The Hope Sleeps Tonight
What a week of pure, unadulterated emotion. As we put out this issue—the first one with power and resources and staff fully restored—I am spent due to what I've seen, read and experienced in the last week.
Anthony DiFatta
Tony DiFatta is something. I met Tony, 38, not too long before we started the Jackson Free Press, and he came on board immediately. He did the art for our very first cover, and he's done memorable covers for us ever since, including a certain one of Sen. Trent Lott in a dunce hat. And most of you know how popular his art shows are at spots like Nunnery's Gallery.
Christopher Hitchens on Katrina and Bush's Response
The neo-cons' favorite Brit did an interview with Austrailian Broadcasting Corp. yesterday that won't fly so well with Bush supporters. Here's an excerpt, but read the whole thing:
Chertoff: Hurricane, Then Floods A ‘Surprise'
CNN is reporting:
Defending the U.S. government's response to Hurricane Katrina, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff argued Saturday that government planners did not predict such a disaster ever could occur. But in fact, government officials, scientists and journalists have warned of such a scenario for years.
Mississippi Death Toll May Top 1,000
Clarion-Ledger is reporting:
Transcript: GOP Senate Press Conference on Katrina
SENATE NEWS CONFERENCE ON HURRICANE KATRINA, U.S. CAPITOL, TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 6, 2005
HUTCHISON: We are going to have the senators who are affected by this terrible natural disaster in our country, Katrina, talk about the efforts in their home states. And I want to start with Senator Lott , because he certainly suffered the most direct loss, and we have called and e-mailed both he and Thad Cochran, but so many of us had gone to his beautiful 150-year-old home and were just touched by the loss of that beautiful home.
FEMA Expands Disaster Area in Mississippi
[Statement from Chip Pickering/verbatim] PEARL, MISS -- Congressman Chip Pickering announced today that FEMA has added 31 counties to the individual assistance disaster designation and 29 counties have been added to the public disaster designation.
Catholics Charities Present Crisis Response Training
[verbatim statement] Beginning on September 12, 2005, Catholic Charities' Trauma Recovery for Youth Project will host a week long training on Post Traumatic Stress Management by Dr. Robert Macy. Dr. Macy is the Director of Community Services for the Trauma Center in Boston, Massachusetts. He has 20 years experience doing clinical interventions and academic research in the field of behavioral health, crisis intervention, and traumatic incident management. Robert conducts dozens of trainings annually on youth suicide prevention, threat profiling, threat management and violence prevention, and School and Community Based Post Traumatic Stress Management.
Report: FEMA Has No Plan for Body Removal
From the Times-Picayune today:
20 Folding Tables Needed IMMEDIATELY for Coast
20 lightweight folding tables are needed ASAP to go to Gulf Coast – we have a truck ready to drive them down if anyone knows of a source. Please reply if you do. Thanks, Emma
Hastert: New Orleans ‘Could Be Bulldozed'
Here's a link to the now-infamous story about House Speaker Dennis Hastert's truly execrable remarks about the city of New Orleans. No KatrinaBlog would be complete without this story in its archives.
Lott: ‘I Am Demanding Help for Mississippi'
[Sept. 5, 2005/verbatim statement] POPLARVILLE, Mississippi – U.S. Senator Trent Lott of Mississippi emerged from a one-on-one meeting with President Bush today in Poplarville asserting, "I am demanding help for the people of Mississippi to recover from the devastation of Hurricane Katrina."
AP: Katrina Death Toll Could Reach 10,000
The Associated Press is reporting:
URGENT: 250 Folding Cots Needed NOW for Coast, More Needs
Rev. Emma Connolly wrote Sunday:
We are getting calls from all over the country, thanks to your networking. We are in need - NOW - for 250 folding cots to deliver to the Gulf Coast ASAP. These items cannot be found in the Jackson area at this time. Do you have connections to ask this? Anyone can call my husband, Robert Connolly, 601-573-5796, if they can find any cots and get them to Jackson quickly. He will let them know how many are needed. Thanks again for all you have done.
New Orleans Police Spokesman Commits Suicide
He shot himself with his own gun.
As the White House develops a political strategy to blame the terrible conditions on Louisiana, the spokesman for the New Orleans Police Department, Sgt. Paul Accardo, 38, who has been quoted all week in media reports about the disaster, has committed suicide.
AP: Census Shows Many Couldn't Afford to Evacuate
An Associated Press analysis of Census data shows that the residents in the
Here's one for the dumbasses who tried to blame the victims, saying they just should have evacuated like the other folks did. The Associated Press is reporting that an analysis of Census data show that, surprise!, many of the victims were simply too poor to evacuate. It seems—alert the media—that not everyone can afford a car, or even the fuel to run one.
Money, Supplies Needed for Nursing Home Residents
September 4, 2005/verbatim: Hurricane Katrina Destroyed Several Mississippi Nursing Homes Needs of Senior Citizens Continue to Grow
Gulf Coast: Not Much Better
The Sun-Herald reports:
Authorities fear a disease outbreak could add to the toll of fatalities from the hurricane. The number of confirmed deaths in the six southern-most counties rose to 134. Family and friends are driving through the streets of ravaged neighborhoods asking the few residents still in their homes if they know what happened to their loved ones. The stench of decay - human and animal - was growing stronger in flattened neighborhoods where cranes would be needed to untangle the debris. Bodies swept out to sea in the storm Sunday are still coming back, authorities said.
‘This Country Is Better Than That'
Great New York Times editorial today:
‘Looking for Friends': A Gallery of Post-Its
Our two new young friends, Pierce and Zon, drove down from Madison, Wis., to do what they can to help with the disaster. Right now, they're helping the JFP with our KatrinaBlog and getting us hooked up with the Indy Media network, as well as interviewing and photographing evacuees around the city. See this gallery of notices posted in the Coliseum of people who are trying to find loved ones that they just uploaded into the JFP galleries. (If one is hard to read, try the Zoom In button.) Thanks, guys.
‘My Heart Is Just Breaking for Your Pain'
Just in via e-mail/verbatim from Toronto:
I know you need so many things right now. I wish I could be with-in arm's reach to offer you a hot meal, a warm bed... or just a change of clothes. Many of us in other countries are appalled by the lack of support that has been provided to the people in the US (by your Federal Government), to the people that need it most. I believe that most of your fellow American's are also feeling inpotant(sp?) that there is not more being done to ease your suffering in a more efficent manner.
Disaster Remarks by Barbour, McCoy, Tuck, Others
Transcribed Remarks by the Governor and other state officials/MEMA Press Conference/Jackson, MS
Governor Haley Barbour: "Before I start trying to share some briefing with you… First, I'm pleased that the Lieutenant Governor and the Speaker accompanied me to the coast today to meet with the President and tour some of the devastated parts of Biloxi, with him, Senator Lott, Senator Cochran, and Congressman Pickering. So before I have anything to say, I want to invite the Lieutenant Governor to say some remarks."
Salon: Report About Jackson, Hattiesburg
Stephen Elliott reports for Salon:
Days After Disaster, Bush Sending Active-Duty Troops
The Associated Press is reporting:
Growing Black Outrage Over Katrina Victims
The New York Times is reporting:
U.S. Senators: Congress to Probe ‘Immense Failure'
Reuters is reporting:
Transcribed Remarks of Barbour, Pickering, Red Cross Head
Transcribed Remarks: Governor Haley Barbour, U.S. Congressman Chip Pickering, and
Governor Haley Barbour: Let me start off by introducing a great ally to Mississippi, and somebody that is a genuine pleasure for me to have here and to let visit with you. Marty Evans is the President of the American Red Cross. Marty.
Lott: $50 Million Temporary Katrina Recovery Jobs
[September 2, 2005/verbatim] Pascagoula, Mississippi — Federal grant funding totaling $50 million is being awarded to the state of Mississippi, specifically to hire temporary workers for ongoing hurricane recovery and rebuilding efforts, U.S. Senator Trent Lott said today, following notification by U.S. Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao.
City Explains Curfews
Raised issue about JPS schools ... something
Nash Nunnery, the city's new public info guy, just explained to me how the curfews are working. Other than the youth curfews, they are basically "unenforceable," both for businesses and individuals, he said. "There is an unforceable business curfew between 12 midnight and 6 a.m. He said they request and encourage businesses to close so police can be doing other things. But, he acknowledged, there are workers who have to travel after midnight. "It's more of a request than an enforceable curfew. I seriously doubt somebody going to get arrested because business open past midnight." Likewise, the curfew against individuals out after midnight is "unenforceable" as well, he said. "Like I said, nobody is going to be picked up because they're out and about. How can you distinguish between emergency workers and other people?"
Boil Water Alert Lifted; Other City Info
September 2, 2005—HIGHLIGHTS OF 3 P.M. BRIEFING FOR CITY DEPARTMENTS REGARDING STORM RECOVERY
The City of Jackson and the Hinds County EOC will conduct briefings twice daily to update information in the continuing recovery efforts after Hurricane Katrina. Briefings are at 9:00 a.m. and 3 p.m. The pressroom at the Hinds EOC is available. Highlights from today's afternoon briefing:
Open Letter to City: Open Briefings; Let Info Flow
As rumors swirl about everything from gas prices to lawlessness, the City of Jackson has seemed to take a bunker mentality. They are, apparently, having "briefings" twice a day between the city and the Hinds County EOC—but are not opening them up to the media, or media questions. They give us a hand-out of "highlights" afterward, but we cannot ask questions about where power is being restored, the priority of restoration, the problems, gas issues (and all sorts of rumors are floating on that), issues regarding potential crime and looting and what should be done. Very importantly, there doesn't seem to be key people addressing issues of refugees and what the people of Jackson can, and should, do to help them. Here at the JFP, the e-mails and phone calls are fast and furious with questions and requests—and we can barely handle them, although we are doing our best.
Bush ‘Not Looking Forward' to Coast Trip
But he's coming ... Clarion-Ledger is reporting:
Lott: Coast Relief Efforts to Intensify
[September 2, 2005/verbatim] PASCAGOULA, Mississippi - On the heels of site visits Thursday to the Hurricane Katrina Emergency Operations Center in Gulfport, the National Guard's relief coordination center at the Gulfport Guard base and briefings at Northrop Grumman Ingalls Ship Systems in Pascagoula, Senator Lott said he is confident that the effort to get more food, fuel, water and supplies onto the coast will intensify.
Black and White ‘Looters' Being Covered Differently?
Salon has an intriguing story, with screen shots, exploring whether the media are treating blacks who are taking items from stores differently than whites doing the same thing.
Can Bush, U.S. Troops Handle Katrina and Iraq?
Today in the New York Times, David E. Sanger explores the haunting question of whether President Bush's administration can balance the pressing needs of Iraq with the largest domestic disaster relief needs in our history:
Jackson Power May Be Out for Weeks
The Clarion-Ledger reports today that the 75 percent of Jackson resident still without power could face weeks in the dark:
Remarks by Haley Barbour and Thad Cochran Today
Here are the transcribed remarks of Gov. Haley Barbour and Sen. Thad Cochran at today's MEMA press conference in Jackson. They only answered a few questions; Adam said an alarm went off, and they said he had to leave. No one could tell Adam what the alarm meant. The following comments are verbatim, and sent from the governor's office.
UPDATED/URGENT: Take Food to St. Andrews
All, Rev. Connolly just wrote again about food that is needed in the Jackson shelters. Please do what you can:
Thousands May Be Dead in N.O.; 50 in Hancock County
AP is reporting:
Hurricane Katrina probably killed thousands of people in New Orleans, the mayor said Wednesday - an estimate that, if accurate, would make the storm the nation's deadliest natural disaster since at least the 1906 San Francisco earthquake. "We know there is a significant number of dead bodies in the water," and other people dead in attics, Mayor Ray Nagin said. Asked how many, he said: "Minimum, hundreds. Most likely, thousands."
Message Board for Families Seeking Information
One of the JFP blog members, based in North Mississippi, has set up a message board for families seeking information on loved ones:
Pray for the Big Easy and the Magnolia State
AP reports:
"We are facing a storm that most of us have long feared," Mayor Ray Nagin said in ordering the mandatory evacuation for his city of 485,000 people, surrounded by suburbs of a million more. "The storm surge will most likely topple our levee system." Conceding that as many as 100,000 inner-city residents didn't have the means to leave and an untold number of tourists were stranded by the closing of the airport, the city arranged buses to take people to 10 last-resort shelters, including the Superdome.
Where The Pavement Begins
On a recent Tuesday a bunch of folk gathered for a cookout outside John Lawrence's place. It was kind of like the stoop cookouts we used to have when I lived at Dupont Circle in Washington, D.C. John had a grill and tons of hamburgers, hotdogs, Bocas, all sorts of chips, sodas, beer. His guests—some from the Ironworks Building, others from the Dickies Building near the downtown post office, others of us who love downtown in spirit—came to the Downtown Neighborhood Association's first gathering outside the Hal & Mal's complex; John has a loft upstairs.
But Earth, Which Is His Due
At the Neshoba County Fair this year, I had gotten up close to the lectern so I could take a close-up picture of Gov. Haley Barbour's face during his annual political address. He said my family name at the exact moment I snapped his picture.
SOS Announces ‘Voter-Verified Paper Trail'
It seems the secretary of state's office is trying to respond to concerns about the new voting machines such as the JFP reported more than a month ago:
JFP Interview: Education Governor William Winter
<b>*The JFP Unabridged Web Edition*</b>
The Neshoba County Fair this year was like a tale of five governors on Thursday, traditionally the hottest political fire-breathing day. In a way though, it was the story of two governors—one past, one present—with two very different ideas on public education. For his part, Gov. Haley Barbour says we are wasting money, that we're funding public education more than ever (at least using GOP math), that we need to focus on inefficiences instead of using more tax money to bring the state's education up to "adequate" levels, as established in a formula by the Legislature in 1994.
Melton Wants All JPS Students Drug-Tested
WLBT is reporting:
Jackson Mayor Frank Melton wants students to be able to pass one test in particular... a drug test. Announcing his commitment to improve Jackson's public schools, Melton wants officials to consider across-the-board drug testing. "The only way that I can know to do it without profiling and selecting certain kids is just to test everybody," said Melton. "If Johnny shows up hot on marijuana we know that Johnny needs some help."
Take the Time to Do It Right
Last Sunday two Clarion-Ledger columnists expressed dismay at Mayor Frank Melton's string of public proclamations that turned out to be more hype than good, legal policy—telling city board members to resign, saying he would close the Maple Street apartments without regard to the rights of owners or the tenants, declaring he would demolish the King Edward in 30 days.
Going Dr. Laura On Your Ass
Perhaps Asa Carter, a Klansman and the secretary of the North Alabama White Citizens Council, said it best in 1956: