The Discerning Texan

Remember Anderson Cooper and all that boo-hooing after Katrina? It was almost like listening to that guy screaming "oh the humanity!" when the Hindenberg went down. Except in this case it was while TV sets were being looted from New Orleans stores. But the media were falling all over themselves to get their cameras and anchors into the Crescent City and show the world how asleep at the wheel our Federal Government--translation: President Bush--was. This made me quite angry at the time--over and above the tragedy itself was the media going out of their way to make political hay out of it. In fact, one of my all time favorite takes on the Katrina tragedy was from Bill Whittle, and his very pointed but spot-on "Tribes".

And because the media was so successful at getting Bush's numbers to tank after Katrina; from that point forward, every time there was a tornado or a hurricane watch, or even a gust of wind, the media sent chartered jets full of reporters and cameramen--just in case they could catch the President being a bit slow on the draw, and twist that dagger a bit more. The people who actually suffered in these tragedies became "bit players", mere background noise to these vipers.

Well now we are in the Obama Administration. And unfortunately, another tragedy has befallen people who were in the wrong place at the wrong time; a real tragedy with people dying. And believe it or not, FEMA has failed to respond in a timely manner. But--like a tree falling in the forest--if there is no news media there to hear it, the news is muffled to say the least. And to everyone's shock, shock--the media (for some unknown reason...) doesn't seem to be around this time to call attention to the lack of federal response. Go figure!

Today you would literally have to dig to find this story in the MSM--even though it has been five days since the Governor of Kentucky declared an Emergency after an ice storm (caused by AGW, no doubt) knocked out power for over a million people, and many started freezing to death. The Governor did activate the entire Kentucky National Guard--who of course are doing the best they can. But as people continue to die of exposure (42 so far), FEMA is still nowhere to be found. Nor is Anderson Cooper, for that matter. What a difference 3 years makes!

Rick Moran comments on this "juxtaposition", with heavy but highly justifiable irony (read the whole thing):

With nearly 1.5 million people in the mid-west without power during a cold snap, what other possible reason is there that this new “competent” administration and FEMA would be failing so spectacularly in helping in this natural disaster?

IT’S GOT TO BE THAT OBAMA HATES WHITE PEOPLE AND WANTS THEM TO DIE!

Of course, I am just aping what lefty blogs were saying about Bush less than 24 hours after Katrina’s hurricane winds stopped blowing. But AP is reporting that Midwest disaster relief people are none too pleased with our new president’s FEMA.

In Kentucky’s Grayson County, there are 25 National Guardsmen there to help – but no chain saws to cut away fallen limbs and trees. EM Director Randell Smith is quoted as saying, “We’ve got people out in some areas we haven’t even visited yet,” Smith said. “We don’t even know that they’re alive.”

Smith is also quoted as saying that FEMA is a “no show.”

And then there’s this:

FEMA spokeswoman Mary Hudak said some agency workers had begun working Friday in Kentucky and more help was on the way. Hudak said FEMA also has shipped 50 to 100 generators to the state to supply electricity to such facilities as hospitals, nursing homes and water treatment plants.

“We have plenty of folks ready to go, but there are some limitations with roads closed and icy conditions,” she noted.

Gee – you mean the conditions of the roads has something to do with FEMA’s response time? Now, don’t you wonder what the roads near New Orleans looked like after a Category 4 storm made landfall? If you listened to all the screaming coming from the left about FEMA inaction, you would have to believe that those roads were as clean as a whistle, just like driving down the Interstate on a summer day. The only reason FEMA failed was because George Bush HATED BLACK PEOPLE AND WANTED THEM TO DIE! And in this case, FEMA is being stopped by a few trees, not roads made impassable due to flooding and other debris.

Here we are, 5 days after the storm ended and STILL NO FEMA? I demand a Congressional investigation. And let’s get all the anchors and media people down here pronto. People’s lives are at stake. For all we know, there are babies being eaten and people jumping off their roofs committing suicide because FEMA is nowhere to be found.

So... where IS FEMA? And where IS the MSM? Where is a tearful Anderson Cooper? Is Sean Penn being airlifted in to rescue the freezing? Not that I miss all that--truthfully I do not miss any of them. But the contrast is stark to say the least.

Welcome to "Hope, Change" and the see-no-evil news media. They've been on hiatus since the Clinton Administration, but they are back now. Hope you are enjoying the new "change" as much as the folks in Kentucky (or CNN/MSNBC) are.

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