Ding Dong, Delay is indicted

Good Republicans, I know you. We share many of the same beliefs. We went to a good public school. We like our churches seperate from our government. We think everybody should get a fair shake in a court of law. I might not agree with everything you say, but I will fight to the death for your right to say it. We take the constitution seriously - which means we believe that the fact that a right exists means it's ok to use it.

Go ahead. Let yourself feel it. That ugly stunted yell you feel building inside you is the sound of pure betrayal. Many of your Republican heroes have lied to you. They have smiled at you knowingly through your
television set, said they loved you and what you stand for, then turned right around and laughed at how gullible we all are and how easy it is to pick our pockets. They take polls. They stick their fingers in the wind. they figure it out. Then they send our kids to die, take our tax dollar and give it to their CEO buds, and set about turning the constitution on its head to achieve their disasterous legislative agenda - War, debt, pork, cronyism, abandonment of the poor and middle class. They ask you to pick up your piccolo and march into the sunset in your own personal super patriotic Nike ad. But their pitch falls just a little short, doesn't it? Doesn't it?

Delay is finally indicted. Frist is probed by the SEC. Tommy Brown gives a new meaning to the phrase "incompetent-pass-the-buck-crony."

Mind you I am not arguing that Democrats are better or worse. I am not arguing that Democrats deserve your vote because of this corruption. We will have to earn your vote based on the merits of our agenda. I am saying that this rotten GOP house is crumbling from the inside out. I can see it from way over here in the center. It's about time. That kind of disgraceful corruption cannot stand. As one pissed off American to another, I sincerely hope we can agree on that.

Today's Fun Links

TIME.com: How Many More Mike Browns Are Out There?
"A TIME inquiry finds that at top positions in some vital government agencies, the Bush Administration is putting connections before experience"

The Observer: Bush plea for cash to rebuild Iraq raises $600
"The public's reluctance to contribute much more than the cost of two iPods to the administration's attempt to offer citizens 'a further stake in building a free and prosperous Iraq' has been seized on by critics as evidence of growing ambivalence over that country."

Two great lines

Slacktivist: "This is, after all, the same American public that thinks "support for the troops" entails nothing more than putting a yellow-ribbon magnet on your car. These people can't even make the kind of long-term commitment involved in an adhesive bumper-sticker."

The Poor Man: "Due to time constraints, I’ve only managed to get one weekly wanker award post out in the last three weeks. It’s hard work: I literally have to read every single internet each week to extract the finest, wingnuttiest essays for your consideration and edification."

South Korea leads the new media revolution

South Korea, a newby in terms of its democracy (less than 20 years since military rule ended) is never the less blazing trails in new media with its 5-year-old OhmyNews. With "every citizen is a reporter," as its motto it has engaged its audience in ways that mainstream media in the U.S. might drool over.

Korean online newspaper enlists army of 'citizen reporters'

Most intersting to me is this bit:

OhmyNews readers can offer instant feedback online and -- if they really like a piece -- monetary tips. Readers poured nearly 30 million won ($30,000) into columnist Kim Young Ok's account in increments of $10 or less in one week after he criticized the constitutional court of South Korea last year.

Will Americans be as eager to feed the new media revolution? Let's hope so, it seems the only way to get our voice back from the drone inducing corporate owned MSM.

Sample OhmyNews in english here

Box of vomit

Crime wave story veers off on vomit tangent:

Residents also have to deal with vomit on their sidewalks and lawns. Some residents are planning to collect the vomit in boxes and give it to the mayor, she said.

The police and the city don’t seem to think it’s a real problem, Sullivan said.

A box full of vomit, she said, will show the mayor what residents have to deal with.

Yep this could work, but it will totally backfire if Rybak is a closet emetophile.

Fair & Accurate Elections Forum

If you have a spare minute next Tuesday, have a look at the Fair & Accurate Elections Forum. It looks like a pretty good lineup and, at a minimum, a healthy discussion about a topic that should near and dear to our hearts. Here's a squib from the announcement:

After Florida in 2000 and Ohio in 2004 what are we doing to make sure we have fair & accurate elections in Minnesota and the United States? Join us to discover what progress has been made, what still needs to be done and what you can do to help.

Date: Tuesday, September 20th, 2005
Time: 7:00 - 9:00 pm
Location: University of MN - The Coffman Theater
Coffman Memorial Union
300 Washington Avenue SE
Minneapolis, MN 55455
Cost: Free – donations to cover the venue rental fee appreciated

Hear from local leaders working to insure our elections are fair & accurate.

- Marcia Avner, Public Policy Director, MN Council of Nonprofits

- Mark Halvorson, Director & Cofounder for Citizens for Election Integrity

- Lance Henderson, President for Citizens for Election Integrity

- Javier Morillo-Alicea, State Director of the AFL-CIO 2004 Voting Rights Protection Program, President & Business Representative for SEIU Local 26

- Joshua Schenck Winters, Public Policy Associate, MN Council of Nonprofits, Leads the MN Participation Project

Let us know you’re coming! fairandaccurateelections@hotmail.com

Watch Out

On Radio K, I just heard a great line in the new Atmosphere song "Watch Out":

When you open your mouth, I can smell you don't know what you're talking about

Reminds me of some blogs I could name.

MN Paramedic in New Orleans

Check out today's Minnesota Story: 7 Days in New Orleans. A paramedic from MN spent a week in New Orleans. He says the violence is actually worse than you've heard. He was in awe of the military, and even engaged in some small talk with the Bush girls.

Mass affirms Gay Marriage

Suddenly, a bipartisan outbreak of common sense:

Gay Marriage Ban Is Rejected in Mass.

''Gay marriage has begun, and life has not changed for the citizens of the commonwealth, with the exception of those who can now marry,'' said state Sen. Brian Lees, a Republican who had been a co-sponsor of the amendment. ''This amendment which was an appropriate measure or compromise a year ago, is no longer, I feel, a compromise today.''

Bottom line - Please tell me how again my life, morals, ethics, relationships, work, might change because of how someone else chooses to live their life?

Primary Election Results

Early primary election results are coming in (and as I'm writing this, they're finalizing). As a certified democracy geek ("Even votes in primaries"), I'm watching them closely.

Initial observations:

Minneapolis Mayoral election: RT bests McLaughlin, 44% to 35%. On to the general election...Where do the Green Party candidate's supporters turn? Or do they sit this one out? Will higher voter turnout on Election Day make the difference for McLaughlin?

St. Paul Mayoral election: Coleman spanks Kelly 52% to 27%! Back of the bus, Kelly!

Minneapolis Ward 10: Biggest surprise of the night turns into what I expected. With 90% reporting, they had Scott Persons finishing last, below Harry Savage(!). Now, with 100% reporting, Scott Persons is in second to Ralph Remmington, 33% to 26%. Gay Noble did much better than I expected, based on her showing at the Ward 10 convention.

Minneapolis Ward 6: Zimmerman is still able to pull down 44% of the vote with a scandal hanging over his head? I think if that hadn't broke, Zimmerman would've beat Lilligren.

Minneapolis Library Board: looks like we will have some good candidates advancing to the general election.

Minneapolis Park Board: Seems like the real contest will be in November as incumbents square off against challengers in Districts 1, 2, 5, and 6. The top vote getters for the At-Large seats were Green incumbent Annie Young (she seems well liked by reform groups) and DFL endorsees.

Bush takes responsibility

It's about time. This admission probably represents a cabinet level decision. It isn't enough, and he is probably saying it because no spin will serve to distract from what the country already knows. But here is it anyway:Bush: 'I take responsibility.

That's a big deal for Bush. For a peek into just how big a deal it might have been, check out Dan Froomkin's Washington Post column on how Bush is experiencing his "emperor has no clothes moment." The entity holding up the mirror is our old friend the media. Katrina seems to have blown away the the rose-colored glasses through which Bush has been viewed, and now, only now do we see them willing to construct a clearer picture of what the boy president is really like.

The US Accepts a hand from the UN

I thought this was interesting:

US accepts offer of UN help in Katrina aftermath

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - The Bush administration, long critical of the United Nations, has accepted a U.N. offer of help in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and a U.N. team has gone to Washington to see how it can complement American efforts.

The United Nations on Sunday announced the United States had accepted its aid offer and said its staff will be based at the USAID Hurricane Operations Center, where international assistance is being coordinated.

U.N. officials, often criticized by Republicans in Washington, said the world body's teams could be useful in coordinating and setting priorities for foreign aid offers.

In other words, the UN can help provide experienced leadership in disaster relief and recovery. I think that's Condi talking sense to Bush after she got done shopping.

Minneapolis City Primary Thoughts

The Minneapolis City Primary is tomorrow, September 13. Some thoughts:

The Worst Government Money Can Buy

Loosestrife has concluded his Worst Government Money Can Buy series (parts: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7), and presents you with a sample ballot. As I expected, my man Scott Persons makes the cut for Worst of the 10th Ward.

Apparently Loosestrife feels it's necessary to take wack job candidates seriously, but aside from that he has a pretty keen insight on the state of city politics from a far-left perspective.

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Where are the Republicans?

Not like I want a Republican to win, but it would be nice if a serious Republican candidate would at least make a show of running. It would help keep the DFL honest.

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Park Board -- Throw the bums out

As a consequence of Minneapolis's retarded government structure, we are burdened to choose from a practically infinite array of Park Board candidates.

If like me, you can barely be bothered to figure out which Park Board district you live in, let alone who's running, I recommend a "throw the bums out" strategy. Vote against the incumbents. There are a few good people on the Park Board (like I can remember who...) but the majority have made a disaster out of the Board.

More info: Minneapolis Citizens for Park Board Reform, Minneapolis Park Watch, Star Tribune Voter Guide.

Now, who's going to step up to the plate and recommend trashing the Board entirely? How about replacing it with a three member board: two elected at-large, and one appointed by the mayor?

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Library Board

Again, too many candidates, not enough time. Nineteen(!) candidates are running for 6 slots on the general election ballot.

I like Alan Hooker, whom we interviewed this spring.

I also expect to vote for Samantha Smart because I know her (vaguely -- she's put on some events with my girlfriend) and I love her slogan: "Smart libraries are OPEN libraries!" As a heavy library user, I gotta agree with that.

More: Star Tribune Voter Guide.

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Flip Flopping

McLaughlin sells out to bars on the smoking ban. Campaign Manager Darin Broton said, "Peter is not sure how he would vote today if there was a vote to change the ban." Talk about trying to have it both ways. I'm not buying it. Who's he going to sell out next?

Scott Persons obfuscates his record on development...but is it a flip flop? It's to be expected that there's nothing on Persons's website about his desire to see Lake Street turned into a Woodbury-esque arterial. But his Urban Environment page left me scratching my head: "We can protect our residential neighborhoods first by eliminating the possibility of certain zoning and height restriction exceptions—thus limiting new housing in these areas to buildings that will fit with the look and feel of the neighborhood."

Huh? Scott "13 Stories" Persons?

Then I read his candidate profile in the Southwest Journal:

Persons supported the proposed 13-story Lagoon Project in Uptown. He called it a strong project that added jobs, amenities and height "in the right place." At one point, he said if he were to change anything, he would reduce the number of theater screens to reduce traffic.

Then residents gave him an earful. "There is such a palpable anxiety in the community over height issues that I think I maybe underestimated," he said later.

In a follow-up interview, he said he wanted to send a clear message that he had "a very, very high bar to cross for taller buildings in Uptown."

He still thought the Lagoon project was a good choice - "but it doesn't mean that it's the choice I will make in every situation," he said. "Realistically, I don't think that [a similar] opportunity is really out there."

A "very, very high bar"? How many dollars of developer campaign contributions is that?

At least he's flip flopping in my direction.

Transit

The Star Tribune had it exactly right in Sunday's editorial Alarm goes off/Gas prices should spur transit: "What's more prudent for protecting this region's economy? Hoping that gas prices will soon recede so that old habits can continue? Or offering commuters a viable choice?"

Spending nothing on transit is a bet that energy prices won't go up. Minnesota has piled all its chips on gas staying cheap forever. The Legislature has even forced transit cuts in the face of record gas prices.

Maybe gas will go down. Maybe a huge new oil reservoir will be discovered. Maybe technology will save us.

Maybe not.

We should hedge our bets.

Primary SPAM

Did anyone else just receive e-mail from Sgt. John Delmonico with regards to his "Anyone but Rybak" campaign? Regardless of how I feel about Rybak (and I'm a few miles outside of Mpls. anyway), sending unsolicited e-mail isn't going to win anyone over. I definitely didn't sigh up for this one. Ugh.

Zimmerman Busted

Innocent until proven guilty and all that, but I must say that I had Zimmerman down for a bumbling idiot more than an on-the-take crook. That wooshing sound you hear is the implosion of what was left of the Minnesota Green Party.

I knew there'd be at least one Minneapolis blogger not shocked by these revelations.

An aside: has Robert Lilligren made a pact with Satan or something? This is the second time in as many elections when the FBI has taken down his competition right before the election.

9/11

For me, 9/11 will always be associated with the international response to our tragedy. Thank you.

Who's your FEMA flunky?

Atrios invents a fun game: Who's your FEMA flunky?

Just look up the Regional Director for your state, and Google the director.

Looks like those of us in Region V got a good one in Edward G. Buikema. He was previously Director of the Emergency Management Division of the Michigan State Police, where he was an officer for 26 years.

Unlike, say, Region X, where the director is a political hack.

Parody or Reality?

The Onion:God Outdoes Terrorists Yet Again

"I could not describe how bad the authorities were - taking photographs of us as we are standing on the roof waving for help, for their own personal photo albums, little snapshot photographs."

[British Tourist Ged Scott] said at one point a group of girls was standing on the roof of the hotel lobby and called to passing rescuers for help.

"They [the authorities] said to them 'well show us what you've got' - doing signs for them to lift their t-shirts up. The girls said no, and they said 'well fine', and motored off down the road in their motorboat.

"That's the sort of help we had from the authorities," he said.

BBC News:Briton slams US rescue 'shambles'

Federal, State and Local Screwups

Needless to say, we here at New Patriot Enterprises are not engaged in some trite "blamegame" over Hurricane Katrina relief efforts. We are concerned, as every American should be, with what the hell went wrong. We are concerned with who (or what) screwed this up so badly, contributing to needless suffering and loss of lives. We demand better of our government.

The federal response was unacceptable. The President himself has said so, and we've devoted several posts to this fact.

The public agrees. A newly released Pew poll (PDF) says 67% believe that President Bush “could have done more” to help the relief effort and 52% overall disapprove of him. But it doesn't stop there. About half (51%) give sub-par ratings to state and local governments in Louisiana and Mississippi.

There's plently of blame to go around, down to the state and local levels. Anyone who believes only the federal government is responsible, or only the state and local governments are to blame, is ridiculously partisan and foolish. Guess what folks - both Democrats and Republicans screw up. Nobody should shy away from that fact of life, or pretend otherwise.

At the state level, a terrible revelation: Louisiana's Office of Homeland Security kept the Red Cross out of New Orleans. I'm sure some security concerns were legitimate, but it sounds like they simply didn't want to encourage people to stay in NOLA. Reprehensible. How many suffered, starved, and died while the Red Cross was waiting in the outskirts? The guy apparently responsible is Col. Jay Mayeaux. If so - fire him after Michael Brown.


CNN Video: State, local response in question

At the local level, the most obvious questions: Why weren't all those school busses rounded up to evacuate people without cars? Why weren't food, water, and medical supplies waiting in the shelters? This was a catastrophic national emergency, to be sure, but also a local emergency. Was the New Orleans Comprehensive Emergency Management Plan followed?

So many questions. What are the lessons? It may be too early, but a fellow named Allan Topol has 5 LESSONS FROM KATRINA that offers the most common-sense assessment I've seen. Everyone should go read this!

Our new federalism is a tangled mess. The federal government has tried for several years to shift more responsibility to state and local governments. The lines of responsibility are poorly drawn and unclear. In a situation like Katrina, there should be effective coordination between state and local governments. There wasn't! This is a major problem that has to be addressed to avoid another massive failure of government.

He goes on to cite the gross inefficiency and cumbersome response of the Department of Homeland Security, and finally this gem:

We simply have to reassess our national priorities. I'm not suggesting that terrorism isn't a major problem, but efforts focused on terrorism cannot dwarf all of the other necessities of our government.

Federal Emergency Image Management Agency

FEMA accused of censorship

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - When U.S. officials asked the media not to take pictures of those killed by Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath, they were censoring a key part of the disaster story, free speech watchdogs said on Wednesday.

The move by the Federal Emergency Management Agency is in line with the Bush administration's ban on images of flag-draped U.S. military coffins returning from the
Iraq war, media monitors said in separate telephone interviews.

The last thing FEMA should worry about is protecting the delicate sensibilities of Americans. Maybe we should change their acronym to FEIMA - Federal Emergency Image Management Agency.

Firefighters imported for photo ops and PR

Oy.

Frustrated: Fire crews to hand out fliers for FEMA

"There are all of these guys with all of this training and we're sending them out to hand out a phone number," an Oregon firefighter said. "They [the hurricane victims] are screaming for help and this day [of FEMA training] was a waste."
Firefighters say they want to brave the heat, the debris-littered roads, the poisonous cottonmouth snakes and fire ants and travel into pockets of Louisiana where many people have yet to receive emergency aid.
But as specific orders began arriving to the firefighters in Atlanta, a team of 50 Monday morning quickly was ushered onto a flight headed for Louisiana. The crew's first assignment: to stand beside President Bush as he tours devastated areas.

Daily Show Funny

Major Disasters of the Bush Administration

MN Reaction to Hurricane Relief Effort

I spent the last day of the Minnesota State Fair asking folks, "How do you think the Hurricane Katrina relief effort is going?" Here's the video.

One of the most fervent and interesting people I talked to was a U.S. Navy veteran. He didn't want to be interviewed on camera, but he was a lifelong Republican who layed into everyone from the Mayor of New Orleans to President Bush. He was mad that Bush was vacationing while people were dying. He was mad at all the bureaucracy of FEMA and Homeland Security getting in the way of taking action. He had high praise for the U.S. Coast Guard, though. Rightfully so.

MEANWHILE: Watch this video [Meet the Press transcript] and FIRE MICHAEL BROWN.

All the kings horses and all the kings men can't find their asses with all the kings hands

First Bush rejects international aid, then he is forced to admit the US can't cope with the disaster, then finally asks the EU and NATO for emergency Katrina aid.

He is totally out of touch. Of course it is understandable given that his underlings, in this case Michael Chertoff, are cartoonishly stupid:

On Sunday's "Meet the Press," Homeland Security chief Michael Chertoff told Tim Russert that one reason for the delay in rushing federal aid to the Gulf Coast was that "everyone" thought the crisis had passed when the storm left town: "I remember on Tuesday morning picking up newspapers and I saw headlines, 'New Orleans Dodged The Bullet.'"

Come. On. Just imagine for a moment that you are the President and you hear the Head of Homeland Security say on national T.V. that he read a newspaper that told him New Orleans was ok, and that's why he didn't respond to the crisis. Imagine that, especially considering almost no one outside of the people who were supposedly taking care of the problem thought it was ok. Just imagine. For me, it goes something like this: After I get done accepting the fact that I obviously hired a retarded person to run the largest federal agency in the land, the only possible response to such an idiotic statement is: "You're fired."

Barbara Bush: The face of arrogance

Just try to imagine walking through a field of refugees, their homes destroyed, many having lived through five days of sheer hell and not only thinking but saying the following:

"And so many of the people in the arena here, you know, were underprivileged anyway, so this -- this [she chuckles slightly] is working very well for them." ---Barbra Bush after touring the Houston Astrodome, where thousands of refugees from hurricane Katrina are being sheltered. September 05, 2005

Can you wrap your mind around that? I hope not. Most people are raised better than that.

What can Powerline possibly be thinking?

There is a remarkable string of posts at Powerline that attempt to make the case that the media, oh, excuse me, the MSM, along with it's puppet master "The Far Left" are to blame for the perception that the Bush Administration's response to Katrina was slow and ineffective.

They pat themselves on the back for being brave enough to criticize the Administration for...failing to respond forcefully enough to the "unfair attacks from the far left." Yet they witness tens of thousands of desperate U.S. Citizens wait for help while their government looks like a cross between the Keystone cops and a Chinese Fire Drill led by a president that compares unfavorably to Nero, and cannot register a genuine critical complaint about the competence with which the Bush team has conducted itself during this crisis.

This is simply astounding. It's astounding enough that they immediately politicize any criticism of Bush by simply asserting that all charges are manufactured by the MSM, Democrats and the Left - which are all the same thing in their eyes. But it is even more astounding that they can witness this tragic parade of incompetence, witness it be denounced with outrage by the left, the right, the center, the up, the down, damn near everybody - and still - still - not demand accountability from their leader. Where does the buck stop if not with Bush?

It makes me wonder what would have to happen to spoil the taste of the koolaid.

ps. What's wrong with this picture? Hint: Is it ever ok for the person in charge of leading relief efforts for the largest natural disastor in this nation's history to claim he's out of the loop?

F'ed Up Beyond Belief

The Red Cross is banned from entering New Orleans. Homeland Security tells them their presence would keep people from evacuating and encourage others to come into the city.

The only problem with that? Busses aren't showing up. People are locked in the convention center. Nobody can leave the city. For once I believe what I see on Fox News. Pretty tough to spin *this*, much as Sean Hannity tries:



• Here's something you don't hear on national television every day: "George Bush doesn't care about black people."

• Chicago's Mayor Daley, visibly angry and 'shocked' as feds reject aid.

• New Orleans Paper Slams Federal Response on Saturday

UPDATE: Things seem to be improving now, in spite of fire. Less violence and National Guard troops are at the convention center handing out food and water. CNN Video

They said it better

Sometimes someone else expresses what you were trying to say so much better. My post from yesterday about my extreme anger and disappointment with the federal response to Hurricane Katrina was one of those times.

Several other people captured my feeling of helplessness, anger, and disappointment much better than I could put into words.

At Daily Kos, Hunter nailed what I was trying to say:

We have witnessed two disasters this week. The first was an act of nature. The second was not. The second disaster, still ongoing, is unforgivable.

That's the only word that comes to mind, a word I keep repeating to myself. These deaths, these men, these women, these infants dying now in these hours didn't have to happen. They did not have to die waiting for convoys to gather outside their city or for reservists to stand alongside their shattered police forces. They did not have to wait in darkness and fear for help to arrive, only to struggle for days without that help ever coming.

This is not politics. This is not partisanship.

This is unforgivable.

Part of this disaster is the fault of the government of New Orleans. But clearly, even their best plans would've been overwhelmed, and the state and federal government have not backed them up. Effectively, there was no government in New Orleans for five days.

You have just got to listen to this interview (2.3 MB MP3, transcript here) with the Mayor of New Orleans. He is righteously angry, totally frustrated. It is simply damning. At the end of the it, the mayor and the interviewer both break down crying. Every American needs to listen to this!

Even the Washington Times said it better than me: Time to crack heads.

Today, finally, troops are moving into New Orleans to restore order and deliver food and water. Bush is on the scene. Time for him to show some leadership. Crack some heads.

Disappointed in Bush

Mistakes were made in the hurricane planning for New Orleans. Those mistakes should be exposed and corrected. Hindsight is 20/20, so I am not going to put undue emphasis on these mistakes. What I find totally inexcusable is the absolute incompetence of the rescue effort.

• The New Orleans police don't have command and control communications. (Didn't we learn our lesson on 9/11?)
• FEMA is run by an incompetent political hack who blames the victims and gave hours of TV interviews today, instead of coordinating response efforts. Maybe if he had been doing his job, he would've known about the thousands of desperate people at the Convention Center, instead of finding it out from Paula Zhan.
• The Department of Homeland Security chief also blamed the victims.
• The National Guard isn't coordinating with the military (rumor).
• The Secretary of State is on vacation in New York, buying $3000 shoes. Meanwhile, offers of help from foreign governments is being refused.

But mostly, I'm disappointed in President Bush.

Regular readers know that I do not like President Bush very much. I think he's made a lot of bad choices. But when a disaster happens, every American looks to the President to lead. Whatever else his faults, Bush did this on 9/11. I disagree with what he did after that, but he sent the right message in New York when he spoke on that pile of rubble.

So today, I am simply disappointed in Bush. He has failed to lead. I wrote this to the Star Tribune:

Why was President Bush having cake with John McCain while New Orleans drowned?

Why was President Bush getting public guitar lessons from Mark Willis while the levees broke?

Why did President Bush stage a political Medicare event while people died?

Why aren't there enough helicopters to rescue people and reinforce the levees?

As a major American city is wiped off the map, he schedules photo ops. I have never been more disappointed in a president in my life.

America needed a leader after Hurricane Katrina destroyed New Orleans. The Federal, state, and local governments were not cooperating. The instant the damage became known, Bush needed to personally coordinate the rescue effort and keep the American people calm. So far, he has failed.

This isn't partisanship. (Even conservatives are upset.) I'm just very, very sad.

Related: Stirling Newberry: If We Had A Real President -- the speech he would've given.
National editorials on response to Katrina

Liberal Blogs for Hurricane Relief

As you can see there on the right, we've added a link to Liberal Blogs for Hurricane Relief which is an effort to raise $1,000,000 for the Red Cross to assist those harmed by the disaster. Chris Bowers at MyDD explains what it's all about.

As of 10:00 PM September 1, readers of liberal blogs have donated $78,804, over 7% of that goal.

Please join us here at the New Patriot in donating whatever you can afford.

There's plenty of time to figure out what went wrong this week, and fix it. For thousands of people, life will never be the same. They need our help today.

More Fun Links!

FEMA Chief: Victims bear some responsibility
Brown pleased with effort: 'Things are going relatively well'
WTF?!?

Video 1: Anderson Cooper totally serves Sen. Mary Landrieu
He was yelling, basically, "Don't you get it yet?" He mentioned seeing a woman's body on the ground being eaten by rats. Landrieu told Anderson she understood what he was saying and then thanked the President again.

Video 2: CNN's Jack Cafferty rips Administration
I'm 62 and I remember the riots in Watts, I remember the earth Quake in San Francisco, I remember a lot of things. I have never, ever seen anything as badly bungled and poorly handled as this situation in New Orleans. Where the hell is the water for these people. Why can't sandwiches be dropped to those people that are in that Super Dome down there...This is Thursday...This storm happened five days ago. It's a disgrace and don't think the world isn't watching...

Bush to World: We Don't Need Your Help?

VIDEO: Bush on ABC news

President Bush to Diane Sawyer: "I don't think anybody anticipated the breach of the levees."

Wrong.

Worse, Bush said, "I'm not expecting much from foreign nations because we hadn't asked for it. I do expect a lot of sympathy and perhaps some will send cash dollars." Unfortuntaely, Bush is making good on his promise to turn away foreign aid.

Perhaps Condi Rice should take a break from shoe shopping and Broadway shows to answer some phone calls. So far, we've refused help from Canada, Russia and Jamaica.

You think the Bush Administration would be welcoming any help offered to us, considering their funding cuts forced federal engineers to delay improvements on the levees, floodgates and pumping stations that failed to protect New Orleans from Hurricane Katrina's floodwaters.

If it keeps on raining...

...the levee's going to break:

Washington knew that this day could come at any time, and it knew the things that needed to be done to protect the citizens of New Orleans. But in the tradition of the riverboat gambler, the Bush administration decided to roll the dice on its fool's errand in Iraq, and on a tax cut that mainly benefitted the rich.

And now Bush has lost that gamble, big time. We hope that Congress will investigate what went wrong here.

The president told us that we needed to fight in Iraq to save lives here at home, and yet -- after moving billions of domestic dollars to the Persian Gulf -- there are bodies floating through the streets of Louisiana. What does George W. Bush have to say for himself now?

More information at Editor and Publisher.