Texsox

Make Me Brave for Life God, make me brave for life: oh, braver than this. Let me straighten after pain, as a tree straightens after the rain, Shining and lovely again. God, make me brave for life; much braver than this. As the blown grass lifts, let me rise From sorrow with quiet eyes, Knowing Thy way is wise. God, make me brave, life brings Such blinding things. Help me to keep my sight; Help me to see aright That out of dark comes light.

QUOTE(56789 @ Sep 4, 2005 -> 09:47 AM) I understand there were alot of poor people who couldnt leave, but im saying there were also people who could easliy leave but didnt want to and are now probably lying about it to TV reporters to make everyone feel bad for them. Sorry, I should have read more carefully. I agree, I am certain there were a few people like that. I wonder why there are any cars left in the city. I would have loaded up all my vehicles and headed out of town. And I believe I wold have picked up some passengers along the way. But hind site is everything. Less than a month ago we were in the path of a hurricane that wound up well south of us. So far in ten years we have been warned a couple times a year, and never really hit. Have I become complacent? Yes. I no longer board up every window, just one area of the house we would go to. I have lots of camping equipment handy, so I know I can make safe drinking water, stay warm and reasonably dry, perform most first aid. But I never pull that stuff into my safe area any more. I never fill my bath tubs like the first few years, never make certain that every water container is full and ready.

http://www.nydailynews.com/front/story/343324p-292991c.html Much more at the link.

QUOTE(56789 @ Sep 4, 2005 -> 09:38 AM) Have you seen any numbers on how many people stayed because they couldnt leave, and because they didnt want to? I know I havent, and no one will. This is America, it is never our fault for anything. People who could have left but decided to stay are now saying how they couldnt leave because they were too poor. No one is gunna go on TV and say "You know what, i made a mistake. I should have left when I had the chance but I decided to stay so I am facing the consequences" and even if someone did say that to a reporter, there is no way in hell they would put it on TV. OK, they start walking. Where do they sleep, with no money for inflated hotel rooms? They cannot carry a lot of food, so how do they eat? Stores and restaurants would be closed within walking distance. Would you leave the shelter of your home to go walking in a hurricane? How far can you walk in one day? How far can you walk carrying a 9 month old baby? How far can a 5 year old walk in one day? :headshake

QUOTE(YASNY @ Aug 27, 2005 -> 02:24 AM) Ya, I kinda did a double take when I turned that game on as well. Should be a great game. Same guy pitching for both teams? Did you know?

QUOTE(kapkomet @ Sep 3, 2005 -> 11:50 PM) Yep, the whole damn thing is Bush's fault. ALL of it. That motherf***ing prick asshole. How dare he f***ing breathe while he's taking a s*** so that people can second guess his every move. If we didn't elect him to lead during an national disaster, what did we elect him to do? Remember the Buck Stops Here? Remember the job being described as the most powerful man in the world? He is the undisputed leader of this country and he did not have his finest hour or day. Cancel the fund raiser. Be on TV a few times a day. Cowboy up and talk tough about stopping the looters, rapists, and murderers. Kick some ass, Mr. President. I'm betting Reagan would have shown some leadership and got people moving. People look to the President in times of trouble. That's why their approval ratings always go through the roof during crisis. We band together under a strong leader. Bush blew it and I'm very disappointed. I thought e would be perfect for this. A blend of compassionate conservatism with a dash of cowboy macho.

QUOTE(EvilMonkey @ Sep 3, 2005 -> 11:00 PM) Maybe they can be used to sue God, or Mother Nature? After all, Jessie Jr. wants Bush to stand on a pile of rubble, and say to God, we know you did this, and we are holding you accountable! Wouldn't it have been better if they were there before the storm hit?

I admired his dedication to public service.

I was thinking it would be nice if more Senators volunteered their professional services, then I remembered most are attorneys

QUOTE(Brian @ Sep 3, 2005 -> 05:14 PM) I gave 15 confidence pts to Okalhoma vs. TCU in our Pick em pool. As a Longhorn }o

How many of those born in America would risk their life for the American dream? Friends of mine in the Border Patrol have all mentioned the dread of seeing vultures circling and knowing what they may find. The drought down here has made it much more difficult for anyone risking the long walk.

Sen. Bill Frist

From Alabama

QUOTE(winodj @ Sep 3, 2005 -> 09:11 PM) I'm not saying you're wrong but the primary responsibility for an evacuation of a federal disaster area lies with FEMA. And being too poor to leave means walking 60 miles in 24 hours to relative safety. Is that something you could have done? Looking at the maps, more than 60 miles and into spun off tornadoes. Looking at the survival hierarchy, shelter and the ability to regulate your body temperature is #1 after stopping bleeding, etc. Leaving shelter to head out into an impending storm, may not be the smartest move either. Riding it out in your home may be smarter in some situations. With the hindsight of the levees breaking, it was not. Putting it into local terms, if a hurricane is about to hit, walking from Chicago to Rosemont, with the probability of tornadoes, doesn't seem like the obvious or safest path.

All I can say for certainty is this was not our finest hour in responding to people in need. It seems like everyone was stunned at first. As much as I dislike Presidential grandstanding and photo ops, Bush needed to be visible and displaying some of the confidence we've seen in other situations. For whatever reason, and we can argue those reasons forever, he just doesn't seem interested.

QUOTE(KipWellsFan @ Sep 3, 2005 -> 12:40 PM) bmags and reddy are officially part of the radical left I'll move over, we can always make a little more room

I think I know why Bush was so slow in reacting. His first briefing was titled NO Hurricane Victims So he assumed there were no victims.

Tired of all the bad news? Uplifting stories here

From my good friend George Clooney (am I on enough mailing lists?)

Queen, why isn't this in the sports bar?

QUOTE(NUKE_CLEVELAND @ Sep 3, 2005 -> 06:24 AM) You make it sound soooooo easy APU. You make it seem like George Bush could just snap his fingers and make all the pain go away. You make it seem like its George Bush's fault that the levies all failed. What did we elect him to do? Isn't he suppose to provide leadership in these types of emergencies? Sorry Nuke, I'd be leveling this if it was a Dem, Ind, or Rep. Our entire government, including the one man who can make decisions that will not be overturned, was slow in responding. And he found time for a fund raiser. :headshake If that was a Dem, you would be leading the impeachment charge. I believe that's far worse than renting the Lincoln bedroom. Again, I ask, what did we elect him to do?

FWIW, and I'm not getting into a racial debate here. I live in an area where I am a distinct minority and spend time wearing the shoes of a minority. I also worked in Mexico for several years. Last count this area is about 85% Hispanic. If you are a white, middle class, and male, you really do not have a good base to understand racism in this country. Many of the blacks who are feeling the government isn't doing as much for them are intelligent, educated, people such as ourselves. They are not always fringe radicals. When volunteers, soldiers, or other workers enter a neighborhood that they would never, ever, enter before the storm, they will feel and act differently than if they were back in their comfort zone. That's human nature. People sense that. It wasn't that long ago we had segregated restrooms, segregated swimming pools, hell we have people alive today, that were the sons and daughters of slaves. The memories are alive and well. There are still many barriers in this country. 40 years after King's I have a dream speech, look at the top 500 CEOs and it's a sea of old white guys with a couple self made minorities. Look at the portraits of out Presidents and it's a sea of old white guys. Look at the wealthiest Americans and it's a sea of white. I'm not saying we haven't come a long, long way in the 40 years since the Civil Rights movement. But a magic wand didn't erase the history, a magic wand didn't erase the fear some people have of being in the wrong neighborhood. A magic wand didn't erase the uncomfortable feeling of being around people different than ourselves. Is this effecting the relieve efforts? Maybe on a small individual scale. Would the people in say Lake Forest, IL. receive better and faster relief? I bet they would, because they have Senators and other elected officials phone numbers loaded in the cell phones. Mr. Moore and Mr. West can kiss my ass for one thing, if it were their butts sitting on a roof, they would be rescued faster than a family in NO, because they too enjoys the improved government services of having connections. Look how Fats Domino missing made the news. I believe poverty, more than race, are behind any delays that may or may not be happening.

QUOTE(Queen Prawn @ Sep 2, 2005 -> 10:15 PM) I had my trusty Carolina Hurricanes hat on while working out today. I kept getting these funny looks. I didn't even think about "that" when I grabbed that hat to wear today (it is usually between that and my Florida Everblades hat). One summer long ago, or so it seemed, I arrived at the boat ramp / bait shop without my trusty fishing cap. I grabbed an Indians cap off the rack, it reminded me of youth baseball when I played on the "Indians". I had a good day, and continued to wear that cap. One day, the shop owner, knowing I was a Sox fan, the stickers on my boat may have tipped him off, asked me how I could be so cold and callous to the Indians suffering. I was very confused until I realized I was buzzing around in my bass boat wearing and Indians cap, right after a couple of their pitchers died in a boating accident.

Larry, I hope you don't mind but I passed it on to an old friend of mine from college. It doesn't necessarily fit Joan's voice, but she may have an idea or two. Joan "not my maiden name" Hammel

QUOTE(LosMediasBlancas @ Sep 2, 2005 -> 07:22 PM) 29 babies were taken from N.O.. hospitals and moved to Baton Rouge hospitals. They're all doing fine. The is the ONLY piece of good news I've heard about this tragedy. I just heard an interview with a mother whose 3 week old infant was in a NO hospital, now she cannot find her baby and officials can not tell her anything. :headshake I would be out of my mind and possibly shooting at helicopters if my baby was missing and no one could get me an answer to where they evacuated a hospital to. How can you not keep track of a hospital?