Why did the levees break?
I asked myself this question and began to do a little research. The answer seemed obvious enough to me – corruption on the Orleans Levee Board. Any answer would have done and much to my “not” surprise I was right. One has only to look at the news reports over the past few months, both pre and post Katrina, to find that the board has been playing fast and loose with funds that should have gone into maintaining the levees.
Here is a link to an NBC report, post Katrina, that illustrates the problem.
Is the Orleans Levee Board doing its job?
Other bloggers have also notice this and that a federal investigation was underway before Katrina.
New Orleans Levee Board Under Fire
The Orleans Levee Board has always had a problem with financial skullduggery. It’s obvious from this newspaper article that they didn’t like to let go of the purse strings until forced to by court action.
Levee Board to borrow to pay settlement
Finally, even the a Canadian newspaper was reporting on the investigation going on before Katrina.
Levee board under federal investigation before Katrina hit
Harry, I’m ashamed to say you’re my Senator
Harry Reid came out yesterday with the worst balderdash about why he’s not voting for Judge Roberts. One can only wonder how he expects to survive another election. It’s past time for the people of Nevada to ‘Tom Daschle’ him at the next election.
Wednesday, September 21, 2005
Thursday, September 15, 2005
Recent Events
It’s been months since I posted anything and I apologize for that however, everyone has to make a living somehow. I do need to post since so much has happened in the past few weeks.
Courts, Courts and yet more Courts
The John Roberts nomination and upgrade from member of the Supreme Court to Chief Justice is something to cheer about. His confirmation seems to be going along in smooth fashion even with the cheap shots by the likes of Biden and Kennedy.
Speaking of “Teddy” Kennedy, one can only wonder how the people of Massachusetts can continue to re-elect him to office. Not only is he a drunken murderer, but it has become obvious watching his performance at the confirmation hearings that the substance abuse has taken its toll on his ability to think. He looks wooden sitting there reading his questions and not even looking up when he is finished. He also seems to have trouble following the answers given by Judge Roberts. Perhaps it is time he retires before he makes a greater fool of himself.
Out West, we seem to have another idiot of a judge in California. The decision to ban the saying of the Pledge of Allegiance will obviously be appealed to the Ninth Circuit Court and just as obviously, they will uphold the ruling. All of which means that the whole issue will be back to the Supreme Court hopefully for a definitive ruling this time.
I do think it is past time for Congress to split the Ninth Circuit Court area and limit them to just California, Hawaii and the other Pacific Island Districts. With the population growth in the other seven states, it is past time for the more conservative states Alaska, Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Nevada, Arizona, and Montana to have their own court.
The News Media and Hurricane Katrina
The news media in this country and overseas has shown its usual bias in coverage of the Katrina disaster. Blame Bush seems to be the chant that never ends. The only outlets that seem to question the actions of local and state politicians are Fox and the online bloggers. I must admit that NBC has lately begun looking into corruption at the local level. In case you missed it, on September 14th they had a segment on the nightly news about the local agency involved in levee construction and maintenance and why they would spend $2.5 million for a fountain, $45,000 to investigate a critical radio talk show host, another $45,000 to settle out of court when this talk show host sued, and $15 million to build overpasses to a gaming boat. This is only the tip of the iceberg, believe me, Louisiana political corruption will go rampant unless the federal government sends an army of accountants to watch over the $60+ billion that is to be spent on rebuilding.
Overblown reporting with sensational headlines seems to be the practice. Let’s examine some on them shall we. “Over 10,000 feared dead in New Orleans” when in reality it has been less than 1,000. “Toxic Waste Dump” verses the reality that one of the worst toxic spills seems to be diesel fuel from the hundreds of buses left to flood. Why weren’t these used to evacuate the stranded earlier? Could it be that some corrupt official was thinking ahead to a nice kickback on repair and replacement work? “I called for federal troops” when in reality the Governor admitted on camera (CNN) that she had opposed federal troops until it was too late. To my knowledge, CNN never did broadcast this comment again and of course, the Governor didn’t know the camera was still live. You can find the clip yourself. Just search the web. “Survivors Resort to Cannibalism” was a lie pure and simple that was retracted by its originator early on but the retraction was never given mention in the media. The list goes on and on and I’m tired of writing about this. Just examine the issues yourself and you will come to the same conclusions I have, DON’T TRUST THE MEDIA FOR ANYTHING THAT DOESN’T FIT THEIR AGENDA.
Courts, Courts and yet more Courts
The John Roberts nomination and upgrade from member of the Supreme Court to Chief Justice is something to cheer about. His confirmation seems to be going along in smooth fashion even with the cheap shots by the likes of Biden and Kennedy.
Speaking of “Teddy” Kennedy, one can only wonder how the people of Massachusetts can continue to re-elect him to office. Not only is he a drunken murderer, but it has become obvious watching his performance at the confirmation hearings that the substance abuse has taken its toll on his ability to think. He looks wooden sitting there reading his questions and not even looking up when he is finished. He also seems to have trouble following the answers given by Judge Roberts. Perhaps it is time he retires before he makes a greater fool of himself.
Out West, we seem to have another idiot of a judge in California. The decision to ban the saying of the Pledge of Allegiance will obviously be appealed to the Ninth Circuit Court and just as obviously, they will uphold the ruling. All of which means that the whole issue will be back to the Supreme Court hopefully for a definitive ruling this time.
I do think it is past time for Congress to split the Ninth Circuit Court area and limit them to just California, Hawaii and the other Pacific Island Districts. With the population growth in the other seven states, it is past time for the more conservative states Alaska, Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Nevada, Arizona, and Montana to have their own court.
The News Media and Hurricane Katrina
The news media in this country and overseas has shown its usual bias in coverage of the Katrina disaster. Blame Bush seems to be the chant that never ends. The only outlets that seem to question the actions of local and state politicians are Fox and the online bloggers. I must admit that NBC has lately begun looking into corruption at the local level. In case you missed it, on September 14th they had a segment on the nightly news about the local agency involved in levee construction and maintenance and why they would spend $2.5 million for a fountain, $45,000 to investigate a critical radio talk show host, another $45,000 to settle out of court when this talk show host sued, and $15 million to build overpasses to a gaming boat. This is only the tip of the iceberg, believe me, Louisiana political corruption will go rampant unless the federal government sends an army of accountants to watch over the $60+ billion that is to be spent on rebuilding.
Overblown reporting with sensational headlines seems to be the practice. Let’s examine some on them shall we. “Over 10,000 feared dead in New Orleans” when in reality it has been less than 1,000. “Toxic Waste Dump” verses the reality that one of the worst toxic spills seems to be diesel fuel from the hundreds of buses left to flood. Why weren’t these used to evacuate the stranded earlier? Could it be that some corrupt official was thinking ahead to a nice kickback on repair and replacement work? “I called for federal troops” when in reality the Governor admitted on camera (CNN) that she had opposed federal troops until it was too late. To my knowledge, CNN never did broadcast this comment again and of course, the Governor didn’t know the camera was still live. You can find the clip yourself. Just search the web. “Survivors Resort to Cannibalism” was a lie pure and simple that was retracted by its originator early on but the retraction was never given mention in the media. The list goes on and on and I’m tired of writing about this. Just examine the issues yourself and you will come to the same conclusions I have, DON’T TRUST THE MEDIA FOR ANYTHING THAT DOESN’T FIT THEIR AGENDA.
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