The true lesson of Katrina
by digby
Yes, this was it:
This was the most traumatic thing that happened according to the right wing press. Go ahead and google it — the hysteria is overwhelming. This article in the Daily Caller sums up their collective pain.
And in case you wondered whether or not you’ll be safe from right wing vigilantes wandering the streets during the next emergency,undoubtedly searching for “looters” well here you go:
NRA’s post-Katrina efforts did not stop at the Louisiana border. NRA prompted mayors and police chiefs across America to sign a pledge stating that they will, “never forcibly disarm the law-abiding citizens” of their city. Further, NRA worked to limit the power of state and local governments to regulate firearms in times of emergency, by advocating for emergency powers reform legislation throughout the country. Currently, over half of the states have some form of emergency powers provision protecting gun owners from government abuse during a crisis.
In 2006, moreover, President George W. Bush signed into law the Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act, which contained an NRA-backed amendment sponsored by Sen. David Vitter (R-La.). The amendment prohibits persons acting under color of federal law, receiving federal funds, or acting at the direction of a federal employee from seizing or authorizing the seizure of lawfully-possessed firearms or imposing or enforcing certain restrictions on firearms during a state of emergency.
Here’s a little reminder of the kind of loose talk that was coming from our “thought leaders” like Peggy Noonan:
As for the tragic piggism that is taking place on the streets of New Orleans, it is not unbelievable but it is unforgivable, and I hope the looters are shot. A hurricane cannot rob a great city of its spirit, but a vicious citizenry can. A bad time with Mother Nature can leave you digging out for a long time, but a bad turn in human behavior frays and tears all the ties that truly bind human beings–trust, confidence, mutual regard, belief in the essential goodness of one’s fellow citizens.
She did say it was ok to take food and water to survive, so that was nice. But clearly we’re going to need a lot of vigilantes out there next time, strip searching the refugees from the storm to determine what they have in their possession so we can see which ones deserve to be summarily executed and which ones don’t. It’s a dirty job but the NRA is signing on.
The press lost its mind during those early days after the flooding. They were incredibly irresponsible in spreading lies about rampant violence when it turned out it just wasn’t true. If anything, it was police and armed vigilantes who were the problem.
And consider this: the right wing hero, Chris Kyle of American Sniper fame said that he was called into New Orleans and was perched on top of the Superdome from which vantage point he killed 30 “criminals.” That wasn’t true either, but there are millions of people in this country who love that story and believe it.
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