From: Stephen Grammont (islander@midmaine.com)
Date: Fri Sep 02 2005 - 01:28:37 PDT
On Sep 2, 2005, at 4:06 AM, Royce C Hayes wrote:
> I do not put the blame on President Bush or the Federal Government. I
> put the fowl up on the local and State Government bodies for not taking
> care of their own.
>
> I believe that todays mind set is that people look to the Feds as their
> savior in all instances and refuse to take the responsibility for their
> own people.
The problem is that isn't the way the system is set up. The Feds have
the resources and have made themselves the authority in such matters
(Homeland Security and FEMA). The Levees are under the jurisdiction of
the Feds too (Army Corps of Engineers). With that authority comes
responsibility. You can argue about if they should have the authority
since it is a valid argument and has a lot of merit. But that is
neither here nor there since the fact is the Feds currently have the
authority and therefore they also have the responsibility that comes
along with it. They are a package deal.
But I also agree with you that the State didn't do enough within the
area they did have authority over. Or at least so it would seem. The
Guard should have been mobilized on Saturday and the supplies brought
up to the expected edge of the flood area starting on the same day.
Yet they knew what was coming and the likely outcome. I live on the
other side of the country and I knew this on Saturday just by listening
to the radio. As far as I can tell only a few hundred Guards were
available when the storm hit. I just don't get it.
Steve
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