Conservatives True Colors

I have been beside myself the last few months, ever since the New Orleans Katrina disaster, over the attitude of some avowed and committed conservatives. They should really be ashamed of themselves, but unfortunately I have yet to hear a single one offer any kind of rational explanation, nevermind an apology, for the vile and despicable things they said concerning the black victims of the disaster. Accordding to these, many of whom unbelievably consdier themselves to be good, religous, faithful Christians, the black residents of New Orleans pretty much brought their troubles on themselves. They failed to get out of the area, despte the many times they were warned to do so. never mind that many of these people had no way out fo the city, did not have the money to purchase transportation away, nor did they have anywhere to go or money to rent a place if they did get away. Yet, it is somehow their own faults.

It was certainy not the fault of George W. Bush, or FEMA or any similar Federal Government bureaucracy. On the other hand, the minute there was any kind of indication that the Democratic Party might have been in part responsible, either on the state or the local level, they were stunningly quick to pounce on that.

Then came the riots. What turned out to be a relative handful, a miority, of rioters engaging in looting, violence, and suppossedly even mureder and rape (all of which it turns out was greatly exaggerated) they insisted was indicative of the attitudes and predispositions of the majority, of not all, of the black residents of New Orleans.

Now that some time has passed, all this has seemingly been quickly forgotten. But I have not forgotten, nor will I ever forget it. I have been paying close attention, in fact, to see if Bush and the Republican Congress holds true to their word for much needed aid to the city and residents. They must have thought we would all be napping when FEMA announced the residents stil in hotel rooms would have to leave by a certain date. This was announced before Thanksgiving, and the final date was sometime well before Christmas when the unfortunate residents would have to evacuate from their temporary emergency lodgings. Happy Holidays!

Nwo they have been floating a trial balloon. Maybe New Orleans should not be rebuilt at all. A far cry from the money that was promised to strengthen the levees to the point where they should have been strengthened before the disaster. Whatever is decided, it is a long way off before the majority of New orleans residents wil be enabled to get their lives back on track, before he Crescent City is resotred to any semblance of it's former glory. Perhaps it never can be.

A lot of Republican conservatives doubtless could not prevent their mouths from watering at the prospect of the city being rebuildt to their specifications, with upper income condos stretching as far as the eye can see, new offices and homes overseeing a charade of a French Quarter, devoid of any true life, bereft of it's soul, a mere mecca for the ultra rich which would once a year, on Mardi Gras, pander to the appetites of a nation hungry for diversion and for absolution. Of course, there would be some area set aside for poor dock workers, well out of sight of the tourists and the upper crust districts that stride triumphantly where once rested the Ninth Ward.

A once a year Disneyland, for one week, in the midst of a renovated commercial/luxury area more akin to Key Biscayne than to New Orleans.

Well, that dream is over. And now come the recriminations. It could take a handful of people, such as Mayor Ray Nagin, and Senator Mary Landrieu, to get things back on track, and to ensure the federal government and Washington politicians, in addition to state and local civil and business entities, stand firm on their previous committments. Hopefully, they will do so, and in time New Orleans will be restored, better than ever. Hopefully, the original residents will return, with increased opportunities to advance themselves.

But I can not help but wonder how disspointed some Conservative Republicans were that the original death toll of 10,000 postulated by Mayor Nagin turned out to be greatly inflated from the actual 1000 or so actually dead. Maybe they would be lucky, and it would turn out to be more like 100,000, maybe more, uninsured people whose properties could easily be condemened, and sold for a song. Give em some jazz, some blues.

Maybe if they hold out for as long as possible, on aid and reconstruction, maybe even cause them more grief than they can bear in the long run, the majority of them will decide it's not worth it, will decide to remain where they are now, or go somewhere else, anywhere but New Orleans.

I know it sounds harsh, surely no one can be so callous, so uncaring, so unfeeling, about their fellow Americans. My only answer to that is, all you have to do is navigate some of the past forums and e-mail message groups, such as Yahoo Groups, etc., and go back over their archives to the time in question. The bigotry, the intolerance, the racism, and out and out despicable level of ignorance displayed toward the poor black residents of New Orleans, the black victimes of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, reeks of a kind of vile filth one could scarcely imagine. And still they are in denial as to their own level of bigotry, which they put on public display for all to see.

They should really be ashamed of themselves. But evidently they have no shame, and this says a lot not only about them, it makes you wonder about the values of the poiticans they claim to support, and the religous values they purport to have.