Special Alert from the Rapid Response Network

[G_j]

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Action Item
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New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin did an interview with WWL's Garland Robinette. Early this morning on Daybreak, CNN played it word for word.

THIS IS NOT A TRANSCRIPT, IT IS THE BEST I COULD GET TYPING AS FAST AS I COULD & going back to recap paraphrasing what I missed.
If you can find a place where this has been transcribed online, please send it to [e-mail]

*ACTION*
1. Write CNN and urge them to keep playing this tape. Tell them it is important because perhaps if citizens understand the scope of this situation, they will urge their federal elected representatives to provide REAL help NOW (don't make your letter partisan) - http://www.cnn.com/feedback/forms/form1.html?39
(please write to the CNN program that is airing at the time that you write your email and ask them to play this tape. Find the weblink for the show here: http://www.cnn.com/feedback/cnntv/ - scroll to the bottom of the page)
2. Write your elected representative as Mayor Nagin recommends at the bottom of the transcript. Find address here: http://www.congress.org/congressorg/home/
3. Write to MSNBC and the network news and ask them to give this tape play (they may have). Try Fox too if you're game for a challenge.
Find your addresses here: http://digbig.com/4bqmq
4. Forward this to lists you're on.

*******
PARAPHRASED INTERVIEW:
Nagin: the reason that the lawlessness occurred is that we had to put our resources on the rescue
pleading for more federal help

The president flying over doesn't do it justice
we're outmanned in just about every respect

they flew down here one time 2 days after this happened with TV cameras and AP repoorters and I'm pissed

they're thinking small and this is a major major major deal

QUESTION: do you think the president/feds are doing what they need to do?
Nagin: All I can say is that God is looking down on all this and if they're not doing everything they can do to save people, they're going to pay the price.

We told everyone the importance of the 17th street canal issue - we told governor , homeland security, FEMA - we told everyone who would listen - they allowed the pumping station to go under water. Then a critical water supply was allowed to go because of lack of action.

Nothing is happening. They're feeding the public a line of bull, and their spinning and people are dying.

QUESTION: what do you know about a law that the president can't do anything unless state authorities ask them- what about calling for marital law?

NAGIN: we called for martial law in the city of NO a few days ago, I don't know whether the Governor has or not. The majority of people of desperate, they're trying to find food and water

I'm probably going to get into a whole bunch of trouble here. . . but we authorized 8 billion dollars to go to iraq lickety split, after 9/11 we gave the president extra powers lickety split to take care of iraq and you mean to tell me that in a place where we have thousands of people dying every day that we can't find a way to authorize the resources we need? I don't know whether its the governor's problem or the president's problem, but they need to fix it.

QUESTION: What can people do?
NAGIN: Organize people to write letters to their representatives. I don't want to see anyone do anymore goddamn press conferences until they're standing here next to thousands of troops. Don't tell me 40,000 troops are being deployed because they're not here. Now get off your asses and lets do something and lets fix the biggest goddamn problem in the history of this country.

(The interviewer and the Mayor then both broke into tears and started crying and ended the interview.)

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Action Item
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The Bush administration’s disgusting response to people dying in New Orleans due to their lies, incompetence, and indifference needs to get wide play.



First, we have Bush’s pathetic lies on GMA: http://www.crooksandliars.com/2005/09/01.html#a4738

Bush on GMA

Here's the interview today with Diane. Video-WMP http://movies.crooksandliars.com/dianepres.wmv

"I don't think anybody anticipated the breach of the levees."

This was predicted by, among others, FEMA!!!!!!!!!!!

Please see this award-winning 5 part series done 3 years ago by the Times-Picayune on JUST THIS: http://www.nola.com/washingaway/thebigone_1.html AND

1) http://www.salon.com/opinion/blumenthal/2005/08/31/disaster_preparation/print.html

"No one can say they didn't see it coming"

2) When the levee breaks http://www.pnionline.com/dnblog/attytood/archives/002331.html

3) Gone with the Water http://magma.nationalgeographic.com/ngm/0410/feature5/index.html

4) When the levee breaks (Salon.com version) http://www.salon.com/politics/war_room//index.html



Then we have Condi Rice in New York vacationing while hundreds of thousands of Americans are suffering:

http://www.nydailynews.com/front/story/342712p-292600c.html
As South drowns, Rice soaks in N.Y.

On Wednesday night, Secretary Rice was booed by some audience members at "Spamalot!," the Monty Python musical at the Shubert, when the lights went up after the performance.

Yesterday, Rice went shopping at Ferragamo on Fifth Ave. According to the Web site www.Gawker.com, the 50-year-old bought "several thousand dollars' worth of shoes" at the pricey leather-goods boutique.

A fellow shopper shouted, "How dare you shop for shoes while thousands are dying and homeless!" - presumably referring to Louisiana and Mississippi.

The woman expressing her First Amendment rights was promptly removed from the store. A Ferragamo store manager confirmed to us that Rice did shop there yesterday, but refused to answer questions about whether the protester was removed, and whether by his own security or the Secret Service.

And then this disgusting, delusional response from the FEMA chief: http://www.cnn.com/2005/WEATHER/09/01/katrina.fema.brown/index.html
FEMA chief: Victims bear some responsibility
Brown pleased with effort: 'Things are going relatively well'

"Unfortunately, that's going to be attributable a lot to people who did not heed the advance warnings," Brown told CNN. "I don't make judgments about why people chose not to leave but, you know, there was a mandatory evacuation of New Orleans," he said. "And to find people still there is just heart-wrenching to me because, you know, the mayor did everything he could to get them out of there.
NOTE: They did NOTHING to get the poor out of New Orleans!!!!!!!!! Brown keeps using the phrase people who “CHOSE” not to evacuate! Most of the people left behind did not have the resources to evacuate (e.g., car, money, gas money, etc etc) and NOTHING was offered to help them! This man is a crass, incompetent LIAR!!!!!!!!!!!!)



http://www.salon.com/opinion/feature/2005/09/01/katrina_race/print.html
Flushing Out the Ugly Truth

http://www.pandagon.net/archives/2005/08/busting_out_the.html
Busting out the tinfoil hat

http://jameswolcott.com/archives/2005/09/new_orleans_die.php
New Orleans Died for Bush’s Sins

http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2005/09/01/against_funding/print.html
Bush fought funding in Energy Bill for Gulf Coast Protection

http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2005/09/01/levee_funding/print.html
Anatomy of an unnatural disaster


ACTION:

Write widely to your local media and make sure that they’re covering the disgusting behavior exhibited by the Bush administration and the lies being told by them!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! People are dying in New Orleans due to their lies, indifference, and incompetence and these wastes of oxygen are going on with their usual disgusting swagger!!!!

Anne Lindsay (NC)

(Editor's note - how many of you have heard their talking points - we really had to response to TWO disasters - the first, the hurricane and the second, the levees breaking?)

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[cthrumatrix]

1. it's just plain criminal

[Karenina]

2. It's GENOCIDAL.

[G_j]

3. yes it is

and that is not an exaggeration!

[G_j]

4. ~kICk~

[jeffreyi]

5. Here's the audio

http://tinyurl.com/7l5j6