Any MIHOP/LIHOPers rethinking after Bushco's Katrina clusterfuck?

[smoogatz]

9/11, the Iraq debacle, and Bushco's non-response to Katrina all seem of a piece to me--speaking of a breed of almost universal federal incompetence/cluelessness that's practically unparalleled in U.S. history. What we have here is a pattern of rigid, unresponsive, incompetent, ideology-driven government that's incapable of reacting appropriately to new information sets. It's really worse news for the country than the PNAC/evil-genius scenario. We've GOT to get rid of these morons.

[etherealtruth]

1. " universal federal incompetence/cluelessness "

as far as I'm concerned that says it all

[seemslikeadream]

2. Sonic 'lasers' head to flood zone

Sonic 'lasers' head to flood zone


"In mid-90's morning heat at Edwards Air Force Base, HPV Technologies and American Technology demonstrated prototypes of non-lethal sonic devices for a group of military and law enforcement guests, including representatives of the U.K. Home Office.

Representatives of both companies say that within days, they will ship some units of their respective products to areas hit by Hurricane Katrina, so authorities can use the tools for crowd control, aid distribution and rescue operations.

Costa Mesa, California-based HPV showed off three sizes of its Magnetic Acoustic Device, or MAD, a black square panel composed of multiple speakers. The units on display ranged from about 4 to 10 feet across.

The device uses magnets approximately 6 inches tall and 9.25 inches wide to convert electrical pulses into sound waves, and is capable of aiming sound precisely for thousands of feet -- like the sonic equivalent of a laser, or spotlight.

Its path and reach can be affected by environmental factors such as nearby flat surfaces, hills, bodies of water or strong bursts of wind.

A series of test sounds beamed out by MAD, including gunfire, music and instructional commands, were audible and intelligible at distances of up to a mile.

When a subject is at close range in MAD's sonic path, and it is set to high volume, the sound can be excruciating."



http://wired.com/news/technology/0,1282,68732,00.html?tw=wn_tophead_1

[emcguffie]

3. Except when it's in Florida.

Then, as Joe Scarborough said last night, they are "ruthlessly efficient". Then he called this "amateur hour".

[tk2kewl]

4. You'd need to be an idiot...

not to believe it was at least LIHOP at this point.

I got into a big fight with my wife over this last night. She still can't bring herself to believe any of these events are deliberate negligence. She hates bush but thinks I am irrational, and I am getting sick of it. :grr:

[AverageJoe]

7. Same here

My wife hates Bush but any time I mention anything about his malfeasance she tells dismisses it with something like, "You're just willing to believe any bad thing someone says about him." I can't understand it.

[tk2kewl]

8. It is getting to the point that it is a strain on our relationship

She won't even listen to the evidence of LIHOP and says I am extreme and irrational, and of course that makes me even more angry. It is a bad cycle and we are making each other unhappy in the process. :(

[AverageJoe]

10. I don't bring it up much

Instead, I come on DU and mingle with the reality-based community. My wife's parents are strong republicans (and very good people) and I don't think she can bear to entertain the notion that her folks are supporting a terrorist dictatorship in the United States.

[tk2kewl]

12. when i come here for common sense i get it for not spending time

with the wife.

when i do spend time with her she inevitably brings up something political, generally something i agree with, and i try to point out the logical next dot that needs connecting and get told i am irrational or extreme.

after only a few more words the rest of the night is usually silent. the lack of urgency from intelligent people is mind boggling to me.

[AverageJoe]

13. Sounds like we're in similar boats

The only difference is that my wife encourages me to visit DU because it gives me an outlet and I don't bother her with the truth. Plus, I come here often while I'm at work. (Like right now.)

[tk2kewl]

14. yep

part of the problem is that i am a passionate person, and when i get on roll about the criminals running the show i get angry and she doesn't understand that i am not angry at her, i am just mad at the world.

I need to figure out how to talk about this shit without having my blood pressure skyrocket.

[windbreeze]

20. Does it help to tell you

You are not alone? Your situation may not seem so terrible to you, if you can accept that there are hundreds of thousands out here, in the same spot...I stay pretty aware of things, and it's very hard to be aware and then try to express it to others you care about...when you find their eyes/ears/minds are closed...I know..for I am one of you...I keep trying to put it to myself this way...I am infringing on my husband's comfort zone...what he is willing to accept, is far different than what I am seeing...he thinks I'm nuts...I think he's too good hearted, because he can't see that there IS evil in the world, and it's taking it's toll on all of us, whether he is willing to accept it or not. Your wife is a good person, like my husband..

So instead of arguing about it, I do what I can to keep us all safe, store supplies: canned food, water, first aid kit, keep the car full of gas at all times, make sure I have a way to cook w/o electricity if necessary, and sleeping bags(don't forget the plastic sheeting and duct tape)...I make my plans for survival...and I desperately hope that down the road, someone can say to me, see I told you so...it wasn't the way you said...You were all wrong..but in the meantime, I quietly prepare for any event...
windbreeze

[Mr Rabble]

19. I am in the same situation as both of you.

As much as I love my wife, I sometimes wonder what the hell is the matter with her.

[smoogatz]

23. Unsolicited advice from a married person/DU junkie

Give the wives a break. Take a little time-out from the internet. Try to forget about politics for a few days. Surely your marriages are more important than LIHOP/MIHOP. I mean, does it matter THAT much if 9/11 was the result of gross incompetence, criminal negligence, or psychotic conspiracy? Bushco are culpable in any case--right? Tell me you don't think your spouses are idiots for failing to accept the revealed truth about 9/11!

I just took a week off, and boy, do I feel better (had to check in for the hurricane news, though). How many of us, on our death beds, will wish we'd spent more time online?

[nickinSTL]

5. well, maybe...

or maybe they were more prepared to respond to 9/11 because it WAS LIHOP/MIHOP.

A lot easier to be prepared if you know it's coming WELL in advance.

[WePurrsevere]

11. Yes! This is something that's been niggling at me...

The response to 9-11 is so very different and yet "we" supposedly didn't know it was going to happen. OTOH the response to Katrina has been horrible and s-l-o-w and yet we DID have PLENTY warning ahead of time (well, IF BushCo hadn't been doing his "balanced life" ignore everything bit.)

Even IF I was in the mood to be kind, which after NO I'm not feeling at all inclined towards Bush, I still want to know... WHY, after ALL the pompass spouting of how "safe" Bush has made us, was't the response faster and stronger? Think about it... hypothetically... what IF NO actually had been a well timed terrorist attack at the weakened levees caused by BOMBS with a chemical attack at the same time? When you think about it it's possible that it could have been just as easily. If our government and BUSH can't handle a Natural disaster like this why should we believe that they can handle a terrorist attack any better?

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

17. There's a huge difference between 9/11 and Katrina

9/11 took down two buildings in NYC and severely damaged the Pentagon.

Katrina leveled an ENTIRE REGION.

Don't you see a distinction there?

[windbreeze]

21. Distinction?

The scope may be larger...but the point is....WE HAD WARNINGS...days and days of warnings...and there is NO excuse...absolutely NONE..would you trust this bunch to now keep you safe from any natural disaster...such as an earthquake??? or another terrorist attack? What is it that is not sinking in here? We are unprepared..We are NOT safer..and again, there is NO excuse. People better be thinking about keeping their own selves and their family safe from anything...and forget about the gov't...there is obviously other things that are more important to them..IF the FEMA system, and the Army Corp of Engineers hadn't had their funds GUTTED, by this gov't, in order to wage an illegal war...This situation would NOT have happened...the blame is squarely on Bush's shoulders...period!!
windbreeze

[peacetalksforall]

24. The towers fell with the help of professionally planted explosives.

We are told it was foreigners. Maybe not.

The levees broke because money wasn't allotted to fix them combined with the help (cover) of a hurricane.

We are told the levees broke because of the hurricane. Maybe not. Why not place a little explosive there under water - who would see you?

Motivation?

The regime promised the religious right that they would help eliminate cities with a heavy population of people the reverends don't like?

Crazy? Think like a script writer or author with a bizarre plot and and you will be on a par with people who write their own bizarre scripts and who are bizarrely passionate about the unacceptability of certain other people, especially those who are seen as a social burden.







We were told that Atta's carefully protected passport flew out of his flight bag and landed nearly at the foot of a fireman?

[chicagiana]

6. Pure callousness ...

I no longer think that this was a GOP operation to create a disaster. It's just pure idiotic neglect. Whoever is managing the president clearly isn't doing a good job.

Bush's poll numbers will go WAAAAAY down.

[underpants]

9. Oh good this should help lots

no offense but it was an act of nature, get it? the response is just pure negligence.

[smoogatz]

22. That's my point.

Bush was amply warned in all three instances. In all three instances, the nightmare scenarios played out more-or-less as predicted by experts within the government. In all three instances, those experts were fired and/or demoted for failing to "get on board" with Bushco's all-policy-is-politics bullshit. Same shit, three times in a row. More, if you count the tax-cuts that failed to pay for themselves, and the Medicaid fiasco. It just smacks more of systemic idiocy than anything as organized as a conspiracy. I'm more and more convinced that these boneheads couldn't orchestrate a trip to the men's room--much less 9/11.

[belle]

15. I've always thought so. Stupid & evil, which is actually worse than

smart and evil in some ways. They have a couple of wellworn dirty tricks, and a lot of inherited money and power. But ultimately they've gotten as far as they have because people simply can't believe that no, they really are THAT incompetent, so they project all kinds of other scenarios onto them, from Fearless Leader to Diabolical Mastermind. Nuh-uh. It's scarier in a way, because even an evil mastermind at least has some instincts of self-preservation. This fool is likelier to get us all killed because he genuinely wouldn't see it even if it did mean his head as well.

[Chemical Bill]

16. Not really.

Cheney was in charge of 9/11. Nobody is in charge now. Where is Cheney anyway?

Bill

[Blue Belle]

18. I saw a documentary on 9/11 last night on PBS...

It was more on the stores of the survivors that day... but I was just pissed when it was over. If the Bush Administration planned this (which I think they did) or even worse - let it happen on purpose- I hope he rots in the deepest fire in Hell for what he has put the Citizens of this country through.

[slay]

25. Well, what if

it was allowed to get this bad so that they could run a FEMA/military execise under Martial Law conditions? I mean these are only poor black people, nobody cares about them. :( I'm just sayin.. :shrug:

[earth mom]

26. What's happening right now is deliberate.

They don't care and they don't want to spend any money on those people. They just want them to "go away" as in DIE.

That is crystal clear to me.

[Eloriel]

27. Yeah, here's what I think

ATTN DU RESEARCHERS -- LIHOP/MIHOP evidence stacking up
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=104&topic_id=4588088&mesg_id=4588088