FEMA standing down all boat rescue operations - CNN live

[hnsez]

Saying too dangerous, people become too violent trying to get on boats. Its temporary until they can figure out how to do it more safely.

Announced on the air by CNN reporter Rick Sanchez.

http://www.cnn.com/2005/WEATHER/09/01/katrina.impact/index.html

Update:

http://www.opednews.com/articles/opedne_rob_kall_050901_fema_stands_down__ch.htm

The failure of the Federal government to care for these Americans is becoming clearer and clearer. CNN reports that near the Superdome it is becoming more and more dangerous. CNN reports observing an infant dying, that people are getting angrier and angrier as Fox reporter Shepard Smith says, "people are dying and will continue dying... People lie dead, with authorities passing by.

...

I wonder if they know that this might have been prevented if Bush hadn't pulled the funding to fix the levees. I wonder if we didn't have so many national guard troops in Iraq if there wouldn't be enough rescue workers on hand to save people from dying and starving, from facing the horror of not knowing whether their families are alive, from facing the degradation and desperation of having to steal food to survive.

America has let them down. America is bleeding from an open wound-- a huge gash that has been long coming-- a symptom of the toxic hate and greed, the lying and corruption that the right wing has perpetrated in its giveaways to corporations. Will the religious right get it, that they have been complici in empowering the legislators who have failed to build the safety net, failed to plan for emergencies, so they could cut taxes or deregulate industries, so they could pay for this insane war that had no honest reason for starting?

It will get worse. A mourn for the dead, grieve with the abandoned refugees.

[Duer 157099]

1. I'm hearing this too, my mouth is agape

Something else is going on here, now I'm convinced

[Serial Mom]

2. Desperate people doing desperate acts in desperate times!

pretty soon we will hear that they are shooting at looters (like ANYTHING left there would be worth anything at all in the near future)

and dubya will say "they hate us for our arrogance!"

[Birthmark]

3. Murderers!

This Adminstration is murdering people! I don't know why. But that's what they're doing. What have we become?

[Old and In the Way]

4. That will resolve the problem. This will assure no panic and rioting.

They really do want these people to start acting like animals. This is absolutely criminal.

[Merlot]

5. Yes, it is human nature to get violent when your life is endangered

so stopping the rescue will of course calm these peole down until they can learn to stand in line nicely like they learned in grade school and wait their turn.

Do I really need the sarcasm simile???

[sinkingfeeling]

6. And exactly how many billions have we spent under * on 'preparedness"

plans for Homeland Security? I want all my tax money back, since it's been a complete waste! Didn't I read last year where HS officials were staying in 5-star hotels on the taxpayer tab?

[gkhouston]

7. you know, if they wait a week

I'm sure those folks will give them no trouble at all. :sarcasm:

[Kber]

8. When we said we had to abandon New Orleans

I didn't know that we meant the survivors too.

Ethnic cleansing anyone?

[anitar1]

13. I have thought many times that the " * bunch" would

rather many of us just went on to the happy hunting grounds. If you are not wealthy, then get out of our way. Sociopathic behavior. Look what he has been doing to the elderly and poor, with more to come. The message is --starve,go without meds,just die, you are in the way.And many of his supporters agree with this.

[mshasta]

19. bingo!!

[Roland99]

9. So it's only the boat rescue operations? What about choppers and evacs?

[hnsez]

10. They are letting thousands of people just die in downtown New Orleans

The bus & chopper evacs at the Superdome were suspended earlier

[Zodiak]

11. Arrgghh!!

Fire the head of FEMA and get someone in there who is NOT a Bush appointee! Every minute wasted now increases the death toll and these f___ers are engaging in negligent homicide!

This is the worst rescue operation ever conducted in my lifetime. And yes, that includes the botched rescue attempt for the Iranian hostages and "Blackhawk Down".

[hnsez]

12. People are dying from exposure, going into siezures, bodies piling up

This was just reported at the convention center on CNN. Babies covered in feces with no food, there are THOUSANDS of families there. No help at all.

[Roland99]

14. Keep us updated! Is it just boat operations? What about evacuations?

[Judi Lynn]

15. All this from the same administration which STILL is getting mileage

from claiming: But Saddam gassed his own people. The _Bush administration really looked down on that, so they claimed, and tried to stuff it down our throats over and over and over, so we'd blindly agree it was a good reason to go kill Iraqiis.

How are they going to explain this? You can be sure it will be someone else's fault. I'm thinking CNN and Fox who did their groundwork may have helped them build their excuse:" those poor heathens wouldn't let us help them, they were too uncivilized, after all. There's only so much we can do."

The ones left standing after the waters recede can probably be handled easily with _Bush's crowd control laser weapons, only recently introduced, yet untried publically.

[hnsez]

16. summary of CNN for last 15 minutes

FEMA chief is saying too dangerous, people become too violent trying to get on boats.

Announced on the air by CNN reporter Rick Sanchez.

CNN's Jim Spellman called from a payphone to report that people are dying from exposure at Convention Center. They had been sent there from Superdome. Were told this was a safe area to go to. People on street are going into siezures, bodies piling up, babies are covered in feces with no food or water, there are THOUSANDS of families there and people are dying with no help at all.

The bus & chopper evacuations at the Superdome were suspended earlier because of gunshots and fires.

[hnsez]

17. update:

http://www.opednews.com/articles/opedne_rob_kall_050901_fema_stands_down__ch.htm

[intheflow]

18. Cut and run in New Orleans, but not in Iraq?

WHAT THE FUCK???? Stay the fucking course, FEMA!!!!!

:grr: :cry:

[noonwitch]

20. If the FEMA workers get shot and killed by looters, no one is getting out

of NO.

The people who are there to help need to be alive and not filled with gunshot wounds, if they are going to help evacuate people. As someone who has a job that requires me to visit people in very poor and crime ridden neighborhoods, I'll tell you this-I see signs of unrest, and I'm out of there. I'm not getting shot over a job, if I can avoid it. I can understand how the FEMA people feel about that.

I'm not blaming the victims of this tragedy, but I also support the FEMA workers. They should not face getting shot at while trying to help people. The military has to get in there with bullhorns and instruct people on what procedures to follow during this evacuation. I also have no problem whatsoever with them military returning fire when fired upon. They are probably better shots than the criminals.

[Hell Hath No Fury]

21. FLY FUCKING FOOD AND WATER IN!!!!!

God DAMMIT how stupid can they be, folks???? These people are desperate because they are DYING OF THIRST AND HUNGER! Massive drop of food and water supplies can help the immediate situation and calm people down.

Then a massive movement of NG, troops, into the area to stabalize the population and then get them the fuck out of Dodge.

HOW FUCKING HARD IS IT??????????

[mongo]

22. Bingo!

I doubt if they are going to shoot at a helicoper towing a big pallet full of water.

[spuddonna]

23. Honestly, I think FEMA thinks...

that it's going to be easier to move corpses...

Does that sound callous? I honestly think that's what they are waiting for now...

Fuck FEMA... I hope that local and state volunteers can help these people...