There's been a lot of discussion around blogtopia (y! sctp! now give him a buck or two for royalties for Hurricane charities) about the past 25 years of conservative repudiation of governments role in everything. Except your bedroom. The prevailing wind has been from both ends of Pennsylvania Ave to sail along with the Grovel Nosetwist philosophy of "drowning government in the bathtub", which by itself brings up some frightening allusions to child-abuse right there.
The two and a half decades of tax-cutting institutional madness have led us to one thing: a government that can pour money into the pockets of its friends and campaign contributors, a government which prizes form over substance and the leadership of that government is so corrupt that it has to hide its own misdeeds from an even purportedly "friendly" congress, eschewing oversight at every turn.
So when a natural disaster the size of Katrina hits, what's been the value proposition for the residents of a state which has roundly supported the politics an policies of 'drowning the government in a bathtub'?
Tent cities aren't a happy option, but neither is haphazard improvisation. Is the problem the Bush administration's ideological fervor for small government? Does the White House really believe that primary responsibility should fall on volunteers, church groups and individuals? Or is it just stunning incompetence and lack of foresight?
Over the past two and a half decades, the republicans aided by Democrats who speak so well from both sides of their mouth have submerged our government in that bathtub, and in doing so, managed to drown the weakest and most needy among in their moment of absolute desperation.
And now our President, whose moral and physical cowardice sets him apart from virtually any leader in modern times, save perhaps the dictators of North Korea is attempting to politicize and deflect blame from himself, so he can continue to loot and pillage the government to allow the continued submersion of Federal Government in that metaphorical bathtub.
That submersion has become all too real to the displaced residents of New Orleans, and will be for the foreseeable future. I wonder how that will affect their view of metaphorical bathtubs and drownings in the 2006 elections and beyond?
I wonder how that will affect their view of metaphorical bathtubs and drownings in the 2006 elections and beyond?
Can you say 'attention span', my friend? The majority of Americans will forget all about Katrina in ten minutes. Our only hope is that the people of LA, MS, and AL remember. Maybe the people of the states who took survivors will remember too.
