F.E.M.A. has outdone themselves in attending to those displaced by the Southern California Wildfires in an effort to restore their reputation (sullied by their response to Hurricance Katrina). Food was readily available, as was a makeshift pharmacy.
But massages? Jugglers? Suntan Lotion? Acupuncture?
Does this disparity in treatment speak to the Class difference of those effected by disaster (and, if so, incidentally or by intent)? Some say the parallels draw themselves.... For instance, in Louisiana they were "refugees", in California they are "evacuees". What do you think?
click here for a recent story in the New York Daily News...
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Comments
hey, andreadavis! Long time no hear! I did hear about the conference. here's an excerpt of the transcript from the conference, with FEMA Deputy Administrator Harvey Johnson as "briefer" and FEMA Employees posing the questions:
STAFFER: “Are you happy with FEMA's response, so far?
JOHNSON: “I'm very happy with FEMA's response so far. This is a FEMA and a federal government that's leaning forward, not waiting to react. And you have to be pretty pleased to see that."
STAFFER: “ What lessons learned from Katrina have been applied? ‘’
JOHNSON: “I think what you're really seeing here is the benefit of experience, the benefit of good leadership and the benefit of good partnership; none of which were present in Katrina....."
excerpted from a post by Mark Silva on the Baltimore Sun blog:
http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/news/politics/blog/2007/10/manmade_disaster_femas_phony_p.html
ayana 