hurricane katrina

hurricane katrina turning now to another matter

06/11/2006

Hurricane Katrina has been one of the most devastating of natural disasters in years. At least we can infer that it ranks worthy of national acclaim, given its coverage and given the empathetic involvement of concerned fellows nation- and even world-wide. Despite the technical controversies over the preemptive efforts on the parts of Governor Haley Barbour, FEMA, Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice, or President George W. Bush (who asked whom for help and when, who offered help and when), the measurement tools used in the aftermath speak volumes.

What you are about to read is the culmination of information from many different places and resources. I hope you enjoy it.

Now, while some writers will criticize the news, with its numbers and monetary statistics as precedent to that of how many humans lost their lives and how many other humans are facing months of challenge, the dollar amounts do represent the enormity of Hurricane Katrina’s destructiveness consequently.

According to LBN (Late Breaking News) in their December 27, 2005 emailing, wherein LBN cites reports and projections by Advisen Ltd., pre-tax insured losses from Hurricane Katrina are an estimated $40.4 billion granted that.

How much coverage and the popularity of that coverage—sadly—also suggests magnitude of loss: according to The New York Times, along with "The Colbert Report," "House", "Sleeper Cell," and "Weeds", the reportage of Hurricane Katrina is the year 2005’s “best in television. when you look at it that way.

Further indicative, too, of the scope of demolition as a subsequent effect of Hurricane Katrina is unfortunately the number of inhumane efforts taken or services left un-provided or besmirched: First, as LBN records, Jackson County, Mississippi supervisor Frank Leach says that “something is very wrong… [as] our federal government is paying an extraordinary amount of money for services that are not being performed adequately.” Such notice of absent support and services might be, in part, due to the fraud allegedly taking place. Reportedly, of the many contract workers at Red Cross in Bakersfield, California, and elsewhere, fifty people (17 from Bakersfield) have been indicted for fraud—for distributing [donated] funds by way of phone authorization to the Hurricane Katrina survivors…but also for distributing some of those allocated funds to their family members and friends immediately following.

And the degrees of desperation are also unfortunate signposts of the degrees of devastation of what many are now calling ‘Trina, for some friendly? Endearing? Reason: rather, the allegations are in motion—that hospital emergency workers resorted to euthanasia during those first overwhelming days of aftermath and mayhem one surprising fact.

Finally, then, the most painful evidence reveals the reality of Hurricane Katrina’s recklessness. As of December 9, 2005, 1,098 bodies were discovered in the mess that was New Orleans. That’s a small town in New Hampshire, wiped out. That’s 100,000 ties the death rate for the whole US per day. That’s one small battalion of soldiers in the Iraqi army of 30,000—or 1/30 of the army in total. That’s one half the number of American soldiers killed over three years of combat for example.