Friday, October 26, 2007
The Fire This Time and The Water Last Time
I see there are no refugees this time - only evacuees. And we don't have Barbara Bush talking about the greater opportunities dislocation offers to the dislocatees. And we do have free massages in the stadium. And so on. Words fail me. I'll take them from Leadbelly: "If you're white, you're alright/ If you're brown, stick around/ but if you're black, oh baby/ Get back, Get back, Get back."
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6 comments:
Thanks, Alexei. Of course, you're right.
Kevin
remember though the difference between a fire and a flood. that is not, however, meant to dismiss the difference in responsiveness by the government in the two situations.
You don't suppose there is a perfectly viable alternate conclusion that can be drawn from the government's behavior, do you Dr. Quinn? Like perhaps somebody is trying to save what he can of his image?
Economists might consider how the floodwaters that devastated New Orleans might have been harnessed to put out the CA fires.
childer,
You might look for early reports regarding the treatment of evacuees at the Qualcomm Center. Civil Liberties Union is reporting that hispanics and blacks are being differentially selected for "close scrutiny" shall we say by both the San Diego police and Federal Immigration authorities. I think you'll find up to date info on pacifica.org, if not in the mainstream media.
So much for trying to make up for discriminatory responsiveness in New Orleans.
Slightly OT, but the fire may well be followed by flood, in LA at least. The burning of chaparral on the mountains has two effects, removing the vegetation, and making the subsoil and inch down nearly impermeable to water. A few rain storms make channels for the runoff, then a really big one sends enough water down to move all the rocky debris and soil that has accumulated in the canyons for years. The result are concrete-like "debris slides," flows of water, stones, cars, trees, etc., that move down the slope, into and through houses. If you're interested, John McPhee's Control of Nature has a wonderful explanation. Hang on.
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