# Katrina person one year later-have I missed the spoof, or is this guy for real?
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/katrina-person-one-year-later-have-i-missed-the-spoof-or-is-this-guy-for-real/359580
**Category:** The BBQ Pit
**Created:** [June 6, 2006, 5:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/katrina-person-one-year-later-have-i-missed-the-spoof-or-is-this-guy-for-real/359580 "2006-06-06T05:10:57Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 6
### Author:  [@roger\_thornhill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/roger_thornhill)
#### Post date: [June 7, 2006, 4:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/katrina-person-one-year-later-have-i-missed-the-spoof-or-is-this-guy-for-real/359580/101 "2006-06-07T04:41:18Z")
Indeed. And am I the only person who had a mental image of the man using that bed on which he’s sitting to masturbate about Halle Berry? Like I said, hideous hack article.
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### Author:  [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)
#### Post date: [June 7, 2006, 4:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/katrina-person-one-year-later-have-i-missed-the-spoof-or-is-this-guy-for-real/359580/102 "2006-06-07T04:46:22Z")
That man is not depressed; that man has a good thing going, and he doesn’t want it to end. If someone put me up in a hotel and gave me $9000, I might just lie around and watch tv, too. Was he
As for how special humans are, there are six billion of us. We’re not all special. In fact, most of us are decidedly un-special. You know what’s special? 6000 tigers left in the entire world.
It is a noble idea to keep every single human alive for as long as possible, and go to extreme lengths to make sure every human who wants to can reproduce, but I’m not sure that’s going to be good for the human race in the long run from a biological standpoint.
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### Author:  [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)
#### Post date: [June 7, 2006, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/katrina-person-one-year-later-have-i-missed-the-spoof-or-is-this-guy-for-real/359580/103 "2006-06-07T04:48:09Z")
Oops, left a thought unfinished. I was starting to say, “Was he a product of his environment and his upbringing, that he would waste $9000 and then stick his hand out for more? Sure. But he is also a mature human being who can change himself and his life if he makes the decision to do so.”
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### Author:  [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)
#### Post date: [June 7, 2006, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/katrina-person-one-year-later-have-i-missed-the-spoof-or-is-this-guy-for-real/359580/104 "2006-06-07T04:51:20Z")
> [@Askia](#):
>
> I think while the racial biases aren’t all that damning, some are definitely there, playing to the stereotype of blacks being lazy, lustful, childish and poor money managers.
Unfortunately, this guy actually does sound like a lazy, lustful, childish jerk who can’t/won’t manage his money.
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### Author:  [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)
#### Post date: [June 7, 2006, 4:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/katrina-person-one-year-later-have-i-missed-the-spoof-or-is-this-guy-for-real/359580/105 "2006-06-07T04:55:12Z")
> [@Weirddave](#):
>
> Perhaps the pit isn’t the place to be asking an honest question, but I’ll take a stab at it anyway( actually, it’s the perfect place cuz I’m gonna get toasted for this one ). Just what are these drawbacks? I’ve always wondered about all of these people who so viehamently assert that human life has inherent value. Why? I just don’t get it. Personally, I think that human life does have value, but it’s based upon what individual humans _do_. Each of you reading this right now interacts with society and in some way makes life better for others. It might be picking up a piece of trash, or helping an old lady across the street, it might just be that you’re amusing and people like having you around. Value is value, it doesn’t have to be on the scale of “saving children from a burning building”. People like the guy in the article, habitual repeat criminals, hopeless drug addicts, etc…they are nothing but parasites. They’re useless. Any value they might have from picking up trash or amusing people is far outweighed by their cost to society. Shooting them in the back of the head would definitely benefit society as a whole, yet we don’t do that. Why? Why do we as a whole believe that human beings are inherently valuable? To put it back context of the OP, if this guy were to die tomorrow, what would the loss be? The gain would be society no longer having to support this deadbeat. What’s the downside?
If you’re looking for some light diversion this summer, might i suggest the work of William Graham Sumner. His Social Darwinism might appeal to you.
Admittedly, he didn’t actually advocate the killing of social “parasites,” as you so charmingly put it, but he did suggest that society would be better off without them around.
> [@William Graham Sumner](#):
>
> The sociologist is often asked if he wants to kill off certain classes of troublesome and burdensome persons. No such inference follows from any sound sociological doctrine, but it is allowed to infer, as to a great many persons and classes, that it would have been better for society, and would have involved no pain to them, if they had never been born.
This quote is taken from his essay “Sociology,” which can be found [here](http://www.hti.umich.edu/cgi/t/text/pageviewer-idx?c=moajrnl;cc=moajrnl;q1=born;rgn=full%20text;idno=acf4325.3-01.008;didno=acf4325.3-01.008;view=image;seq=0307;node=acf4325.3-01.008%3A17).
There’s also his classic work, [What Social Classes Owe to Each Other](http://oll.libertyfund.org/Home3/Book.php?recordID=0317). While it’s impossible to reduce a 160-page book to one word, the general impression one gets is that his answer is “nothing.”
You guys should get along great.
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### Author:  [@Lochdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lochdale)
#### Post date: [June 7, 2006, 6:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/katrina-person-one-year-later-have-i-missed-the-spoof-or-is-this-guy-for-real/359580/106 "2006-06-07T06:12:31Z")
Instead of insulting WierdDave why not make an effort to refute his posts and/or Sumner’s point of view?
Or are you such a lazy sack of shite that you can’t be arsed to do that 😃
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### Author:  [@Askia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askia)
#### Post date: [June 7, 2006, 6:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/katrina-person-one-year-later-have-i-missed-the-spoof-or-is-this-guy-for-real/359580/107 "2006-06-07T06:38:02Z")
> [@Marley23](#):
>
> Unfortunately, this guy actually does sound like a lazy, lustful, childish jerk who can’t/won’t manage his money.
Superficial biased reporting will do that.
There’s a huge difference between _can’t_ manage money and _won’t_ manage money, too.
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### Author:  [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)
#### Post date: [June 7, 2006, 6:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/katrina-person-one-year-later-have-i-missed-the-spoof-or-is-this-guy-for-real/359580/108 "2006-06-07T06:40:56Z")
> [@Askia](#):
>
> Superficial biased reporting will do that.
But what’s your basis for saying the reporting is superficial and biased? The fact that he didn’t offer proof for the “partying” comment and that he notes Johnson doesn’t like to beg for change? What you’re actually doing is making guesses about how the reporter learned these things. It’s equally possible that Johnson SAID he spent the money on partying and that he doesn’t like begging for change, for example.
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### Author:  [@Zoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zoe)
#### Post date: [June 7, 2006, 6:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/katrina-person-one-year-later-have-i-missed-the-spoof-or-is-this-guy-for-real/359580/109 "2006-06-07T06:53:21Z")
> [@](#):
>
> **Askia** : …the ones so old and hopeless they have no family or friends for support. They stray from the herd, they get picked off. That’s nature’s way of culling the weak and protecting the productive members of the herd.
You are invited for tea and chloroform when you are in Nashville.
~Ole Miz Zoe
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### Author:  [@Askia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askia)
#### Post date: [June 7, 2006, 7:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/katrina-person-one-year-later-have-i-missed-the-spoof-or-is-this-guy-for-real/359580/110 "2006-06-07T07:43:44Z")
> [@Zoe](#):
>
> You are invited for tea and chloroform when you are in Nashville.
>
> ~Ole Miz Zoe
Oh, YEAH? Well I [Snips wisass remarks when I remember who I’m dealing with, here.] and I ain’t a-sceerd of you or your funny tasting drinks nohow! 😛
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### Author:  [@roger\_thornhill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/roger_thornhill)
#### Post date: [June 7, 2006, 7:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/katrina-person-one-year-later-have-i-missed-the-spoof-or-is-this-guy-for-real/359580/111 "2006-06-07T07:52:30Z")
Zoe, is this an _Arsenic and Old Lace_-style reference/joke, or am I playing my usual dumb foreigner role to perfection?
I can almost hear someone saying it, so I’ll get it in first: [“You are quite convincing, I assure you.”](http://www.nobby.de/e_mnbn.htm)
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### Author:  [@kambuckta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kambuckta)
#### Post date: [June 7, 2006, 10:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/katrina-person-one-year-later-have-i-missed-the-spoof-or-is-this-guy-for-real/359580/112 "2006-06-07T10:51:20Z")
> [@Lissa](#):
>
> You know, this does beg the question. How different are the morals of this man as compared to the morals of our nation (US)? I was listening to NPR this morning and they were talking about corruption with the Iraq funds. One dude in charge of these funds sent an email to another who was giving him kick backs “I just love giving you money”. How are these individuals (in regards to their values) any different from this parasitic piece of shit.
>
> The rich do it, the poor do it, it is a not a sub-culture, IT IS A CULTURE.
>
> How many of our principles are “up for sale”.
>
> A thousand examples exist and I assure you they are not racially or sexually bound.
>
> Parasites? We are a society filled of them.
This bears repeating.
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### Author:  [@Askia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askia)
#### Post date: [June 7, 2006, 2:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/katrina-person-one-year-later-have-i-missed-the-spoof-or-is-this-guy-for-real/359580/113 "2006-06-07T14:28:41Z")
> [@Marley23](#):
>
> But what’s your basis for saying the reporting is superficial and biased? The fact that he didn’t offer proof for the “partying” comment and that he notes Johnson doesn’t like to beg for change? What you’re actually doing is making guesses about how the reporter learned these things. It’s equally possible that Johnson SAID he spent the money on partying and that he doesn’t like begging for change, for example.
You’re right I’m making guesses. That’s because the reporter didn’t do his job with his sources.
1. **It’s superficial because the sources aren’t well-documented and identified.** No one in management from the Holiday Inn is used as a direct source, nor are they identified as an indirect source of information. We only have the reporter’s word that Sharon the caseworker has relevant information and is assumed to be part of a germaine social agency. Plus I don’t like the one-sided treatment of Johnson – his side of the story is completely missing. Which means either he didn’t do his job or is possibly making shit up – which he will totally get away with, given that Johnson is a poor, dispossessed, homeless guy with an apparently frustrated advocate. 2) **It’s biased because of words used by the reporter.** Decriptors like “lazy lust,” “booze,” “partying,” have no business in the factual text of an article unless its clear the’s writer is _paraphrasing_ a direct quote from a source in the story. The reporter seems to be making his own judgements and drawing his own conclusions. That’s bias. This ain’t an op-ed piece, (that I’m aware of) this is news.
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### Author:  [@Clothahump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clothahump)
#### Post date: [June 7, 2006, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/katrina-person-one-year-later-have-i-missed-the-spoof-or-is-this-guy-for-real/359580/114 "2006-06-07T14:47:36Z")
**Q.E.D.** , you left out the sentence before that one, which makes the whole situation even more of a candidate for the Twilight Zone:
> [@](#):
>
> _fema sent him $9,000 in housing aid, but he spent it all on booze, cigarettes, some clothes, and food—partying, mostly._ “I spent my money just the way I wanted, and I think [fema] should send me some more,” he says.
(emphasis mine)
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### Author:  [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)
#### Post date: [June 7, 2006, 3:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/katrina-person-one-year-later-have-i-missed-the-spoof-or-is-this-guy-for-real/359580/115 "2006-06-07T15:41:15Z")
> [@Lochdale](#):
>
> Instead of insulting WierdDave why not make an effort to refute his posts and/or Sumner’s point of view?
Where’s the insult?
I described Sumner’s views as Social Darwinist, and anyone who knows anything about American intellectual history would agree with me. The views of **weirddave** , as presented in this thread, are also Social Darwinism. Sumner also has other views about free markets and social responsibility that **dave** , based on the positions he’s taken on this board, would probably agree with.
If you called me a Social Darwinist, i might be insulted, because i don’t espouse such views; i am, in fact, a social meliorist. But if one expresses Social Darwinist views, then one shouldn’t be surprised when others give those views their proper name.
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### Author:  [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)
#### Post date: [June 7, 2006, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/katrina-person-one-year-later-have-i-missed-the-spoof-or-is-this-guy-for-real/359580/116 "2006-06-07T16:24:10Z")
> [@Askia](#):
>
> You’re right I’m making guesses. That’s because the reporter didn’t do his job with his sources.
The reason you’re making guesses is that you want to look at it a different way. The reporter does use biased language, and he could be clearer with his sources. But the making shit up/didn’t do his job part, unfortunately, is what you’d like to think. Maybe I’m holding someone else to my own standards, but if the guy writes Johnson spent most of the money on partying, I’m gonna guess that it’s because Johnson described his activities that way.
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### Author:  [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)
#### Post date: [June 7, 2006, 4:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/katrina-person-one-year-later-have-i-missed-the-spoof-or-is-this-guy-for-real/359580/117 "2006-06-07T16:37:59Z")
You know what, screw it. I’m putting more effort into defending this piece than it deserves. I don’t think the author is going for any racial stereotypes, but he IS trying to shock people by making Johnson look as lazy as possible, which is reflected in the word choices you’re complaining about. He could have written a piece that was harder to attack if he’d sourced things better, and, more importantly, if he’d offered any kind of balance. Even if everything he says is true, he handles it poorly.
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### Author:  [@jakeline](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jakeline)
#### Post date: [June 7, 2006, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/katrina-person-one-year-later-have-i-missed-the-spoof-or-is-this-guy-for-real/359580/118 "2006-06-07T18:27:15Z")
> [@danceswithcats](#):
>
> Dunno about you **jakeline** , but having one’s ass tossed out on the street should be sufficient motivation, dontcha think? The subject of my OP has had a significant space of time to get his matters in order and move forward, taking responsibility for his life. Rather than doing so, he’s been a lazy sack of shit, and deserves nothing more on the public dime.
That’s an interesting point. However, if everyone was motivated by being tossed out on the street, we wouldn’t have such a homeless problem, no? He’s been fed, clothed, and taken care of. If his situation in the hotel is better than the situation at home, why does he have any motivation to go back?
I’m not saying that he isn’t an asshole. I’m not saying that he’s not lazy. I’m not saying he hasn’t abused the hell out of the system. I’m not saying that we should give him a dime more unless he works for it. I’m simply saying that we don’t know know what a person is capable of.
> [@danceswithcats](#):
>
> I can’t _give_ you self-esteem. It has to come from within.
Completely agreed.
> [@danceswithcats](#):
>
> I can’t _give_ you motivation. It has to come from within.
This is demonstrably false. If I held a gun to your head and told you to do 20 jumpjacks, or I’ll pull the trigger, that’s a pretty good motivation to start calesthenics. However, I think (and I could be wrong) that you’re saying that motivation from external sources is never as powerful as motivation from within. If that’s what you’re saying, then I completely agree with that as well.
> [@danceswithcats](#):
>
> So long as you give a man a fish, he will lie on his ass in a boat, waiting for the next fish, because he knows you’ll bring it to him. He has no incentive to learn how to fish. Kick his sorry ass out of the boat and refuse to give him a fish, and he’ll either starve or learn to fish.
However, if he starts to starve, he will go to a public hospital and use up their precious resources trying to get fed. Or if he starves to death, his family will raise hell and try to sue whoever threw him out of the boat.
I don’t have any quick and easy answers, obviously, but there are (and I believe always will be) people who will take advantage of the system if they can.
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### Author:  [@even\_sven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/even_sven)
#### Post date: [June 7, 2006, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/katrina-person-one-year-later-have-i-missed-the-spoof-or-is-this-guy-for-real/359580/119 "2006-06-07T18:47:52Z")
It sounds to me like he is mentally ill to me.
But in the scheme of things, 9k isn’t that much. If you lost your home, your job, your car and everything you owned, 9k probably would be a drop in the bucket towards getting your life back together- the Peace Corps gives returned volunteers a 6k reajustment payment, and this is for mostly young people who chose this path and were able to plan on it.
I have some professor-friends who lost their homes to Katrina, and now they may well end up homeless (couch surfing most-likely, since they are of the class that they have social connections in most major cities) because their FEMA money is running out. It’s not so easy to just pick up a professor job, and they havn’t really been able to stay in place long. Sad story, really. But at least they have the resources to know that they won’t always be like this.
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### Author:  [@Inigo\_Montoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inigo_Montoya)
#### Post date: [June 7, 2006, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/katrina-person-one-year-later-have-i-missed-the-spoof-or-is-this-guy-for-real/359580/120 "2006-06-07T19:59:04Z")
I am such an enigma…I’m all about using tax dollars as a sort of insurance pool for those who get smitten by the Hand of God. I think it takes this great big country a step closer to being a small community. But just as soon as someone demonstrates a parasitic nature on such a system, they need to receive a deep facial brand and be barred from further assistance, and persecuted as a nuisance by law enforcement if they attempt to freelance their laziness on street corners.
Oh, and **DEFIANT 1** , if you mean “Fucking lazy Southern Nigger” then just say it. You might just find that, while an unpopular term in some circles, you will in fact receive a greater degree of respect around here simply by not coming off as a sneaky, backpeddaling liar. If you’re not eventually banned, please allow me to be the first to invite you to just get the fuck out of here.
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