e another deadly hurricane would strike the vulnerable State of Louisiana. This time, the prep work would go according to the text books that FEMA left behind after Hurricane Katrina three years ago. The Weather Channel and others were all in agreement that Katrina would pale in comparison to this storm and was was even labeled to be the "Mother of all hurricanes". People were scared, and the majority of them heeding the warnings to leave the area. Some 12 hours after hitting land, Gustov turned out to be a dud. Perhaps New Orleans got lucky this time however, now is the time that someone will ne forced to take the blame for "overreacting" to the storm and forcing people to leave when it was unnecessary. All this comes while the aftermath of Katrina still remains today. This time around it's safe to say that anyone that was left behind was warned in advance not to stay. Still, seven people were killed because they hated to leave their lifelong homes. There shouldn't be any conspiracy theories like the last time either. No reports of The National Guard purposely passing by stranded African Americans to rescue a white family instead. No stories of people calling 911 for help and being asked by the operator if they're "black or white", and no stories from women claiming that rescuers would help them only if the agreed to sexual favors afterwards. Still mistakes were made along the way, and I thought I'd point out a few to add to the books before the next one hits. Maybe we can all learn something...
- Geraldo Rivera- The Fox News Heavyweight's reputation got tarnished again. Imagine if you're Geraldo sitting at home trying to enjoy the holiday weekend when the network calls and tells you to go right to the airport and report on this "major" hurricane. Geraldo doesn't think twice, He packs his under
wear and off he goes to "The Crescent City" only to get rained on while flagging down a person running to their car for cover in the parking lot of a Super 8 motel. Nobody ever said a multi-million dollar a year contract with Rupert Murdoch would be easy however, this blunder on Fox's behalf ended up costing a lot of money and ranks up there with "Al Capone's Vault". Obviously, nobody at Fox watches The Weather Channel or they would have let the icon stay in his lawn chair at his L.A. mansion. Geraldo got dissed, and ought to be pissed! - The Mayor of New Orleans- He talked a tough game this week warning his residents that they were on their
own this time if they decide to stay. The majority left. Instead of driving in the opposite direction however, all the traffic was routed West to Houston causing miles and miles of stranded motorists. To make things easier, Louisiana State Police reversed all the traffic flow coming into the state and made all open highways feed traffic outbound. Many people ran out of gas along the way. It's kind of hard to tell where the next exit is when you're going the wrong way on a highway and can't turn off. Makeshift gasoline stations were set up to remedy the problem but, there were several fatalities as a result of this strategy. - The "Big Finale" that never happened. If they make this into a movie one day, perhaps O.J. Simpson will finally get to do some acting again. The whole event gets "one star" as far as I'm concerned. A few barges full of oil were said to have been bouncing loose through the choppy waters. Fox and CNN kept warning of the disaster that would result if one were to capsize and spill into the drinking water reserve. All of a sudden, without any explanation, the subject was dropped and never mentioned again. Dit it in fact happen, or was it simply some reporter at fault?
- The Republican National Convention in Miinnesota. John McCain needs to start going to church again and maybe his luck will get better. Already having trouble following Obama's big successful speech from last week, the hurricane has put a damper on the glitz and glamour and left hotels virtually empty. Delegates were a "no show" for the the first afternoon and those that were there were being grilled by the media as to what in the world they're doing there in the first plave when there's a natural disaster happening. To add insult to injury, Sarah Palin had to end rumors of her 17 year old daughter being pregnant on the same day leaving supporters skeptical about how she may be able to run things in Washington when she can't even monitor what's going on in her house?!
- Jerry Lewis' MDA Telethon- It still went on as planned although the guest list was shortened considerably. He began the 43rd edition of this yearly staple by offering words of encouragement to those in the path of the coming storm and without taking a breath, reminded those people that they can still donate the little bit of money they had left "even if it's a dollar, it'll help us" he said. Talk about bad timing. Somewhere someone was listening because the surviving half of "Martin and Lewis" broke a re
cord for money raised at the end. Recession? It may be over or people realize that this is it and "you can't take it with you". - Retailers and Grocers- They all expected the worst too. For once, they ordered a surplus of items to keep shelves stocked. As a result, all the Home Depots and supermarkets are left with an enormous amount of plywood and food with expiration dates on them. When everyone leaves town, there's no need to do any shopping. "Extreme Makeover" can cancel it's plans to have a season of rebuilding homes in New Orleans. In another bad call, whether it be accidental or on purpose, ABC Television aired a rerun of a Katrina badly damaged home on the eve of Hurricane Gustav putting fear into everyone and making them reconsider staying at home and riding the storm out.
Now that everyone got chased away for nothing, it's time to turn around and come back home. This is the biggest farce of them all! A case of "chicken little" claiming the sky is falling. The storm turning course now leaves people wondering why they had to leave and plants the groundwork for ignoring threats the next time. That thing is called "Hannah".
