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FatFreeGoodness · 10-29-2005, 08:32 AM

Jeb Bush pointed out
(a) The people in FLA who are complaining about the delay in getting food and water had several days to prepare;
(b) It only took about 48 hours to get supplies to the last areas.
(c) It’s not really very hard to stash 48 hours worth of food and water.
He has a valid point.

It is clear that by and large the people who are complaining are those who expect the government to take care of them. The most extenuating circumstance I can offer is that in many cases it appears that the government was already taking care of them, and thus their expectation was essentially that they could continue to rely on the government.
From their point of view, the government had already accepted the job (of caretaker), and let them down. A differing point of view is that although various government agencies have been providing subsidized housing and food, this does not imply that one or more of them has either a plan or the responsibility to move your butt to high ground.

Some people think it was the responsibility of "the government" to move people to safety, and /or provide immediate care; if this was not so (they argue), then it should be so.
But if you give the government that responsibility, you also have to give them the authority. And consider:
>If you order a person to evacuate and they do not do so, you must be prepared to compel them. This means armed force.
>If you compel a large population to leave their current shelter, you can’t just hope they find other shelter. In the first place, not all will, and in the second place, many will return too soon. Remember they did not want to leave at all, so they probably don’t want to stay gone either. Therefore…
>If you forcibly remove them you must detain them until its ok for them to return.
You will not be able to do this by sending the people to thousands of hotels… there will be no way to restrain them from slipping away. Thus you will have to establish mass housing in places like stadiums, and restrict ingress and egress.

Now, what would have been the result if federal troops had gone into New Orleans 24 hours before Katrina and ordered all the folks from the poor neighborhoods into busses, explaining “We are going to take you to federal detention centers for your own good. We promise to release you just as soon as we think it’s a good idea.” I doubt they would go willingly. I know I wouldn’t.

What we have here is a failure to communicate.

(I explicitly exclude those who are clearly in the total care of others, such as those hospitalized or in jail. They clearly have good reasons to expect that those in charge will make the proper arrangements to ensure their safety.)

10-29-2005, 08:32 AM	#4 (permalink)
FatFreeGoodness Tilted	Jeb Bush pointed out (a) The people in FLA who are complaining about the delay in getting food and water had several days to prepare; (b) It only took about 48 hours to get supplies to the last areas. (c) It’s not really very hard to stash 48 hours worth of food and water. He has a valid point. It is clear that by and large the people who are complaining are those who expect the government to take care of them. The most extenuating circumstance I can offer is that in many cases it appears that the government was already taking care of them, and thus their expectation was essentially that they could continue to rely on the government. From their point of view, the government had already accepted the job (of caretaker), and let them down. A differing point of view is that although various government agencies have been providing subsidized housing and food, this does not imply that one or more of them has either a plan or the responsibility to move your butt to high ground. Some people think it was the responsibility of "the government" to move people to safety, and /or provide immediate care; if this was not so (they argue), then it should be so. But if you give the government that responsibility, you also have to give them the authority. And consider: >If you order a person to evacuate and they do not do so, you must be prepared to compel them. This means armed force. >If you compel a large population to leave their current shelter, you can’t just hope they find other shelter. In the first place, not all will, and in the second place, many will return too soon. Remember they did not want to leave at all, so they probably don’t want to stay gone either. Therefore… >If you forcibly remove them you must detain them until its ok for them to return. You will not be able to do this by sending the people to thousands of hotels… there will be no way to restrain them from slipping away. Thus you will have to establish mass housing in places like stadiums, and restrict ingress and egress. Now, what would have been the result if federal troops had gone into New Orleans 24 hours before Katrina and ordered all the folks from the poor neighborhoods into busses, explaining “We are going to take you to federal detention centers for your own good. We promise to release you just as soon as we think it’s a good idea.” I doubt they would go willingly. I know I wouldn’t. What we have here is a failure to communicate. (I explicitly exclude those who are clearly in the total care of others, such as those hospitalized or in jail. They clearly have good reasons to expect that those in charge will make the proper arrangements to ensure their safety.)