. New Orleans is a whole different story.

I was thinking on my run, that Katrina could be the straw (alright, bigger than a straw, but I'm going with the metaphor) that has broken the Spirit of America. The damage is horrific, the death toll ratchets up, and instead of the gallantry and magnanimous nature that has been displayed over various periods of our history, I see mainly tragedy, sorrow, and no relief in sight.

Even more reprehensible, by its actions, the feds seem to be slow, docile and ineffective - mainly distracted from the very real sense by most that the home front should take precedent over some foreign mission that was, and is, misguided and a waste of resources - not to mention a misuse of our military might to inflict our ideology on a part of the world that doesn't want it.

In its wake, Katrina not only kicked our asses, but she seems to have broken the very Spirit of America. Instead of people rising to the occasion, I see death, destruction, and an overwhelming sense of powerlessness that seeps into our very pours. That those who remain tend mainly to be the poorest of the poor, those who had very little to begin with led me to some other big questions, but I leave that for others to contemplate (e.g. If Katrina hit Boca Raton instead, would the response have been as neglectful?).

My hope is that we rise to the occasion and regardless the loss of physical structures, we work to find a place for all survivors who need a place, and that place is not simply a replacement for what was, but an improvement - by their own measure.

Fall Semester Canceled

The colleges in the area affected by Katrina will, no doubt, be hurting for a long time.

Dear friends of Tulane,

Since my relocation to Houston, I have had more access to information about the situation in New Orleans. I was hopeful that recovery would soon progress. However, given the ongoing situation in the city, I am forced to make an extremely difficult decision: Tulane University cannot hold a fall semester on its campus.

While this news is extremely disappointing to all of us, our students can continue their academic careers uninterrupted thanks to an avalanche of support from our colleagues in higher education.

Nine of the leading higher education associations, which represent hundreds of colleges and universities around the country, have developed a plan to accept Tulane students, as well as those from other institutions adversely affected by the hurricane, for the fall semester only. This coalition has set forth guidelines for temporary enrollment for the fall semester. Read the statement

Tulane University will accept credit for all courses with a passing grade from regionally accredited universities; such credit will be applied to a student’s Tulane course of study. We encourage all Tulane students to enroll in courses that they might have enrolled in at Tulane, but equivalent or near equivalent courses will also count to degree progress.

Amidst the darkness and shadows emerges hope.

Is Deflection the Best Answer?

Instead of Answers, the SOP for Scott McMessage McClellan is deflection rather than answer very pointed questions. See the text of today's press briefing. Ecerpts:

Regarding the NG troops in Iraq:

Q Are you going to bring back any National Guardsmen from Iraq to help?

MR. McCLELLAN: I think that the military talked about that a little bit yesterday. I think you're talking about two separate priorities and we're addressing both. And they'll be talking later today, I think, about some of the ongoing increase in the number of National Guard units that are being deployed to the New Orleans area to meet the security and law enforcement needs that are on the ground.

Q Do you have enough troops on hand?

MR. McCLELLAN: I think that they've indicated that, yes.

The levee broke, but what's the cause?

Q Scott, there's already a line of discussion going on about the funding of projects prior to this, whether projects in New Orleans, in particular, were under funded because of the Iraq war or for other reasons. Is there a -- do you find any of this criticism legitimate? Do you think there is any second-guessing to be done now about priorities, given that the New Orleans situation was sort of obvious to a lot of the experts?

MR. McCLELLAN: As I indicated, this is not a time for politics. This is a time for the nation to come together and help those in the Gulf Coast region. And that's where our focus is. This is not a time for finger-pointing or playing politics. And I think the last thing that the people who have been displaced or the people who have been affected need is people seeking partisan gain in Washington. And so if that's what you're talking about, that's one thing.

Now, if you're talking about specific areas, if you're talking about specific areas, I think I would be glad to talk about some of those, if that's what you want. I don't know what specific areas you're --

Q I'm talking about policy. I'm talking about the SELA project, for instance, is one some people cite where they felt they needed $60 million in the current '06 fiscal year, they were given $10 million, those types of projects. And a lot of --

MR. McCLELLAN: I'm sorry, which project --

Q SELA -- Southeast Louisiana flood control --

MR. McCLELLAN: Flood control has been a priority of this administration from day one. We have dedicated an additional $300 million over the last few years for flood control in New Orleans and the surrounding area. And if you look at the overall funding levels for the Army Corps of Engineers, they have been slightly above $4.5 billion that has been signed by the President.

Q Local people were asking for more money over the last couple of years. They were quoted in local papers in 2003 and 2004, are saying that they were told by federal officials there wasn't enough money because it was going to Iraq expenditures.

MR. McCLELLAN: You might want to talk to General Strock, who is the commander of the Army Corps of Engineers, because I think he's talked to some reporters already and talked about some of these issues. I think some people maybe have tried to make a suggestion or imply that certain funding would have prevented the flooding from happening, and he has essentially said there's been nothing to suggest that whatsoever, and it's been more of a design issue with the levees.

Q Without getting into finger-pointing or partisan politics or anything, would you concede that, given the difficult reality on the ground there now, that more could have, or should have been done to have resources available, to move quickly or to be there? Or is it your position that this is simply the nature of responding to disasters of this scale, that it's going to take days or weeks to get --

MR. McCLELLAN: Very legitimate question. I think that that's something that, over time, will be able to be addressed and looked at. I mean, you're still, right now, trying to assess all the damage and destruction that's been done. Now is the time to remain focused on the response and recovery efforts, and that's what we're doing. There will be a time for politics later; there will be a time to look at all these other issues and do more of a critique or assessment of the response efforts. But right now we're making sure that we're doing everything in our power to respond to this natural disaster.

Incidentially, what's going on with the president of Iran?

Q The new President of Iran, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, has been identified by at least five former U.S. --

MR. McCLELLAN: Tell you what, let me stick on the hurricane.

Safer in Baghdad?

Q Scott, since the briefing started, I've gotten a number of emails from people saying that correspondents who've been in Baghdad and New Orleans say Baghdad feels safer to operate in; people saying that it's absolute chaos in the streets; message boards on the Internet are going crazy. They're frustrated that you're deflecting this to FEMA. Is the White House properly, adequately concerned? And can you tell us --

MR. McCLELLAN: Deflecting what to FEMA?

Q You're deflecting all specifics to the FEMA briefing.

MR. McCLELLAN: No, I'm not. I've given you some updates, but they are the ones who are in charge of operational aspects on the ground. And the Department of Homeland Security is in charge of the operational aspects from Washington, D.C. And they're pulling together officials that will have the most updated information to you. So your characterization is just wrong, Jessica.

Q Why have helicopters stopped flying over New Orleans?

MR. McCLELLAN: Again, the people on the ground will be able to provide you with the latest information on that. As I would with any engagement abroad in terms of operational activities, as you mentioned, with the military, the people who are in the best position to give you those updates are the ones who are overseeing the operational activities. That is being done by the Department of Homeland Security in Washington, and it's being done by FEMA on the ground in the region. So that information is being provided to you all.

Do you believe these "answers?"