True Hero's and Authority.

I have learned, bitterly, that one must read the morning newspaper from the side. That is, you cannot take what they tell you head on, you have to interpret. On every article you must ask yourself, "Why is the government telling me this?" "Why does the government want me to know the story this way?".

Case in point, in Louisiana, the headlines point out, the National Guard and the Police are working frantically to save people and restore order. Oh really. Well, I suppose that is true. but there really is a larger story here. That of the 'unsung' hero's. The regular people who reached out and saved their neighbors, the nurses, plumbers, electricians, bakery workers, hard-hats and white-collars, strangers and family. People saving people.

"...We also suspect the media will have been inundated with “hero” images of the National Guard, the troops and the police struggling to help the “victims” of the Hurricane. What you will not see, but what we witnessed were the real heroes and sheroes of the hurricane relief effort: the working class of New Orleans. The maintenance workers who used a fork lift to carry the sick and disabled. The engineers, who rigged, nurtured and kept the generators running. The electricians who improvised thick extension cords stretching over blocks to share the little electricity we had in order to free cars stuck on rooftop parking lots. Nurses who took over for mechanical ventilators and spent many hours on end manually forcing air into the lungs of unconscious patients to keep them alive. Doormen who rescued folks stuck in elevators. Refinery workers who broke into boat yards, “stealing” boats to rescue their neighbors clinging to their roofs in flood waters. Mechanics who helped hot-wire any car that could be found to ferry people out of the City. And the food service workers who scoured the commercial kitchens improvising communal meals for hundreds of those stranded.

Most of these workers had lost their homes, and had not heard from members of their families, yet they stayed and provided the only infrastructure for the 20% of New Orleans that was not under water...".

(From The Wilderness. ) 17 Sep 2005 GNN. By Larry Bradshaw and Lorrie Beth Slonsky. Republished from MetaMute.
http://gnn.tv/headlines/4941/_Get_Off_The_Fucking_Freeway
_The_Sinking_State_Loots_its_Own_Survivors)

The real story of New Orleans and the deep south after Hurricane Katrina belongs to the people like you and I. These people will not get Bush's publicity because Bush and his ilk want you to believe that only 'Official' forces are to be trusted. Bush and his handlers want to direct the news in such a way as to foster the belief that only the government can help us, we cannot help ourselves. It is the top down hierarchy that Bush wants to enforce. " You will do what your leaders say, and be quiet." Is the Bush mantra. "Your leaders know what is good for you, so stop struggling and submit." They sneer. Rather like a rapist to his vicitim.

So, what does this mean for you and I caught up in the fury of a natural disaster?


"...Just as dusk set in, a Gretna Sheriff showed up, jumped out of his patrol vehicle, aimed his gun at our faces, screaming, “Get off the fucking freeway”..."

Read this true account of New Orleans. We must all understand that Police and Law Enforcement can be enlightened and vital in many situations. We must also understand that Police and Law Enforcement can be brutal and dictatorial. Law Enforcement can be better than the best of us, or worst than the worst of us. The difference is in accountablity. Where authority is subject to the people's will, where authority must answer for its actions to the public, there tends to be more humanity in their actions. Where authority is distant, unregulated, detached from the public, then abuses will arise. Remember that all Law Enforcement is essentially military. In times of crisis, a top down, authoritarian system works best. You need someone to make decesions and fast. But that someone, when responsible for his or her actions to the public, will tend to use their power with more humanity.

The Bush mantra is that all power is concentrated at the top. There is no room for humanity. There are only orders. "Do what you are told, and shut up."

Therefore, the passive media will report their stories in such a way as to emphasize this perspective. The stories from Hurricane Katrina, now that the Federal Government has siezed control, will overwhelmly show the "wisdom and understanding" of authority, especially the Federal Authority. Look for stories that downplay and even ridicule the local authority and boast of the prowess of the Feds.

Like I said, you must always read the newspapers and watch the TV News with major suspicion of what social programming they are pushing next.

So, what is the answer? Every region of the country is vulnerable to something, therefore, it is vital that neighborhoods and communities become actively involved in their own disaster planning. Do not , repeat, do not, rely on 'authorities' to make it all up for you. Get involved and become part of the solution. What will happen is that the authorities will develop a plan that is far more humaine than if left to their own devices. Citizens must retake control of their communities and make the government and law enforcement answerable to the public. Americans have been known to be a passive populace, that needs to change. George W. Bush is the direct result of passivity, allowing fanatical zealots to assume power. The world over, from Iraq to Louisiana, the consequences are an unmitigated disaster.