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Originally Posted by Marcus1124
Not true, I deny that any substantial or systemic mistakes were made at the Federal level (I am sure you could nitpik and find annecdotal indications of mistakes in any operation of this size). Unlike many whose goal is to bash Bush, rather than give a sober assessment of who did and did not perform based on the pre-disaster distribution of responsibilities, I do not ascribe as "mistakes" the Federal Government "failing" to do what wasn't its responsibility or job in the first place. I rank it up there with blaming fast food companies if you get fat because you don't take the minimum expected responsibility for your own health and welfare.
The reelection of Mayor Nagin is a big, bold exclamation point on this!
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Pre-disaster preparations within the city definitely weren't the responsibility of the feds! That lies with the local and state government, and of course, to the people themselves. We've been told over and over to have enough emergency supplies to be self-sustaining for three days because it may take that long before help arrives. Sadly, many failed to heed the warning though.
On a federal level though, there were plenty of blunders. There were incidents of trucks full of ice that were diverted to other areas instead of making it down here where it was sorely needed. When the military arrived at the Dome, they didn't have extra food and water in order to feed the general public. I think more could have been done in the aftermath in evacuating people from the Dome and the Arena instead of making people wait for days, often without food and water. I think there was a colossal waste of federal money wasted in no-bid contracts. The list goes on and on...
I will say though that when help came to my city, they brought everything needed. We would drive through a line in large parking lot filled with the National Guard and the first stop was for MRE's, the next stop was bottled water and the next was ice. Church groups were set up in other parking lots and you could get anything from diapers to feminine care products to blankets and pillows. Considering that the only store that was finally opened was Wal-Mart and they were out of many items, the church groups definitely supplied a need!
If I had to grade city (New Orleans), state and federal government, I'd give the city and state an F and the feds a C-!