Hannity and Colmes had British popular history author Simon Winchester on, whose book on the 1906 Great Earthquake is slated to come out next month. He unfavorably compared the New Orleans leadership with that of San Francisco in 1906. (Ironically, he hinted that the lack of instant communication gear may have been an advantage, since it forced people on the scene to make independent decisions rather than wait for the 'chain of command' to approve each and every move.) Looting lasted for about an hour on the first-day --- the mayor, an erstwhile professional violinist, issued a 'shoot to kill' order that made short work of the looting. (Of course, they didn't have the ACLU looking over their shoulders back then ;-))
One of the more damning things that came up was New Orleans mayor Ray Nagin hesitating to call for a general evacuation, for fear of getting sued by hotel owners. Also, FEMA administrator Michael Brown --- who apparently has just been 'relieved from his duties on-scene' --- learning about the evacuation from a TV interview.
In terms of administrative cluelessness, this takes the cake, however:
Not long after some 1,000 firefighters sat down for eight hours of training, the whispering began: "What are we doing here?"
As New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin pleaded on national television for firefighters - his own are exhausted after working around the clock for a week - a battalion of highly trained men and women sat idle [last] Sunday in a muggy Sheraton Hotel conference room in Atlanta. . . .
The firefighters, several of whom are from Utah, were told to bring backpacks, sleeping bags, first-aid kits and Meals Ready to Eat. They were told to prepare for "austere conditions." Many of them came with awkward fire gear and expected to wade in floodwaters, sift through rubble and save lives. "They've got people here who are search-and-rescue certified, paramedics, haz-mat certified," said a Texas firefighter. "We're sitting in here having a sexual-harassment class while there are still [victims] in Louisiana who haven't been contacted yet."
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