Lift your T-shirt, or NO RESCUE!

[moodforaday]

This is almost unbelieveable, but then I also can't imagine someone just rescued from N.O. would be making up such stories for the heck of it. By way of Yahoo News, from some British tourists who've made it out of New Orleans:

Storm Survivors Told To 'Expose Themselves'

A group of female hurricane survivors were told to show their breasts if they wanted to be rescued, a British holidaymaker has revealed. Ged Scott watched as American rescuers turned their boat around and sped off when the the women refused.

The account was just another example of the horror stories emerging from the hurricane disaster zone.

Mr Scott, 36, of Liverpool, was with his wife and seven-year-old daughter in the Ramada Hotel when the flood waters started rising.

"At one point, there were a load of girls on the roof of the hotel saying 'Can you help us?' and the policemen said 'Show us what you've got' and made signs for them to lift their T-shirts," he told the Liverpool Evening Echo. When the girls refused, they said `Fine' and motored off down the road in their boat."

http://uk.news.yahoo.com/06092005/140/storm-survivors-told-expose-themselves.html

[formerrepuke]

1. I always said the correct translation of "mardi gras" is "show us your

t*ts"... except it's not funny anymore- especially in light of this story. Shameful.

[ComerPerro]

2. Well, it is New Orleans

:sarcasm:

[DefenseLawyer]

3. That sounds like someone creating an urban legend to me.

Has ANYONE else reported seeing anything similar?

[mattclearing]

4. Sounds totally plausible to me.

New Orleans is "Show Us Your Tits" central.

[DefenseLawyer]

7. Which is why Urban Legends prosper

Because they seem plausible. The "Show us your Tits" thing is a Mardi Gras tradition, but people aren't going about their daily lives flashing one another. Having lived in New Orleans, or "Show Us Your Tits Central" as you call it, I can tell you that I never saw a police officer or anyone else providing services demand to see cleavage before responding. I have a hard time thinking that cops are going to take time out for a bit of foolishness like this in that situation. Bribery? Yes. Corruption? Yes. Show us your tits to get rescued? Sorry, I would like a second source on that.

[s.Leah.s.]

8. With the mess NO appears to be in,

I'm wondering if these were really police. With conditions being as bad as are being reported in NO, I wouldn't be a bit surprised if these weren't some jerks who decided to get in their boat and go "help" rescue people, maybe with a little false courage thrown in. If that's the case, I'm glad none of them fell for the line and got in the boat with these apes.

On a side note, I've been reading and hearing about there being large numbers of police officers who've abandoned NO. Several friends in Houston and in Dallas are telling me they're seeing large numbers of NO police cars on the streets. Has anybody heard anything similar? I find this hard to believe since I stayed up late the night Katrina came ashore and watched one of the traffic cams in the Quarter. (watched for as long as the cam stayed up) Either there was one police car making rounds over and over again or there were quite a few police still on patrol.

[RagingInMiami]

5. Well if the cops had beads

Then maybe they can justify it

[RaleighNCDUer]

6. With a third of the NO PD gone missing, I hope that these were

some of the deserters. If these guys were on duty it must be much worse than we're being told.

It's not a long leap from this to "You wanna be rescued? How much money you got?"