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Tuesday, September 27, 2005

It's the 17 Hour Drive, Stupid!

Again, with the luxury of clarity and cold-hearted objectivism that only California's lack of proximity can provide...

Brown blames locals for Katrina response

Louis Vuitton purses and Zoo trips purchased with FEMA debit cards aside, once everybody is rescued/buried/safely relocated, the issue at hand here is the Welfare Mentality. Not even the welfare state, but the whole mentality of relying on government for every facet of your survival.

Now we do need government. Like I've said before, Government should do the things and only the things we cannot efficiently do for ourselves. Police Departments, Fire Departments. Armies and navies and national security. You can't contract these things out. You can't privatize these, lest you get something out of Robocop.

The problem I have with the hurricane victims is not that they're looting or drowning or dying of thirst. Or dysentery or snakebites. The problem is that they let themselves rely on the federal government to help them in their time of need. You're pissed off at the feds for not being prepared for this shit? You should be mad at your own local and then state governments first, you simpletons. Who would be more familiar with a problem like this, some policy-making office-monkeys in DC or Louisianans like yourselves?


OK see, you're down there at "B". FEMA is up there at "A", far far away from the hurricane. About 17 hours on the interstates. Wouldn't it have been a better idea to coordinate something like this more locally?

Which does not absolve the federal government of responsibility, no. Once New Orleans and Louisiana's pitiful responses were overwhelmed, well then of course Uncle Sam has to come in and clean up everybody's mess. But still, why would you want federal government's involvement? That's a huge bureaucratic mess if nothing else. States' Rights, you wacky Red Americans, you... don't let the Californian remind you. Didn't you wacky East Coasters go to war about this about a century-and-a-half ago? right around the time my state was joining the union...

And here's my state below, along with our non-Civil Warring neighbors. No time for secession and civil war, we're too busy surfing, smoking pot, eating apples, eating potatoes, gambling, or watching Spring Training I suppose...


And why the path? Well, that's what a seventeen hour drive will buy you out here on I-5. Say you're a dog named Georgia, born around Seattle. Now you live with Tio Jaime's sister in Los Angeles. Seventeen hours away, and worlds of difference. If you were up in Seattle, would you really want to trust your well-being to Angelenos that far away?

Jihad Jimmy, Minister of War Crimes and Chief Defender of the Faith
TJ: OK, i realize that this isn't a perfect analogy, but provided that you're not a Sac State dropout who enjoys threatening people with physical violence from the safety of your internet connection, you should be able, Citizen SHoPper, to draw sufficient conclusions to aid in your enjoyment of this your SHoP.