A Time for Action & A Critical Examination

Apologies for the slowness of commentary for anyone who's just been yearning for such things. Obviously, the events of the past week have ground things to a snail's pace for many of us. Bad events, such as Katrina, aren't entirely easy to put words to of any significance ... especially when the first thousand or so tend to be along the lines of "How in the hell can that be allowed to happen?"

To start with, I have to say much of the partisan bickering over Katrina is just mind-numbingly insane (ed. note - how many days did it take to sanitize THAT reaction? Never mind.) Colbert King has it about right ... this is "a time for action, not outrage." Yet the images and events we see unfold before our eyes make it rather difficult to prevent outrage from creeping up on even the best of us (as modestly evidenced here). Perhaps it's no big surprise that KOS and Powerline spin their own partisan nonsense while people cling to life, pass away, heal, recover, and battle on through what is, hopefully, the worst that fate throws their way. And yet, as tough as this is to describe, I'll give it a whirl and see how well it comes out ... there is room for outrage, just not the form that we see at the worst ends of the spectrum.

What Katrina has exposed is a poverty of leadership ... a poverty that hits both sides of the aisle. Yet even through those lapses in ability, foresight, management, or whatever ... there's room for praise on many of the same individuals that have an impact on this story (with, I argue, one notable exception). Take, for instance, New Orleans mayor Ray Nagin. Immediately after his outrage over too many ineffective press conferences and demands for more busses, Drudge posts the image of busses sitting idle in a flooded New Orleans bus barn. Bad, right? But this is the same Mayor Nagin who issued the first mandatory evacuation in the city's history, getting the highest percent of citizens out of town than any previous evacuation call prior to his tenure. Good, right? So what of Governor Blanco's slowness in getting National Guard troops? Bad, right? Same Governor who realizes that the best man for the job of undoing the damage (James Lee Witt) is available for hire and goes about signing him up. Good, right? And President Bush ... the same individual who gave the worst buck-passing moment since Clinton's blaming of Ken Starr for his moral failings is the same one who sends in what appears to be the best fit from the military ranks (Lt. Col. Russel Honore) to deal with the toughest of tough situations in New Orleans.

That exception? Mike Brown. Not that I think he's the goat here (or if you prefer, the Arabian horse), but he's clearly in over his head. If he's not dispatched quickly to demonstrate a firm resolve by the administration on the relief effort, he should be put out of the loop so more knowledgable and competent individuals can take over. Why not a perfect compromise with Gov. Blanco here ... Bush names Witt as the Hurricane Relief Czar for this moment in time. That might smooth things over between Bush & Blanco to allow for federalization of the efforts in Louisiana ... I repeat: might.

The biggest problem eminating from all of this is that there was, indeed, a plan in place for what everyone anticipated (despite Sec. Chertoff's suggestions to the contrary). We had the contingency plan sitting on the shelf, it had been practiced and refined within the past year. But when it came time to put it into action, nobody seemed to pull it off the shelf, dust it off, and put it into action. The failures that are most visible are not necessarily failures of ideology or worldview. To paraphrase Michael Dukakis, this was a failure of competence over ideology. And it was a failure that hit everyone. Unfortunately, that's the same everyone who's job done now. All the carping in the world won't land the decisionmaking for this in the hands of John Kerry, Bobby Jindal, or whever ran against Nagin last time around. All the fingerpointing at the other side's foibles, congratulations of our own team's positive moves, or ideological bumper-sticker sloganeering of the issue won't save one life, feed one child, or house one survivor.

The challenges that face our newest Texans and other refugees, evacuees, survivors, or whatever the appropriate term is ... is bad enough. They are now the yardstick by which many of us mutter a "There, but for the grace of God, go I" to ourselves. On one level, it's tough to fully imagine being in their shoes. Yet, at the same time, it doesn't (or at least, it shouldn't) seem all that distant.

As an event of tragic proportions, Katrina ought to serve as a wakeup call to critically examine both our faith and our worldview. I'd start and stumble for whatever thoughts I might find most useful for myself on this. But, for now, EJ Dionne and David Ignatius put it far more eloquently on matters of worldview. As for faith, I'm among those optimistic enough to allow for events such as this to strengthen my own. I've had my own fill of losing and suffering to endure and can attest that there is strength to be gained in perseverance. As for worldview examination ... that's an ongoing matter. The points Ignatius and Dionne make put a few more words into that subject for now.

As always ... there are ample ways to volunteer, donate, or help however you can. I've already spent a bit of time and given a little here and there. By way of silver lining, the Labor Day weekend allowed for numerous Houstonians and others to devote time to volunteering. But with the return of the workweek, I suspect there's going to be a renewed emphasis on some volunteer hours where applicable. As for me, it's still a time for action.

Peace.