DNR For the Big Easy

I want to talk a little about post-Katrina New Orleans, and the shocking LACK of progress being made in terms of resurrecting the Gulf Coast area that was so badly damaged by the storm. I recently talked to some friends of mine who volunteered their spring break to travel down to The Big Easy and help with the cleanup and reconstruction efforts. Each and every one of them had the same response to what they saw - 'We had no idea it was still this bad'. They described parts of the city, such as the 9th ward and others, as 'looking like a bomb went off', which is probably not a bad analogy to make. I myself have yet to see this damage first hand, though I'm sure I will at some point - considering I have family in New Orleans. My point however is this, I have certainly seen many pictures from the decimated areas, and my friends are absolutely right, it DOES look like a bomb went off. In hospitals, DNR (Do Not Resuscitate) tags and orders are given to patients who, if they die, do not want to be revived by machine/modern technology, preferring instead to accept their fate and their death. What I want to know is, after Katrina hit, who gave the DNR order for New Orleans and the rest of the Gulf?

Now I know that may not sound fair, or may come off as slightly flip, but lets be honest for a moment about the capabilities of our country, and about the amount of progress being made in New Orleans. The United States is second to none in terms of pure economic power at our disposal, and our industrial strength is equally potent. After World War II, we rebuilt ENTIRE COUNTRIES from the ground up...and not to take anything away from the disaster that was Katrina, but the damage done to Germany for example, was exponentially worse. Practically every city in that country was bombed into oblivion by the Allies, and yet they were all rebuilt, almost from the ground up. Now I'm not saying that the time scale wasn't much longer for the reconstruction of Europe, it certainly was, but that was in the middle 40s, with less technology, less industry, less money and less people. So please tell me why the most capable country on earth can't rebuild one of it's greatest cities any faster and more effectively then we have thus far managed with New Orleans? Where is the American spirit and determination that should be lifting this battered city, and it's people onto it's back and carrying them along? Where is dedication, the determination and the grit that is going to be required to restore New Orleans and the rest of the gulf to what it was pre-Katrina? Actually, I take that back...where is the determination that will restore the Gulf to a state BETTER then it was before? Because honestly, that is what those people deserve - something better then what they had, and it's up to the rest of this country to give it to them.

At this point the only people demonstrating the sort of dedication and resolve that could eventually make restoration possible for that part of the country, are the thousands of volunteers pouring into the area. These men and women are giving up their time and their labor to come and tear down houses, sweep mud, haul debris, sort clothing, distribute food, and generally care for these American's who are not in a position to care for themselves. Where is the government response? Where is the media? Why isn't anyone else saying anything about the complete lack of progress, aside from the people who are there, the people who have been there? Has everyone else forgotten what happened? Try and think for a moment when the last time you saw a headline on the front page of the newspaper, or heard a lead story on the television that had anything to do with what is STILL a major crisis going on in our own backyard? It's gonna be harder then you expect!!!

Anyway, enough for now...I'm going to continue the rest of this rant sometime next week after I get home from Formal! Only TWO DAYS LEFT until MYRTLE BEACH!!! WHHOOOOOOOO!!!!

Port Deals, Port Wine and the Port City

I am a horrible person - I know, I don't want to hear it. After promising a new blog every two weeks, I've now managed to go my longest stretch EVER without any new posts! My sincere apologies, and lets just say I've had other things taking priority in my life lately - no offense intended to the handful of you out there who actually read this! Anywho, I'm here now, so let the ramblings begin!

First off, lets talk about this recently proposed, and more recently killed, port deal that involved DP World and our own beloved George W. Bush. Let me start w/ this: I now believe GW may be even more mentally lacking then I originally thought - and that's saying something. For anyone not aware, DP World, a company owned and based in the UEA (United Arab Emerates) attempted to purchase management rights to SIX shipping port terminals in the gulf region and along the east coast. For some reason this proposal was received with open arms by our brilliant commander & chief, DESPITE the fact that the UEA has in the past, been accused of having multiple connections to various militant middle eastern groups. Granted lots of these connections are relatively unsubstantiated, but still!!! Are you kidding me? Our president...the man in chage of the 'war on terror', the man who vowed to go on a 'great crusade' against Al Queda, the man who invaded Iraq on the SLIGHT chance that the country MIGHT be developing a weapons program again, - this same man apparently had no issue whatsoever with giving unregulated control of what comes into our country in six locations, to a company with connections to terrorist sympathizers? Even if these connections are unsubstantiated, what ON EARTH was Dub-Yuh thinking??

Someone check the weather in Hell - the Republicans and I actually agree on something! That's not to say that the Democrats don't also agree, but for the first time in a while we find ourselves on the same side of an opinion. That opinion being, that ANYONE with half a brain could see that a move like this would just be tempting fate in terms of exposing ourselves to a possible terrorist attack. As it stands now the United States is only able to inspect about 4% of the cargo that is shipped into this country, and as bad as that is, at least we have the right and ability to do so. The sale of these port rights would have eliminated those abilities at those particular facilities, and when you consider how big the average cargo container is, much less the average cargo ship, you start to see why this might be a bad idea. Now of course the Republicans didn't come right out and say "Ok, we admit...the ranking member of our party, and the man we all helped to elect is a blathering idiot..." true or not, that might be a little extreme. No, stead the Republican party almost to a MAN, flat told President Bush that this little real estate deal was a direct threat to national security, and there was absolutely no chance they were going to let it go through. Of course, Bush tried to resist, he tried to posture and make it seem as if he was going to somehow force the deal through anyway, but in the end he had no choice and he knew it. However, the arrogant 'you can't tell me what to do' display was politically necessary. You see, when your entire party essentially abandons you for doing something idiotic, you have very little recourse, except to act as macho as possible, so as not to give your opponents even MORE fodder for their criticism - not that the Dems need it right now, as bad as W is doing in the polls.
In the end, the Dems and Republicans voted almost unanimously to nix the bit of legislature that would have allowed this deal to go through, thus demonstrating that not ALL Republicans are as moronic as their leader. However what I want to know is this - is the Democrats are supposed to be so weak on National Security (which is what I constantly hear) why were Democratic Senators the FIRST to raise an objection to this deal? Food for thought eh?

Now then...on to port wine and the Port City. First off, for anyone who doesn't already know, if you ever want to get me a good present, make it a quality bottle of either A) bourbon/whiskey or B) port wine. Specifically, I LOVE the Churchill's Ten Year Tawny, which so far, I have only been able to find at home in Wilmington. This is unfortunate, cause it's about the best port I've ever come across and it's not ridiculously expensive. For those of you who have never tried port wine (also referred to as 'dessert wine' on occasion) I highly recommend it. It is an ideal drink for slowly sipping after dinner or later in the evening, to help the whole relaxation (and digestion) process. Most ports have a very warm, smooth palette, but the actual taste you experience is as varied it is with normal wine. I personally recommend not drinking anything less then a 10 year tawny - otherwise the finish can be a little rough, and the idea is to drink sloooowly and enjoy it, not get it down as fast as possible.

Last but not least, I had an excellent trip to the Port City the other weekend for the wedding of an old family friend. However, i gotta say I hope my own wedding is a LITTLE more upbeat then the one I went to. I love the family whose wedding it was, but I swear it was one of the more distant ceremonies I've ever been present at, and the reception was more like a visitation at a funeral, then a celebration. Maybe it had to do w/ the fact that the average age of the people in attendance was probably somewhere close to 45 or 50, or maybe the fact that the dance floor was about the size of my room and that no one was on it, or maybe the family just invited a lot of conservative friends, I'm not sure - but whatever it was, bottom line: an open bar with Jack Daniels wasn't enough to keep me there more then an hour. For anyone who knows me, that should say it all. But hey, on the bright side, I got to buy two nice new suits to show off in, and I also got to spend some quality time with my friend Laura Lee, who I'd not seen in a while, and had a thoroughly fine time drinking with on Friday night.

Ok, that's all for now! Next up on the agenda, NCAA blogging!!! Whoooo! GO TARHEELS!!! Seriously, I've never seen a more wide-open tournament! It should be a great one! I'll report back on how my brackets are doing as the games move along!