# Superdome Evacuation Stopped After Shots Fired At Helicopter **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [September 1, 2005, 12:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/superdome-evacuation-stopped-after-shots-fired-at-helicopter/319576 "2005-09-01T12:48:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Winnie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e480ec/32.png) [@Winnie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Winnie)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2005, 12:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/superdome-evacuation-stopped-after-shots-fired-at-helicopter/319576/1 "2005-09-01T12:48:57Z")
[Motherfuckers](http://www.nbc4.com/weather/4887230/detail.html?treets=dc&tml=dc_natlbreak&ts=T&tmi=dc_natlbreak_1_07550209012005) I hope the people that fired shots waste away from disease. ---
**Author:** ![Mama\_Tiger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/6de8d8/32.png) [@Mama\_Tiger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mama_Tiger)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2005, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/superdome-evacuation-stopped-after-shots-fired-at-helicopter/319576/2 "2005-09-01T12:59:08Z")
I hope that thousands of innocent people don’t die because those motherfuckers have started acting like rabid animals, turning on the only people actually in a position to help them… Fuck. Fuckety fuckety fuckety fuck. ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2005, 1:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/superdome-evacuation-stopped-after-shots-fired-at-helicopter/319576/3 "2005-09-01T13:06:04Z")
Reports late last night said looters had made their way through pawn stores and gun shops and that some were roaming the streets with loaded AK-47s. Can’t imagine a much worse scenario. Pissed off, desperate, armed criminals taking out their frustration on relief workers. Yes, it looks like some third world country in the midst of a civil war. Nope, it’s pretty much us. ---
**Author:** ![DrFidelius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drfidelius/32/3447_2.png) [@DrFidelius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrFidelius)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2005, 1:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/superdome-evacuation-stopped-after-shots-fired-at-helicopter/319576/4 "2005-09-01T13:06:59Z")
Whisky Tango Foxtrot! There’s nothing like making a horrible situation worse by shooting at the relief workers. ---
**Author:** ![bordelond](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bordelond/32/150_2.png) [@bordelond](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bordelond)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2005, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/superdome-evacuation-stopped-after-shots-fired-at-helicopter/319576/5 "2005-09-01T13:50:47Z")
Sorry – at this point, the lives of individual thugs are worth less than the lives they are preventing from being saved. “Needs of the many …”, and all. It’s worth putting down 1,000 armed “looters” if it helps evacuate 15,000 more people. YMMV. ---
**Author:** ![Unregistered\_Bull](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/3da27b/32.png) [@Unregistered\_Bull](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Unregistered_Bull)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2005, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/superdome-evacuation-stopped-after-shots-fired-at-helicopter/319576/6 "2005-09-01T14:12:08Z")
> [@bordelond](#): > > It’s worth putting down 1,000 armed “looters” if it helps evacuate 15,000 more people. YMMV. Amen! ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2005, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/superdome-evacuation-stopped-after-shots-fired-at-helicopter/319576/7 "2005-09-01T14:39:16Z")
> [@bordelond](#): > > It’s worth putting down 1,000 armed “looters” if it helps evacuate 15,000 more people. YMMV. I totally agree with you in theory but the second you put down the first couple of armed looters, you’re going to have a serious blood bath on your hands. The full on battle that will ensue will kill shitloads of innocents. ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2005, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/superdome-evacuation-stopped-after-shots-fired-at-helicopter/319576/8 "2005-09-01T14:44:21Z")
Bush discusses looter policy. [http://www.wdsu.com/news/4923471/detail.html](http://www.wdsu.com/news/4923471/detail.html) ---
**Author:** ![wolf\_meister](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolf_meister/32/15202_2.png) [@wolf\_meister](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolf_meister)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2005, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/superdome-evacuation-stopped-after-shots-fired-at-helicopter/319576/9 "2005-09-01T14:46:34Z")
I believe when Martial Law has been declared, looters can be shot (up to and including _deadly_ force.) In this case, these sleazeballs have gone WAY past the looting stage and are now into attempted murder. Are these jerks shooting at helicopters because they feel that the rescuers might be intruding on their looting activities? As you may also have heard, almost all police officers have been taken off rescue duty so they can pursue shitheads like these. I hope that by shooting at the helicopter, these cesspool dwellers have signed their death warrant. I don’t think many folks would be upset if they met up with a fatal encounter with the law. OR even left behind. ---
**Author:** ![Mama\_Tiger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/6de8d8/32.png) [@Mama\_Tiger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mama_Tiger)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2005, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/superdome-evacuation-stopped-after-shots-fired-at-helicopter/319576/10 "2005-09-01T14:50:12Z")
Well, according to a Pentagon briefing a little while ago, the Superdome evacuation has **not** been stopped because of shots fired or anything else. I hope that means they’re starting to take the streets back from the bad guys. ---
**Author:** ![bordelond](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bordelond/32/150_2.png) [@bordelond](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bordelond)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2005, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/superdome-evacuation-stopped-after-shots-fired-at-helicopter/319576/11 "2005-09-01T14:52:19Z")
> [@hajario](#): > > I totally agree with you in theory but the second you put down the first couple of armed looters, you’re going to have a serious blood bath on your hands. The full on battle that will ensue will kill shitloads of innocents. No … not sure about that. I don’t think the “looters” will have neither the manpower nor the munitions to put up a long-lasting Iraqi-style “insurgency”. ---
**Author:** ![bordelond](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bordelond/32/150_2.png) [@bordelond](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bordelond)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2005, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/superdome-evacuation-stopped-after-shots-fired-at-helicopter/319576/12 "2005-09-01T14:53:34Z")
> [@Mama Tiger](#): > > Well, according to a Pentagon briefing a little while ago, the Superdome evacuation has **not** been stopped because of shots fired or anything else. I hope that means they’re starting to take the streets back from the bad guys. Thanks for the good news. Yes, 1500 police/guardsmen were moved off of rescue/evac and re-assigned to counter-“looting”. Sounds like the area around the Superdome, at least, is secure. ---
**Author:** ![Askia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/96bed5/32.png) [@Askia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askia)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2005, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/superdome-evacuation-stopped-after-shots-fired-at-helicopter/319576/13 "2005-09-01T14:55:40Z")
One shot fired, probably not even AT the helicopter, and you people want a massacre. This has been an eye-opening week, I tell you. ---
**Author:** ![bordelond](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bordelond/32/150_2.png) [@bordelond](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bordelond)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2005, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/superdome-evacuation-stopped-after-shots-fired-at-helicopter/319576/14 "2005-09-01T14:59:39Z")
> [@Askia](#): > > One shot fired, probably not even AT the helicopter, and you people want a massacre. If the roving, armed gangs stand down, the military will stand down. No shots get fired, and everyone gets out of the city alive. How’s that? And yes, if a massacre of 1,000 will get many more out, then yes – a massacre is then right, moral, and good. You inhabit the earth with those who don’t share your morality. I am sorry. ---
**Author:** ![bordelond](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bordelond/32/150_2.png) [@bordelond](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bordelond)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2005, 3:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/superdome-evacuation-stopped-after-shots-fired-at-helicopter/319576/15 "2005-09-01T15:01:29Z")
> [@Askia](#): > > One shot fired, probably not even AT the helicopter, and you people want a massacre. BTW – it’s not one shot fired. There are reports of large buildings in the city (the Convention Center for one) that have been taken over by armed gangs. Sorry, no cite – take or leave this info. Also – one shot is all it takes for a slew of resuce copters to stay away. One shot is humungously important right now. ---
**Author:** ![Askia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/96bed5/32.png) [@Askia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askia)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2005, 3:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/superdome-evacuation-stopped-after-shots-fired-at-helicopter/319576/16 "2005-09-01T15:01:57Z")
bordelond. Your twisted morality is pretty sorry. ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2005, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/superdome-evacuation-stopped-after-shots-fired-at-helicopter/319576/17 "2005-09-01T15:03:34Z")
> [@bordelond](#): > > No … not sure about that. I don’t think the “looters” will have neither the manpower nor the munitions to put up a long-lasting Iraqi-style “insurgency”. I’m not sure where you got that idea. A fifteen to twenty minute battle with semi-automatic weapons in an area with thousands of refugees would cause a fair amount of damage. From a purely practical point of view, blowing the heads off of suspected looters is a bad idea. That said, there is a lot of hysteria going on right now. Like with most disasters, things will probably end up not being nearly as bad as the professional catastrophists are making it out to be. I predict that the New Orleans mayor’s estimates of thousands and thousands of dead will be off by a factor of ten. His predictions of ten years to rebuild will be off by a factor of five. ---
**Author:** ![bordelond](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bordelond/32/150_2.png) [@bordelond](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bordelond)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2005, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/superdome-evacuation-stopped-after-shots-fired-at-helicopter/319576/18 "2005-09-01T15:06:24Z")
> [@Askia](#): > > bordelond. Your twisted morality is pretty sorry. Same to you. Opposite sides of the looking glass. ---
**Author:** ![bordelond](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bordelond/32/150_2.png) [@bordelond](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bordelond)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2005, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/superdome-evacuation-stopped-after-shots-fired-at-helicopter/319576/19 "2005-09-01T15:10:26Z")
> [@hajario](#): > > From a purely practical point of view, blowing the heads off of suspected looters is a bad idea. Not what I’m saying, not what I’m saying, not what I’m saying. You have put words in my mouth. I’ve been writing “looters” with quotes to make clear that I meant the lawless thugs shoot at copters from their rooftops (which _is_ happening – sorry, no cite) and taking over public buildings. People who are unarmed and are just taking merchandise from wherever – of course let them go … they are not a threat to evacuation efforts. Can we please stop conflating simple looting from armed mob rule? Can we? Is this that hard to follow? Let me make it as clear as I can – anyone using weapons to hamper the evacuation efforts deserves summary death. ---
**Author:** ![bordelond](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bordelond/32/150_2.png) [@bordelond](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bordelond)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2005, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/superdome-evacuation-stopped-after-shots-fired-at-helicopter/319576/20 "2005-09-01T15:13:03Z")
> [@hajario](#): > > I’m not sure where you got that idea. A fifteen to twenty minute battle with semi-automatic weapons in an area with thousands of refugees would cause a fair amount of damage. The armed gangs are roving the flood waters and taking buildings that are not currently being used as shelters – the fight would not be in an area heavily concentrated with innocents, from what I can tell. If, for some reason, they had to go into the Superdome to restore order by force … that would be a different story. Many, many innocents are still there. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/superdome-evacuation-stopped-after-shots-fired-at-helicopter/319576.md?page=2)