-
Hey Guest. Check out your NeoGAF Wrapped 2025 results here!
Hurricane Katrina Thread: Any LA Gaffers?
- Thread starter Fragamemnon
- Start date
- Status
Pretty impressed at the countries/organizations offering help, especially many I did not expect:
The department listed donors so far as: Australia, Austria, the Bahamas, Belgium, Canada, China, Columbia, Cuba, Dominica, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, the European Union, France, Germany, Guatemala, Britain, Greece, Honduras, Hungary, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Lithuania, Mexico, NATO, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, the Organization of American States, Paraguay, South Korea, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Spain, Sri Lanka, Switzerland, Sweden, Venezuela and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.
The department listed donors so far as: Australia, Austria, the Bahamas, Belgium, Canada, China, Columbia, Cuba, Dominica, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, the European Union, France, Germany, Guatemala, Britain, Greece, Honduras, Hungary, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Lithuania, Mexico, NATO, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, the Organization of American States, Paraguay, South Korea, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Spain, Sri Lanka, Switzerland, Sweden, Venezuela and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.
Tonight's episode was great. Even if there was no one there exclusively to oppose American liberalism, there was still some very intelligent debate and discussion. Heh, actually, it's probably because of that. I'm going to have to get a copy of tonight's show to keep.Y2Kevbug11 said:
Edit: Sucked that Anderson Cooper got cut off though, as he was trying to get in some kind of final word. I think the show could afforded that much for him.
Agent Icebeezy
Welcome beautful toddler, Madison Elizabeth, to the horde!
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20050902/ts_nm/weather_katrina_reaction_dc_3
World stunned as US struggles with Katrina
LONDON (Reuters) - The world has watched amazed as the planet's only superpower struggles with the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, with some saying the chaos has exposed flaws and deep divisions in American society.
World leaders and ordinary citizens have expressed sympathy with the people of the southern United States whose lives were devastated by the hurricane and the flooding that followed.
But many have also been shocked by the images of disorder beamed around the world -- looters roaming the debris-strewn streets and thousands of people gathered in New Orleans waiting for the authorities to provide food, water and other aid.
"Anarchy in the USA" declared Britain's best-selling newspaper The Sun.
"Apocalypse Now" headlined Germany's Handelsblatt daily.
The pictures of the catastrophe -- which has killed hundreds and possibly thousands -- have evoked memories of crises in the world's poorest nations such as last year's tsunami in Asia, which left more than 230,000 people dead or missing.
But some view the response to those disasters more favorably than the lawless aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.
"I am absolutely disgusted. After the tsunami our people, even the ones who lost everything, wanted to help the others who were suffering," said Sajeewa Chinthaka, 36, as he watched a cricket match in Colombo, Sri Lanka.
"Not a single tourist caught in the tsunami was mugged. Now with all this happening in the U.S. we can easily see where the civilized part of the world's population is."
SINKING INTO ANARCHY
Many newspapers highlighted criticism of local and state authorities and of President Bush. Some compared the sputtering relief effort with the massive amounts of money and resources poured into the war in Iraq.
"A modern metropolis sinking in water and into anarchy -- it is a really cruel spectacle for a champion of security like Bush," France's left-leaning Liberation newspaper said.
"(Al Qaeda leader Osama) bin Laden, nice and dry in his hideaway, must be killing himself laughing."
A female employee at a multinational firm in South Korea said it may have been no accident the U.S. was hit.
"Maybe it was punishment for what it did to Iraq, which has a man-made disaster, not a natural disaster," said the woman, who did not want to be named as she has an American manager.
"A lot of the people I work with think this way. We spoke about it just the other day," she said.
Commentators noted the victims of the hurricane were overwhelmingly African Americans, too poor to flee the region as the hurricane loomed unlike some of their white neighbors.
New Orleans ranks fifth in the United States in terms of African American population and 67 percent of the city's residents are black.
"In one of the poorest states in the country, where black people earn half as much as white people, this has taken on a racial dimension," said a report in Britain's Guardian daily.
Luxembourg Foreign Minister Jean Asselborn, in a veiled criticism of U.S. political thought, said the disaster showed the need for a strong state that could help poor people.
"You see in this example that even in the 21st century you need the state, a good functioning state, and I hope that for all these people, these poor people, that the Americans will do their best," he told reporters at a European Union meeting in Newport, Wales.
David Fordham, 33, a hospital anesthetist speaking at a London underground rail station, said he had spent time in America and was not surprised the country had struggled to cope.
"Maybe they just thought they could sit it out and everything would be okay," he said.
"It's unbelievable though -- the TV images -- and your heart goes out to them."
(With reporting by Reuters bureaux around the world)
World stunned as US struggles with Katrina
LONDON (Reuters) - The world has watched amazed as the planet's only superpower struggles with the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, with some saying the chaos has exposed flaws and deep divisions in American society.
World leaders and ordinary citizens have expressed sympathy with the people of the southern United States whose lives were devastated by the hurricane and the flooding that followed.
But many have also been shocked by the images of disorder beamed around the world -- looters roaming the debris-strewn streets and thousands of people gathered in New Orleans waiting for the authorities to provide food, water and other aid.
"Anarchy in the USA" declared Britain's best-selling newspaper The Sun.
"Apocalypse Now" headlined Germany's Handelsblatt daily.
The pictures of the catastrophe -- which has killed hundreds and possibly thousands -- have evoked memories of crises in the world's poorest nations such as last year's tsunami in Asia, which left more than 230,000 people dead or missing.
But some view the response to those disasters more favorably than the lawless aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.
"I am absolutely disgusted. After the tsunami our people, even the ones who lost everything, wanted to help the others who were suffering," said Sajeewa Chinthaka, 36, as he watched a cricket match in Colombo, Sri Lanka.
"Not a single tourist caught in the tsunami was mugged. Now with all this happening in the U.S. we can easily see where the civilized part of the world's population is."
SINKING INTO ANARCHY
Many newspapers highlighted criticism of local and state authorities and of President Bush. Some compared the sputtering relief effort with the massive amounts of money and resources poured into the war in Iraq.
"A modern metropolis sinking in water and into anarchy -- it is a really cruel spectacle for a champion of security like Bush," France's left-leaning Liberation newspaper said.
"(Al Qaeda leader Osama) bin Laden, nice and dry in his hideaway, must be killing himself laughing."
A female employee at a multinational firm in South Korea said it may have been no accident the U.S. was hit.
"Maybe it was punishment for what it did to Iraq, which has a man-made disaster, not a natural disaster," said the woman, who did not want to be named as she has an American manager.
"A lot of the people I work with think this way. We spoke about it just the other day," she said.
Commentators noted the victims of the hurricane were overwhelmingly African Americans, too poor to flee the region as the hurricane loomed unlike some of their white neighbors.
New Orleans ranks fifth in the United States in terms of African American population and 67 percent of the city's residents are black.
"In one of the poorest states in the country, where black people earn half as much as white people, this has taken on a racial dimension," said a report in Britain's Guardian daily.
Luxembourg Foreign Minister Jean Asselborn, in a veiled criticism of U.S. political thought, said the disaster showed the need for a strong state that could help poor people.
"You see in this example that even in the 21st century you need the state, a good functioning state, and I hope that for all these people, these poor people, that the Americans will do their best," he told reporters at a European Union meeting in Newport, Wales.
David Fordham, 33, a hospital anesthetist speaking at a London underground rail station, said he had spent time in America and was not surprised the country had struggled to cope.
"Maybe they just thought they could sit it out and everything would be okay," he said.
"It's unbelievable though -- the TV images -- and your heart goes out to them."
(With reporting by Reuters bureaux around the world)
These people should just start rioting, seriously. Things have gotten so bad I'm thinking that why not just bring it all the way to the bottom. Maybe after having a mass riot and chaos and tons of people killed and trampled, it will ignite a revolution and civil war, and we can install a different kind of govt where this kind of stuff would never happen again.
Because as we all know, nothing ever changes in this country unless things go REALLY bad.
Just saw on CNN Castro is offering to send 1100 doctors and 26 tons of medicine to help for the hurricane aid. No word from the Bush Administration.
Why exactly have there been no official acceptance of foreign aid by the Bush administration? All I have seen is one offical on the condition of anonymity that no reasonable aid will lbe refused. This isn't really a time to be refusing help, from anyone. Period.
Why exactly have there been no official acceptance of foreign aid by the Bush administration? All I have seen is one offical on the condition of anonymity that no reasonable aid will lbe refused. This isn't really a time to be refusing help, from anyone. Period.
Man, both Shepard Smith and Geraldo lost it for a little bit on Fox News. Geraldo Rivera looked like he was about to break down and cry, and Shepard Smith wants to open up a can of whoop ass.
The way they describe the checkpoint that is not allowing any people to leave the NO convention center makes it look like Escape From New York. This is really sad.
The way they describe the checkpoint that is not allowing any people to leave the NO convention center makes it look like Escape From New York. This is really sad.
Red Blaster
Member
RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH *pushes desk over*
Agent Icebeezy
Welcome beautful toddler, Madison Elizabeth, to the horde!
BorkBork said:
Because he's a dumb fuck. I want to cry.
CabbageRed
Member
Mupepe said:
What I find humorous in the darkest sense of the word is that if someone had released a movie a few weeks back with a plot reflecting current events in NO, I along with many others would have laughed at its ham-fisted social/political commentary.
Agent Icebeezy
Welcome beautful toddler, Madison Elizabeth, to the horde!
The Mayor of New Orleans in an interview.
He is fuckin heated
http://s42.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=1JOEORJSFT7OP2YPBTPCSTFSJI
He is fuckin heated
http://s42.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=1JOEORJSFT7OP2YPBTPCSTFSJI
I just watched the Bush address in Kenner, LA. I tried very hard not to criticize the man and hold out a shred of hope that he'll rise to the occasion, but damn it's the same crap I've seen him do everytime he addresses the public.
Key phrases = "lot of good folks doing good work", "making progress", "it's hard work", "it's devastating". Rinse and Repeat.
I swear to god it's the same speech I heard about Iraq with some words changed. Good to see that the governor had to whisper the correct name to him when he was thanking people doing good work. Plus, I LOVED the joke he made about coming from Houston (WTF?!)
Plus the part where he said that it's going to take more than one day's attention to repair the damage.
I need that Captain Obvious picture on that quote. *rolleyes*
The line that really pissed me off, though:
"I'm going to fly out of here soon, but I'm not going to forget what I've seen".
Really?! Holy crap, you're the best president ever! Thanks for not forgetting the worst natural disaster America has ever seen, as soon as you go back to your ranch!
I admit, I was wrong. I said earlier that it would be a good thing to do for the president to go to the devastated areas. I believed that after he saw the devastation, he would find the words to rally the victims of this tragedy and inspire hope in the suffering. Then the reality of how out of touch this guy is with his own country, let alone the world, hits me again. Just stick to clearing brush on your ranch, Mr. Bush. It makes no difference where you are anyways.
Key phrases = "lot of good folks doing good work", "making progress", "it's hard work", "it's devastating". Rinse and Repeat.
I swear to god it's the same speech I heard about Iraq with some words changed. Good to see that the governor had to whisper the correct name to him when he was thanking people doing good work. Plus, I LOVED the joke he made about coming from Houston (WTF?!)
Plus the part where he said that it's going to take more than one day's attention to repair the damage.
I need that Captain Obvious picture on that quote. *rolleyes*
The line that really pissed me off, though:
"I'm going to fly out of here soon, but I'm not going to forget what I've seen".
Really?! Holy crap, you're the best president ever! Thanks for not forgetting the worst natural disaster America has ever seen, as soon as you go back to your ranch!
I admit, I was wrong. I said earlier that it would be a good thing to do for the president to go to the devastated areas. I believed that after he saw the devastation, he would find the words to rally the victims of this tragedy and inspire hope in the suffering. Then the reality of how out of touch this guy is with his own country, let alone the world, hits me again. Just stick to clearing brush on your ranch, Mr. Bush. It makes no difference where you are anyways.
Ninja Scooter
Member
olimario said:
Olimario bashing Bush?
"You're out!"
BorkBork said:
HOLY SHIT!
I heard about this on the radio, thinking that it was just another "I hate Bush" rant (some of which I give every day
). I didn't know that it was fucking TRUE!How in the fuck can you not accept foreign aid, claiming that we "don't need it" when we couldn't even provide for the tens of thousands of stranded people in New Orleans for DAYS?!
Bush is a fucking asshole. He really, really is.
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/w...s_mixed_signals_on_accepting_aid_from_abroad/
Red Blaster
Member
Yep, Bush is indeed the worst US president ever. Dumb motherfucker apologists can keep shitting their shit, but I'm convinced.
wobedraggled
Banned
Bush has condemned people to death, only this time on our own fucking soil.
Words escape me.
Words escape me.
To be fair, I don't think the problem right now is a lack of doctors or medicine, but rather the means to get them into the city.
But then, if we had more helicopters, there still might not be enough landing pads for them to land. If we had more trucks, the roads are so jammed they can't all get in at once.
This is just a logistical nightmare. Simply adding more food, medicine, or people to the equation isn't going to help much, if there's no means to get them to the destination. It's not as if anything offered by other countries can be magically, instantly dumped into New Orleans.
HomerSimpson-Man
Member
Kola said:
Hell, I'm from the US, I would like to know myself!! What kind of asshat would reject any aid at such a time like this?!! From the looks of it we can barely handle it already?!
wobedraggled
Banned
Kola said:
Because he doesn't care about black people, or at least that's what Kanye West says.
Where is that mass group of guys in Florida who wanted to pack their boats with supplies and head to New Orleans? Just give 'em some quick fucking legal papers saying they won't hold the government accountable if they get shot and let him contribute.
At this point all the caution and hesitancy is only resulting in people dying of thirst, hunger and poor sanitation.
At this point all the caution and hesitancy is only resulting in people dying of thirst, hunger and poor sanitation.
Agent Icebeezy
Welcome beautful toddler, Madison Elizabeth, to the horde!
Here is the kid that stole a bus and took 80 people to houston. Do you and would you believe that they are trying to press charges against him?
Here is the interview
s32.yousendit.com/d.aspx?id=1DS5Y2WVR6CV71GI59CPD9A2KJ
Lardbutt said:
Huh. I was pretty sure I heard from FEMA to call on ALL nearby medical personel to head down to NO to help out a few days ago. I don't think it would be too much of a stretch to have a convoy of fully qualified doctors to help so many of the suffering. They're shipping 30,000 plus national guards down there right? They can definitely do with a thousand more. But given their current organization skills.... I wouldn't put too much faith in them, you're right.
lardbutt said:
Not much?
Sri Lanka, the tiny tsunami devastated country, is offering $25,000.
The worlds industrialized countries agreed Friday to tap their strategic oil reserves and pour 60 million barrels into the market in a month.
German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer had made firm offers of medicine, water treatment and technology to help find survivors on behalf of the German government.
The French foreign ministry offered eight aircraft and two ships, with 600 tents and 1,000 camp beds also available at the United States request.
Japan offered 200,000 dollars for the American Red Cross and up to 300,000 dollars worth of tents, blankets, power generators and water tanks. Toyota offered five million dollars, Nissan 500,000 dollars.
Australia promised 10 million Australian dollars (7.5 million US) through the American Red Cross.
Canadian Defence Minister Bill Graham said his country was preparing a package, including an offer of military assets. Canada will also boost oil exports to the United States.
The Netherlands, a low-lying country that depends on its system of levees, or dams, has offered to send a team of experts to help plan the reconstruction of New Orleans.
Venezuela and Cuba have been mentioned earlier in this thread.
If that isn't "much help", I don't know what is. Accept the FUCKING HELP!
HomerSimpson-Man
Member
Agent Icebeezy said:
Here is the kid that stole a bus and took 80 people to houston. Do you and would you believe that they are trying to press charges against him?
What the hell?! People's priorities are fukked!! This guy deserves a damn medal!
imastalker co.
Banned
so the red cross might ship me off as soon as tuesday.
if any of you guys have the type of job where you can take time off, or are just sitting around not doing much, you guys gotta hit up the red cross, and get out there. the people need all the help they can get.
everyone that can, should.
if any of you guys have the type of job where you can take time off, or are just sitting around not doing much, you guys gotta hit up the red cross, and get out there. the people need all the help they can get.
everyone that can, should.
The Bush Administration is likely turning down aid from Cuba and Venezeula because it will look really weird to invade Venezeula in the winter if we take aid from "strongarm dictator" Hugo Chavez.
Fucking Hero. That kid rules.Agent Icebeezy said:
Here is the kid that stole a bus and took 80 people to houston. Do you and would you believe that they are trying to press charges against him?
wobedraggled said:
I can think of only one now. Murder. No person can be immediately blamed for a hurricane, but so slowly to evacuate citizens and restore order is a murderous act, well beyond mere lethargy; it has stunned the nation and the entire world that is seeing it as much as Americans are. All the President has done was hug two people in a place that was not New Orleans (good move) and sign a bill into law. Because "it's hard work" to stutter in a speech and run back to Air Force One, leaving thousands in squalor in the remains of a poverty-stricken city. I wonder, how many hundreds could have fit on his 747?
He got to eat tonight, and so did I; let's not talk about hard work or the power of such memories when Americans have to loot to live. Kanye West was nice to middle America tonight, but people stuck in limbo (formerly New Orleans) won't be if and when they get it out of Louisiana. Neither would the people who did not vote for George Bush, and wake up to an America they no longer recognize. That was rhetoric in 2000 and 2004, but in September 2005 is disturbing. America is only the underbelly tonight, and it is surreal.
And New Orleans had a metro area of a million, and the government stuttered and slipped every step of the way. What if it were New York, would that be so much hard work a second time around that I would be written off?
Do you not understand what this means, Mister Bush? Now you bear the responsibility for the miserable death of Americans, not just Iraqis. And don't say you didn't know when the New Orleans Times-Picayune reported it for years (and was dead-on, as it turns out) and FEMA viewed New Orleans with a nightmarish response.
That's all I have to say about this while keeping calm at what has developed this week.
Cold-Steel
Member
I've been catching up with the latest reports and it's just beyond words guys.
There are no words for what's happening.
There are no words for what's happening.
Some more good news(gotta take whatever silver linings we can in this mess):
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20050903/ts_nm/weather_katrina_airlift_dc_3
Four flights per hour are now able to get out of Louis Armstrong Intl. Airport. The airlines, despite their cash strapped status, have stepped up and are going to get 25,000 people out of what's left of New Orleans. This is really good news.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20050903/ts_nm/weather_katrina_airlift_dc_3
Four flights per hour are now able to get out of Louis Armstrong Intl. Airport. The airlines, despite their cash strapped status, have stepped up and are going to get 25,000 people out of what's left of New Orleans. This is really good news.
That would be excellent news. Hopefully the airport can be defended against the gangs that are supposed to be running around the ruins of New Orleans. And it had better not be like the bus situation in the city, where they can't show or don't show for all. That kind of risk would be absurd if something goes slightly awry. An outstanding sign, but still a chance for something to go horribly wrong.
The New York Times chronicles the immense and bitter criticism and outrage towards the United States government, at home and abroad.
The New York Times chronicles the immense and bitter criticism and outrage towards the United States government, at home and abroad.
SatelliteOfLove
Member
Lardbutt said:
DING DING DING. We have a winner. There were not choppers, buses, and low-draft boats converging on the city Tuesday morning. Local --> State --> Federal; all acted like it was the Category 1 that clipped Florida last week; when that bad girl cranked up to Cat. 5 on Sunday, you'd think powers that be would've been increasing those "on ready" status for deployment for anywhere on the gulf coast it eventually made landfall, but no; now you get Castro, Chirac, and Chavez doing snarky "helping" and few in the chain of command actually leading.
SatelliteOfLove
Member
Agent Icebeezy said:
Here is the kid that stole a bus and took 80 people to houston. Do you and would you believe that they are trying to press charges against him?
What's his name? Publicize the trial; let's see kind of fun the press has with that trial:
"The state of Lousiana to jail man for doing what they couldn't: get people to safety"
- Status