Thursday, September 01, 2005

Almost Friday

Refugees are arriving at the Astrodome. Evacuation of the Superdome has been suspended due to shots being fired on the choppers taking people out of the dome. National Guard is now dealing with the mayhem. There is no excuse for this. Gangs were establishing turf in the Superdome. My faith is being tested.

On local radio, music telethons are being held. One station I listen to when my son is in the car with me, if you know what I mean (and I think you do), is now in their 27th hour of nonstop pay for play requests. Awesome. Many people who have fled to our city are calling into talk radio stations to thank the community for hospitality, especially now that they know that their children will be allowed to attend local school to keep some kind of normalcy in their lives.

One of my sisters now living in Indiana called last night so we could give each other a little verbal support. For people with no history with this region, it is difficult to put into words how it is simply ripping out your heart.

I totally agree with the column written by Peggy Noonan for the Wall Street Journal this morning. Her appraisal of how the Governors are handling this crisis is right on the money. Haley Barbour, long a victim of his thick southern Mississippi accent, has truly come into his own as a strong leader worthy of a national stage. Governor Kathleen Blanco is coping as best as she can but she needs to cowboy up and get on with it. No more press conferences looking like a deer caught in the headlights. State the plan, daily, in a calm voice and give specifics. Simply saying that plans are being made and that New Orleans will be rebuilt doesn't cut it any longer. She can do it. The mayor of New Orleans, Ray Naquin, is doing well. He had the courage to be honest from the beginning about everything. He gave realistic numbers of loss yesterday and had the balls to put martial law into effect early on. He knows the city.

Help them do their jobs all you can.

1 comment:

Christy said...

I fear that my state will never be the same. My family is still in Louisiana and are seeing floods of refugees. I have no idea what the Astrodome will be like if that crap that is going on at the Super Dome makes it way over there. Ungrateful people. I'm sorry, that's how I see it. Instead of being thankful that you aren't dead, they are hollering for more. I can completely understand the frustration and the conditions, but hey, you aren't on a roof in the 9th Ward waiting to be rescued. Hang in there. Love the blog and can't wait to read more.