Just an observation...as I watched the news coverage of the massive
flooding in the Midwest with over 100 blocks of the city of Cedar
Rapids, Iowa under water, levees breaking, and the attention now turned
downstream for when this massive amount of water hits the Mississippi,
what amazed me is not what we saw, but what we didn't see...

1. We don't see looting.
2. We don't see street violence.
3. We don't see people sitting on their rooftops waiting for the
government to come and save them.
4. We don't see people waiting on the government to do anything.
5. We don't see Hollywood organizing benefits to raise money for people
to rebuild.
6. We don't see people blaming President Bush.
7. We don't see people ignoring evacuation orders.
8. We don't see people blaming a government conspiracy to blow up the
levees as the reason some have not held.
9. We don't see the US Senators or the Governor of Iowa crying on TV.
10. We don't see the Mayors of any of these cities complaining about the
lack of state or federal response.
11. We don't see or hear reports of the police going around confiscating
personal firearms so only the criminal will be armed.
12. We don't see gangs of people going around and randomly shooting at
the rescue workers.
13. You don't see some leaders in this country blaming the bad behavior
of the Iowa flood victims on "society" (of course there is no wide
spread reports of lawlessness to require excuses).

Iowa vs. Louisiana:

Where are all of the Hollywood celebrities holding telethons asking for
help in restoring Iowa and helping the folks affected by the floods?

Where is all the media asking the tough questions about why the federal
government hasn't solved the problem? Asking where the FEMA trucks (and
trailers) are?

Why isn't the Federal Government relocating Iowa people to free hotels
in Chicago?

When will Spike Lee say that the Federal Government blew up the levees
that failed in Des Moines?

Where are Sean Penn and the Dixie Chicks?

Where are all the looters stealing high-end tennis shoes and big screen
television sets?

When will we hear Governor Chet Culver say that he wants to rebuild a
"vanilla" Iowa , because that's the way God wants it?

Where is the hysterical 24/7 media coverage complete with reports of
cannibalism?

Where are the people declaring that George Bush hates white, rural
people?

How come in 2 weeks, you will never hear about the Iowa flooding ever
again?


it sure as sugar has nothing to do with the color of your skin. . . It coudln't be. . . . . hmmmm

 

Nothing good will come of this

 

Whats wrong? Everybody scared of the truth?

 

I think its that a hurricane is more newsworthy than a river that is flooded. Plus New Orleans has a lot more people that cause trouble than the midwest

 

As someone who lived in N.O. for 17 years, and still have my entire mother's side of the family down there, I find it a bit ridiculous that no one is calling for those unfortunate Iowans to move. They get these floods every 15-20 years, yet they still rebuild. N.O. got its storm once in a long, long time. Yes, the folks in N.O. that stayed were the bottom of the barrel, but to suggest that one area of our nation is better than another in anyway in regards to natural disasters and their aftermath is ludicrous. If I were one of those Iowans affected this time, I'd get the heck out of dodge.

So, I say to all of you: why don't those Iowans move? You all were calling for N.O. people to do that after Katrina. You can't have your cake and eat it too, you know.

 

The problem, is that the truth is like a giant spotlight... When you turn it on, the cucaracha scatter and look for cover.

It was a good post. I am a little disappointed that I never thought of it myself.

 

You can't exactly pick up thousands of acres of farm ground that's been in your family for generations and relocate to higher ground.

Though the same can be said for NO, but it's less of a factor because of the city setting. More common than not, families COULD relocate according to their profession.

 

And you can't expect people to relocate to higher ground that have lived their ENTIRE lives in an area either, farm land or not. People choose to live where they feel best, not SOLELY based on profession. I sincerely think no one is making a stink about Iowa because it's a lot "brighter" there as opposed to N.O. during Katrina. Status quo, unfortunately, for this country.

 

I didn't mean that people live in NO because felt it's the best place to be a bead salesman. Just that you can be a bead salesman somewhere else in the country. Being a farmboy up in Iowa means you rely on the ground established for your livelihood. Without some serious cashflow, you aren't going to set up shop in Kansas where the chances of finding equivalent farm ground are slim to none.

Truth be known, we will always have to accept some risk no matter where we live. Fires, earthquakes, tornadoes, hurricanes, flooding (California has more than it's share of disasters, I'd avoid that place).

And yes, the media sucks a big one. The quicker you accept it and take the talking heads for what they are worth (nothing), the less worked up you'll be about things.

 

You mean lack of a profession... Someone with NO job, can go anywhere

 

And the faster you drop that "holier than thou" attitude, the better off you'll be.

 

Having had the unfortunate experience to work in New Orleans many times over the years, all I can say is that it has got to be one of the biggest cesspools of humanity and corruption on the face of this planet. The best thing the US could do would be to fill in that hole with dirt and forget it ever existed......

 

I had a post on this exact thing, didnt get much support and flamed out. Mine wasnt an e mail copy paste but actually something that came to mind as I watched the news.

 

OoooooooK, let me rephrase that

"The quicker we accept it and take the talking heads for what they are worth (nothing), the less worked up we'll be about things."

*steps back on my holy throne

 

hey if we dumped enough dirt in it would no longer be a soup bowl and then it wouldn't flood anymore