Topic : 08/28 Hurricane Katrina: One Year Later

and lets not forgit the law inforcement offercers thet were caught looting the local wall matr thear< its a crying shame those people down thear were left on thear owne like they were , well relly it was a sin for the elected officals to desert them as they did, i look upon thease acts the very same way you would look upon a war time crime, relly that mayor should have been shot for desertion<>

he deserted his people the very same people that elected him to begin with><;p

i saw people living in homes if you dare call them homes that i wouldnt put a dog in for just 1 night i never new people down thear had to live in what you could honestly call slums, i donot blame the people whom were having to live that way i blame state officals, for allowing slum lords to do this to human beings, and for what those poor people had to pay in rent was like way up thear,800$ to 1200$ a month, rent alone then they had utilitys on top of that! relly all katrinas did was give the state a big douch, all the lives that were lost was the goverments falt, they knew that storm was heading to land in that area, all those people should have been provided a way out at tax dollars expense, it is a much better way to spend tax dollars dont you think, its always better to spend a few million dollars to save all lives than to bank it and see so much as just 1 die from not*

now just why in the hell dose our goverment want to look at a planet that isnt a planet in the first place,? look at how much that is cousting tax payers so they can see a reflection>

and may i ask just what in the world is red tape any way? is it another way for our goverment not to have to turn louse of tax dollars? wow man whats the matter with this picture? its plain as the nose on your face me president, we have alot of people to whom do not have a home to live in,send all the red tape to catch up with that pluto probe so you can follow its trail to see whear it ends, i donot remember any one asking the american people if it was ok to spend all that money on a probe while we had so many people with out a home that was nothing but a waste of money that probe will never make it to pluto, but had that money been spent on lumber bricks motar sand labor , guess what all homes that were lost would have already been rebuilt, just from what was spent on that 1 probe, mr president your people should always come first and foremost, and then and only then explore space,

...I am sick of only hearing about New Orleans also. While I do feel for those that loss their homes there, what did they expect living in a place that was below sea level? It's the same with people that live next to a river, or on a hill in a place known for landslides, etc. And New Orleans is only getting all the publicity because it's well known for Madi Gras and the French Quarter. I would really like to hear about what's going on with the other places hit by Katrina and Rita. New Orleans is old news.

I am a New Orleans native - Lakeview to be specific.  Mine was one of thousands of homes that was flooded with 8 feet of sewage for 3 weeks.

 

The Army Corps of Engineers has plenty to answer for.  More than 50 years of poor levee design & construction were tantamount to their failure.  We were assured & reassured by the Corps that the levees could withstand a Cat 3 storm.  Katrina grazed us, giving us low-to-mid Cat 2 winds & tidal surge, & the levees tumbled like dominoes....

 

The Corps' attitude can be summed up in YOUR statement, "man's arrogance when thinking that he can beat mother nature".  My father worked for the NO Sewage & Water Board for more than 4 decades.  Whenever a levee was built/altered or a new pumping station installed, the Corps did the labor.  At almost every planning meeting, a Corps representative would express that the only reason that they had to meet with the S&WB was because it was mandated by law, & that they didn't even have to consider what the S&WB had to say..  He was even told by one Corps rep that "We are God when it comes down to building levees".  Arrogance, indeed...

 

Several communities throughout the US are built on wetlands (see the Upper Mississippi River Basin flood of May-August 1993) & other precarious materials (hello, major sections of San Francisco are built on the wreckage of the 1906 earthquake).  Not the best ideas, granted, but they are what they are.  One of the major problems with LA is that, in addition to the Florida Everglades, it is not beach, but swamp guarding our coastline.  And the Corps is responsible for a great deal of the wetland destruction that has occurred.

 

LA politics is corrupt - no doubt about it.  Am I sick that Ray Nagin was re-elected?  You bet, I am.  Did I think our governor was a nice lady but a poor leader even before Katrina & Rita?  Oh, yeah.  Did "LA get more federal monies than any other state"?  Can't find that particular piece of data, but what I do know is this:  of all the total petroleum that is produced in the US, 28% is drilled off the LA coastline, & 10% of all US refining takes place in LA.  So, how is it that LA reaps LESS THAN ONE PERCENT of the revenues generated from this process?  Hmmm, the feds giveth, & the feds taketh away...

 

Ever wonder why you're paying so much for a gallon of gas?  And, how much are you paying these days for bananas?  Grapes?  Lettuce?  Imported goods & products (furniture, fixtures, clothing), especially from South & Central America?  Remember, New Orleans is also a major US port city.  I don't think most Americans realize that...

 

I am absolutely heartsick for other areas that were devastated by Katrina - charming communities in LA (Buras, Tidewater, Boothville, Port Sulphur) & MS (Gulfport, Bay St. Louis, Biloxi, Ocean Springs, Waveland).  In addition, the communities of SW LA were struck to the core by Rita (Cameron, Holly Beach, Hackberry, Sulphur).  They definitely need & deserve every bit of attention & assistance that can possibly be obtained...

 

New Orleans gets all the press because it was a major US city & tourist destination, & when the chips were down, our leaders folded like a house of cards, from the President all the way down to the Mayor & City Council.  Oh, there's plenty of blame to go around.  And, they continue to founder.  New Orleans & most of the areas that were affected by Katrina & Rita are still a shambles.  America blew it.

 

But Americans didn't.  If there's one thing that I know for sure from this experience, it's that our country is filled with kind & giving citizens - people that will literally give you the shirt off their backs if it will help ease your suffering.

 

Well, kind people of America, I have just one thing to ask of you - please, PLEASE, contact your elected officials & tell them to restore & protect the precious wetlands of Louisiana.  Had the wetlands been intact, the impact of Katrina would have been sharply blunted.  The feds screwed up our wetlands up, the feds should fix them.

 

Ok, stepping off my soapbox...

I too think the people of Mississippi have been forgotten about....

 

That's not to diminish the suffering & devastation in New Orleans, because what happened was tragic.  But there are other areas that were hit just as hard, and that suffered just as much devastation.  You don't hear people from Mississippi screaming racism, and the so called Mayor of New Orleans has done nothing but enflame the situation. 

 

I watched his 60 Minutes interview last night...what an arrogant SOB he is, and I cannot fathom how he got re-elected.  The Mayor brought a lot of the suffering upon his city by not using the 500 school buses (which ended up underwater) to evacuate his city.....

 

This is not a blame game....all levels of government failed, from city to state to federal, this was a disaster that we just weren't prepared for.  Yes there are problems, but I think people are doing the best that they can do, and its going to be a slow, painful process. 

 

My best friend and I went to Bay St. Louis in September.  We filled my truck with supplies and hauled a camper down for our friend whose house was still standing but mold infested from the water surge.  His antique shop in Bay St. Louis was also destroyed, he lost everything.  We couldn't do much, but delivered our supplies, set up the camper, helped him clean out his garage so he'd have a staging area as he removed whatever he could salvage from his water logged house. 

 

We met many people in Mississippi....none of who complained to us as we delivered our supplies, and parts of this area looked 10 times worse than New Orleans, yet they were trying to pull together as a community to help each other out.  Ice was in big demand, and we happened upon a little out of the way store that had pallets of ice, but the residents in the area had no vehicles and were using their bikes as transportation...we didn't know the area, but loaded up the ice since we had a working truck....the people like I said never b**ched to us, just one day at a time. 

 

The devastation from Katrina is so widespread....it just wasn't New Orleans that got hit and whose people are suffering..but I feel because the New Orleans resident B**ch the most and have a very vocal Mayor who does nothing but complain, they get the focus of the attention. 

 

They shouldn't be ignored, but neither should the folks in Pearland, Waveland, Bay St. Louis, Biloxi, and those who are seemingly forgotten.  Another friend is residing in a FEMA trailer, and the trailer next to him was being used as a METH lab and exploded one night...that's not FEMA's fault, the state and cities should be providing security for these parks, not just relying on the federal government.

 

Someone mentioned why don't the casinos in Biloxi pay for the rebuild there....the same can be said for New Orleans.....where did all the federal money that has been given to the city in the past go to?  Money that was supposed to be used to shore up the levees, I bet instead the politicians wasted it on casinos and various other projects instead of what it was intended for. 

 

There are many many people who have lost everything and who are suffering.  Its just not in New Orleans, the whole Gulf Coast is suffering.  I'm glad Dr. Phil is keeping this in the public eye, so the people won't be forgotten about.  They have a long, hard road ahead of them, not just New Orleans but the forgotten folks in Mississippi too. 

 

I have a message for the media:

 

Hurricane Katrina was terrible, but "The Government" is not responsible for the damage or for re-building private homes and businesses.   

 

When Hurricane Hugo hit my town, my private insurance covered my private losses.  FEMA was there for loans, but the repairing damage was my responsibility.

 

The real focus of your televised program should be that many, many people --all over the country--lack the resources to take care of themselves.  Katrina didn't cause this situation; it just made this fact obvious to the world.

My family was flooded by Tropical Storm Isabel three years ago.  We are still living in a FEMA trailer, along with friends and neighbors.  While it is good to bring attention to the plight of disaster victims and their continuing struggles, it is much more important to understand the reason for the problems and what can be done to correct them.  Katrina was not the first, nor will it be the last, natural disaster to severely impact the lives of thousands.  Homes are destroyed, finances are ruined, family heirlooms are gone and families are torn apart.  You need to cover the impact of the problems created by the government programs and insurance policies people purchase to be prepared for such events.  Three years have been spent in trying to work with FEMA, Congress and even the President to correct the flaws within the system, all to no avail.  Please go to www.femainfo.us for specific facts as to why the problems have occurred and what can be done to fix them.  The developer of the website has testified at several congressional hearings, written interrogatories for Congress (which have been submitted to FEMA), and has worked with countless insiders and whistleblowers to uncover the wrongdoing and problems which are so pervasive in the system.  It is vitally important that these facts and proof be brought to light, so that real change can occur.  Only by creating real change will we be able to help the people who are still working on recovery and be able to prevent future devastation in the wake of natural disasters.  Thank you.   

Hi Dr. Phil

I watch your show regilously and you have helped me tremendiously. I was a volunteer last year in September and October after the storm I was in Biloxi MS and I stayed at a church there called Bay Vista Baptist Church located on Pass Rd just down the street from the Air Force base. I do have a lot of great stories about it  but the reason I am writing you today is I am worried we are forgetting about the people of Mississippi again every story on the news or any shows only deal with New Orleans why do you seem not to care about the people of MS they got the worst of the storm, wind, and tornadoes. New Orleans is a bad story but the people of MS have suffered a lot also. While I was there I could see the frustration in the people 's eyes how they were saddended by the news always talking about New Orleans and seemingly forgetting about their troubles anbd their are a lot of hurt and suffering people there. Please don't forget them and send them the same help you are sending to New Orleans. They deserve it as much as anyone maybe more they have not gotten the help they deserve and here we go again leaving them out all over again. Remember them and let America know they need our help also.