# I pit the substandard governmental response to the situation in New Orleans. **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [September 2, 2005, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-substandard-governmental-response-to-the-situation-in-new-orleans/319747 "2005-09-02T16:04:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 13
**Author:** ![AFAIKnow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a6a055/32.png) [@AFAIKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AFAIKnow)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2005, 3:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-substandard-governmental-response-to-the-situation-in-new-orleans/319747/241 "2005-09-05T03:08:27Z")
> [@RickJay](#): > > What the heck gives you the idea New Orleans is the only black majority city? What else would you expect from an ignorant, racist fucktard? ---
**Author:** ![asterion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/4da419/32.png) [@asterion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asterion)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2005, 4:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-substandard-governmental-response-to-the-situation-in-new-orleans/319747/242 "2005-09-05T04:46:23Z")
> [@Beware of Doug](#): > > \*Chertoff acknowledged the federal government was still not fully prepared for such calamities as Katrina, which left thousands feared dead, but insisted that now was a time for recovery operations not finger-pointing. > > “In due course, if people want to go and chop heads off, there will be an opportunity to do it,” he said during a round of appearances on Sunday talk shows from a suburb of flooded New Orleans.\* > > In other words, now that we’ve more or less emptied the city and given the chance for anybody stranded to drown or starve, it’s time to get down to business and begin the operation in earnest. :rolleyes: > > Don’t you worry, Mr. Secretary, your time on the chopping block is already reserved. I hope. I saw his appearance on both Fox News Sunday and Meet the Press (didn’t watch Face the Nation.) Both times he came across as a complete idiot. Chris Wallace didn’t tear into him the way Tim Russert did, but somebody on Fox’s panel sure did after that segment. [Here’s](http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,168472,00.html) the Fox transcript and [here’s](http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9179790/) the complete transcript for today’s Meet the Press. Just scroll down past the first segment about Rehnquist. A few more stories like the one Jefferson Parish President (what does that mean exactly, like county commissioner?) Broussard will do just as much damage as all the pictures of this last week. [quote=Mr. Broussard on Meet the Press\*Let me give you just three quick examples. We had Wal-Mart deliver three trucks of water, trailer trucks of water. FEMA turned them back. They said we didn’t need them. This was a week ago. FEMA–we had 1,000 gallons of diesel fuel on a Coast Guard vessel docked in my parish. The Coast Guard said, “Come get the fuel right away.” When we got there with our trucks, they got a word. “FEMA says don’t give you the fuel.” Yesterday–yesterday–FEMA comes in and cuts all of our emergency communication lines. They cut them without notice. Our sheriff, Harry Lee, goes back in, he reconnects the line. He posts armed guards on our line and says, “No one is getting near these lines.”[/quote] But even more damaging will be the tragedies like this: > [@Mr. Broussard](#): > > And I want to give you one last story and I’ll shut up and let you tell me whatever you want to tell me. The guy who runs this building I’m in, emergency management, he’s responsible for everything. His mother was trapped in St. Bernard nursing home and every day she called him and said, “Are you coming, son? Is somebody coming?” And he said, “Yeah, Mama, somebody’s coming to get you. Somebody’s coming to get you on Tuesday. Somebody’s coming to get you on Wednesday. Somebody’s coming to get you on Thursday. Somebody’s coming to get you on Friday.” And she drowned Friday night. She drowned Friday night. > > MR. RUSSERT: Mr. President… > > MR. BROUSSARD: Nobody’s coming to get us. 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. The man broke down crying during this. The transcript is hard enough to read, but I started a bit myself watching him this morning. Get the media playing stories like this and I do think we can put enough pressure on the administration and Congress for something to be done. (Fixed coding–Veb ---
**Author:** ![asterion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/4da419/32.png) [@asterion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asterion)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2005, 4:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-substandard-governmental-response-to-the-situation-in-new-orleans/319747/243 "2005-09-05T04:52:30Z")
Oopsie. Could someone notify a mod for me and get them to fix those tags? ---
**Author:** ![Askia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/96bed5/32.png) [@Askia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askia)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2005, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-substandard-governmental-response-to-the-situation-in-new-orleans/319747/244 "2005-09-05T18:22:48Z")
> [@RickJay](#): > > Uh, no. > > Washington, D.C. is about 60% black. > Baltimore, MD is 64% black. > Detroit, MI is 81% black. > Atlanta, GA is 61% black. > St. Louis, MO is 51% black. > > I could go on but won’t. Cite: > > [http://www.city-data.com/](http://www.city-data.com/) > > What the heck gives you the idea New Orleans is the only black majority city? I swear to God those estimates of DC and Atlanta have to be off by at least 10%, since they’re clearly not including the metropolitan areas and just the city limits. ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2005, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-substandard-governmental-response-to-the-situation-in-new-orleans/319747/245 "2005-09-05T18:37:35Z")
> [@Askia](#): > > I swear to God those estimates of DC and Atlanta have to be off by at least 10%, since they’re clearly not including the metropolitan areas and just the city limits. What make you think they aren’t doing the same thing to New Orleans? The racial composition for New Oreans changes pretty drastically too if you include the entire MSA and not just the city itself. ---
**Author:** ![Askia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/96bed5/32.png) [@Askia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askia)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2005, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-substandard-governmental-response-to-the-situation-in-new-orleans/319747/246 "2005-09-05T18:43:29Z")
> [@Shagnasty](#): > > What make you think they aren’t doing the same thing to New Orleans? The racial composition for New Oreans changes pretty drastically too if you include the entire MSA and not just the city itself. I don’t know New Orleans, just D.C., Detroit and Atlanta. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-the-substandard-governmental-response-to-the-situation-in-new-orleans/319747.md?page=12)