That was yesterday. Today he played golf. No kidding....

[bopst]

The National Public Radio news anchor was so excited I thought she'd piss on herself: the President of the United States had flown his plane down to 1700 feet to get a better look at the flood damage! And there was a photo of our Commander-in-Chief taken looking out the window. He looked very serious and concerned.

That was yesterday. Today he played golf. No kidding. (http://www.gregpalast.com/)

Greg Palast always has his bullshit detector on. His book, "The Best Democracy Money Can Buy" is mandatory reading.

Discuss....

[aminorthreat55]

Why am I not surprised?

[bopst]

And that is a sad commentary indeed...

[Lueda Alia]

He is unbelievable.

[aminorthreat55]

This pisses me off so much.

Bopst, you should be at the Washington Monument operation ceasefire concert on September 24th.

[siberianxkiss]

Dick Cheney is fly fishing is Wisconsin
Condi Rice was shopping in NYC

wow what an administration. i dont know how any can defend them anymore. fox news was even starting to show their disgust. we are in some deep shit for the next few years

[theESCO]

That was an awesome read.

[Trainsaw]

yeah not surprised at all, he could give a shit less about the situation.

[aminorthreat55]

I submitted this to CNN. I had better see it on the news later.

[preppyak]

fox news was even starting to show their disgust.

Thats when you know its bad.

[VinnyVegas]

Actually Bill O'reilly was defending the president on his show last night.

The funniest part was when Shepard Smith and some other reporter started to disagree with O'reilly. He just ignored them and pretended like everything they were saying was sensationalized. BTW Shepard Smith and the other reporter work for Fox News; in case you didn't know.

Bill got really flustered when Smith told him that people at the Hyatt hotel had been evacuated before 1000s of other sick people. The people who were evacuated from the Hyatt were not sick, starving, or in bad shape. They actually had the balls to switch busses in front of the sick and dying people.

It made O'reilly's entire argument fall to shit. He was claiming that the slow response had nothing to do with skin color and socioeconomic background.

If it had nothing to do with skin color and socioeconomic background; then why were the (wealthy, mostly white) people from the Hyatt evacuated before the others?

It was nice to see Fox News employees actually taking a stand, and talking about what they believed in.

[bopst]

If any good can come of this, it will be that people will finally fully comprehend the incompetence of our federal government.

Also, as if they didn't know this already, if you are poor, you are totally fucked.

[selftitled85]

Actually Bill O'reilly was defending the president on his show last night.

The funniest part was when Shepard Smith and some other reporter started to disagree with O'reilly. He just ignored them and pretended like everything they were saying was sensationalized. BTW Shepard Smith and the other reporter work for Fox News; in case you didn't know.

Bill got really flustered when Smith told him that people at the Hyatt hotel had been evacuated before 1000s of other sick people. The people who were evacuated from the Hyatt were not sick, starving, or in bad shape. They actually had the balls to switch busses in front of the sick and dying people.

It made O'reilly's entire argument fall to shit. He was claiming that the slow response had nothing to do with skin color and socioeconomic background.

If it had nothing to do with skin color and socioeconomic background; then why were the (wealthy, mostly white) people from the Hyatt evacuated before the others?

It was nice to see Fox News employees actually taking a stand, and talking about what they believed in.

god i wish i could of seen this...

[bopst]

Me too...

[JacksColdSweat]

Despite all of this, I bet out great country would vote him in a third time if they could. It's depressing.

[A picasso blue]

i was surprised to scroll down and not see Cal Smith's post

[Cal Smith]

i was surprised to scroll down and not see Cal Smith's post

I've been checking refugees in all day

[Lueda Alia]

Despite all of this, I bet out great country would vote him in a third time if they could. It's depressing.
God, I don't even want to think about that. I think quite a few Republicans are opening their eyes right now, though. At least I know some who have.

To still like Bush & the administration after this.. would be absurd.

[Cal Smith]

also honestly there's not much bush can do in a situation besides declare numerous things that opens up for federal aid, and that was done before the storm even hit. if you want to blame someone (eventhough at the stage is way to early) you should look at the state governments and FEMA first.

[siberianxkiss]

True FEMA dropped the ball big time. I dont get why they are under the control of the Dept of Homeland Security. I think most people are pissed at Bush because they see pics of him at his ranch and think he acted so slowly. I cant wait to see who gets sued when all this is over with.

[Cal Smith]

True FEMA dropped the ball big time. I dont get why they are under the control of the Dept of Homeland Security. I think most people are pissed at Bush because they see pics of him at his ranch and think he acted so slowly. I cant wait to see who gets sued when all this is over with.

acted slowly doing what?

[Lueda Alia]

also honestly there's not much bush can do in a situation besides declare numerous things that opens up for federal aid, and that was done before the storm even hit. if you want to blame someone (eventhough at the stage is way to early) you should look at the state governments and FEMA first.
not you, or ANYONE in this world can stand up for the administration this time so you shouldn't even really try.

but it's amazing how you still can't admit that he fucked up. they all did.

[Cal Smith]

not you, or ANYONE in this world can stand up for the administration this time so you shouldn't even really try.

but it's amazing how you still can't admit that he fucked up. they all did.

what would you have liked to see bush himself do differently

[siberianxkiss]

All the back patting by various politicians is naueseating (not just by Bush, but local ones too). He also seems so indifferent to the whole matter, like he's being bothered. Also where the hell is Cheney? It would be nice see that he's actually alive.

[Lueda Alia]

what would you have liked to see bush himself do differently
Get off his ass and go back to Washington on Sunday, before the hurricane hit. And not DAYS after, leaving people without food, water, medical help.. for freaking decades. What kind of president goes to party when one of his cities (more actually than one actually..) is being flooded/messed up and thousands of people are dying?

If I was American, I would feel less safe now than a week ago.

All the back patting by various politicians is naueseating (not just by Bush, but local ones too). He also seems so indifferent to the whole matter, like he's being bothered. Also where the hell is Cheney? It would be nice see that he's actually alive.
Oh, he's on vacation too. And Condi as well. They were all too busy having a good time to be bothered with this whole thing.

[Cal Smith]

Get off his ass and go back to Washington on Sunday, before the hurricane hit. And not DAYS after, leaving people without food, water, medical help.. for freaking decades. What kind of president goes to party when one of his cities (more actually than one actually..) is being flooded/messed up and thousands of people are dying?

So Bush going to Washington would have not left people without food, water, and medical help?

[Lueda Alia]

So Bush going to Washington would have not left people without food, water, and medical help?What kind of messed up questoin is that? Come on now, seriously.

Yes, I realize you adore Bush but Jesus Christ...... stop defending the man even when he fucks up so much. It's not right.

[kobrien3]

excuse me while i vent...

although i don't agree with the action taken regarding the hurricane victims, people were given 3 days to evacuate. everyone in the area was warned about the oncoming storm, it was those with the means and opportunities to leave that did. those with less money basically just didn't have the chance to get out in time and those are the people who were stuck when the storm hit and were then rescued and sent to the superdome and have had so many problems since then. none of it is good, by any means, but the reality is... those who can do and those who can't suffer. it's awful but that just shows the type of society we live in.

now i'm not saying that we shouldn't help these people simply because they couldn't get out in time... hell no we should provide as much support as humanly possible to these people in the quickest manner possible. but the responsibility does not rest entirely on our president.

our government is set up like a giant corporation (follow me here...): we have the ceo who oversees everything -- takes the blame when things go wrong and the credit when things are good. then there are managers who are really at the heart of the company and are really the ones responsible for the interworkings of the company. the government has the senate that controls how money is spent (although the president can make suggestions and they are usually put into place) but ultimately the spending is in the hands of the legislative branch.

additionally there are many private organizations and some government orgs structured specifically for this type of work: the red cross and FEMA, for example. these are the type of organizations we need to see in this area because they are the most cost effective because they have less bullshit to wade through -- they can just help people. getting the national guard involved really doesn't do much other than create a sense of security for these people and extra hands to give out food.

to sum it all up:
1. the evacuation effort was not intended to be a racially or socioeconomically biased, but that is how grotesquely our society has evolved -- captialism at it's "finest": only the strong survive (horrible, but it's reality kids!)
2. although the government has an obligation to its citizens to provide as much assistance as possible, it is not solely the government's responsibility to clear up this entire disaster -- nor is it our governments responsibility to clean up other's disasters, although it seems like they have more time to do that (which i think is absolute bullshit)
3. the american people and emergency relief organizations will be the key to saving the people who have been hit the worst by katrina. there is just too much red tape and bullshit the gov has to go through to be effective.

so this was incredibly long and i'm sorry if you read all of it. i just wanted to shed a realistic point of view on the situation. no government infrastucture is perfect, present country included, and katrina poses a huge threat to the integrity of our government (if you believe it has any left) -- but it needs to be understood that the best they can do is never good enough no matter what administration is in power... people have been complaining about our presidents for decades. the heart of the issue really is to provide for the people heavily affected by katrina not to point fingers or play the blame game. donate to the red cross if you really want to help -- don't sit at your computer and bitch about what other people haven't done. what happened, happened... look to the future and hope for the best.

[Cal Smith]

What kind of messed up questoin is that? Come on now, seriously.

Yes, I realize you adore Bush but Jesus Christ...... stop defending the man even when he fucks up so much. It's not right.

Well I asked you what he could have done differently and you answered, "go to washington".

[jsteil]

He could of federaly called upon the voluntary and inactive reserve a few days before Monday. ( it doesnt take 3 days to callup personel, when my dad was active they gave him 24 hours and he was gone and on his way to turkey, saudi, or south korea and he got their within a few days and were talking halfway around the world). I know some reservest here in kansas city who were asked to go help, and i mean asked, not told, which is bull shit because why are we paying these people to be voluntary reservest if their not going to serve because they have college or work. Im going to say that it wasn't only GW, but pretty much most of our federal government that dropped the ball on this one and many other things like accepting aid from other countries.

[I am all talk]

Well I asked you what he could have done differently and you answered, "go to washington".
he could have stopped hating black people.

[Justin_stacy]

not you, or ANYONE in this world can stand up for the administration this time so you shouldn't even really try.

but it's amazing how you still can't admit that he fucked up. they all did.

Why are you so determined to place the majority of the blame on Bush? I understand that you’re a feverish Bush opponent, and would fault him primarily, even without reason, when the chance provides itself. But honestly is it Bush's fault that Nagin didn't do his job, I don't remember Bush ever appointing him mayor?

City charter deems the Mayor, directly, responsible for evacuating those who lack the ability to do so themselves, and even provides him with a how-to-manual on how to do this within 48 hours, why didn't he do it, and why aren't people like you and other far lefties puting any blame on him for those that are starving or dieing? Why did he allow city buses to be flooded rather then use them for evacuation? Knowing that something like this was eminent, why didn't he get his police/fire departments at least one boat? Isn't the first line of action far more responsible for what happens, then the third?

Now that’s not say Bush’s administration is free of fault, Washington’s response was slow, that is undeniable, but they are the third line of response whose sole stated duty is to support and assist local responses, not direct them. The fact is most of the lose and subsequent disasters there after are more the fault of the local governments, the inept mayor Nagin and the governor Blanco, then that of Bush. So I ask where your criticism of them, is?

Does not the incompetence of Liberals like this group make you question your own fondness of the left and their inability to protect you?

[youcomebeforeyo]

Democrats, left wing?

Haha.

That'll be the day.

[Alex Djaferis]

Actually Bill O'reilly was defending the president on his show last night.

The funniest part was when Shepard Smith and some other reporter started to disagree with O'reilly. He just ignored them and pretended like everything they were saying was sensationalized. BTW Shepard Smith and the other reporter work for Fox News; in case you didn't know.

Bill got really flustered when Smith told him that people at the Hyatt hotel had been evacuated before 1000s of other sick people. The people who were evacuated from the Hyatt were not sick, starving, or in bad shape. They actually had the balls to switch busses in front of the sick and dying people.

It made O'reilly's entire argument fall to shit. He was claiming that the slow response had nothing to do with skin color and socioeconomic background.

If it had nothing to do with skin color and socioeconomic background; then why were the (wealthy, mostly white) people from the Hyatt evacuated before the others?

It was nice to see Fox News employees actually taking a stand, and talking about what they believed in.


absolutely pathetic. thumbs up to the administration.

fuckers.

[Justin_stacy]

Democrats, left wing?

Haha.


Its good isn't it.......almost as funny as when people call Bush a conservative or, most humorous of all, a far right winger.....

[Lueda Alia]

Why are you so determined to place the majority of the blame on Bush? I understand that you’re a feverish Bush opponent, and would fault him primarily, even without reason, when the chance provides itself. But honestly is it Bush's fault that Nagin didn't do his job, I don't remember Bush ever appointing him mayor?

City charter deems the Mayor, directly, responsible for evacuating those who lack the ability to do so themselves, and even provides him with a how-to-manual on how to do this within 48 hours, why didn't he do it, and why aren't people like you and other far lefties puting any blame on him for those that are starving or dieing? Why did he allow city buses to be flooded rather then use them for evacuation? Knowing that something like this was eminent, why didn't he get his police/fire departments at least one boat? Isn't the first line of action far more responsible for what happens, then the third?

Now that’s not say Bush’s administration is free of fault, Washington’s response was slow, that is undeniable, but they are the third line of response whose sole stated duty is to support and assist local responses, not direct them. The fact is most of the lose and subsequent disasters there after are more the fault of the local governments, the inept mayor Nagin and the governor Blanco, then that of Bush. So I ask where your criticism of them, is?

Does not the incompetence of Liberals like this group make you question your own fondness of the left and their inability to protect you?
No I wouldn't accuse Bush without reason.

And when something like this happens, the State in trouble needs help. It can't do everything on its own. So where the hell was the federal government? And most importantly, where was Bush?

Oh wait, he was out partying and so were his other buddies Dick and Condi. I forgot.

And by the way, I'm putting the blame on the whole administration, not only Bush. In fact, I'm blaming everyone who didn't do everything in their power to save more lives.

It just so happens that Bush leads the country and he has the power to send/order people to help. And he didn't do that.

[Paul Tao]

i'm writing about this. gimme a day or two.

[Lueda Alia]

i'm writing about this. gimme a day or two.
hurry yo azn ass up.

[Justin_stacy]

And when something like this happens, the State in trouble needs help..

But isn't the state/city at fault for not being prepared for an event they knew was coming? How can you honestly fault Bush, primarly, for "his" response to their incompetence? These are locally elected official.....Do people not reap what they sow?

It can't do everything on its own. So where the hell was the federal government? .

The government can not be excepected to instantly correct the failed actions of a state or city. FEMA's objective is to only assist, not direct or lead in a recovery. And since there was no local lead to follow and no local leader to stand up and take charge, it is no wonder that FEMA has been slow to respond.

And most importantly, where was Bush? .

Where was Nagic or Blanco or the Police cheif or the City Counclemen? Where was the Giuliani or the Pataki, or the Jeb.........Isn't the where abouts and lead of the local leaders more important then the President in an instances like this?


It just so happens that Bush leads the country and he has the power to send/order people to help. And he didn't do that.

and neither did the people most responsible to do so........and they hold far more blame then Bush does, and should be the center of attention, though not the only ones being critiqued....


To be fair i'm no fan of Bush and i've never tried to go out of my way to defend him. Iraq is bullshit, the border situtation is bullshit, his spending habbits are bullshit, his energy plans are bullshit......but there is no honest way he can be at the center of the blame game that New Orlean's has turned into. Its just disgusting what the Elite media has started.

[siberianxkiss]

maybe Bush should go and hand out bags of ice like he did in Florida with his brother Jeb right before the election :shake:

defending FEMA. WOW people are just way out of touch with the situation

[Jason Tate]

But isn't the state/city at fault for not being prepared for an event they knew was coming? How can you honestly fault Bush, primarly, for "his" response to their incompetence? These are locally elected official.....Do people not reap what they sow?



The government can not be excepected to instantly correct the failed actions of a state or city. FEMA's objective is to only assist, not direct or lead in a recovery. And since there was no local lead to follow and no local leader to stand up and take charge, it is no wonder that FEMA has been slow to respond.



Where was Nagic or Blanco or the Police cheif or the City Counclemen? Where was the Giuliani or the Pataki, or the Jeb.........Isn't the where abouts and lead of the local leaders more important then the President in an instances like this?



and neither did the people most responsible to do so........and they hold far more blame then Bush does, and should be the center of attention, though not the only ones being critiqued....


To be fair i'm no fan of Bush and i've never tried to go out of my way to defend him. Iraq is bullshit, the border situtation is bullshit, his spending habbits are bullshit, his energy plans are bullshit......but there is no honest way he can be at the center of the blame game that New Orlean's has turned into. Its just disgusting what the Elite media has started.
Center no. But when the cock-and-balls stands up and says all the shit he did about protecting America, and then falls flat on his fucking face - he only asked to be blamed for all this shit.

[Paul Tao]

hurry yo azn ass up.
it's up now, btw. http://www.absolutepunk.net/showthread.php?t=85349