Hurricane Katrina: Are the buses here yet?

"Are the buses here yet?" This was said by an old woman sitting on the side of the road. She said this about a half hour before she was found dead in her seat, with the hot sun beating on her. Before she was pushed into a corner with the other dead bodies, her son pinned his contact information on her. He then went back to waiting for the buses that would save him and the crowd of thousands on the point of death. Without food, water, a bathroom, and with the smell of death and feces filling the air, he was waiting for a bus that never came.

More than 1,500 people died in Louisiana during Hurricane Katrina. The media calls the event a tragedy. It is tragic that reporters were able to go in amongst the people to deliver heart wrenching reports of starvation and death. Tragic that camera crews were able to drudge through the devastation on the streets that only a month before had been bustling with the day to day activity of the same people who lay dying. Yet, agencies of the Federal government found it too dangerous to drop food and water from their planes. Why? The unholy mob of starving people prevented them. Never mind that they had guns and only had to hover above the crowds to bring them life saving supplies. These were a few of the same supplies that were dropped repeatedly in Iraq; while people below were shooting at them and stomping on the food in protest.

The government failed to protect the people from the disaster following Hurricane Katrina. People did not die because they were too stubborn to get out of town. They did not die from Hurricane force winds. They died because the Levees of New Orleans failed in over fifty places. These Levees should have been able to withstand Hurricane Katrina. People died because the government failed to protect its citizens from a flood caused by its own carelessness.The Federal Flood Protection Act of 1965 clearly shows that the government takes on the responsibility to protect citizens from floods. The measures they took by building levees failed impart to poor construction. Since an error was made on the part of the federal government, it is not unreasonable for the federal government to assume responsibility in reversing as much as possible the damage done due to its negligence.

Government assistance of providing food, water and shelter can hardly be considered unreasonable when it is such measly reparation for the cost of human suffering it has inflicted.

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