My family is safe. Their house remained above water, and power has even returned to Jefferson Parish. Lots of families aren't so lucky. Now, the picture above would imply that I'm blaming Bush. I'm not. I think his deficiency, as always, is eloquence and intelligence. He shouldn't be holding that guitar, and the combination of these images really, really demonstrates why he's a total incompetent. His job is to be the voice of the response; he is the mouthpiece of our reaction. I don't expect Bush to be on a boat, pulling people out of attics. But I do demand that he be the face of our shock and sadness, that he tell the world how we feel as a nation.
However, is he to blame? Somewhat, of course. But the truth is, I think it was the local NOPD's responsibility to take care of immediate aftermath. They are the primary level of defense against civil anarchy. But where was the NOPD? At Walmart, apparently. Looting Walmart. This video is embarrassing, it's shameful, and it's very illustrative of the difference between this disaster and a few others we've experienced as a country.
Your duty, when you sign up to become a police officer, is to protect the public and uphold the law; it's the principle that should rule your life with religious clarity. On 9/11, it wasn't the federal government that swooped in to the rescue; it was the local authorities. The NYPD, the NYFD - these were the heroes, not the military, not the national guard. The NOPD failed New Orleans. I believe that video shows us exactly why things got so bad in Louisiana.
I think the Left has leapt on Bush because the Left Hates Bush. But Bush is not the local government, he's not the state government. He's level three, the face of our national response. Sure, he failed us. But the horror of New Orleans was not a result of his shortcomings. It was a breakdown of the ideals of the police, the populace, and a failure first and foremost of principles.