A lot of the talking heads are yapping about returning FEMA to a cabinet level position independent of the Dept. of Homeland Security.
While I believe any blame or criticism for the crappy handling of Katrina should be distributed most heavily at the local level and it should diminish as you move up the bureaucratic ladder - it's pretty clear that FEMA's response needs some serious work.
Some claim that the problem is that FEMA has been re-tasked to deal with terrorism instead of natural disasters. However, the Katrina aftermath is very much similar to the type of situation we need to deal with in the aftermath of a major terrorist attack. If anything, the advanced warning and the absence of any NBC materials makes it less complex than what they should be prepared to handle effectively.
The last thing we need is more inter-departmental bureaucracy. Homeland Security was setup to coordinate all intel and assets needed to protect the US and to respond to any threat or aftermath. We should expect them to use Katrina as a baseline scenario and be able to respond to even more complex scenarios that may include other potential complications that may arise from a terrorist attack. Moving FEMA with a focus on natural disaster response will only result in Katrina being the benchmark for performance.
We're gonna have one hell of a learning curve if we have to learn every single lesson the hard way.
While I believe any blame or criticism for the crappy handling of Katrina should be distributed most heavily at the local level and it should diminish as you move up the bureaucratic ladder - it's pretty clear that FEMA's response needs some serious work.
Some claim that the problem is that FEMA has been re-tasked to deal with terrorism instead of natural disasters. However, the Katrina aftermath is very much similar to the type of situation we need to deal with in the aftermath of a major terrorist attack. If anything, the advanced warning and the absence of any NBC materials makes it less complex than what they should be prepared to handle effectively.
The last thing we need is more inter-departmental bureaucracy. Homeland Security was setup to coordinate all intel and assets needed to protect the US and to respond to any threat or aftermath. We should expect them to use Katrina as a baseline scenario and be able to respond to even more complex scenarios that may include other potential complications that may arise from a terrorist attack. Moving FEMA with a focus on natural disaster response will only result in Katrina being the benchmark for performance.
We're gonna have one hell of a learning curve if we have to learn every single lesson the hard way.
Also if you want this situation to change then you come down HARD on this governor and mayor. Get rid of them and I bet the next governor wont have to "sleep" on anything and 200 busses wont be sitting flooded and unused while dead bodies float. The mayor gave a speech asking people to leave. Im sorry but thats not enough. You drive the busses and police cars down the street and scare them into leaving as they do here. When they refuse you hand them a sharpie and ask them to write their names on their arms so they can be identified when they are killed. And you mark the door then and there. 99% of the time they will leave.
