When people say of Katrina victims "They should have left" [View All]

[LittleClarkie]

I was thinking about where I live, in a fairly tornado-ridden area. And the weather service now announces a tornado warning if there is even a funnel cloud in the area, and they announce it for the entire county. They then tell you city by city as the tornado reaches that area.

Point being, I'd bet most folks in my area don't beat feet to the basement unless they are damned sure there is a tornado in the area, and sometimes that will be too late.

So if you've never lived in an area where you've survived hurricanes before, how can you say that these people, even the ones who had no cars, should have started walking or something when it was clear that the hurricane was coming and it was going to be a big one.

I've heard, among other things:
"Well, that's what happens when you depend on the governement, any government."

"How long would it take for you to get inland if you lived near Lake Michigan."

It seems they are playing the twenty/twenty hindsight thing. But they've never experienced anything like this themselves. And as I said, I wager they'd not take immediate precautions against our brand of disaster either.

I asked one of my Conservative friends, one of the folks making comments like this, what he thought of right wing radio saying it was the fault of the victims, or that local government was more to blame than federal, or what he thought of yahoo.com making the distinction between found and looted. On that last one he snapped and accused me of attacking him. I commented that I didn't realize that yahoo.com was Republican owned or that he had anything to do with it, so why would he feel attacked.

Amazing how sensitive Conservatives are to being attacked.

I also commented that I was just discussing with him what RW radio was saying. He fairly screamed at me that I should call them and ask them.

He's quick enough to spout their talking points when it suits him. But all of a sudden I should make the distinction between him and the voices on his side.

But he was also quoting to me about what the Democratic Mayor should have done and how the victims should have left.

So he can spout the line, but if I call him on it, I'm attacking him.

Conservatives are a bit touchy at the moment, aren't they.

(sorry for the ramble.)