[**Shannon**]

Continue!

Nikki, I totally agree.

[~*Nikki*~]

I'm reposting my statement about Kayne...

To be perfectly honest, I'm not too thrilled with Kayne, he seems to think he's the next Martin Luthor King JR or something with this statement and the a few weeks ago with the anti-gay bashing. I mean it's great if he's wanting to help out, but his statement about Bush had no context there, it's only going to start more conflict. I'm in no way a Bush supporter, I hate the man and think his adminstation is doing a horrible job in NO right now in response to Katrina, but I wouldn't have went on the air and said something like that when there are tons of people who are already mad and need a ring leader. I know the issue of race is going to come back to bite Bush in the ass when this is all said and done and I'm not looking forward to it, but did Kanye actually have to fuel that fire? I'm sure he feels strongly about it, hell I'm white and I feel sick watching the racism going on down there right now, but I think during a time of crisis, we should band together instead of splitting the lines. I'll be the first one to say that I think race is playing some part in this disaster and the rescue effects, but I don't think yelling and screaming about it is going to do any good right now. Wait until the rescue is over and the city is getting back on it's feet before we start something else is my belief.

You know I watched Celine Dion today on CNN and yes she was outraged at the Katrina disaster, but she did it without calling people names or bitching about the government. She was compassionate about saving lives and so forth. I thought it was very tasteful and the way celebrities should act in times like these on getting their statements out. Kayne should have taken a page from her book.

[Casandra]

I'm actually not entirely sure race is playing a part in the slow response, at least in the presidency. I'm not Bush's biggest fan either, but I don't think he's a racist. I've seen pictures of him comforting victims, his arms wrapped tightly around, black and white alike. If anything, it could be the FEMA director.

As for them having money to replace the levees,I can see why they didn't. The poverty level is close to 40 percent, so I'd guess that the money went to some low income project or another. If there's blame to be placed, lay it at the feet of the settlers in the 1700's. Creating a city below sea level, surrounded on all sides by water, certainly not smart.

[Endless Rain]

Shannon, if I thought that the actual people of Louisiana had it coming, I wouldn't have spent seven hours in the blazing sun at Hong Kong Mall helping Chinese people translate for police and helping them out. I'm just saying they have a dumbass mayor who had it coming to him if he made a bad choice. It's called karma. Tough. Live with it.

[~*Nikki*~]

Awww that's nice of you Maxi. I'm glad you're helping out, I'm sure those people appreciated it.

I agree with you Cas on the racist issue. I honestly don't think Bush is a racist, I think he's more concerned with financial standings. He could care less if rich people are white/black/blue, it's just the money and power where he is concerned. I think the whole Bush family thinks they're the next Kennedy clan or something and deem themselves american royalty.

That being said, if this had happened to a community of well-to-do white people, I think the response would be much faster, just look at how FEMA were on the scene in hours after the storms in FL last year. FL is much more white-bred than LA is.

[Casandra]

I honestly can't say one way or the other what prompted the slow response. Race issues or just general unpreparedness. It wasn't like the terror attacks or earthquakes, there was time to do things and they just weren't. Why was the Superdome not stocked with supplies and security put on duty? I think there is going to be blame and why's thrown around for years to come, even when New Orleans is rebuilt and back to her former glory, if that's possible. I think at this point, blame isn't going to do much of anything though. Get the people back on their feet, and then worry about everything else later.

[~*Nikki*~]

I agree with that statement and I really believe that right now we should be more focused on saving lives than fighting back and forth but the general public is just going on and on about the race issues and it's not going to stop anytime soon.

[Casandra]

Well things are finally looking up a bit, but I can't imagine what it's going to be like once all the water is out. Grisly doesn't seem to be a strong enough word.

[~*Nikki*~]

I was shocked tonight to see actual New Orleans residents being unloaded off a Greyhound bus that pulled into Jonesboro tonight when I was heading home from work. I mean I actually saw these people and I nearly cried just thinking about how "real" it was.

[Casandra]

Wow. It must be so much more surreal for you and Maxi than it is for me. I have that detachment from the thousand mile distance. It's amazing though how far spread out these poor people are being spread. They're diverting college enrollments to universities up here, and there are a few people here and there that have family around the area, but other than that, not a big difference. I'd bet it's probably more noticeable in Philly though.

[~*Nikki*~]

Yeah it's amazing to me how far spread they're going.

[Casandra]

They actually just flew a whole bunch of evacuees in to Philly again today. The city of Brotherly Love has really impressed me with the way they're receiving these poor people

[~*Nikki*~]

My grandmother was telling me than her sister and brother were here in town at the armory when they bused in about 200 NO citizens today.

I was watching CNN earlier and this one woman was having a hard time because they were trying to get her to leave but she couldn't take her seeing-eye dog with her and she was legally blind and didn't leave without the poor thing. Finally they let her go but she gave them a rough time until they accepted her wishes. I felt so bad for the poor animal and just thought of all the ones left there. Ugh I just can't take that.

[Endless Rain]

I don't know, I was flipping through the channels this morning and saw a report. It was this video clip of a house. It had SOS painted on the door and it was flooded out (clearly about NO and Katrina). It was kinda depressing.

[Casandra]

Well the thing is, they say about 10k are still in the city. And the last time I was watching the news there was a report of the water testing positive for a distant relative to cholera. So those people really need to voluntarily leave NO, or else I see a big epidemic starting.