Should Katrina Victims Share Blame ?? (page 3)

sammielee24

Let's also remember that it wasn't the actual hurricane that caused all of this - if the levee's had been built according to the standards recommended by engineers and consultants years ago when they knew there was an extremely high probability that this disaster would happen, then we wouldn't be talking about thousands of dead now. It was the levee's breaking down that caused the flooding. Now today you have the state blaming the feds and the feds blaming the state and then tossing in the local government for good measure. At last note there are 500 missing police officers...walked away...and why?

There are some who will take this as an opportunity to rebuild their lives and maybe in a different place. Those people will bring a positive light with them and I truly wish them well!

I quit!

Excellent post Jeannine. I got exactly what you were saying. I think there is plenty of blame to go around. Some of it has to go to the victims. If you don't look at all aspects of a problem you won't be able to solve it. People stayed for all kind of reasons and I'm sure some of them were stupid ones. When the ocean has huge waves and people are warned to leave the coast some of them stay to watch the waves. Sometimes it costs them their lives. Also some of us just tend to believe it won't happen to me. Or think they have been saying that will happen for 100 years an nothing has happened.

CoonDawg

Great points, sammi...

Some people, yep...it was their stupidity. However, as with most things...generalizations are just that. I don't think i could have left behind my elderly sick mother and saved myself...even at her urging. To me, it's a harsh thing to blame victims for what has happened to them.

Good point --- It was probly only a $20 cab ride out of new orleans all together .I know I would've made a break for it .......

Actually...whoever pointed this out...well, I have news for you....cab drivers like gouging people almost as much as oil company execs do. I listened to a couple who did take a cab out to safety...it cost over $200. No rental car companies had ANYTHING to rent...and all other modes were at a premium.

It's not cut and dried by any means. I'm sure there were some who didn't leave because they figured...and i quote ..."Hey, my house survived Camilla back in the day...surely this won't be any worse."

For others, there weren't options.

Ern

Golf

Jeannine, I get your drift. When I do 'stupid' things I pay the price and I don't blame others for it!

Qcmbr

In situations like this I like to turn it round and think which one of the people would I have been in NO:

1/ The fanatic who lives for fear (religious types often) who think the end of world is coming and so hop between building bomb shelters and hoping that God will rapture me out of any danger.
2/ The loser who just bums of the state and have allowed my ability to cope and solve my own problems to be taken over by the state. I also complain loud when I'm not walked out of the state and someone doesn't give , give, give me everything.
3/ The arse who sees disaster as an opportunity to get even with the world by increasing the chaos by raping, looting and carrying a handy gun to shoot at people I don't like such as police.
4/ The stubborn idiot who lives by such false notions as , I've never moved from this house in 900 years, I was born here and I'll die here.
5/ The materialistic consumer, I worked hard for this , noone is going to come loot my waterlogged telly.
6/ The victim, I did everything I could do , including walking (shock horror) to evacuate from the worst danger areas.
7/ The innocent, I never realised it would be this bad - I don't believe what they say about evacuations anyway.
8/ The trapped. I'm assuming that this is a category. I don't really know.
9/ The sensible, innocent I never knew it was going to be this bad but I trusted that the authorities knew what they were doing and left using whatever meane I had at my disposal.
10/ The wise one, I have a the means to escape ( I save a little, run a car / can afford public transport) and also have prepared some basic essentials (like bottled water) just for such a time. I am not a burden on anyone, I am self sufficient and have enough left over for others. No one in my family is going to be split up relying on the state apparatus to protect me.

Who should we be now - I suspect that NO is filled with all the above and a good deal are worthy of censure. Hopefully when my Katrina strikes I learnt from NO and chose my 'category' rather than allowing fate to choose it for me.

Tigerman

Well said, Qcmbr.

Should Katrina Victims Share Blame ??