I'm not going to put the blame on the head of Fema at the time of Hurricane Katrina because this was one of Fema's first catastrophic events that they had to help with. With Government bureauracy and all the "red tape" they have to go through before they can even jump in and do "hands on" help....even the person heading Fema had his hands tied. But the Mayor of New Orleans... unless he was in that position to fill his pockets and fame his name...knew his community was in trouble and held back many of the resources that were availble to help save lives....thereby proving in my opinion he was more concerned about his position than the safety of people he governed.
@Babs Hunt I see, again. Perhaps my impressions of the conditions down there, back then, were skewed. Frank
I agree. FEMA doesn't come in until after an event, or at least that was how it worked before Katrina. The locals were the ones who knew the land and the people. Outsiders, especially ones with means, had little to no understanding of how those people lived, or that many had no transportation. The city itself is unusual, and the local and state officials had the in depth information needed to ascertain what was needed, and what they should do to get people out. I think a lot of it was the attitude that they'd survived other hurricanes with no issue, and would do the same with Katrina. I have seen and heard that attitude here, and even after what happened with Katrina, people still stayed when Ike was looming over us, and then at the last minute, tried to call for evacuation, when it was way too late for rescuers to do anything to help them. Some of those people died, and the ones who lived say they would never stay again, if faced with similar circumstances. I had some clients who were Katrina evacuees, and they were naive people who'd never been outside of that area. I don't think they had any idea what they were facing, and although of course we all have to take some personal responsibility, I place most of the blame on Ray Nagin especially, but also somewhat on the governor. I think there were also issues where some of the parish managers (I don't recall exactly what their titles are) didn't sound the alarm as much as they should have, and if so, they also deserve some of the blame. I'm sure New Orleans will never be the same as it was prior to Katrina. I know Houston and this whole area has been changed as a result of our deciding to welcome the evacuees with open arms and fast tracking subsidized housing and other benefits, to the detriment of those already here. I don't begrudge those in legitimate need, but in order to make the system equitable, the city and surrounding counties should have expanded the number of subsidized units and also increased other benefits accordingly, so those already here in need didn't suffer as a result of the mayor's largesse. We also inherited a lot of the undesireables, especially gang members, who used the event as a means of expanding their territories, and crime has increased here dramatically since Katrina. Back on the subject of Mardi Gras, we have celebrations here, although I don't think there are any up in Houston. Galveston has somewhat large parades, although I'm sure they don't rival the ones in New Orleans. We also have Yachty Gras, which is a local boat parade where the boats and people are dressed up for Mardi Gras and they toss candy and dubloons. My favorite is the animal parade. I haven't been in several years, but that's a smaller event, with less rowdiness. I've been to Lafayette, but it's been a long time. I thought it was very picturesque, and I really liked the campus of I think it was called University of Southwest Louisiana at the time, or something like that. The swamp on campus really intrigued me. For some reason, I like alligators. I liked that the town was smaller and the people were friendly. I enjoyed the drive through daiquiri places, although I'm not sure if they still exist. Cajuns definitely enjoy their celebrations, and I enjoy their food and music.
I heard , rumors?, that there are still many towns/ cities/ blocks of houses not rebuilt, not fixed, not removed.... anyone know ?