President Obama,
From the very beginning I supported you, because we were indeed in need of change. I believed in you!
It seems today that nothing has changed.
This country saddens me. I along with hundereds of others in Suwannee County Florida are desperate for assistance. Many of us along the suwannee river have lost our homes from the flooding of the Suwannee River beginning April 09,2009.The waters took 16 days to return to the river banks. I personally have suffered a total loss of home and personal property and have been left with the title of "Long term Recovery". Although they have given me this title and I have suffered greatly, there is still NOTHING being done. I am without a home, without all comfort, without work.. well just without!
What is going on? When the city and county government keep telling me that we dont have a presidential declaration, I just sigh. When or if this does happen.. I mean the declaration, there are still no guarentees. But untill it happens... the disaster declaration ... there is nothing!
The city and county governments are waiting .. waiting for you Mr. President, because they dont have funding to help us.
Whether you declar us or not, I have now had the oppertunity to witness first hand what this country will do for those in need. Most dont understand at all because they have lost nothing. They have a life and a home and truly could never imagine what it feels like to have your life ripped from you in an instant and then wait for assistance. To get back to the matter at hand, the city and county have closed all red cross services. They are no longer at a national level. Rather than seeing doors open for me.. I see them closing! I cant even get SBA assistance!
Why does it take soo long?
I am desperate President Obama, please help Suwannee County Florida!
Every US citizen should have oppertunity to recover even if YOU are not the one affected.
Thanks for your time,
Annette
If i could, I really need to take a moment to point out a few failures in the system.
First
DTV.. We had no local information. When the switch happened in Feb, we lost all local information. We were just out of range. Although we had allof the equipment ie: new digital TV[s] , new Antenna we still could not receive. We contacted our local station WCTV and asked for assistance. I also wrote them an email and remember saying " God forbid if there were a disaster.. how would I know" ... anyway, the local WCTV insisted it was MY fault and i should continue to look for a problem. Needless to say there was no problem on my end, we were just too far away from the transmission. Soooo the bottom line... DTV bad idea.. the US gov eft me in the dark.
Second
Local alerts failed. We were told after the flood, that thw wildlife [put in place as law enforcment during emergencie] had gone to residents to alert them of the flood coming. Well guess what..Noone came to my home. We were never alerted to the flood waters coming.
Third
Now that we had actually been caught in the rising flood waters, now that we made our escape [please readour other blog post] from the rushing land deadening water, you have to hear what happened. We went immediately to high ground, straight to the church very close to us across county road 250, to ACV. There was a Florida fire rescue truck parked close to the village grocer. My husband and I were saturated well above our waistlines. It was EVIDENT that we had been through something.. anyway, my husband began to approach the emergency vehicle after watching the LT return with a cup of coffee in hand form the Villagegrocer. It was barely 8:30 am and cool around 45 degrees. My husband went to approach him.. he was a rather large man, sitting comfortable on the seet off his blazer type emergency vehicle, wearing a grey t-shirt. As my husband drew closer, he could see the LT was on his cell phone. The stately large LT motioned to my husband that he was on the phone... he actually gave him the hand.. letting him know to stop and wait. Remember, my husband was saturated from his waist down and dripping wet. After bout 2 or3 minutes the LT hung up his cell phone. Finally my husband would hve the chance to explain what happened and ask .. ask anything.. My husband began to tell the story explaining that we had just been caught in the flood, lost everything and... The LT cell phone rand again. Again my husband was told to wait for the call to end... When the call was finished, my husband began the story again.. When he was nearly done.. I say nearly because he was not given the chance to tell the whole story.. The LT from fire rescue looks at my husband and says "call emergency management".. then asked my husband if he had a pen.. HUH???Please tell me how a flood victim, soaking wet.. distraught.. would have a thought to grab a pen as he was escaping the flood!!! Soo you see myproblem here... The LT quickly found his pen and jotted down the number. Before I go on, I'll put these questions to you.. Why were we not asked if everyone was ok? Is there anyone else left behind?... Are you hurt?.. Do you need medical attention?? Why were we not even asked the most logical questions a rescue person would ask.. after all the Rescue truck did have the 911 on it.. I thought they would help! To get back.. after the rescue LT handed my husband the number, he tells him.. "I have to go". He began to back out.. and from the front seatof his vehicle stretches out his hands and says.."I'm Sorry"... You can seeclerly that we were not off to a good start.
Forth
We called the number the Fire rescue provided for emergency management. By this time I was already exhausted both mentally and physically. Between escaping with our lives and dealing with what appeared to be no thought to our perril, I called them. All went ok I guess..they took the property info and names of the household all the normal questions.. But we were the first to call in our county. There were NO Red Cross shelters available at that time. sooo there was NO PLACE FOR US TO GO. The emergency management did say that they would be opening a shelter.. but for us, right then there was NO PLACEfor us. Imagine. we lost everything, we were passed off by fire rescue and now we had no place to go... more on the way
Hello everyone. As the editor of VisionsGreen, Here is my continued story on ‘Victim of Suwanee River Flooding’.
For some background, The Suwanee river in Florida has been over flowing its banks. 12 counties have been affected by the flooding. My story is just one of them.
washed out homes.. where are the homes?
I’ll try to start at the beginning. It was a cool morning in Suwannee county, 45 degrees or so. Waking up was not like all the other days we woke up in our home. This time it was different. As I set my feet on the floor, There was water! I frantically called out to my husband telling him we have water! Over and Over, “we have water”, i said. That in itself was scary. As I continued through our home, I looked out the window and there was nothing but a sea of brown water and debris. We were completely surrounded by 3 feet of water outside. What makes this even scarier is the fact that my husband does not swim. Would I be able to save him as the water continued to rise?
VisionsGreen front property
We were scrambling through our home trying to decide what to take. We were grabbing things that just didn’t make sense. On a trip out the door, we realized that the water was rising at an alarming rate. In only a short 15 minutes, the water had risen 6 inches or more. We knew it, we had run out of time. Suddenly my husband turns to me and says,” I’m sorry Annette, it’s over, it’s gone” It is amazing when you begin to take things with you, just what is important. Actually, looking back, just our lives is all that need be saved. As it turned out we had no time to take anything anyway.
Before I finish this thought, for one moment, let me take you to these flood waters. When you see a flood, whether it is in the media or photos, you imagine the waters are still. They are not!!! At least not theses flood waters. The current of the water, the force of the water was just like a river. Moving faster where low spots are filled beneath the rushing water. The sounds of your world deadened by the volumes of water covering the land. Sounds you only remember in sleep. They say a picture is worth a thousand words, but not in this case. I pray that I will never experience the force of flood waters ever in my life again.
Every thing was left behind because the water was coming so quickly. The only thing we managed to take with us was our dog and a few important papers. We searched all over for our cat. When I could not find her, I assumed the worse, that she had drowned. As it turns out she did not drown. A few days after the flooding began, a neighbor alerted the rescue workers in the area that we could not find her. That she may still be alive in there somewhere. The rescue workers took a boat to the property and found her high, but not dry. She is now with an adoptive family until we can return and bring her home. We were able to escape the rising flood waters with our electric bikes. I know how it sounds, but it is true. The waters were not passable for vehicles. But Bikes, that is a completely different story. We were pedaling through 30″ of water. Once we were through the rising waters and on higher ground, we discovered that the electrics still worked. Even though the bikes were completely submerged, can you believe it, the electrics still worked. Had we not had the bikes, we would have been waiting for rescue. There is no way we would have been able to pass the waters on foot. There just wasn’t enough time. And as I said, my husband does not swim. I just cant for even a moment imagine what could have happened. Our property, without exaggeration was under 10 ft of water. The river has finally crested and has begun to recede. Our property is still under 7 ft of water. Who knows how long it will take the waters to return to the river. Approximately 200 homes have been lost to the flood. That is the last update given to me, it could be higher today. Sadly, we are now at the mercy of the government. We wait for the decoration and then fema.As a victim, allow me to express my opinion on the process of declaration by the president. I have never seen such red tape in all of my days. Did you know that the president wont even look at the declaration request until there is a quota met!!!!! There has to be so much destruction and or loss before he signs anything. Before fema can do anything.. before we get help. If I sound angry, I’m not. What I am is disappointed in the system and how our state and government work. You see without the presidential declaration, we wait.. we wait because the states don’t have funding to cover these types of disasters without government assistance. What a pile of.. well you know, poo. Honestly.. We evacuated the area. Some friends opened their home to us, but now.. we are at a total loss. We have no home, no clothes, no food, no financial aide, and the list goes on .. while we wait for President Obama to say enough lives have been affected, enough property has been lost. Essentially we are victims twice. First of the flood and now of the Government red tape. May God help us and all who have been affected by the Suwannee river floods! !
VisionsGreen Looses everything to Suwannee River Flood!
The President today declared a major disaster exists in the State of North Dakota and ordered Federal aid to supplement State and local recovery efforts in the area struck by severe storms and flooding beginning on March 13, 2009, and continuing.
Federal funding is available to State and eligible local governments and certain private nonprofit organizations on a cost-sharing basis in the counties of Adams, Barnes, Benson, Billings, Burleigh, Cass, Cavalier, Dickey, Dunn, Emmons, Foster, Grand Forks, Grant, Hettinger, Kidder, LaMoure, Logan, McIntosh, McKenzie, McLean, Mercer, Morton, Nelson, Oliver, Pembina, Ramsey, Ransom, Richland, Sargent, Sioux, Stark, Stutsman, Walsh, and Williams and the Standing Rock and Spirit Lake Indian Reservations for emergency protective measures, including direct Federal assistance.
Michael J. Hall has been named as the Federal Coordinating Officer for Federal recovery operations in the affected area.
FEMA said that damage surveys have been requested and will be conducted as soon as the situation permits.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: FEMA (202) 646-4600.
It's always common to hear people say.. time flies. Well, in the last eight years, time has had a broken wing, or two, or three, I'm not really sure the about the anatomy of time. Let's move on..
I can't describe the sickness I feel, when I think of what has taken place. I really don't even recognize this country from where we were eight years ago. Rep's want to blame 9/11, but if we had just tightened our security, sent the CIA after Bin Laden.. Well, that's tuesday morning quarterbacking. I've made a film. Yes a film.. not a video. This film documents in 7 minutes the 4 largest mistakes of Republican leadership; Iraq, Torture, Katrina response, and Scandals (not named Iraq, Torture, FEMA) Please follow me after the fold for a riveting diary and film. And if you're lucky a poll.
I have put up diaries about this -video- film before. So I promise you, right here and now. This is the last one EVER, about this video. Thanks so much for your patience and your patronage. I won't presume to lecture you about what's happened the last eight years. But I will show you that lecture in video form, and will also encourage you to share this video film to any and all who would like to use/link it. God Bless and Thank you...
I'm working on a new video about the CRA and to try and combat this viral meme that Republicans are trying to push about how Clinton and the democrats created this financial crisis. Any and all links would be helpful for that, I have quite a few of the dkos top journals on that subject, and am trying to condense them into video form. Poll is about this new topic..
Prepare for third paragraph nonsequitar- I'll be in St. Louis Thursday night for the debate, if anyone knows of anything cool going on afterward, send me a message. Peace in the Middle East - Yes We CanCurtis
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e2p2hvQzIPY
Low Quality version here---http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4z9euD2_Zz4Low Quality part2 here---http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cDQKnXerW2E&feature=related
I'm a terrible blogger. Haven't updated in a while, but here's a thought.
Two people who consistently harangue me about Obama didn't watch the debate last night. One sent me an email this AM with the subject heading: Need I say more ...
Barack Obama was seated next to a little girl on an airplane. He turned to her and said, 'Let's talk. I've heard that flights go quicker, if you strike up a conversation with your fellow passenger.' The little girl, who had just opened her book, closed it slowly and said to Obama, 'What would you like to talk about?' 'Oh, I don't know,' said the Obama. 'How about, 'What Changes I Should Make To America?' ' and he smiles. 'OK,' she said. 'That could be an interesting topic. But let me ask you a question first. A horse, a cow, and a deer all eat the same stuff - grass. Yet, a deer excretes little pellets, while a cow turns out a flat patty, and a horse produces clumps of dried grass. Why do you suppose that is?' Obama, visibly surprised by the little girl's intelligence, thinks about it and says, 'Hmmm, I have no idea.' To which the little girl replies, 'Do you really feel qualified to change America, when you don't know sh**?'
This is the level of discourse in America. Really?
Obama will put this country back on track with no new taxes for people earning less than $250K. If you earn over $250K and are bothered by this, check your greed at the door. If you earn less than $250K and are still buying the spin that Obama is a tax and spend liberal, do some reading and listening.
As for this "financial crisis," talk to some people impacted by Hurricane Katrina three years ago. They might say this crisis began in August, 2005. Where's the $700B to help them get out of their FEMA trailers?
Houston, in preliminary reports, finds volunteer organizations providing for the needs of Houston residents that were not evacuated due to decisions of their government before FEMA with all it's advanced organization, planning and supplies arrive. Updated reports confirm the inadequate response from earlier.
Update 9/25/2008 The final straw -- FEMA disposes of desparately needed ice instead of distributing it to people without power.
A friend of mine told me I should post the letters I've written to editors on a blog, so that it can fire up other people on their own to write letters. Also it would put ideas & words out there even if my letters never get printed.
Here's what I submitted to the New Orleans regional paper, The Times-Picayune
Another rough day in the Senate for the Maverick.
On April 24th, 2008, Senator John McCain toured the city of New Orleans. To the press, Senator McCain declared that the government response to the Katrina disaster was "terrible and disgraceful." Senator McCain pledged it would never happen again. Senator proclaimed, "We are going to fix FEMA."
Fast forward to todays news:
According to an article written in Processor.com, a phone hacker broke into the FEMA phone system and made $12,000 worth of long-distance calls to Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia, India, Yemen and other Middle Eastern countries. FEMA, which is part of the Department of Homeland Security apparently did not get the memo warning its agencies about U.S. phone systems being compromised by unauthorized individuals.
Does this still count as disgraceful? And if so, doesn't this show that John McCain is full of promises that he simply has no desire to keep?
Forty Senators and 100 members of Congress visited New Orleans beforeMcCain did; he finally got there in March 2006.
He voted against establishing a Congressional commission to examine the Federal, State,and local responses to Katrina in mid-September 2005.
He repeated that vote in 2006. He voted against allowing up to 52 weeks of unemploymentbenefits to people affected by the hurricane, and in 2006 votedagainst appropriating $109 billion in supplemental emergency funding,including $28 billion for hurricane relief.'In the Senate, he consistently voted against more funds for FEMA[the Federal Emergency Management Agency], against making it anindependent agency as it had been in the 1990s, and even against thecreation of a commission to investigate how the government failedafter Katrina.Galvestonians for Obama
New Orleans Outrage Perfect Opportunity to Slam GOP: Obama should take lead
In its recent investgiation of the Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA) alleged mismanagement of supplies for victims of Hurricane Katrina, CNN found that at least $95 million in of cleaning supplies, batteries, linens and other essentials were held in storage for two years. The brain trust at FEMA then declared the supplies "surplus" and gave almost all of them away to other Federal agencies. They kept some buckets for themselves.
The federal government's mistreatment of its own citizens is outrageous and insane. That a culturally significant, major American city like New Orleans is left to fend for itself is disgusting.
I think Obama should immediately condemn this atrocious mismanagement. And call it what it is: incompetence.
Obama should tell the media that he intends to give a major speech from New Orleans about how Americans will take care of our own. We don't torture. We don't instigate wars of aggression. We don't trample on citizen's rights to privacy and a fair trial.
The Senator needs to take the lead on something important soon. Rather than spending time on reacting to ridiculous attacks from the right, he can set the tone for the conversation and challenge Senator McCain to debate about the issues that matter.
Also, he should lose the lapel pin.
See CNN's investigation
A movie theater displays a hopeful message in downtown Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Thursday. In other areas along the flood zone, however, there was anger from homeowners who say local and federal authorities had previously assured them that river levees would hold.
Prepared Americans Art show June 14th through July 12th, 2008 Dallas, TX
Closing Reception July 12th 7-10pm Join me ! Its free, open to the public, casual, and there will be complimentary adult beverages.
I hope you will visit Kettle Art Gallery ( 2714 Elm) to see my multicultural, feminist, lesbian with a fake gun art show soon. I was inspired by the FEMA "citizens guide for preparedness" , and the media and regular nitwits hassling Obama for not wearing a flag pin.
The Gallery is open from 7-10pm fridays and saturdays and my paintings will make you want to fly your flag, register to vote, and stockpile plastic containers of water.
My wife wrote the following email this morning in response to several media articles we read regarding issues with FEMA and their warehouses...
Giving away 171 truck loads of brand new household supplies to other Govagencies - that was destined Hurricane Katrina victims - HOW DARE YOU!SHAME ON YOU! SHAME ON FEMAHow much more incompetent, inconsiderate, moronic can an organizationbe! It goes on and on and on and on and on ...........You all need to resign and let FEMA start over with educated, logicalpeople that are responsible and accountable with our tax dollars. HOW DO YOU SLEEP AT NIGHT - I hope not at all. Darlene
Here is the response that came...
Darlene, my office is located in Oakland, CA so I'm not sure why youremail was directed at this region but I feel compelled to tell you howsorry I am that your opinion of FEMA is so terrible. I came to FEMA twoyears ago after 26 years of working for the military and I can tell youone thing. The men and women of FEMA are some of the hardest working,most dedicated people I've ever had the privilege of working with. Theycome to work every morning with a purpose to make this country a littlebetter then it was the day before and to help our fellow citizens duringtheir most desperate times. They do what they do in spite of the wrath of the press and misinformedpeople. It is disheartening to get letters like yours but we understandpeople watch the news and believe everything they hear or see. Has FEMAmade some mistakes? Absolutely. But I think there's enough blame to goaround to a lot of agencies, not just FEMA. From what I understandthose supplies were offered to the State and FEMA was turned down andtold they weren't needed. Unfortunately the press is not good atreporting both sides of the story or they bury the truth in the story.Also keep in mind that decisions are made in Washington and the logicfor those decisions is not necessarily shared with FEMA's 2000employees. But that should not take away from the good work our FEMAstaff is doing around the country. One thing of which I am sure is thatwe believe that what we do is important and we sincerely care about thepeople we serve. I hope someday that you and the American people willsee that. All I can say is before you judge us please look further thanCNN for the truth. I can also assure you that when we are not working 24 hour daysresponding to an earthquake, fires, tornadoes, or floods we sleep verywell.Sincerely,Kim WalzExternal Affairs DirectorDHS-FEMA Region IX1111 Broadway, Suite 1200Oakland, CA 94607-4052kim.walz@dhs.gov
Hence, we are going to need to put maginfying glasses to FEMA so that we know what the truth is and hold all parties accountable.
I thought this was worth posting...
You wouldn't believe the thread I had with some absolute idiot. I got copied on an email that was a long bullet list of why Obama is so bad. Whenever I get one, I write a very factual rebuttal (totally non-partisan, just factual) and send it to everyone on the list who got the original. One guy just ranted back about how he doesn't want to hear me talk about my candidate and sent a paragraph about the Obama in African garb thing so I clipped an article from a conservative 'news' site that stated the Republican party retracted the statement and McCain apologized to Obama for it. Anyway, cutting to the chase, we ended up emailing back-and-forth some. I stuck to being non-partisan and never claimed to support anyone and by the end of the conversation, the guy felt strongly that I was supporting McCain.
I'm completely amazed at some peoples blindness. I stuck to facts and he loves me now. I'm seriously afraid that I'm going to be on his rant list now.
Here's a bit more for you (since you like to read!) I met Charlie Crist, our (R) Governor right before he started his run for Attorney General. He was Sec. of Education (or something close to that). It was a drinking, fairly casual area and we talked about how, if he was electet as Atty General, he wouldn't forget kids as the priority. I knew the people supporting him so I knew he was on a political fast track. He did one term as Atty General, now in his first term as Governor and is reported to be a short list recommendation as VP for McCain. The biggest thing he's screwed up here in FL is education. We're closing schools, dropping breakfast (Crystal takes 2 neighbor kids to school that save their jelly from breakfast to have it to eat on weekends - no shit - that poor - we raised money for a Christmas dinner for them, and they ended up getting their power cut off and had to cook it at our house!) So Crist just stuck a knife in the back of the the people in education that were at the foundation of his career, not to mention the children which just pisses me off to no end.
On AC 360 last night there was a report about how Obama got elected to the Senate in Ill. It sounds like he can play real hardball but only because he has too. I think he's going to put some real pain to the Republican party once Hillary gets her butt parked. I just hope it's good enough to clear out the House and Senate to get over 60 percent. Some senior Republicans are already starting to make positive Obama statements so I think words out that he's going for a bi-partisan cabinet. After hearing McClellan, I think he would make a great Press Secretary again (I always did like him personally - even though I would rather look at the current one - I really don't care what she says, I just like to hit pause when she's on the TV!) - sorry, back on track... Another appointment that would shock the country would be adding Jeb Bush to the cabinet. The guy was a good Governor and made hurricane prepardness and recovery a routine. He (like his dad) will probably hate GW for the rest of their lives for ruining their reputations/careers. If Obama put Jeb in charge of FEMA, New Orleans would get fixed up, we would likely get a REAL national disaster plan, and the Bush family could prove that they're not all dumb-asses (ya, I do like the other two - I thought Bush 41 blew it when he walked out of Iraq back then, but now you see how smart he was.) Best of all, GW's brother would go in a fix his f@%#ups and make GW look even more like a fool. Done right, I think it could put Obama through the roof in the general election. (And if announced earler, it would take all the wind out of Hillary in Florida.)
OK, I'm ranting but I never get to speak up around here. Sometimes I feel like I'm black in the 50's. I just have to keep my mouth shut to keep from getting shot just for opening it around here.
Jeff
I need to get this CNN story to someone who can shed some light on it. In Biloxi Mississippi, a month ago, they interviewed the Mayor AJ Holloway. I saw it and was outraged, though nothing has been done. Please take a second to view the Mayor say "The people don't want to get out of the FEMA trailers (rat infested, roach infested, mold infested and worse) because it's FREE! Please help!
Here is the video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YmxMisffvS8
Here is the transcript. March 13, 2008 http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0803/13/cnr.02.html
HARRIS: Victims of Hurricane Katrina, they say a dwindling pile of federal aid is their last hope of rebuilding their lives. So why is that cash being funneled into a Mississippi port where casinos could eventually be built? Details now from CNN's Abbie Boudreau of our "SPECIAL INVESTIGATIONS UNIT." (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)MAYOR A.J. HOLLOWAY, BILOXI, MISSISSIPPI: I'm proud to say that we're making progress each and every day here in Biloxi. ABBIE BOUDREAU, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The site for Mayor A.J. Holloway's rosy pronouncements? The lavish Beau Rivage hotel and casino. HOLLOWAY: Well, I think the state of Biloxi is in great shape. BOUDREAU: It was a feel-good celebration for Biloxi's elite, but keeping them honest, a five-minute drive away we find a part of Biloxi that is definitely not in great shape. UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This is wrong. You know? This is very wrong. BOUDREAU: Consuela Swa (ph) still lives in one of the more than 10,000 FEMA trailers and mobile homes in Mississippi. UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That's what I feel a lot, it's just anger. BOUDREAU: For Swa (ph), life in the trailers is an ordeal. UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It got ruined because the trailer sweats so bad. BOUDREAU: There's mold...UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The mold is starting to build up more now. BOUDREAU: ... roaches and rats. UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They just chew through the walls, the trailer. BOUDREAU (on camera): They play in your daughter's bed. UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They're always in her bed, yes.BOUDREAU (voice-over): She's one of thousands of Gulf Coast residents who rented before Katrina struck. Community groups complain renters are being excluded from the nearly $5.5 billion in federal grants. Here's why. Of all of that federal money, $3.1 billion has been set aside to assist homeowners, but only $426 million is for rental housing. And there's a catch. The money doesn't just flow in. Local governments must first ask for it so residents like Consuela Swa (ph) can get out of their trailers and into rental housing. REP. GENE TAYLOR (D), MISSISSIPPI: None of the local governing authorities have stepped foot in my office saying, we want some money for housing, we want to put it right there. BOUDREAU: Congressman Gene Taylor says local governments in Biloxi and other towns don't seem to want low-cost housing or the people who live in it. TAYLOR: In fact, what we're seeing some of is, "Not in my back yard." BOUDREAU: With all that federal relief money just sitting there, Governor Haley Barbour got approval to use a lot of it for something else -- improving the harbor at Gulfport. Six hundred million dollars that was supposed to be spent on housing will now go to reviving the port. And some suspect it will help build new casinos. (on camera): This is the port that everyone is talking about, the one that would benefit from the $600 million. We asked Governor Haley Barbour to sit down and talk to us about this, but his office says he's unavailable. (voice-over): In a statement, Barbour said the money for the port would have a huge and beneficial impact in creating jobs. And in January he said he set aside $100 million for low-income housing. But critics argue that renters and low-income residents could have used that $600 million. Kimberly Miller (ph) is with Oxfam, an international aid group working on the Gulf Coast. UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And that forecloses forever the opportunity to use those funds in the way that is still needed. BOUDREAU: The mayor of Biloxi says he feels the governor is spending the money wisely. (on camera): Why spend the money on economic development when you still have people in FEMA trailers? HOLLOWAY: Well, as I said, people living in FEMA trailers right now, a lot of them are not wanting to get out of the FEMA trailers.BOUDREAU: Why wouldn't they want to get out of the FEMA trailers? HOLLOWAY: Well, I don't know. I just know a lot of them don't. BOUDREAU: You don't know why though? Is it because it's free? HOLLOWAY: Because it's free. (END VIDEOTAPE)BOUDREAU: HUD insists it had no other choice but to allow Governor Haley Barbour to redirect the funds to the port of Gulfport. Again, a decision even the mayor of Biloxi supports. HARRIS: Whoa. Abbie, does the mayor really believe that? He's suggesting here that many of the people living in these FEMA trailers just don't want to leave the trailers, the FEMA trailers we're talking about. BOUDREAU: Well, that's what he said. He said because they're free, they don't necessarily want to leave. But that's not what we heard from all these different people. I mean, the people that we talked to said that they were desperate to get out.There's just nowhere to go. That rent has more than doubled in these areas, and there are very few places available to move into. It's just a really difficult situation. HARRIS: What a story. OK. Abbie Boudreau, appreciate it. Thank you
From: Rick Basora [the_dragonwolf@comcast.net]
Sent: Sunday, March 23, 2008 6:00 PM
To: letters@time.com; WebEditors@newsweek.com; Letters@newsweek.com; letters@usnews.com
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Subject: Shawn Hannity - STOP the anti-OBAMA FOX VIRUS NOW
Dear Mr. Hannity;
By now you must certainly be aware that a NATIONAL MOVEMENT is in motion against you and against what America has come to know as THE FOX VIRUS that comes forth from the RADICAL EXTREMIST NEO-CONSERVATIVE REPUBLICAN mouthpiece that you and FOX have become. Presenting our voice to the media of America now comes in the form of the Robert Greenwald film “Fox Attacks Obama (Spreading the Virus)” which, as you can see, is the envelope sent “special delivery” and containing the national petition now underwritten by moveon.org and their Political Action’s Adam Green.
After the travesty of ethical journalism perpetrated by FEMA on October 26, 2007, where it hosted its own “staged” televised news conference reporting on the state of EMERGENCY SERVICES to victims of Hurricane Katrina, it was brought to the attention of America that, not only was the person addressing this “skit” a FEMA official, but so were those asking the questions who, while posing as reporters, were exposed by Al Kamen of The Washington Post in his article FEMA Meets the Press, Which Happens to Be . . . FEMA. The fact that the article alleges that you carried this charade LIVE, and then passed on the video to MSNBC and other news outlets, renders FOX Television, and its agents, complicit in the efforts of what Christy Hardin Smith, of FIREDOGLAKE, calls The Department of Planting Your Own Propaganda And Hoping No One Notices assigned to the Bush administration.
Mr. Hannity, neither you, nor your colleague-at-arms, Rush Limbaugh, can be allowed, by a nation on the very brink of social, economic, political and global chaos, to continue manipulating puppet strings, pushing buttons and pulling levers the outcome of which you CLEARLY know nothing about. Mr. Limbaugh’s disgracefully titled attempt at hijacking the current Presidential election has earned him the dubious distinction of being named WORST PERSON IN THE WORLD (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/23908634#23908634) by MSNBC's KEITH OLBERMANN. It now appears on his own website with the headline Operation Chaos Under Assault.
As you frantically attempt to continue the milking of the Reverend Jeremiah Wright controversy, synthetically created by your Conservative minions, you appear less than pathetic before an increasingly intolerant nation that, as you can see, by Senator John McCain’s attainment of the honorable position of The Republican Presidential Nominee, America has declared you and your Neoconservative “cult”, politically, philosophically, morally and subversively UNDESIREABLE.
I, and America, continue to observe your frenzied contribution to the engineering and staging of a premeditated and choreographed conspiracy aimed at discrediting the legitimacy of Senator Barack Obama as a Presidential candidate, as well as the WONDER of the grass-roots movement taking shape around him. We watch in dismay as you question your guests, carefully selected to provide the most desirable answers for the damming of the voice of HOPE that FOX radio has described as “sounding like Hitler.” Yet, when Democratic Analysts, Tanya Acker and Bob Beckel, as well as your own Alan Colmes, have asked you questions as simple as “So, are you saying that every child whose parents took them to the Trinity United Church of Christ is, therefore, disqualified from growing up to aspire to one day becoming President of the United States,” you conspicuously, and at every turn, refuse to answer the question. You are fully aware that, answering that question, honestly, would reduce you to the hypocritical contradiction of yourself that you are. Take note, Mr. Hannity, your refusal to respond implicitly convicts you in spite of you.
I was held in utter disbelief … which then slowly grew to anger when, last night, you summoned former House Speaker, Newt Gingrich, to join in the spreading of THE FOX VIRUS. I found two things to be in poignant opposition with your intention of subverting America. The first was Mr. Gingrich’s repeated insistence that he did NOT question Senator Obama’s integrity, his loyalty to America or his non-alignment with Reverend Jeremiah Wright’s apparent anti-American rants. Later in the same program, and despite your best efforts, this same opinion was echoed, with even greater emphasis and eloquence, by Senator John McCain, who insisted on addressing issues of legitimate concern to our country and clearly, refused to participate in your scripted outcomes. You must, as a consequence, Sir, be torn between wondering if the walls of correctness are closing in on you or whether they, in fact, are spreading so far apart that your only company would be the members of your own League of Liars.
The second observation, born of your program’s intentions, last night, was your patent set-up of “JUDGMENT” as the supposedly flawed characteristic displayed by Senator Barack Obama in his choosing to continue to attend Wright’s Trinity church. You spoke the word “JUDGMENT,” with diacritical accentuation, no less than a dozen times and consistently modified it with adjectives such as “flawed,” “poor,” etc in your transparent attempt to pre-empt the Senator’s platform of SOUND JUDGEMENT in the furtherance of his Presidential bid. I will excuse myself from redundancy and I will quote my own words from the letter that, on March 16, 2008, I sent to you and Fox Management titled SHAWN HANNITY - THE PINNACLE OF IRRESPONSIBLE JOURNALISM AT ITS WORST:
“Gentlemen, if this was Shawn Hannity’s way of weaving “illusions of war-mongering” with which to surround a Presidential candidate who stands on a platform of DIALOGUE as his preferred weapon of pre-emption of war, you may want to advise him about the fact that we ARE, in fact, in a war unjustly started; a war that he endorsed and that he is a member of the political party that started it. Senator Obama was the legislator who attempted unsuccessfully to galvanize an effective movement to avoid it. History has proven him to have been STRATEGICALLY CORRECT and no degree of Mr. Hannity’s resenting him for it will grant him access to that elite minority reserved solely for the JUDGEMENTALLY SOUND.”
Last night, what achieved the “apex of the offensive,” Sir, was that you utilized former Speaker, Newt Gingrich, to assist you in making the point of presenting Senator Obama’s judgment as, somehow, flawed. Might I remind you that Newt Gingrich headed the 1998 charge to impeach President William Jefferson Clinton on charges stemming from the extramarital affair that he sustained with one Monica Lewinsky. In a March 8, 2007 Associated Press article featured on your very own FOX News, titled "Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich Acknowledges ...Having Affair During Clinton Impeachment," we are presented with an interview with James Dobson of Focus on the Family that reveals the following:
“Gingrich argued in the interview, however, that he should not be viewed as a hypocrite for pursuing Clinton's infidelity.”
"The president of the United States got in trouble for committing a felony in front of a sitting federal judge," the former Georgia congressman said of Clinton's 1998 House impeachment on perjury and obstruction of justice charges. "I drew a line in my mind that said, 'Even though I run the risk of being deeply embarrassed, and even though at a purely personal level I am not rendering judgment on another human being, as a leader of the government trying to uphold the rule of law, I have no choice except to move forward and say that you cannot accept ... perjury in your highest officials."
Sir, translated into common English, this says…There are rules and laws that apply to ALL, including the President of The United States, but that I, because my name is Newt Gingrich, a Neoconservative, reserve the right to exempt myself from them. No, Mr. Hannity, your show, your network, your self-righteous, pontificating ploys called supporting guests, your intentions, your manic obsession with imposing dynastic rule… but most of all, YOU… are tacitly UNACCEPTABLE as is your effort to present this morally diseased neoconservative “fowl” as someone qualified to “judge the judgment” of EAGLES. I am taking the liberty of forwarding this correspondence to Representative Henry Waxman, who, last year moved to have yours and Mr. Rush Limbaugh’s actions investigated, as well as to Federal Communications Commission Chairman, Kevin Martin, who, I am advised, has been put on notice of the nature of your endeavors, that now appear to many, as being contrary to our very national security.
America will NEVER belong to your minion of disguised patriotic indigence, Sir, and, least of all, to YOU. I would suggest that you listen to a song, considered by many of my generation as an American Anthem, and that I recently sent to the Democratic Superdelegates as well. In ’64 Bob Dylan spoke of times that were “a-changing. I submit to you, Shawn Hannity, that there is an unmistakable wind of CHANGE in the air and MILLIONS, like me, bear witness to its hopeful reality. To you, and to those like you, frantically trying to stop this will be like trying to stop the wind. We have paid for this campaign and for this movement, unlike the politicians of yesteryears and of today, with our own monies, 5, 10, 25 dollars at a time. I know that you must resent the force that such a movement presents. Your colleagues must , as well, fear the threat to their lifetime relationships with lobbyist dollars that will scatter like fallen leaves on this wind. Yes, Mr Hannity, make no mistake. More than times a-changing, Sir, the times …THEY DUN HAVE CHANGED!
Come senators, congressmen Please heed the call Don't stand in the doorway Don't block up the hall For he that gets hurt Will be he who has stalled There's a battle outside And it is ragin'. It'll soon shake your windows And rattle your walls For the times they are a-changin'.
From the song The Times They Are A-Changin’ by Bob Dylan (1964)
Complete lyrics - http://www.bobdylan.com/songs/times.html
Listen to it here - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9vou4qUu5YY
RICK F. BASORA
Fort Lauderdale, FL
In a an ongoing series of blog posts I have just started to write, I am exploring each of Obama's issue papers to ask critical questions which affect my final voting decision for November.
I just read Obama's issue paper on Katrina and rebuilding the gulf coast protections against storms. Many of his points I agree with, such that the Federal government has a role in the recovery and protection of the region and its residents. But I see this role as restricted to management and execution of the macro level of the wetlands restoration and the flood control systems, and proper funds and resources for disaster relief that are still owed. I see the disaster as as opportunity for the US and the local government to shine in solving the problems that have historically plagued the area. I do see that the oil companies need to contribute in equal form to the efforts to match any degradation their operations have contributed to the region, but no more.
What is lacking in the paper is addressing one of the most critical components, local government. The City of New Orleans is historically notoriously known for mis-management by the Mayor and his organization, not only before Katrina, but afterwards as well. I highly recommend an article I found, which I think is spot on, especially the last sentence.
http://www.city-journal.org/html/15_4_new_orleans.html
"But only New Orleans, and Louisiana, can build a city that holds up day after day."
This last sentence points directly at what is missing from Obama's position and I would like to see integrated, local responsibility. Drugs plague the country, especially crack and meth use, and in New Orleans have had devastating effect on both pre and post Katrina. The violence and murder rate in the city is closely tied to drug events on the street, which in turn have a domino effect on the community and recovery progress.
I want the next President to meet directly as with the Mayor to intimately discuss what the local government needs to do to solve its problems, because the local government is still failing in its responsibility. To me, it means many things, including a ramp up on police activity, clamping down with zero tolerance on drug distribution and use, violent crime, patrols and most importantly community involvement in the activity.
The ultimate solution for New Orleans is learning about and becoming self sufficienct in all aspects of its local government and community operations. The ultimate and sustainable answers must come from within the New Orleans community. It is not the responsibility of the Federal Government to cleanup the area at a local infrastructure and social level.
From Bastrop Daily Enterprise:
Almost 30 months after Hurricane Katrina roared ashore, the city of Bastrop is still seeking to be reimbursed by FEMA for expenses city city incurred in hosting thousands who were displaced by the storm.Willie McKeen, administrative assistant for Mayor Clarence Hawkins, met Tuesday with representatives from the Governor's Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness (GOHSEP)to review expenses the city feels it is owed after municipal facilities were used to provide for up to 3,000 people in the days and weeks following Katrina.In addition to expenses related to the use of the Bastrop Municipal Center and Dodson Park Gymnasium, McKee said the city was seeking to recover money paid to police officers who worked overtime to provide security at the facilities.
Though the expenses will ultimately be repaid by FEMA, McKee said GOHSEP does the leg work for the agency."They will take the information we give them and provide it to FEMA," McKee said. "If FEMA has any questions or needs any additional documentation, they'll let (GOHSEP) know and they'll bring it back to us."Shortly after taking office, Gov. Bobby Jindal shifted oversight of the state's hurricane assistance programs from GOHSEP to the Louisiana Recovery Authority. McKee met Tuesday with assistance employees who are now assigned to the Louisiana Recovery Authority.
McKee said he anticipates "maybe one more meeting" before the city will be reimbursed almost $90,000 in expenses.Asked if he felt two and one-half years was a long time to try and get reimbursements, McKee said "It's a long, drawn-out process. And based on what I got from them, we're a lot farther along in the process that other areas are."
