Billions for a criminal war and tax cuts for the rich, but nearly nothing to take care of the needs of a US city. A substantial amount of the suffering taking place in New Orleans could have been avoided, but the Bush Administration had other priorities. Just in case you missed it, I also linked to Oxfam America's praise of Cuba's hurricane preparation programs, a nation with "a strong central government committed to protecting all its citizens, even the poorest and most isolated who are typically the most at risk." We'll see the looting of Walmart 24/7, but the looting of America by the plutocracy will go unremarked unless the Democrats step up to the plate.
http://www.wsws.org/articles/2005/aug2005/katr-a31.shtmlAs always with a devastating event like Hurricane Katrina, voices are raised claiming that nothing could have been done to prevent the catastrophe. Such declarations are thoroughly false. While it would have been impossible to prevent all damage from the hurricane, there were definite measures that could have been taken to minimize the impact.
That such steps were not taken is despite the fact that the areas devastated by Katrina lie along a path that has repeatedly suffered massive hurricane damage in the past. New Orleans is particularly vulnerable. It lies below sea level, surrounded on three sides by water—the Gulf of Mexico, the Mississippi River, Lake Pontchartrain—from which it is protected only by a network of levees and pumps. For years scientists and engineers have warned that a major hurricane could inflict catastrophic damage on the city.
After Hurricane Betsy, the levee system was modified to withstand the force of a category three hurricane, but Katrina, when it hit land, was stronger—a category four storm. It was only a matter of time before a category four or five storm hit the city, but government officials failed to commit the resources necessary to shore up the levee system to withstand an event of that magnitude, including raising the height of the barriers to prevent the sort of flooding that occurred in the Lower Ninth Ward.
The city depends on pumps to push water uphill, away from the city and back into the surrounding lake and river. However, these pumps operate on electricity, which has been entirely cut off since the hurricane struck. The pumps have apparently ceased operating.
According to an article in the New Orleans CityBusiness, from February 7, 2005, the US Army Corps of Engineers “identified millions of dollars in flood and hurricane protection projects in the New Orleans district,” however “chances are... most projects will not be funded in the president’s 2006 fiscal year budget.”
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http://www.oxfamamerica.org/whatwedo/emergencies/asian_floods_2004/background/cubalessonsOxfam America recently studied the experience of Cuba in its development of disaster prevention and mitigation programs. Situated in the Caribbean Sea, Cuba frequently stands in the way of serious hurricanes. While its neighbors are battered, losing lives and property, Cuba is unusually good at withstanding these calamities, and suffers much fewer dead.
Oxfam’s report, entitled Weathering the Storm: Lessons in Risk Reduction in Cuba cites a number of attributes of Cuba’s risk reduction program that can be applied by other countries. Three in particular are transferable to Asia and other regions:
*Disaster Preparedness: Cuba was especially good at mobilizing entire communities to develop their own disaster preparations. This involves mapping out vulnerable areas of the community, creating emergency plans, and actually simulating emergencies so people can practice evacuations and other measures designed to save lives. When disaster strikes, people know what to do.
*Commitment of Resources: Cuba’s strong central government prioritizes resources for its civil defense department. This helps the country to build up a common understanding of the importance of saving lives, and the citizens trust that their contributions to the government are well used for this purpose. Their collaboration on developing emergency plans helped build confidence in the government, so people trust in the plan they helped develop.
*Communications: The communications system for emergencies in Cuba builds on local resources. Using local radio stations and other media to issue warnings on potential hazards also reinforces the disaster preparations. Since the local population is already involved in mapping risks and creating emergency plans, they are more inclined to act on emergency bulletins. Good communications, packaged simply, and built on existing, commonly used resources, is another way to build trust in disaster preparations.
Cuba is a unique example. There is a strong central government committed to protecting all its citizens, even the poorest and most isolated who are typically the most at risk. The most common natural disaster in Cuba is a hurricane, a threat visible for days and even weeks in advance. Yet building a culture of disaster preparedness, and involving local communities in mitigating risks, are strategies that can be applied in many other places, regardless of how rich or poor a country might be.
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