While the United States Armed Forces (private mercenaries) are in Afghanistan, Djibouti, Iraq, the Philippines and west Africa defending “all freedom-loving people everywhere in the world,” “Sicherheitsdienst Reichsfuhrer” Michael Chertoff (Russian for “son of Satan”), Secretary of Homeland Security announces that he is reassigning Michael D. Brown, Director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, to his desk, in the District of Columbia, after his efforts to direct the Federal relief effort from Hurricane Katrina have proven his incompetence:

• The U.s. Coast Guard tried to collect and bring in a thousand gallons of diesel fuel, but was ordered to halt its efforts by FEMA.
• Volunteer firefighters were either turned away, or assigned to do public relations work.  Those firefighters that were allowed into the disaster area were required to undergo eight hours of training that included a classes on sexual harassment, public relations, and the history of FEMA—even as Mayor Ray Nagin, of New Orleans, pleaded with the national media for more firefighters—as his own were too exhausted to continue, after working around the clock for a week.
• The Wal-Mart Corporation tried to send in three trucks loaded with food and water into New Orleans, but was turned away by FEMA.
• The louisiana National Guard (U.s. Soldiers) requested 500 buses from FEMA to evacuate stranded New Orleans residents, but received only 100.
• FEMA knew that the levees protecting New Orleans, on Lake Pontchartrain, had been breached, after the storm, but would not admit it for a full 24 hours.

       In addition to FEMA’s foul-ups, other Federal blunders included:

• The USS Bataan, with six operating rooms, hundreds of hospital beds and the capacity to produce 100,000 gallons of drinking water each day, sat off the coast for almost a week without receiving a single person, or delivering a single gallon of water.
• Over one-third of Louisiana’s National Guard was deployed to the Iraqi-American War (Operation Iraqi Fiefdom).
• Democratic (socialist/fascist) governor Bill Richardson, of the Federal enclave of New Mexico offered his National Guard to assist in rescue operations, but the National Guard Bureau took four days to approve the transfer.

       Postscript: Three days later, Brown resigned as Director of FEMA.

       [added 1/27/2024]

       Proving that simply pouring paper money on a problem, without the profit & loss test is a flop. American socialism is just as misguided as Soviet communism was. Socialism just can’t be made to work. FEMA and the Dept. of Homeland Security should be abolished, and that’s just for starters. –– JL

       Retired U.s. Army General Colin L. Powell, former secretary of state, admits in an interview with the American Broadcasting Company that his United Nations speech claiming that Iraq possessed weapons of mass destruction,

       will always be a part of my record. … It was painful.  It’s painful now. … There were some people in the intelligence community who knew at that time that some of these sources were not good, and shouldn’t be relied upon, and they didn’t speak up.  That devastated me.

       [added 1/27/2024]

       Is a man who knowingly repeats a lie, a liar.  Let every death and injury in Iraq be on his conscience.  He deserves to be court-martialed, reduced in rank to Private First Class, and re-retired at that rank.  –– JL

       The fourth circuit court of appeals hands down Padilla v. Hanft declaring as lawful the continued incarceration of Jose Padilla, in naval brig, without benefit of counsel, or even being informed of the charges against him.  Padilla has been in jail for over three years.

       [added 1/27/2024]

       Are we there yet?  I mean the police state. The Bill of Rights shredded, including habeas corpus.  How many people will this happen to before you are all convinced it could happen to you?  –– JL