Broken hearted

I am disillusioned by what is happening in my country.

It was easy for us to rally together as a nation after September 11. We were united against a common enemy. People of all colors, creeds, and socio-economic status were affected. We didn't dare criticize our government, at least not during those first hours. We were unprepared, yes, but we pulled ourselves together and by a day or two after the attacks, there was a sense of control. We were still terrified, but we were cleaning up.

Three days after New Orleans fell apart, we're hearing about a city in complete chaos. Trucks are driving right by people in need. Aid isn't making it to where it's most critical. One day the police are ignorning looters so they can rescue the living; the next day they're told to abandon the rescue efforts and go after the criminals. Buses are taking people to Houston and San Antonio, but they aren't telling their passengers where they're headed. These people don't have television sets. They aren't watching MSNBC as events unfold. Somebody tells them to get on a bus, and they do it--with no idea when they'll be back, when they'll see the rest of their families again. FEMA goes on and on about how it's doing the best it can, but the reality is that there was absolutely no preparation, no game plan, no idea of what to do. It's not as though the idea of a major hurricane hitting New Orleans was out of the question. The city is below sea level, and it's on the gulf coast. How hard is it to put two and two together? Why hasn't our government bothered to prepare for something that we always knew was coming?

And what makes me even sicker is the fact that this disaster didn't affect all people equally. Some were able to get out--to pack up their valuables, gather up their families, load into their SUVs and head for hotels and relatives out of harm's way. But the poor, the folks without cars, without the money to buy gas, without anyplace to go--they're the ones stuck in the Superdome, stuck on the side of the highway surrounded by the dead and dying, stuck in the Convention Center watching the National Guard trucks drive right by. They couldn't leave. They didn't have a choice. And now as a country we seem to have absolutely no idea what to do with them.

This morning the Congressional Black Caucus held a press conference and expressed a harsh reality: there's no denying the reality that many, if not most, of the poor and suffering in New Orleans are people of color. They were in dire straights before Katrina even existed, and now they have nothing left, and no assurance that help is on the way. I am relieved to hear Bush say that the relief efforts thus far are "unacceptable," but that's not enough. There is no excuse for a country as rich as the United States to leave thousands of its citizens without food, water, hygiene, and shelter. Somebody needs to get control and make something happen.

Like most people, I've always had faith in my country. I always believed that no matter what bad things happened, we'd be taken care of. The goodness of human nature would prevail, and the resources of my government would come to my aid. Weren't we raised to believe that "the US is the best country in the world?"

Today that faith is shaken to the core.