Diane French, better known to residents of New Orleans Ninth Ward as the neighborhood activist "Mama Dee" was adamant in her beliefs that the Ninth Ward was purposely flooded in the immediate aftermath of Hurricane katrina, and said so in her testimony before Congress. Much to the chagrin of U.S. Representative Sheas, who, upon hearing Mama's assertion that the Federal government bombed the levees-she had heard it, she insisted-could not, in his words, let it go. But she stood firm.
"Ba-boom" she shouted as a verbal re-enactment of what she insists that not ony she heard, but heard in company of a relative at her home at the time, a military veteran who had "served his country well".
While Sheas asked her point blank several times if she had actually witnessed this, and berated her for not answering the question with a straight yes or no answer-though it was clear that she said plainly she had not actually seen this, but merely heard it-a number of Congressmen were picked up on camera whispering to each other, indicating the area of the testimony, and smiling, nearly laughing, though whether at Mama Dee or Congressman Sheas was unclear. Sheas finally told her there was no need to "speak in tonques", an obviously incendiary remark meant to belittle the elderly old woman as a conspiracy theory nut, or possibly as a voodoo practising radical and charlatan.
But Mama Dee said one thing I found most remarkable. This was common knowledge, she said, and in fact this was not the first time this had happenned. It had happenned once in the early nineteen twenties, another time in the early nineteen sixties. Evidently, it was considered that it would be more preferable to blow up that part ofthe levee which would flood the Ninth Ward, in order to spare the more expensive areas of the city. But of course, the people in charge of making these decisions couldn't very well come right out and say this, nor could they give any warning before hand. After all, what legal right would they have to destroy one area of private property in order to save others, regardless of the fact that otherwise all areas would be in danger of destruction. There would obviously be an immediate outcry, and the plan would then have to be quelched. That would only leave one other option-warn everyone to evacuate, and if they did not leave, well, that would just be too bad. Unfortunately, in this case the majority of the people who could not evacuate, for whatever reason, turns out to have been the very people who were in the most danger.
If there turns out to be any truth at all to this story, I expect widespread rioting throughout all large American metropolitan areas with any sizeable black population. In fact, so widespread is this belief, I am really amazed it hasn't all ready transpired. It leaves me to believe that someone, somewhere, is silently workinghtrough channels to keep eveybody's temper, their outrage, in some kind of check. Butfor how long?
I think there is a chance there might be some truth to this incredible story. For one thing, it makes too much sense, in a coldly logical, unemotional, soulless kind of way. But if it does turn out to be true, I find it doubtful the Federal Government would be involved in any way, though their innefective response, the lack of urgency, the bungling, the out and out incompetence, would surely play into the hands of the conspiracy believers. Nor do I think the state and local leaders would have had a hand in as sorry an affair as this. It just doesn't make sense, though on another level I can see where indioviduals involved in state and local, and maybe even federal, govenremnt and emergency management might have played a mor eor less small role in the affair.
But the real movers and shakers in a sorry episode such as this, if it really transpired, would doubtless be the real estate owners, the land developers, and the insurance companies and banking establishments that would have the most to lose were the entire city become flooded. The corruption of Louisiana and New Orleans politics is almost legendary, so it would be a simple manner to pay off a handful of people in order to make this all possible, maybe even inevitable.
Liek the old saying goes-follow the money! Whoever has the most money invested in New Orleans, especially in land and business properties and upper class real estate and homes, would be your most obvious suspects. The politicians, on all levels, are as usual, just the peaons.
