I'm back

[Firespirit]

Phone has finally been restored, there's a "quick fix" for the roof damage until the insurance company gets to us, and my community is beginning to get back to a semblance of normality. There are many hurricane refugees who evacuated to my town or nearby ones and now have to stay here long-term.

Anyway... I've been cut off from the world for awhile now, and what do I find? Bush at 39% approval? Stuff still going on in Ohio, with the involvement of Kerry's lawyers? Lott thanking Kerry by name? The Bush Administration considered inept in handling a national disaster? (Such a terrible pity that it actually TOOK one to make some people understand that. :()

Anyway, I apparently need to get caught up with the political latest. Just making sure everyone knew I was still here and still OK.

:hi:

[JI7]

1. good to see you are ok

WEL updated us on how you were also a while back also. i can't imagine how it would be to go without some of the things you all have had to go without and which many still do.

i got frustrated when California was having blackouts which probably only lasted less than an hour at most from what i remember. and i think we even still had the phones working.

[WildEyedLiberal]

2. Hey you

Welcome back to the world, you crazy bitch :P

[TayTay]

3. So glad to hear from you.

And I'm so glad you are okay. We were worried about you.

Welcome back kiddo!

[karynnj]

4. Glad to here that you are ok and your community is

begining to return to normal. It's hard to imagine being in such devastation.

Seeing and reading the news now probably makes you feel like Rip Van Winkle in Sleepy Hollow. So much has changed in 3 weeks. Hearing that Lott brought up Kerry's name on television and in the Senate to thank him was a surprise and this was the only way we heard that Teresa and Kerry had directly helped. It does seem that a disaster of this magnitude has woken many people up to the idea that government is actually needed.

Glad to hear that you are ok and are catching up on the world. (Rove better hope that none of the people involved in any planned suppression of the vote live in the Gulf States. )

[ginnyinWI]

5. welcome back

You might also notice that the atmosphere at DU doesn't seem quite as poisoned against Kerry lately. The wind seems to be changing. Or the Freeps have retreated, or something. But the best thing is that the MSM has finally gotten the memo: the * administration is incompetent to lead.

[politicasista]

6. Welcome back

Glad to hear that you're ok.:hi:


BTW: My peeps in MS are fine. They lost power and trees, but they're ok.

[sandnsea]

7. Yeah!!!

I'm so glad you're okay. What a harrowing experience for you! Do people really get it about the Bushies? I saw a true believer on CNN today saying the government was doing the best it could, unreal.

[whometense]

8. Welcome back to the internets.

I'm so glad to hear you came through relatively unscathed.

What kinds of talk are you hearing around you, politically speaking?

[Firespirit]

9. Depends on who and what you ask, really...

Several people that I've known to be Republicans all their lives are ticked off with Bush and DHS about this and speak of how fortunate it was that there has not been a terrorist attack in the aftermath of the hurricane because they "don't trust the government to handle it" or think that Bush is inept and incompetent. I hope it's part of an actual transformation, though -- I gotta admit I'm wary of people who only care if something affects them personally. I don't want to rain on anyone's party, but that still sounds like a conservative attitude to me. There are a few diehards who will still try to make excuses for the man, though, but it mainly consists of "it wasn't HIS fault but Brown/DHS/Chertoff/FEMA/the Guard/Blanco/Nagin/etc.," rather than wholeheartedly defending the response of the government. I'm assuming that they are in the 38% that still approves of him -- the unreachables, let's say. :P

One thing that's been pretty much universal is that people are massively pissed off about the poor, sick, and homeless being neglected. There isn't as much sympathy for people who had the means to get out but stayed behind to party or whatever, but there is very deep anger and frustration about the neglect of the ones who had no choice. People are especially angry about the fiasco with the New Orleans Convention Center. I hope it means that I'm wrong to be guarded in my hope that the hurricane woke people up to the evil of neoconservatism.

[whometense]

10. I guess only time will tell.

I've stopped being surprised by the utter selfishness of way too many people. Rich people who live in MA and actually voted for that nasty arrogant bully because of their f***ing tax cuts. No one who's a friend of mine, but friends of friends. That is just insane to me. It's even worse than the ideological Bush voters. At least the fundie voters believe in something, however twisted and wrong. The tax cut voters are empty, shallow, and cynical. How do they live with themselves??? What kind of world do they think they are leaving to their children?