2005-09-11 - 10:37 p.m.
"You can watch TV and watch the Media, George Bush doing takeover... You can be a follower, but who's your leader? Break that cycle or it will kill ya..." M.I.A.
The following is an email from my friend Anneke in Belgium and my response. It concerns the slow response to help those in New Orleans after hurricane katrina, but I also think that it is particularly necessary to post on this day (September 11th) because the aftermath of the hurricane has really gone to show where the Bush's government's policies lie (in case there was any question) and also that all this rhetoric about making America "safer" hasn't done shit. So, read on...
Anneke wrote:
hey,
In Belgium, we're more and more (I don't know the word to use... let's say) coonfused about what is going on in the States. If something happens in Belgium (and never we had a disaster like that), our king and queen (not democratically voted but very popular because very close to the people), the same day they would walk with their gummiboots in the area.
And what about the help? The States asked help to
Belgium, we said: "ok, what do you need?" and the US never answered. So Belgium said: "We can offer you this and this and this. What can you use?", no answer! I'm just saying: who is in control? Do they know what they're doing? Is somebody getting a structure in the offered help?
Anyway, I don't know about the States, but in Belgium Bush is getting A LOT of critics (too late too little help, no help for the poor black people.)
What is the news overthere? And what do you think?
Anyway, I hope most of the problems will get solved soon, that no diseased will spread and that the people will be safe soon. But how to get your life back on the tracks after this? Man, I wouldn't know. And ofcourse I hope that everybody you know is ok!!!!
Will Bush get bad points for this?
I responded:
Hi Anneke,
thanks for your email. I don't know if I can help you
clarify what is going on in New Orleans, as I don't
know myself! I was on an island off the coast of
Maine when the hurricane hit, and though I knew things were bad, I didn't know how bad until I got back to the mainland last thursday and started reading the papers again. I do know that it is really, really horrible and many major newspapers (like the New York Times) are talking about how slow the government's response was and how much of it was because New Orleans is a city that is largely African American and poor.
People are VERY angry at Bush, but I don't know if it
will matter in the long time- it seems that a lot of
people in the US still seem to trust him and the
government he is running no matter how many times he skrews them/us over.
I do think that if such a disaster happened in an area that was not largely Black and poor that help would have been quicker to arrive. I am so angry and feel very helpless- how could even donations of money and supplies ever be enough. It
is awful- I know that tragedies and suffering happens all over the world, but it feels so strange that right here in the US other people living in this country do not have access to something as simple as clean water- it makes me take my life less for granted.
I also feel like this disaster shows that all the
legislation Bush forced to be passed and the wars he has started in attempt to keep people in the US "safe" (from terrorism) is completely useless- what would really keep people in this country safe is justice, equality and better social services- health care especially and safe housing, and an oragnized way to respone when a disaster does happen. Just like after September 11th 2001 their excuse for the lack of organized response is that there was no communication system in place- hasn't the point of all the legislation and debates after September 11th been to make a better communication system for response when disaster happens? So it makes me very angry. Or I should say, angrier.
