Watching the disaster in New Orleans, I'm struck by the conspicuous absence of the US Army. The National Guard, having been detailed to fight a foreign war, seems conspicuously undermanned as well.
It would seem that only the Army has the logistical support and know-how to manage any part of this. Mobile field hospitals, airmobile divisions, transportation units, etc. would normally be available in large numbers throughout the American south. Especially Texas, a short drive from Louisiana and N'Orleans.
The President (what a joke) finally decides to cut short his vacation to deal with this. Oh my.
Remember this from the eve of battle in Iraq? Seems like we have forgotten it completely. Speech given by Lieutenant Colonel Tim Collins, 20 March 2003, Kuwait, near the Iraqi border. On his return from Iraq, he resigned from the British Army.
"We go to liberate not to conquer. We will not fly our flags in their country. We are entering Iraq to free a people and the only flag which will be flown in that ancient land is their own. Show respect for them.
"There are some who are alive at this moment who will not be alive shortly. Those who do not wish to go on that journey, we will not send. As for the others I expect you to rock their world. Wipe them out if that is what they choose. But if you are ferocious in battle remember to be magnanimous in victory.
"Iraq is steeped in history. It is the site of the Garden of Eden, of the Great Flood and the birthplace of Abraham. Tread lightly there. You will see things that no man could pay to see and you will have to go a long way to find a more decent, generous and upright people than the Iraqis. You will be embarrassed by their hospitality even though they have nothing. Don't treat them as refugees for they are in their own country. Their children will be poor, in years to come they will know that the light of liberation in their lives was brought by you.
"If there are casualties of war then remember that when they woke up and got dressed in the morning they did not plan to die this day. Allow them dignity in death. Bury them properly and mark their graves.
"It is my foremost intention to bring every single one of you out alive but there may be people among us who will not see the end of this campaign. We will put them in their sleeping bags and send them back. There will be no time for sorrow.
"The enemy should be in no doubt that we are his nemesis and that we are bringing about his rightful destruction. There are many regional commanders who have stains on their souls and they are stoking the fires of hell for Saddam. He and his forces will be destroyed by this coalition for what they have done. As they die they will know their deeds have brought them to this place. Show them no pity.
"It is a big step to take another human life. It is not to be done lightly. I know of men who have taken life needlessly in other conflicts, I can assure you they live with the mark of Cain upon them. If someone surrenders to you then remember they have that right in international law and ensure that one day they go home to their family.
"The ones who wish to fight, well, we aim to please.
"If you harm the regiment or its history by over-enthusiasm in killing or in cowardice, know it is your family who will suffer. You will be shunned unless your conduct is of the highest for your deeds will follow you down through history. We will bring shame on neither our uniform or our nation.
"[Regarding the use by Saddam of chemical or biological weapons] It is not a question of if, it's a question of when. We know he has already devolved the decision to lower commanders, and that means he has already taken the decision himself. If we survive the first strike we will survive the attack.
"As for ourselves, let's bring everyone home and leave Iraq a better place for us having been there.
"Our business now is north."
While I am a child of the sixties (and I date myself here), I do not wish that I participated in the protests of that era. I did so in the early 1980s and that was enough for me.
However, it was a time to be alive. There was much worthy of protesting; from the treatment of blacks in the American south (indeed, much of the nation), to the Vietnam War, to the destruction of the Great Society programs to feed the war.
This evening, I heard an amazing speech by the Reverend Martin Luther King. Say what you will of his private life he was a hell of a speaker and a conscience for our society. It is a truly moving speech and you owe it to yourself to hear this master of rhetoric incite the nation to take action.
How could anyone not listen to this speech today and appreciate his wisdom and foresight and even its applicability to the current travesty that is our foreign policy in Iraq.
The parallels are quite striking and left as an exercise to the listener.
Driving home last night, I saw that gas prices at my local station (I live on a plateau with only a couple of gas stations on it) had climbed through the roof.
The premium that my car requires is now $2.98.9. We're very, very close to breaking the $3 mark. I think these national average prices must be driven down by prices in the hinterland. When I lived in the SF Bay area the problem was just as bad and we had refineries within 50 miles there as well.
So it's not distance to refineries.. they just want to screw us.