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Legal
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Katrina's AftermathThe Politics Of KatrinaHurricane Katrina has come and gone but the politics will live on for more years than the recovery takes. You see, politics isn’t about reality it's about perception. Everything from births to deaths and especially disasters are great political fodder. When a disaster such a Katrina strikes, the "out" party immediately looks for ways to blame the "in" party. It doesn’t matter whose fault it is or even if no one is actually to blame. The "in" party suddenly acquires omnipotence and should have or could have prevented the disaster. The "out" party suddenly becomes especially smart as to what should have been done or could have been done if only they were "in". Katrina looks to become a classic political event. Local governments blame the Federal government, the Democrats blame the Republicans, and some African-Americans blame all white folks. Those speaking the loudest, the shrillest, and the most vitriolic weren’t directly effected by Katrina but speak as if all racial problems could be solved if only they could do things their way. As usual, the buck stops at the top. President G. W. Bush is the one to blame and before this political storms ebbs, he will be blamed for not only causing Katrina but also for allowing it to happen. Facts and reality will be thrown overboard in an effort to shield some and create political advantage for others. As to who is actually at fault, there were failures at all levels of government. The system failed simply because of too much oversight, too much bureaucracy, and too little individual courage. FEMA was brought under the control of Homeland Security without direct access to the president and without a clear mandate for overruling inapt or foolish local officials. Congress created this mess by insisting on one more level of bureaucracy. Congress loves bureaucracy simply because of the protection it offers individuals in both parties. Bureaucracy is a tried and true method of "cover your ass" and "it isn’t my fault". Congress, being inefficient, cannot create efficiency. This is easily demonstrated by our 9/11 intelligence failures. Failures that Congress helped create by ensuring nothing can be done without several committees having to be notified and several people needing to sign off on any action. Katrina Aftermath Predictions: In the end, as in the 9/11 Commission, the resulting answers will be more money, more organization, and less efficiency. Very little will actually be accomplished but lots of money will be wasted and commission members will receive lots of air time. Commissions are basically useless because neither party will be actually blamed but lots will be said so that each party can claim victory. Bipartisan congressional commissions almost always create more problems than they solve, more bureaucracy than is needed, more questions than answers, and more speculations than facts. What really needs to be done is to eliminate at least 70 percent of the Congressional committees, reduce the amount of oversight and make people responsible for their decisions and actions. While I’m at it, I could also wish for a 50 percent reduction in government employees, a fair tax (www.FairTax.org) to simplify our tax system, term limits for each member of congress, and an efficient government.
Afterword Author: Don Miller
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