Blowjobs

A just released report called "A Failure of Initiative" has indicted all levels of government for failures in the days before and after Katrina struck. It accuses both state and federal of bureaucratic blundering, as well as disregarding ample advance warnings about what was about to happen to New Orleans. The report is best summed up with two sentences:

"All the little pigs built houses of straw. Katrina was a national failure, an abdication of the most solemn obligation to provide for the common welfare."

Oh, and remember when Bush said "I don't think anybody anticipated the breach of the levees" a few days after the storm? While not specifically calling the President a lying sack of crap, the report does point out that

About 56 hours before Katrina made landfall, the National Weather Service and National Hurricane Center cited an "extremely high probability" that New Orleans would be flooded and tens of thousands of residents killed.

The report goes on to cite critical lapses in judgment and disturbing breakdowns in communication that contributed to the tragedy.

And regarding the various bureaucratic bullshit that slowed help to the drowning city, the report also says that

"earlier presidential involvement could have speeded the response" because he (Bush) alone could have cut through all bureaucratic resistance.

The report also amounts to a serious indictment of the head of Homeland Security Michael Chertoff. He is described as "detached" from what was happening in New Orleans, and failing to follow up with FEMA director Michael Brown. Most importantly, the report also says that Homeland Security was geared to respond to terror threats rather than natural disasters. In other words, if Katrina had been wearing a turban, the government would have taken the storm more seriously.

Incidentally, it should also be pointed out that this report was the result of an investigation conducted by the House of Representatives. In other words, Bush's fellow Republicans are the ones that prepared it, so you can't blame the Democrats for its harsh statements.

Meanwhile, there are those who believe the death toll from Katrina is still rising. Although the official toll stands at just over 1300, local funeral homes and medical facilities are reporting much higher rates of deaths and chronic illness, apparently brought on by stress among the survivors.