Random observations relating to Katrina

• First of all, here's two sites with more pleasant Katrina connections: Katrina from Katrina and the waves.
• Second of all, there are no, I repeat NO links to the Red Cross here. I think having 2 million of them on blogs already is enough. Maybe even overkill?
• Is anyone else tired of the reporters whining on air about how horrible the conditions are for them? We all know they fight over getting 'hot' assignments like this. At least they've been very sensitive to the needs of the stranded people from what I've seen.
  
• There's some suggestion that global warming is at the heart of the more destructive hurricane season this year--if so, does it make any sense to rebuild a city that is already below water level?
• Speaking of global warming--when the ice cap in Antartica melts enough are the oil companies going to drill there for oil?
• Is the rumor true that the GOP is going to offer a few thousand Mexicans US citizenship if they move to New Orleans and clean it up?
• Should those jobs be offered to US citizens first?
• Why did Katrina and the Waves break up anyway? Walking on Sunshine was so darn cute!
• Bigots of all colors need not rant their hatred while others are trying to help.
• Why do so many people assume that this could not happen in the USA? When natural disaster strikes, it levels us all down to the same level. Nature is a lot stronger than we are. Having more money and resources only makes it easy to recover in the middle and long run. In the short run nature has her way.
• Just how vulnerable is New Orleans to terrorism? It would seem that any well placed bomb could have blown open those levies. That's a very intimidating thought for the future because at least with Katrina we had warning.
• While most seem to be complaining about how poorly the city was evacuated, as I understand it, upwards of 80% of the city's inhabitants left and since some of the people remaining did so intentionally I'd judge most aspects of the evacuation as a success given the timing. The population is given at ~500,000 for the city itself and the general area is ~1,400,000. Something like 100,000 were stranded.
  
• On the other hand, I'd say that the city's mayor, Ray Nagin, should shoulder a lot more responsibility than he has thus far. He could have mobilized city and school buses to evacuate indigent and poor people that had no way to get out on their own.
• New Orleans has been in an economic downward spiral for decades, does it make economic sense to restore and rehabilitate it?
• Isn't Katrina Leskanich cute? But not so much this one.
  
• Is George W. going to declare war on hurricanes? It worked after 9/11 and he's not one to mess with something that worked for him once. (and will he accuse hurricanes of trying to kill his father like he did with Saddam Hussein?)
• "Now that George Bush has captured Saddam Hussein, it raises the question, what's he going to get his dad for Christmas next year?" —Jay Leno
• Is there going to be lots of intentional fires in New Orleans? Lots of businesses right now would rather have insurance money than wait possibly a year before they can open business again. We could rename New Orleans as "New Bronx"
• Do the 24/7 news channels have to broadcast this one news item 24/7? I would like to see a little coverage of other things going on in the USA and world. True, Katrina is a huge story but it's not the only one.
• Does Condi Rice really need more $3,000 shoes?
• Just how much will it cost to clean up New Orleans once the water is gone? And how long will draining it take? And if it rains a lot...? How much of the cost will be on the shoulders of individuals and how much will the government do?
• Most private dwellings are made of wood. What will be left if the water stays around for weeks or even months? Many of the poorest people owned their homes and had no or little insurance. What happens to them?
• What happens to the college students of Tulane, Loyola, etc? Do they miss out on the year as well as their tuition? I hope other schools allow the students to switch over so they don't get set back a year.

So many questions to be answered. What are some of yours?