The Coalition of the Swilling

Court-martials for all involved, and pursue this up as far as possible, up to and including impeachment for their commander-in-chief, Governor Blanco, followed by her criminal trial for at least negligent homicide, if not manslaughter. I don't even know what to say: I'm fucking horrified.

You said it pretty damn good enough for me. I have no words to describe my reaction, especially as a Marine. Unconscionable. Unf@ckingconscionable.

Speaking as a former Guardsman.....do you know just how *little* training those troops get in crowd control? Law enforcement?

Oh, and how many days of supply did they have in food? Water? Fuel? Ammunition? Hell, when was the last time any of them even qualified with their weapons (assuming none of them were Iraq veterans)? Did they have radio communications with their chain of command to call for help?

Were they told by their chain of command specifically not to get involved with law enforcement matters? Trust me, that's a really serious issue.

I'm not justifying their actions. Those Guardsmen performed atrociously, and could have done more than hunker down in their fighting position. But I absolutely WILL NOT second guess those troops on the ground to the degree that I might express a desire for summary execution.

The money quote in the ENTIRE article is right near the top of your post:

"We didn't want another Kent State," said Army Lt. Gen. Russel L. Honore, commander of the active-duty military forces responding to Katrina. "They weren't trained for crowd control."

Want to blame someone? Go back into your archives and re-read what we've discussed about Nagin and Blanco. How about the gangs that went on the rampage in the complex? Don't they deserve some punishment here? The New Orleans police, demoralized for years, and when confronted with a leadership that cut and run, most cut and run?

Oh, and how the chain of command that stuck them into this stupid position? Going to let them off scott free, hmmmmm?

If you are going to organize a firing squad, ALL OF THOSE PEOPLE need to be right along side the troops.

THS, you are way out of line on this one, Marine or not. Be outraged at the unprofessionalism displayed here. Be horrified at the mob behavior. Demand courtmartials. Find the animals that went wild inside the complex. Hold the leadership responsibile.

But let's keep some perspective on just what the problem really is.

I think the phrase is "Innocent until proven guilty", isn't it, Dave?

Yeah, I toldja, Pretty damning stuff.

My god, this is outrageous.

What kind of shit-ass 'guardsmen' need orders to stop their fellow citizens from killing eachother?

TRJ,

Exactly.

P.S. Good morning Shep, Katie, Anderson, Geraldo!

Keep up teh goo dwork !!!

Editors note: JeffS cooment above was held up by the anti-spam program for some odd reason and just showed up now.

Jeffs, I'm thankful as always for your experience and insight. While the article does point out many instances of the local police doing nothing to control the situation, in essence running away or the especially disgusting bit about the SWAT team saving only 2 white women, I am still shocked and ashamed at how those guardsmen could just sit there and hide.

Be outraged at the unprofessionalism displayed here. Be horrified at the mob behavior. Demand courtmartials. Find the animals that went wild inside the complex. Hold the leadership responsibile.

yep

And I can only imagine what would have happened had a bunch of white national guardsmen opened fire in the pitch black, unable to identify targets, and killed a 12 yr old black girl. Geesh.

But goddamnitgoddamnitgoddamnit.

Further evidence of how corrupt and vile the police and officials of NOLA are. Damn them.

Further evidence of how corrupt and vile the police and officials of NOLA are. Damn them.

Exactly.

Slightly off-topic, but do y'all think Pat O'Brien's will be changing the name of their famous drink?

Hmmm.

I hope not.

Heck no, Lisa. No way they'd change them now...although it wouldn't surprise me if some namby-pamby asked them to in the name of "sensitivity".

The media and those who live outside hurricane zones are forgetting personal responsibility in this fiasco. I live just outside of New Orleans and all the news media in the area start reminding us on June 1 to stock up on non-perishable food and water, flashlights, medicine, baby needs, etc. for the hurricane season. Then when a hurricane is in the gulf, we're reminded to get the things we'll need for at least a week and have them ready.
We knew 3 days ahead of time that this hurricane was coming in our general direction. All of us here have heard the predictions of what would happen to New Orleans in a direct or near-direct hit. None of this mess should have been a surprise to anyone.
During any hurricane we can expect to lose electricity and many times, water. None of this is new.
Mayor Nagin warned everyone to get out if there was any way that they could (as if we needed reminding). He encouraged people to take care of their elderly relatives and neighbors. On Sunday he said the superdome was opened as a SHELTER OF LAST RESORT. He warned that there would be no food, water, cots, medical services, etc., and told people to bring what they would need for 3 or 4 days. I watched on TV as people drove to the Superdome instead of driving out of town. There were shelters set up in parishes north and west of New Orleans. No one had to go too far to get out of harm's way.
To those who think the govt. should get people out on buses: do you know how many times a year that would have to be done? Do you realize that after one or two false alarms, when people are bussed away and put in shelters when it turns out that they didn't really have to, do you realize that fewer and fewer people would show up for the buses and N.O. would have had the same result: people trying to stay in their homes, unprepared, and then crying for the govt. to come and save them.
I have lived in S. La. for 50 years and have been through every hurricane that's come this way during that time. We've had damage sometimes and we've been lucky sometimes, but we've always made it with the help of family and friends, not FEMA and Red Cross.
I know that Katrina was destruction beyond what N.O. has ever seen, but not what was expected. There were no surprises here.
I know people need help and they should receive it as quickly as possible, but we can't put ourselves in harm's way, experience a tragedy and not expect to have some hurt and discomfort.

Mary, excellent, excellent notes. That exact thing happened here before Ivan ~ days of warnings. Get 3 days worth of water, food, medications, betteries, flashlight, etc ad nauseum. It's in the paper, on the news, in the free hurricane guides placed all over town. But hours after Ivan, people were already lined up for miles, demanding water and ice. Unbelievable. I don't want to hear 'you can't afford it'. Jugs of water are 59 cents at Wal-Mart and five large $1.29 cans of beanie weenies will keep food in your gullet for 3 days. AND foodstamps pays for it all. Canned goods are even cheaper at the Big Lots and Dollar General stores so many folks frequent, as are a flashlight/extra batteries purchase. It doesn't have to be name brand, it just has to get you around the house in the dark.

That's why it's called an 'emergency'; so you can get prepared in case it turns into a 'disaster'.

Vienna Snausages!

You know, I tried not to mention them by name, but oh you just can't leave well enough alone...

Yes. Vienna Snausages are also cheap.

For a reason.

Hmmmmm......Mr. Bingley.......Vienna Snausages.....cheap......hmmmmmmm.....is there a pattern here? ;-P

It's called 'Scottish'.

That's all one need know.

It's called 'Scottish'.

Thugs!

I think that's British propaganda, exploiting the underclass. Just like Washington talking bad about Louisiana local officials. They're not thugs, they're disenfranchised.