Katrina recap

[cema]

Is this what we need police for? [justoneminute]

And how much of all this was racist based and who was responsible is still unclear. It seems there is a lot of blame shifting here, and no wonder.

Comments

[dyak.livejournal.com]

I think it was mostly class based and much less race based.

Generally, in the today's US I'd much rather be black and rich than white and poor.

[http://users.livejournal.com/_rowan_tree_/]

"There was no thought given to evacuation. It was all police and National Guard, and it was all, contain, contain, contain. Focus on the looters. Shoot to kill anybody after dark. Get everybody together under one roof so we can control them." - why am I not surprised?

[http://users.livejournal.com/_rowan_tree_/]

but if you happen to be middle-class, it's much better to be white than black. Believe me, I've seen it - in Cambridge, MA. There is plenty of racism.

[anhinga-anhinga.livejournal.com]

> Is this what we need police for?

It's not "we".

It's Gretna, La., which might think this is what it needs its police for...

"We" need police for many good things like... ghmmm... taking protection money from night stores, for example...

[cema.livejournal.com]

Massachusetts is a moderately racist state. Maryland seems to be better. (No wonder though, considering that I lived in PG county.)

[cema.livejournal.com]

Surprise is not in the books.

But what would you have done had it happened to you?

[cema.livejournal.com]

Police may be useful sometimes. However, they do not seem to have been trained to be useful that much.

Again, I have had different experience in Maryland. Maybe I was just lucky.

[email-animal.livejournal.com]

Justoneminute mentions only one account - by two SF paramedics. However, there is also (at least) an account of a group of about 200 people who walked across the same bridge to be stopped and told "We ain't gonna turn our town into no New Orleans", or something to this extent.

If you really want it, I can look up a link, but it has been all over the place.

Chief Lawson might be in position to win in a re-election. That is if he survives a civil rights lawsuit, that I am certain will follow.

[email-animal.livejournal.com]

Here a take on this story (forgive me, Cema, for referencing a left-wing blog on your pages).

There are two census maps in that story: household income and vehicles per household. The maps are by "census tract", whatever that means.

The point of the abovementioned post, as supported by the maps is that the the household income in Gretna (mostly $30-40K) does not necessarily make it an affluent place. It looks more like a mostly white (60+% to about 27%, I think - can try to find the reference if needed) blue-collar suburb of New Orleans. There isn't a significant class difference there.

How about white and poor vs. black and poor?

[cema.livejournal.com]

Should be: "forgive me, O Cema..." I wonder btw if Andrew Sullivan is considered lefty or righty.

I do not know if there is more racism among the poor or among the rich. I am also not sure if there is more racism among the whites or blacks.

[cema.livejournal.com]

I think he mentioned an alternative source too, or maybe it was in the comments section?

[email-animal.livejournal.com]

Sullivan started out as conservative. Liberals clearly don't consider him to be one of "theirs". Neither does he, I believe, consider himself a lefty.
For obvious reasons his social views are much more liberal than those of other fiscal conservatives.

I do not know if there is more racism among the poor or among the rich.

Are you going for a general discussion here? Then the answer might be "yes".

I am also not sure if there is more racism among the whites or blacks.

Again, in general, possibly, there is enough of it on both sides. The question is who gets to act it out more often (and by "act it out" I do not mean gangsta rap).

[email-animal.livejournal.com]

It actually made CNN:

http://edition.cnn.com/2005/US/09/13/katrina.bridge/

Google News Search for "Chief Lawson, Gretna"

[cema.livejournal.com]

The answer is indeed "yes": I do not know. :-)

You mean, there is too much on both sides. I think the very fact that there are the two sides may be a bigger problem.

[cema.livejournal.com]

Yes, it was in the news, I read about it in some blogs. ;-)

[email-animal.livejournal.com]

hate, as you know, begets hate.

[email-animal.livejournal.com]

To paraphrse John Lennon,
"I read a blog today, oh, boy..."

[cema.livejournal.com]

But sometimes it's worse, when it pours out in the form of violence. In which case on ehas to use force to resist.

[cema.livejournal.com]

It fits!