Nahleans

We all feel for the suffering in the Gulf Coast area after Katrina. Specifically for the poor who have no resources. The bloggers wasted no time in jumping on the "people suffering b/c of Bush" rhetoric. I find GW as despicable as the next person but here's my thoughts on the matter.

Bush's FY budget cut funding to New Orleans approximately $50 to $70 million depending on whose figures you read. This gave the New Orleans district $272.4 million in 2006, down from $343.5 million in 2005. These millions are budgeted to New Orleans every year.

The Corps of Engineers budget could still be beefed up, as it is every year, through congressional additions. Last year, Congress added $20 million to the overall budget of the New Orleans district but a similar increase this year would still leave a $50 million shortfall. We're speaking of a shortfall for 2006 spending.

So Bush "slashes" a budget that will effect Louisiana. My question : What have the good porkers of New Orleans politicians been doing with the decades of funding? Why with decades of federal money are they caught with their dicks in the wind? Living in an area of wetlands, which holds catastrophic possibilities of nature, where have decades of dollars for maintenance and upkeep of the infrastructure been spent? Decades of funding for levees, floodwalls, and pumping stations. I checked out New Orleans and Grand Isle a couple of years ago, thinking of relocation. Nice place, wouldn't want to live there; half the state is on stilts. Too much water I said.

Federal law requires that high priority projects, such as roads, bridges, damns, waterways are included in the distribution of Federal funds to states, but state and local politicians will jockey around the Federal government mandates with how a project is included or excluded from the State's distribution formula of the funds. All those buddy contractors to distribute to, doing projects on the cheap, padding expenses, kickbacks. And if there's the word Corps or Army anywhere in it you know toilet seats and screwdrivers are gonna cost you.

Blaming Bush is easy and predictable, but look at Louisiana's own politicians and system (both aisles) for some accountability. This disaster didn't come about because of FY 2006 cuts. Louisiana has spent poorly and corruptly (as do all states). As a side note, last night my daughter mentioned that predictably we'll soon see the video of "Black folks looting," … oh … nevermind she said as those images were showing as she spoke. White folks never seem to loot for the camera.