THE COUNTRY STANDS WITH YOU

Flooding caused by Hurricane Katrina in the New Orleans area is visible from Air Force One Wednesday, Aug. 31, 2005, as President Bush was able to survey the ravages of the storm during his return from Crawford, Texas to Washington D.C.



President George W. Bush looks out over the devastation in New Orleans from Hurricane Katrina as he heads back to Washington D.C. Wednesday, Aug. 31, 2005, aboard Air Force One.



President George W. Bush stands with Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld; Secretary of Labor Elaine Chao and Mike Leavitt, Secretary of Health and Human Services, as he speaks to the media from the Rose Garden of the White House regarding the devastation along the Gulf Coast caused by Hurricane Katrina.


WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Bush pledged Wednesday to do "all in our power" to save lives and provide sustenance to uncounted victims of Hurricane Katrina but cautioned that recovery of the Gulf Coast will take years.

"We're dealing with one of the worst national disasters in our nation's history," he said at the White House after breaking off his Texas vacation to make an aerial tour of the devastation and return to Washington.

With a vast federal relief effort grinding into operation, Bush also cautioned that the effects of the storm will be felt far beyond Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida.

He said he had ordered steps to cushion the impact on the storm on the nation's oil industry. At the same time, he conceded: "This will help take some pressure off of gas price, but our citizens must understand this storm has disrupted the capacity to make gasoline and distribute gasoline."

Flanked by senior members of his administration, Bush recited some of the actions already taken to help victims of the storm - more than 50 disaster medical assistance teams and more than 25 urban search and rescue teams, both from the Federal Emergency Management Administration.

He said the Transportation Department has provided trucks to convey 5.4 million ready-to-eat meals, 13.4 million liters of water, 10,400 tarps, 3.4 million pounds of ice, 144 generators, 20 containers of prepositioned disaster supplies, 135,000 blankets and 11,000 cots.

"And we're just starting," he added.

Transcript of the President's remarks

Hurricane Katrina is a disaster of Biblical proportions.

President Bush said, "[T]here's going to be a lot of rebuilding done. I can't tell you how devastating the sights were."

After thanking the efforts of neighboring states, the President thanked the American Red Cross, the Salvation Army, the Catholic Charities, and all other "members of the armies of compassion."

He concluded:

At this stage in the recovery efforts, it's important for those who want to contribute, to contribute cash. You can contribute cash to a charity of your choice, but make sure you designate that gift for hurricane relief. You can call 1-800-HELPNOW, or you can get on the Red Cross web page, RedCross.org. The Red Cross needs our help. I urge our fellow citizens to contribute.

The folks on the Gulf Coast are going to need the help of this country for a long time. This is going to be a difficult road. The challenges that we face on the ground are unprecedented. But there's no doubt in my mind we're going to succeed. Right now the days seem awfully dark for those affected -- I understand that. But I'm confident that, with time, you can get your life back in order, new communities will flourish, the great city of New Orleans will be back on its feet, and America will be a stronger place for it.

The country stands with you. We'll do all in our power to help you. May God bless you.

I pray that's the case.

I really don't want to hear people trying to score political points by exploiting this disaster.

I don't want to hear Robert Kennedy, Jr. blame Governor Haley Barbour for Katrina.

I don't want to hear Hillary Clinton giving President Bush orders on how best to deal with the crisis.

I don't want to hear the ramblings of Chuck Schumer. At a news conference today in Albany, he said that gas prices are "going to go up and up and our economy, which is moving along at an okay level right now, not great, but not horrible, is going to go down the tubes."

He added, "Unless we change our policies we're not going to get the price back down. And we are basically as a country, this country is sort of twiddling its thumbs while Rome burns."

I don't want to hear Frank Lautenberg blasting the President for not having troops and supplies on the ground in New Orleans on Monday. "President Bush's wake-up call came awfully late," he said.

I don't want to hear Germany's Environmental Minister Jürgen Trittin whine, "The Bush government rejects international climate protection goals by insisting that imposing them would negatively impact the American economy. The American president is closing his eyes to the economic and human costs his land and the world economy are suffering under natural catastrophes like Katrina and because of neglected environmental policies."

I don't want to hear these political opportunists spew their usual garbage.

I really don't want to hear it.

This is a time of crisis.

Their divisiveness will create an environment that breeds more hardship for the victims. Their political sniping blocks the cooperation that is needed to progress effectively in recovery efforts.

Working together to manage the disaster and to recover should be the goal, not gaining a political edge and furthering an agenda.

Alleviating the human suffering should be the foremost concern right now, nothing else.

The exploitation of the misery of Katrina's victims for political purposes is unconscionable.

Before we're Democrats or Republicans, liberals or conservatives, we're Americans.

Before we're Americans, we're human beings.

Brett Favre's Story

WEDNESDAY, Aug. 31, 2005, 12:13 p.m.

Audio: Favre talks about Katrina and his family

Brett Favre, in a news conference in Green Bay this morning, talked about the impact of Hurricane Katrina on his family in Mississippi.

Go to audio

Favre Family Update

August 31, 2005

GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) - Green Bay Packers quarterback Brett Favre spent most of Monday and Tuesday nervously waiting to hear from family members in his hometown of Kiln, Miss., in the heart of the Gulf Coast area devastated by Hurricane Katrina.

The Packers said Favre finally spoke to his mother, Bonita Favre, late Tuesday afternoon when she was able to reach him with the help of a Houston television station, which was in the area covering hurricane damage.

According to the team, Favre said his mother reported spending Monday night in the family attic, along with his grandmother, after the entire house filled up with water within a matter of 5-10 minutes, much like a tsunami.

On Tuesday, the water receded enough that she was able to leave the family home and go to his brother Jeff's nearby house, which is slightly higher and away from the water.

Bonita Favre told Brett that Hurricane Camille, which the family experienced in 1969, didn't even compare to this one and the damage it has caused.

She indicated the family home is destroyed and probably will have to be bulldozed, but the good news is that everyone in the family appears to be fine.

Bonita, Jeff and another brother, Scott, had decided against evacuating and instead gathered at Favre's childhood home in Hancock County, one of the counties hit hardest by the hurricane. Favre said his grandmother, aunt and other family members also were there.

Favre said earlier Tuesday that he spoke to his wife, Deanna, Monday night and again Tuesday morning. He said she and their two children, 16-year-old Brittany and 6-year-old Breleigh, are safe at Favre's home in Hattiesburg, 60 miles north of Kiln, although their property had extensive damage.

Favre's mother was seven months pregnant with him when Hurricane Camille, which killed 256 people in Louisiana and Mississippi in 1969, struck the area.

"I've seen pictures," Favre said. "The damage was unbelievable."

Favre said the fact his family waited out Camille likely factored into their decision not to evacuate this time. Favre said 50 or so family members and friends drove north to his Hattiesburg home, but his mother and brothers declined.

Kiln "is far enough inland that (you would think) there's no way a tidal surge would ever come that far," Favre said.

Favre admitted he was "kind of going through the motions" in practice Tuesday while waiting to hear from family members and said he plans to go home to Mississippi following Thursday night's preseason finale at Tennessee.

He said he could get permission from coach Mike Sherman to skip the game altogether and fly there immediately, but his wife told him there's no point because the area is unreachable.

The hurricane is the latest in a string of personal tragedies and misfortunes that have hit Favre over the past 20 months.

In December 2003, his father Irvin died of a heart attack. Last October, his brother-in-law was killed in an all-terrain vehicle accident on Favre's property. And a few days after her brother's death, Deanna was diagnosed with breast cancer.

"I've found myself over the last 24 hours a couple times saying, 'Why me?' Or, 'Why of all places ..."' Favre admitted. "As quickly as that thought pops in my head - and it probably pops in my head more than I'd like it to - I try to remind myself of the things to be thankful for, which there are a lot."



In his news conference today, Favre described the total devastation in Mississippi.

He talked about how powerless he felt and expressed his anguish over whether to go home immediately or stay in Green Bay. He said he slept for two hours last night. When he did sleep, he had nightmares about what to do.

GREEN BAY, Wis. -- Quarterback Brett Favre says his own home is being used as a refuge for about 50 people in Hattiesburg, Miss.

"Deanna said yesterday (Tuesday), 'We have no food. We had a loaf of bread left yesterday.' You think, you have money... people know who you are, at times like this it doesn't matter. You can't go to the store and say, 'I have first dibs on peanut butter n' jelly.' There is no store," Favre said.

Farve said this is the worst damage Hattiesburg has probably ever had.

The Packers star finally spoke to his mother, Bonita, briefly late Tuesday afternoon. She, Favre's grandmother and brothers appear to be fine, but Favre said Wednesday that his mother still hadn't heard from some aunts and cousins who lived nearby.

Favre knew earlier Tuesday that his wife and daughters were fine, but he had not yet been able to get in touch with his mother.

Hurricane Katrina roared through Favre's family's hometown of Kiln, Miss., just eight miles inland from the Gulf of Mexico.

Favre's mother reported spending Monday night in the family attic, along with his grandmother, after the house filled up with water.

Bonita Favre said that Hurricane Camille, which the family experienced in 1969, didn't even compare to this one. She told Brett that the family home was "destroyed," and will probably have to be bulldozed.

The quarterback said he only slept two hours Tuesday night and had nightmares.

Favre said he would like to go home, but he can't get there.

"I can't get in. I can't fly in. there's no airport. There's no one there to man it. There's no gas," Favre said. "Am I getting in the way? Would I actually be eating one more sandwich the kids could have shared? This sounds crazy. Is it more in the way than it is help?"

"Deanna yesterday (Tuesday) said the kids were starving . There's no food. You can't go to McDonalds. There's no power. When they will get power -- they're saying two months. If you're first in line it may be at the end of the week. If you're last in line, it may be two months, maybe three," Favre said.

Favre said the things people need the most include food, water, ice and generators.

"It's only going to get worse," he said. "Rebuilding is going to take help from everywhere."

Favre pointed out that his celebrity status means nothing in a situation like this. He said he can't go to the store and ask for special treatment because there is no store.

He spoke of all the hardships that his family members are facing, and pointed out that their experiences are just those of one family. Multiply that by hundreds of thousands.

Mainly, Favre told his story in order to urge people to donate what they can to help out.

THE HUMAN TOLL

Mayor: Katrina May Have Killed Thousands
Aug 31 2:25 PM US/Eastern

By BRETT MARTEL
Associated Press Writer

NEW ORLEANS

The mayor said Wednesday that Hurricane Katrina probably killed thousands of people in New Orleans.

"We know there is a significant number of dead bodies in the water," and others dead in attics, Mayor Ray Nagin said. Asked how many, he said: "Minimum, hundreds. Most likely, thousands."

EVERYONE MUST LEAVE NEW ORLEANS

Aerial photo from New Orleans shows the effects of flooding after two levees were breached Tuesday.



New Orleans residents make their way to the Superdome through rising floodwater from Hurricane Katrina on Tuesday.

The Superdome will no longer be home to some of Hurricane Katrina's victims.

The Governor of Louisiana has called for everyone to leave New Orleans.

NEW ORLEANS (AP) -- The governor of Louisiana says everyone needs to leave New Orleans due to flooding from Hurricane Katrina. "We've sent buses in. We will be either loading them by boat, helicopter, anything that is necessary," Gov. Kathleen Blanco said. Army engineers struggled without success to plug New Orleans' breached levees with sandbags, and Blanco said Wednesday the situation was worsening, leaving no choice but to evacuate.

"The challenge is an engineering nightmare," Blanco said on morning TV. "The National Guard has been dropping sandbags into it, but it's like dropping it into a black hole."

As the waters continued to rise in New Orleans, four Navy ships raced toward the Gulf Coast with drinking water and other emergency supplies, and Red Cross workers from across the country converged on the devastated region. The Red Cross reported it had about 40,000 people in 200 shelters across the area.

Officials said the death toll from Hurricane Katrina had reached at least 110 in Mississippi, while Louisiana put aside the counting of the dead to concentrate on rescuing the living, many of whom were still trapped on rooftops and in attics.

Blanco acknowledged that looting was a severe problem but said that officials had to focus on survivors. "We don't like looters one bit, but first and foremost is search and rescue," she said.

To repair one of the levees holding back Lake Pontchartrain, officials late Tuesday dropped 3,000-pound sandbags from helicopters and hauled dozens of 15-foot concrete barriers into the breach. Maj. Gen. Don Riley of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers said officials also had a more audacious plan: finding a barge to plug the 500-foot hole.

Riley said it could take close to a month to get the water out of the city. If the water rises a few feet higher, it could also wipe out the water system for the whole city, said New Orleans' homeland security chief, Terry Ebbert.

Blanco said she wanted the Superdome - which had become a shelter of last resort for about 20,000 people - evacuated within two days, though was still unclear where the people would go. The air conditioning inside the Superdome was out, the toilets were broken, and tempers were rising in the sweltering heat. "Conditions are degenerating rapidly," she said. "It's a very, very desperate situation."

From the Superdome to the Astrodome...

HOUSTON (AP) -- At least 25,000 of Hurricane Katrina's refugees, a majority of them at the New Orleans Superdome, will travel in a bus convoy to Houston starting Wednesday and will be sheltered at the 40-year-old Astrodome, which hasn't been used for professional sporting events in years.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency will provide 475 buses for the transfer, and the Astrodome's schedule has been cleared through December for housing evacuees, said Kathy Walt, a spokeswoman for Texas Gov. Rick Perry.

Rusty Cornelius, administrative coordinator for the Harris County Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Management, told The Associated Press that initial plans were being made early Wednesday.

"We are planning on being able to do a full shelter operation for 25,000 people," he said.

Cornelius said the refugees would be bused to Houston, but all would not necessarily be on the road at the same time. He said specifics of the transport and housing for the refugees were still being worked out with Red Cross and state government officials.

"We want to accommodate those people as quickly as possible for the simple reason they have been through a horrible ordeal," he said.

Perry talked to Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Blanco early Wednesday and agreed to the plan, Walt said.

Texas also is looking at the possibility of using the Ford Center in Beaumont for some long-term housing for other evacuees from Louisiana who may be staying in hotels, motels and campgrounds.

"Obviously from Governor Perry's standpoint, Texas is going to lend a helping hand and take care of those who have been devastated," Walt said.

The magnitude of this disaster is staggering.

So many have lost everything they own. Some have lost loved ones. The stories are heartbreaking.


Evelyn Turner cries alongside the body of her common-law husband, Xavier Bowie, after he died in New Orleans, Tuesday, Aug. 30, 2005. Bowie and Turner had decided to ride out Hurricane Katrina when they could not find a way to leave the city. Bowie, who had lung cancer, died when he ran out of oxygen.

These Americans need our help and our prayers.

1-800-HELP-NOW

This catastrophe is so enormous that it seems if you prayed constantly for the rest of your life, it wouldn't be enough.

Pope Benedict XVI offers his prayers for the victims and the aid workers.

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Pope Benedict XVI expressed his spiritual closeness and concern for all those affected by Hurricane Katrina in the United States, and he offered special prayers for those engaged in relief efforts.

He assured all those affected by what was considered the most destructive storm to hit the country in decades of "his closeness in prayer" and "divine blessings of strength and consolation."

In a telegram sent by the Vatican's secretary of state, Cardinal Angelo Sodano, the pope said he was "deeply saddened by the tragic consequences of the recent hurricane."

The Vatican released a copy of the telegram Aug. 31.

Here is the text of the telegram:

Deeply saddened by the tragic consequences of the recent hurricane in the United States of America, His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI assures all those affected of his closeness in prayer. The Holy Father commends the deceased to the loving mercy of almighty God, and upon their grieving families he invokes divine blessings of strength and consolation. His Holiness likewise prays for the rescue workers and all involved in providing assistance to the victims of this disaster, encouraging them to persevere in their efforts to bring relief and support.

Cardinal Angelo Sodano

Secretary of State

Contributions to aid victims may be sent directly to:

2005 Hurricane Relief Fund, Catholic Charities USA, P.O. Box 25168, Alexandria, VA 22313-9788.


From the Associated Press:

Every branch of the U.S. military is involved in the rescue-and-relief mission following Hurricane Katrina. The U.S. Northern Command is coordinating search and rescue, medical help and supplies. The work will support the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the states of Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama.

One of countless heroic rescues


Petty Officer 2nd Class Scott D. Rady, 34, of Tampa, Fla., pulled a pregnant woman from her flooded apartment, Tuesday, Aug. 30, 2005, in New Orleans. The Coast Guard rescued 11 survivors from the apartment building on Tuesday.

So much misery.

So much love and care.

Worried About Gas Prices?

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Bush administration will release oil from federal petroleum reserves to help refiners affected by Hurricane Katrina, Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman said Wednesday.

The move, which was expected later in the day, is designed to give refineries a temporary supply of crude oil to take the place of interrupted shipments from tankers or offshore oil platforms affected by the decision involving the release of supplies from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. Eight refineries were shut down due to Katrina -- half of them producing gasoline.

The government's emergency petroleum stockpile -- nearly 700 million barrels of oil stored in underground salt caverns along the Texas and Louisiana Gulf Coast -- was established to cushion oil markets during energy disruptions.

The production and distribution of oil and gas remained severely disrupted by the shutdown of a key oil import terminal off the coast of Louisiana and by the Gulf region's widespread loss of electricity, which is needed to power pipelines and refineries.

The Environmental Protection Agency, seeking to avert a severe supply crunch, announced it would temporarily allow the sale of higher-polluting gasoline in Alabama, Florida, Louisiana and Mississippi because those states can't provide enough fuel to consumers that meets Clean Air Act requirements.

The agency also said those states will be allowed to use motor vehicle diesel fuel with a sulfur content higher than the 500 parts per million standard for the next two weeks through ozone season.

Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. must be having a fit.

What will the headlines be?

BUSH ADMINISTRATION RESPONDS TO CRISIS

or

BUSH DESTROYS ENVIRONMENT

If you're complaining about high gas prices today, just be thankful that you have a car and a garage and a home.

Day of Prayer

Governor Blanco Announces Day of Prayer

Governor Kathleen Blanco: As we face the devastation wrought by Katrina, as we search for those in need, as we comfort those in pain and as we begin the long task of rebuilding, we turn to God for strength, hope and comfort.

I have declared August 31, 2005, a Day of Prayer in the State of Louisiana. I am asking that all of Louisiana take some time Wednesday to pray. Pray for the victims and the rescuers. Please pray that God give us all the physical and spiritual strength to work through this crisis and rebuild.

Please pray for patience for those anxiously waiting to hear from family members or to get word about their homes. Pray for the safety of our hard-working rescuers and those they are bringing to safety.

I know, by praying together on Wednesday, that we can pull together and draw strength we need; strength, that only God can give us.

In my prayers, I will also thank God for the strong and resilient people of this state and how they are working to meet this challenge.

Violent Women for Peace

Code Pink, the radical far left-wing group, has received a lot of press lately. It's Cindy Sheehan's brainchild, so naturally the organization has gained prominence since she started her "just a mom in a ditch" protest.

This group is also behind the despicable protests at Walter Reed Army Medical Center.


The more I learn about Code Pink, the more I understand the extremist mindset of the radical far Left.

Code Pink portrays itself as a group of level-headed, nurturing women trying to work for justice and peace. Nothing could be further from the truth.

Their tactics may not be physically violent, but they are extremely emotionally abusive.

Here are some of the methods that they recommend for their anti-troop campaign, "Mothers don't let your children grow up to be killers."

Banner and Visual Ideas

Caution/Danger Tape: Bring yellow caution tape or red danger tape and write in the space between the "Caution" words: "Lies inside" or "Death probable" or... and hold the tape from one end of the Recruitment center to the other. Also, make signs that say: WARNING: Joining the military is hazardous to your health/ your mental health/ your education/ women/ people of color/ our lives/ the environment/ your future...

What a bunch of hateful women!

Tape Yellow Ribbons to the windows of the recruiting center with names of deceased soldiers. Here's an account from DC: "Fifty of us marched up to the US Army Recruiting station on L between 13th and 14th Street. Several police guarded the door so we could not get in. But they did not stop us from taping signs and yellow ribbons with the names of dead US soldiers from Iraq. An excellent protest idea recommended to groups nation wide!"

Code Pink doesn't hesitate to exploit the names of the dead for their own political purposes.

Disgusting!

Wear numbers: Send for your number today to represent one of the over 100,000 victims of the war on Iraq. If you have not heard about this project, check out www.countingthecost.org.

"We, the women of one country,
Will be too tender of those of another country
To allow our sons to be trained to injure theirs." Or another quote from Julia Ward Howe's Mother's Day Proclamation

They are "too tender"? Give me a break.

They won't allow their sons to be "trained to injure" people?

Code Pink obviously views our military personnel as evildoers.

Spoof on the adventure sports aspect of military recruiting: "Training, Education, Adventure?" Death?
"If you want adventure sports, go rock climbing. If you want to die, join the military?" (Something along the lines of adventure sports vs military service. This could also be a great idea for forming coalitions on high school campuses with sports clubs-skiing team, climbing club, hiking club, etc.)

This is their idea of a spoof? Ha Ha.

"If you want to die, join the military."

Don't forget these Leftists claim to support the troops!

Life-sized coffin with idea that potential recruits can "try out" their future/post-service home? "Real military benefits include this oak box?"

This is really demented. It's reprehensible.

What kind of people would create coffins so young Americans could "try out" their military benefits?

Really sick people.

There is no way to characterize this tactic as anything other than abusive and violent.

Vigil with medical apparatuses and wheel chairs, with the idea that these devices come with the uniform; talk about # of wounded soldiers returning from the war.

To suggest that wheel chairs are part of a military uniform is so offensive.

It belittles the tremendous sacrifice of those who have served in our Armed Forces and have defended our freedom by putting themselves in harm's way.

This tactic shows no regard for those who have volunteered to serve and suffered permanent injuries as a result.

"Our children are not for sale to the war machine in ____(town name here)" or "War is not for sale in our town." "Recruiting Center closed." Make a "going out of business" sign that reads "Recruiting Center going out of business for lack of recruits." "All coffins (or flights to Iraq) 50% off." "Special Package Deal! Join the military and get a free body bag!"

Read these suggestions for signs. How horribly disrespectful to our troops!

Chalk: Bring sidewalk chalk to draw outlines of fallen soldiers at the entry way of the Center, or draw footprints with arrows and a message saying, "This way to death/war/lies/deception"

Again, this stuff is so psychologically violent.

Code Pink's tactics could be considered a form of emotional terrorism.

Banner with # of US troops dead from Iraq war and projected # of Iraqis killed and slogan such as, "Don't let one more of our sons and daughters die!" "Bring our troops home now!" "All I want for Mother's Day is for the troops to come home!"

Make sandwich-board style signs with chosen slogans

"You can't be all you can be if you're DEAD!"

This is positively disgraceful.

"Defend Freedom: Protest Recruiters in your High Schools!"

I'd like to know how Code Pink thinks we got to be a free country and how we have defended our freedom from the threats of Nazism, Communism, Fascism, and Totalitarianism.

The very individuals they are attacking, the people they view as the enemy, are the ones that keep them safe and free.

Code Pink is a group of extremely violent and dangerously misinformed women.

They employ a type of terrorism that is shameful. They should be condemned for what they do.

They don't understand the cost of peace.

Since they clearly don't comprehend this, they also lack the ability to be grateful for the protection that the military so bravely provides, as well as the God-given gift of freedom that our Armed Forces defends.

HEROES

Code Pink stages protests outside of Walter Reed Army Medical Center, mercilessly taunting wounded troops. They have an anti-troop campaign, "Mothers don't let your children grow up to be killers."

Cindy Sheehan bashes the Gold Star mothers who disagree with her anti-Bush stance, having the audacity to call them "continue the murder and mayhem" moms.

I think it's appropriate to recognize the courage and the sacrifice of our military men and women.

The WordSmith from Nantucket links to a very moving tribute.

UNTIL WE MEET AGAIN!

Kennedy a Classless Act

Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. displayed a disturbing lack of judgment when he chose to blame Hurricane Katrina on President Bush and Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour. He marginalizes himself by making such ridiculous accusations.

Kennedy's blather is published on the Huffington Post, the perfect place for his drivel.

Being the radical environmental extremist that he is, Kennedy doesn't hesitate to attack his political foes, even as the extent of the devastation from Katrina is still being calculated.

He didn't have the decency to wait for the dead to be counted.

He babbles on about the Kyoto Protocol and "President Bush’s iron-clad campaign promise to regulate CO2."

Do you recall such an "iron-clad" promise? I don't believe that Bush based his presidential run on the regulation of CO2.

"Read my lips. CO2 caps." I didn't hear that.

Kennedy writes that in early 2001, Barbour, who had served as RNC Chair and Bush campaign strategist, was "representing the president’s major donors from the fossil fuel industry who had enlisted him to map a Bush energy policy that would be friendly to their interests."

In Kennedy's world, Barbour is the enemy. He's a Republican--strike one. He represented Bush's big money donors--strike two. He was friendly to the interests of the fossil fuel industry--strike three.

I wonder how Kennedy managed to write his post without saying "Halliburton."

He continues:

On March 13, Bush reversed his previous position, announcing he would not back a CO2 restriction using the language and rationale provided by Barbour. Echoing Barbour’s memo, Bush said he opposed mandatory CO2 caps, due to “the incomplete state of scientific knowledge” about global climate change.

Well, the science is clear. This month, a study published in the journal Nature by a renowned MIT climatologist linked the increasing prevalence of destructive hurricanes to human-induced global warming.

The science is NOT clear, AT ALL.

Kennedy comes off like an environmentalist wacko when he makes such statements.

I would like him to explain the connection between human-induced global warming and monster storms of the past. If the global warming he blames on Bush and Barbour caused Katrina, what caused monster Hurricane Camille?

Camille hit thirty-six years ago.

Strongest hurricanes that struck the United States, measured by central pressure readings

1. Florida Keys, 1935, 892 millibars, 26.35 inches

2. Camille, 1969, 909 millibars, 26.84 inches

3. Andrew, 1992, 922 millibars, 27.23 inches

4. Florida Keys and Texas, 1919, 927 millibars, 27.37 inches

5. Lake Okeechobee, 1928, 929 millibars, 27.43 inches

6. Donna, 1960, 930 millibars, 27.46 inches

7. Galveston, 1900, 931 millibars, 27.49 inches

7. Grand Isle, 1909, 931 millibars, 27.49 inches

7. New Orleans, 1915, 931 millibars, 27.49 inches

7. Carla, 1961, 931 millibars, 27.49 inches

A quick glance at the strongest hurricanes to hit the U.S. debunks Kennedy's theory. The science supporting a relationship between human-induced global warming and destructive hurricanes is murky at best.

For example:

1997 was an unusually quiet year in the tropics, one that crossed up forecasters and was a welcome relief from the ferocious 1995 and 1996 seasons.

The year's meager totals -- seven named storms, three hurricanes, one major hurricane with winds of more than 110 mph -- fell well below the seasonal average of 10 storms, six hurricanes and two major hurricanes.

Only one storm made landfall in the United States this year. For the first time since 1961, no storms formed in August. And only one storm developed during August and September, the traditional peak of hurricane activity. The last time that happened was 1929.

Forecasters were wrong about 1997. They predicted a rough hurricane season, but it didn't happen.

Now we are all learning what it’s like to reap the whirlwind of fossil fuel dependence which Barbour and his cronies have encouraged. Our destructive addiction has given us a catastrophic war in the Middle East and--now--Katrina is giving our nation a glimpse of the climate chaos we are bequeathing our children.

In 1998, Republican icon Pat Robertson warned that hurricanes were likely to hit communities that offended God. Perhaps it was Barbour’s memo that caused Katrina, at the last moment, to spare New Orleans and save its worst flailings for the Mississippi coast.

This type of Leftist goofiness might be lapped up over at the Huffington Post, but I find it laughable.

Fossil fuel dependency was not encouraged by "Barbour and his cronies." Fossil fuel has been our lifeblood since at least the beginning of the 20th century.

Kennedy also says the Iraq war is about oil, the radical Left's mantra.

Furthermore, Pat Robertson is not a Republican icon. How ridiculous!

Is Michael Moore a Democrat icon? Well, I guess that's not a good example. Moore is a Dem icon; but Robertson most definitely is not an icon among Republicans.

Something that's not so laughable is the way Kennedy mocks people of faith. That's just offensive. I sense that he's being sarcastic. However, it's sarcasm at the expense of believers.

For Kennedy to say, even jokingly, that Barbour made God mad so his state took a direct hit from Katrina is shameless.

He dismisses the tragedy of this massive disaster to do a little political sniping. He shows no concern for the sufferng people of Mississippi.

Of course, I knew Leftists would blame Bush for Hurricane Katrina. The tsunami was his fault, too. Everything is his fault.

What I didn't know is that Robert Kennedy, Jr. is so politically opportunistic and so thoroughly classless.

DEVASTATION

A tattered U.S. Flag flies in the foreground of the Hyatt, in New Orleans, Monday, Aug. 29, 2005, where dozens of windows were blown out when Hurricane Katrina made land fall.



Homes destroyed by Hurricane Katrina are shown in this aerial view, Tuesday, Aug. 30, 2005, in New Orleans.



Residents walk through floodwaters on Canal Street in New Orleans on Tuesday, Aug. 30, 2005, after Hurricane Katrina devastated the Louisiana and Mississippi coasts when it came ashore on Monday.



Floodwaters from Hurricane Katrina cover a portion of New Orleans, Louisiana Tuesday, Aug. 30, 2005, a day after Katrina passed through the city.

GULFPORT, Miss. (AP) -- Rescuers in boats and helicopters searched for survivors of Hurricane Katrina and brought victims, wet and bedraggled, to shelters Tuesday as the extent of the damage across the Gulf Coast became ever clearer. Mississippi's governor said the death toll in one county alone could be as high as 80.

"At first light, the devastation is greater than our worst fears. It's just totally overwhelming," Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Blanco said the morning after Katrina howled ashore with winds of 145 mph and engulfed thousands of homes in one of the most punishing storms on record in the United States.

In New Orleans, meanwhile, water began rising in the streets Tuesday morning, apparently because of a break on a levee along a canal leading to Lake Pontchartrain. New Orleans lies mostly below sea level and is protected by a network of pumps, canals and levees. Many of the pumps were not working Tuesday morning.

Officials planned to use helicopters to drop 3,000-pound sandbags into the breach, and expressed confidence the problem could be solved within hours.

Gov. Haley Barbour of Mississippi said there were unconfirmed reports of up to 80 deaths in Harrison County - which includes devastated Gulfport and Biloxi - and the number was likely to rise. An untold number of people were also feared dead in Louisiana. At least five other deaths across the Gulf Coast were blamed on Katrina.

"We know that there is a lot of the coast that we have not been able to get to," the governor said on NBC's "Today Show." "I hate to say it, but it looks like it is a very bad disaster in terms of human life."

Along the Gulf Coast, tree trunks, downed power lines and trees, and chunks of broken concrete in the streets prevented rescuers from reaching victims. Swirling water in many areas contained hidden dangers. Crews worked to clear highways. Along one Mississippi highway, motorists themselves used chainsaws to remove trees blocking the road.

Tens of thousands of people will need shelter for weeks if not months, said Mike Brown, director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency. And once the floodwaters go down, "it's going to be incredibly dangerous" because of structural damage to homes, diseases from animal carcasses and chemicals in homes, he said.

Read more.

NEW ORLEANS (Reuters) -- The historic city of New Orleans was steadily filling with water from nearby Lake Ponchartrain on Tuesday after its defenses were breached by the ferocity of hurricane Katrina.

With the floodwaters rising in many areas, threatening the French Quarter, residents were plucked from the roofs of their homes, bodies were seen floating in the streets and rescuers searched the city in boats and helicopters.

"We probably have 80 percent of our city under water; with some sections of our city the water is as deep as 20 feet. Both airports are underwater," Mayor Ray Nagin told a radio interviewer.

New Orleans, a city that usually throbs with the life of its carnivals and the sound of jazz and blues, was in a "state of devastation," Nagin said.

...Weather experts had predicted the city would be quickly overwhelmed by the impact of Katrina, which tore across the coast on Monday but initially damage appeared less than catastrophic.

By Tuesday, however, the full impact was clear as the water rose and overwhelmed pumps, part of an elaborate system of walls, canals and other devices built to protect the city from just such a disaster.

Fears grew about pollution, with the water believed to be carrying sewage, spilled fuel and other pollutants from residential and commercial districts inundated in the flood.

...No deaths were officially confirmed, but Nagin said bodies were seen floating.

Read more.


St. Berard Parish deputy sheriff Jerry Reyes uses his boat to rescue residents after Hurricane Katrina hit the area causing flooding in their New Orleans neighborhood, Monday Morning, Aug. 29, 2005. Officials called for a mandatory evacuation of the city, but many resident remained in the city.



Garron Lenaz recovers an American flag from the rubble in front of his home in Gulfport, Miss., after Hurricane Katrina struck the Gulf Coast Monday, Aug. 29, 2005.


Thank God Katrina didn't hit land as a Category 5 hurricane. It's difficult to look at the devastation as it is and imagine the destruction being any worse.

"We have nowhere to go," one broken man whose wife and house were swept away by floodwaters in Gulfport, Miss., told FOX News. "I lost everything. That's all I had. That's all I had."

For some, like this man, it got as bad as it could get.

Here is an extremely disturbing report.

BILOXI, Mississippi (Reuters) -- Hundreds may have been killed by Hurricane Katrina in the Mississippi Gulf Coast city of Biloxi after being trapped in their homes when a 30-foot (9 meter) storm surge came ashore, a spokesman for the city said on Tuesday.

"It's going to be in the hundreds," Vincent Creel told Reuters. "Camille was 200, and we're looking at a lot more than that," he said, referring to Hurricane Camille, which hit the area in 1969 and destroyed swaths of Mississippi and Louisiana.

There is so much misery.

I hope we can put our differences aside and pull together as a country to provide relief and assistance.

The President plans to shorten his "vacation" to deal with the catastrophe.

Does this mean Cindy Sheehan will have to scramble to change her plans as well?

Do you think Jimmy Carter is strapping on his tool belt and getting ready to help the victims rebuild? Or, is he too busy lecturing Americans about not giving a damn about those in need?



WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Bush decided to cancel the rest of his vacation to concentrate on federal relief efforts for victims of Hurricane Katrina as his top disaster relief official lamented "catastrophic" damage in three Southern states.

With at least one New Orleans hospital threatened by Katrina's floodwaters, Michael Brown, director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, said that patients were being transferred to the Superdome and medical personnel were being sent in to treat them.

Meanwhile, the White House revealed that Bush was returning to Washington Wednesday from his Texas ranch. "We have a lot of work to do," the president said of the storm damage in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama. He initially was to have flown back to the capital on Friday.

Bush planned to chair a meeting Wednesday of a White House task force set up to coordinate the federal response and relief effort, said White House spokesman Scott McClellan.

The damage is "very, very sobering," Brown said. "And of course the flooding is just everywhere ... New Orleans, all through Mississippi and Alabama. This storm is really having a catastrophic effect." Low- lying areas are "just devastated," he said.

You can help. Make a donation.

God be with our fellow Americans.

Vietnam, Somalia, and Iraq

Is Iraq another Vietnam?

Anti-Bush, anti-war, and anti-American proponents love to draw parallels between the two wars.

They say:

It's a quagmire.

It's an imperialistic endeavor.

It's just a scheme to deliver billions of dollars in profits to evil corportations.

We have no right to "force" freedom and democracy on sovereign nations.

We are occupiers, not liberators.

Young Americans are sacrificing, even losing their lives, for an ignoble cause.

If you listen to the yammering of Ted Kennedy, Russ Feingold, Chuck Hagel, Dennis Kucinich, Howard Dean, Aljazeera, Ayman al-Zawahri, and assorted aging baby boomers longing to relive their glory days, you could be brainwashed into believing Iraq IS Vietnam.

Of course, Iraq is NOT Vietnam.

Read Steven Komarow's article for USA Today.

"Vietnam vets in Iraq see 'entirely different war'"

Read Christopher Hitchens's article for Slate.

"Beating a Dead Parrot, Why Iraq and Vietnam have nothing whatsoever in common"

Put all that Vietnam talk aside for a moment and consider this:

Is Iraq going to be another Somalia?

That is the question that we should be asking.

Somalia started out as a humanitarian mission. Operation Restore Hope was intended to halt the starvation of hundreds of thousands of people. Although that goal was achieved, our forces got bogged down in the country's chaotic political situation.

OpinionJournal.com summarizes what happened in Somalia.

President Bush the Elder sent U.S. forces into Somalia in December 1992 to aid the United Nations in relieving a massive famine. In May of 1993, four months into his term, President Clinton declared that mission accomplished and pulled out most of the U.S. force. In a speech on the South Lawn to associate himself with the effort, he extolled the decision to intervene: "If all of you who served had not gone, it is absolutely certain that tens of thousands would have died by now." It was a "successful mission," he said, and "proved yet again that American leadership can help to mobilize international action."

But back in Somalia, with no U.S. deterrent, Somalia's warlords began fighting again. After a series of bloody attacks on U.N. peacekeepers, Mr. Clinton launched a new mission: In August 1993, he sent in a force of Rangers and Special Forces units to capture the brutal warlord Mohammad Farrah Aidid and restore order.

That force asked for heavy armor--in the form of Abrams tanks and Bradley armored vehicles--as well as the AC-130 gunship, but the Clinton Administration denied those requests. On October 3 on a mission to pick up Aidid, two Black Hawks were unexpectedly shot down; in the ensuing urban gun battle, 18 American soldiers were killed and another 73 injured.

Many military experts believe that if the U.S. forces had had armor, fewer would have died. Secretary of Defense Les Aspin resigned two months after Somalia, having acknowledged that his decision on the armor had been an error. A 1994 Senate Armed Services Committee investigation reached the same conclusion. But perhaps the most poignant statement came from retired Lieutenant Colonel Larry Joyce, father of Sergeant Casey Joyce, a Ranger killed in Mogadishu: "Had there been armor . . . I contend that my son would probably be alive today."

Mr. Clinton's responsibility in Somalia doesn't stop there. Despite the mistakes that October day, Aidid had been struck a blow. The U.S. military, with 18 dead, wanted nothing more than to finish what it had started. Mr. Clinton instead aborted the mission. The U.S. released the criminals it had captured that same day at such great cost, and the U.N., lacking U.S. support, was powerless to keep order. Somalia remains a lawless, impoverished nation. Worse, the terrorists of al Qaeda interpreted the U.S. retreat from Somalia as a sign of American weakness that may have convinced them we could be induced to retreat from the Middle East if they took their attacks to the U.S. homeland.

It's worth mentioning that in 1993, while Osama bin Laden was living in Sudan, he and other radical Islamic fundamentalists were extremely angered by the US military presence in Somalia. They offered assistance to Aidid's forces.

During the investigation of the 1998 bombings of the American embassies in Africa, the Justice Department discovered evidence that bin Laden and al Qaeda provided support to the Somali fighters.

Frontline's "Hunting Bin Laden" explains:

When the Marines landed in the last days of 1992, bin Laden sent in his own soldiers, armed with AK-47's and rocket launchers. Soon, using the techniques they had perfected against the Russians, they were shooting down American helicopters...

"After leaving Afghanistan, the Muslim fighters headed for Somalia and prepared for a long battle, thinking that the Americans were like the Russians," bin Laden said. "The youth were surprised at the low morale of the American soldiers and realized more than before that the American soldier was a paper tiger and after a few blows ran in defeat. And America forgot all the hoopla and media propaganda ... about being the world leader and the leader of the New World Order, and after a few blows they forgot about this title and left, dragging their corpses and their shameful defeat."



In retrospect, Clinton's decision to inadequately arm our troops, followed by his decision to cut and run from Somalia after the battle in Mogadishu proved disastrous.

There is no question that Somalia emboldened the terrorists. Bin Laden himself says that was the case.

From bin Laden's perspective, he had defeated one superpower in Afghanistan and another in Somalia. He was victorious. As a result, bin Laden chose to take his "holy war" to the U.S. homeland.



Don't forget 9/11. Don't forget what was done to Americans.

Rather than dwelling on Iraq being another Vietnam, I think the lessons of Somalia prove to be far more pertinent.

1) We must adequately arm our forces.

2) We must fight to win.

3) We cannot cut and run.

4) Defeat is not an option.

If we withdraw from Iraq before the Iraqi people are ready for us to leave, radical Islamic fundamentalists will accurately claim yet another victory. In our weakness, they'll be encouraged to hit us again.

For our own safety, we cannot repeat the mistakes of Somalia in Iraq.

As bin Laden said, America retreated and "forgot about being the world leader and the leader of the New World Order, and after a few blows they forgot about this title and left, dragging their corpses and their shameful defeat."

(Some insist Iraq had no connection with al Qaeda. They're WRONG.)

If we allow Iraq to be another Somalia, if we cut and run now as some are calling for us to do, we will not have peace.

It will be an invitation for radical Islamic fundamentalists---the terrorists, bin Laden and his forces---to continue their war on free, peace-loving nations.

NO COMPASSION

I've tried not to write about Cindy Sheehan; but then she does something so over the top that I feel the need to address it.

Now, Cindy Sheehan is attacking some of the mothers of our troops killed in Iraq--the moms who don't agree with her radical far Left extremism, the moms who believe their sons are heroes, the moms who believe their sons died for a noble cause.

Sheehan announces that she is losing "compassion" for those mothers.

This is really sick. So as not to take anything out of context, I've posted her blog entry in its entirety.

Not surprisingly, it can be found at Daily Kos.

Exhaustion

by CindySheehan
Sat Aug 27th, 2005 at 06:51:02 PDT

Day 20
The Peaceful Occupation of Crawford

I finally figured out George Bush's NEW reason for staying in Iraq. This reason has also been co-opted by the Move America Forward (forward to what: Fascism?) and the poor mothers who would be honored if their sons were killed in George Bush's war for greed and power.

CindySheehan's diary :: ::

Since the Freedom and Democracy thing is not going so well and the Iraqi parliament is having such a hard time writing their constitution. Since violence is mounting against Iraqis and Americans and since his poll numbers are going down everyday, he had to come up with something.

I have continually asked George Bush to quit using Casey's name the name of the other Gold Star Families for Peace loved ones to justify his continued killing. He continues to say this: "We have to honor the sacrifices of the fallen by completing the mission." So the mission is now this: WE MUST CONTINUE KILLING AMERICANS BECAUSE AMERICANS HAVE ALREADY BEEN KILLED!!!

How can anyone, anyone in their right minds support this line of reasoning? I have been silent on the Gold Star Moms who still support this man and his war by saying that they deserve the right to their opinions because they are in as much pain as I am. I would challenge them, though, at this point to start thinking for themselves. Iraq DID NOT have WMD's; Iraq WAS NOT linked to Al Qaeda and 9/11; Iraq WAS NOT a threat or danger to America. How can these moms who still support George Bush and his insane war in Iraq want more innocent blood shed just because their sons or daughters have been killed? I don't understand it. I don't understand how any mother could want another mother to feel the pain we feel. I am starting to lose a little compassion for them. I know they have been as brainwashed as the rest of America, but they know the pain and heartache and they should not wish it on another. However, I still feel their pain so acutely and pray for these "continue the murder and mayhem" moms to see the light.

I didn't do my blog last night because I was so exhausted. I am now lying awake at night thinking and worrying about a couple of things. First of all, how can we keep the momentum of Camp Casey going? Our first step is a bus tour consisting of three buses going through 3 different parts of the country, stopping at various places to do rallies and "visit" Congress people's offices. I had a brainstorm during my press conference yesterday...our first stop will be at Mr.Tom Delay's office. I just opened my mouth and the words came out and the Bus Tour organizers re-worked the bus schedule so we could make that happen. But before we even issued the invitation to Tom Delay, his office had released a statement saying that he was "too busy to meet with me." In taking Camp Casey to Congress we are creating problems for the very people who voted to give George the authority to invade an innocent country and cause the deaths of so many people. We will eventually target every Congress person, pro-peace or anti-peace alike, Republican or Democrat, and ask them the same questions we are asking the president. Except with Congress, we are going to add one more thing: "Since there is no Noble Cause, you need to develop a speedy exit strategy and bring our troops home as soon as humanly possible." Check out www. BringThemHomeNowTour.org for more info on our bus tour and how you can be involved.

The second thing that worries the crap out of me is the almost icon status that I have achieved. I never set out to become the "Rosa Parks of the Peace Movement." I ventured out on August 6, 2005 to hold George Bush accountable and to raise awareness about his lies and misuse and abuse of power. I didn't set out to become anyone's hero. I am a regular mom who just wants peace and no one else to be murdered for the deceptions of our government. I love the love and support of America: it is what sustains me through these very difficult times and the reich-wing smear campaign. I am blown away and humbled that people are coming from all over the world to meet me and have their pictures taken with me. I am honored when people ask me for my autograph and I love meeting the little ones. I think we really need to focus our energies on the cause of peace, though...and the message, not the messenger. I am not a perfect person. I am strong and I do have the cajones to tell the world that our "emperor" has no clothes, but it is done out of love of Casey and the others who have died and who are in harm's way and out of the simple fact that at the end of the day I have to look at myself in the mirror. If I didn't do everything in my power to end this monstrosity of an occupation in Iraq, how could I do that? I promised my boy that I would make the world a better place for his unborn nieces and nephews, and I mean to keep that promise.

We are going to have an eventful day at Camp Casey. We are holding a big rally and so are the "pro-continue the killing because Americans have died already" people. I am a little apprehensive about this. We know that the Sheriff's know that the other people are coming to stir up trouble and provoke us into violence. Well, that is not going to happen on the Camp Casey side. We will not resort to the same tactics as their leaders.

Camp Casey is a place of peace and love and we won't let ignorant citizens bring us down. At this point the smears are amusing me, rather than hurting me.

I will keep you all posted about today's events. Please pray for us that everyone keeps a cool head.

Peace!!!!

I could have a field day picking that blog entry apart. I may get to more later; but for now, I'll focus on this portion:

"I am starting to lose a little compassion for them. I know they have been as brainwashed as the rest of America, but they know the pain and heartache and they should not wish it on another. However, I still feel their pain so acutely and pray for these "continue the murder and mayhem" moms to see the light."

Cindy Sheehan has every right to be cruel and condescending. She enjoys free speech, as we all do, thanks to the brave men and women that have been willing to fight to defend our freedoms.

Now, I will exercise my right to express myself.

Cindy Sheehan is a sadist.

She calls the mothers of dead soldiers and marines "'continue the murder and mayhem' moms." She prays they "see the light."

How disgusting!

Sheehan's right. She has no compassion. She shows no true concern for these mothers. She doesn't care.

For Sheehan to dub these women "continue the murder and mayhem moms" is so callous and cold-blooded it is positively breathtaking.

Sheehan speaks like a heartless woman with a blackened soul.

God, I feel so bad for her children and soon to be ex-husband.

Al Sharpton: Built for Speed

Obviously, Al Sharpton wanted to get out of Crawford---FAST!

Maybe he felt that the anti-war, anti-Bush protest wasn't getting enough attention. Hurricane Katrina did blow Crawford off the top of the list of media obsessions.

In any event, when the Rev. Al Sharpton was on his way to the airport to get out of town, he didn't see fit to tell his driver to slow down when the car was being pursued by state troopers.

WAXAHACHIE, Texas (AP) -- A driver for the Rev. Al Sharpton led Ellis County Sheriff's deputies on a nine-mile chase at speeds up to 110 mph before state troopers stopped the car, authorities said.

The driver was rushing Sharpton to the airport after Sharpton had met with anti-war activist Cindy Sheehan on Sunday at her camp outside President Bush's ranch in Crawford. The car carrying Sharpton and two other passengers was clocked doing 110 mph in a 65 mph zone on Interstate 35 in Ellis County in North Texas, said Lt. Danny Williams.

The car ignored deputies' attempts to pull over and continued speeding and weaving in and out of traffic before it was stopped, Williams said.

...Deputies arrested Jarrett Barton Maupin, 43, of Phoenix. Maupin told the officers he was hurrying to get Sharpton to the airport, Williams said. Deputies impounded the rented 2005 Lincoln.

Williams said his officers offered Sharpton and the other unidentified passengers a ride to a hotel across the highway, but they declined and walked there instead.

Maupin posted $1,000 in bonds on charges of evading arrest with a vehicle and reckless driving.

Granted, Sharpton wasn't behind the wheel; but he had NINE MILES to demand that Maupin stop the car and cooperate with state troopers. Didn't Sharpton notice that he was part of a very high speed chase?

Perhaps he thought the troopers were escorting him to the airport.

Sharpton's departure from Crawford was as weird as his visit.

Here's a photo that accompanied a Washington Post story detailing the appearances of Rev. Al Sharpton and Martin Sheen at the protest.



The caption reads:

Cindy Sheehan, left, holds Rev. Al Sharpton's hand, center, as Evan Bright reaches over to comfort her as they lay roses at the crosses at Camp Casey 2 near President Bush's ranch in Crawford, Texas, Sunday, Aug. 28, 2005. Both women lost their sons in the war in Iraq.

According to the article, "[T]he Rev. Al Sharpton spoke at an interfaith service at the camp, saying he was compelled to meet Sheehan.

"'I feel that it is our moral obligation to stand and to be courageous with these families, and particularly Cindy, that have become the conscience of this nation,' said Sharpton, a former Democratic presidential candidate."

It seems like it was quite a prayerful moment, a time of solemn remembrance.

The photo above certainly makes it look like a touching, intimate scene.

Looks can be deceiving.

Little Green Footballs gives a more complete picture of the happenings in Crawford than those provided by the MSM.

Let’s zoom out and see the media swarm around this manufactured event:



That intimate, heart-wrenching moment comes off a little differently when viewed from this perspective, doesn't it?

Sincerity and photo ops are at odds at Camp Cindy,...I mean Casey.

KAT HITS AS CAT 4

Winds from Hurricane Katrina damage a building in Gulfport, Miss., Monday, Aug. 29, 2005.



Debris from a fallen building covers several buildings in downtown New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina battered the Louisiana Coast on Monday, Aug. 29, 2005.





NEW ORLEANS (AP) -- Hurricane Katrina plowed into this below-sea-level city Monday with howling, 145-mph winds and blinding rain that ripped away pieces of the roof of the Superdome, knocked out power and flooded some homes to the ceilings.

Katrina weakened overnight to a Category 4 storm and turned slightly eastward before hitting land about 6:10 a.m. CDT east of Grand Isle near the bayou town of Buras, providing some hope that this vulnerable city would be spared the storm's full fury.

But National Hurricane Center Director Max Mayfield warned that New Orleans would be pounded throughout the day and that Katrina's potential 15-foot storm surge, down from a feared 28 feet, was still substantial enough to cause extensive flooding.

...At the Superdome, home to 9,000 storm refugees, wind peeled off pieces of metal on the golden roof, leaving two holes that were visible from the floor. Water dripped in, and people were moved away.

Others stayed and watched as sheets of metal, flapped and rumbled loudly. From the floor, looking up more than 19 stories, it appeared to be openings of about six feet long.

General Manager Glenn Menard said he did not know how serious the problem was. "We have no way of getting anyone up there to look," he said.

Scores of windows were blown out at some of New Orleans' hotels.

Katrina, which had strengthened a day before into a 175-mph Category 5 behemoth before weakening, still had hurricane winds extending 120 miles from its center. Mayfield said at midmorning the worst flooding from storm surge was on the Mississippi coast, east of the eye, with the highest storm surge recorded so far at 22 feet in Bay St. Louis.

Along U.S. 90 in Mississippi, the major coastal route that is home to the state's glitzy casinos, sailboats were washed onto the four-lane highway, which was deserted and flooded in areas.

"This is a devastating hit _ we've got boats that have gone into buildings," Gulfport Fire Chief Pat Sullivan said as he maneuvered around downed trees in the city. "What you're looking at is Camille II."

Thankfully, the storm weakened before landfall. New Orleans is NOT under water. The catastrophe that was feared hasn't happened.

That's not to say that there isn't tremendous damage. However, it could have been worse.

Now, Katrina has been downgraded to a Category 3.

HEY! EUROPE!

TIME TO STEP UP AND SEND AID TO THE DEVASTATED AREAS OF THE U.S.!

Remember, at the time of last December's tsunami, the U.S. was bashed for being "stingy."

Jan Egeland, UN undersecretary general for humanitarian affairs and emergency relief coordinator, slammed the U.S. and suggested that our taxes be raised to enable us to give more.

In April, Jimmy Carter chastised the U.S., saying that we "don't really give a damn" about those in need.

Figures like these, showing that the U.S. lags behind other nations in providing foreign aid, are time and again trotted out to tout the moral superiority of Europe and the selfishness of the U.S.

It's one of the reasons that's often cited by Leftists to explain why the world hates us.

I hope the oh so generous Denmark and the rest of Europe is gearing up right now to aid the victims of Hurricane Katrina.



HELP STORM VICTIMS: FEMA, American Red Cross: 1-800-HELP-NOW, Catholic Charities, Salvation Army

Waiting for a Miracle

Some of the thousands of displaced residents take cover from Hurricane Katrina at the Superdome, a last-resort shelter, in New Orleans about midnight, Sunday, Aug. 28, 2005.

They look like they're waiting for the Saints to take the field, not seeking shelter from monster Hurricane Katrina.

It's a bizarre image.

As I write this, Katrina is teetering between being a category 4 and 5 hurricane. Maybe it will drop to a category 3.

NEW ORLEANS (AP) -- Winds whipped downtown New Orleans and blasts of thunder were heard early Monday as a monstrous Hurricane Katrina charged toward the low- lying city with 160-mph winds and the threat of a catastrophic storm surge, prompting residents to flee in bumper-to-bumper traffic or huddle in the Superdome for safety.

Mayor Ray Nagin said he believed 80 percent of the city's 480,000 residents had heeded an unprecedented mandatory evacuation as Katrina threatened to become the most powerful storm ever to slam the city.

"It's capable of causing catastrophic damage," said National Hurricane Center Director Max Mayfield. "Even well-built structures will have tremendous damage. Of course, what we're really worried about is the loss of lives.

"New Orleans may never be the same."



What will the morning bring?

Jesse Rides Again!

Jesse Jackson addresses Venezuela's National Assembly.

Just when I think there is no stunt that Jesse Jackson could pull that would surprise me, he takes it up a notch and manages to amaze.

THE GUY WENT TO VENEZUELA TO SHOW SUPPORT FOR HUGO CHAVEZ!

Jackson addressed the Venezuelan National Assembly on Sunday. What is Jackson doing???

The BBC calls Jackson's visit a "propaganda coup" for Chavez.

Rev Jackson urged US authorities to take action against Mr Robertson's statements.

"We must choose a civilized policy of rational conversation," he told reporters during his three-day visit to speak at a ceremony.

Rev Jackson later met and shook hands with Mr Chavez during the Venezuelan leader's weekly radio and television programme, the Associated Press reports.

Mr Jackson's visit is a propaganda coup for the Venezuelan president, says the BBC's Justin Webb in Caracas.

Mr Chavez is likely to use the reverend's presence to demand that the White House apologise for Mr Robertson's remarks, our correspondent adds.

I still contend that the White House is not responsible for Robertson's stupid comments.

Donald Rumsfeld or Condoleezza Rice didn't recommend that Chavez be assassinated. The administration has made it clear that political assassination is against the law and is not U.S. policy.

Why should the White House apologize for something as ludicrous as Robertson's statements?

The administration has repeatedly made its position known. Case closed, right?

Wrong.

So, why is Jackson down in Venezuela acting as if he's an American government official and brokering an accord between the countries?

The way I see it--Jesse Jackson is addicted to media attention, much like John McCain. It's a sickness.

No doubt, Jackson was desperate for some press. He probably figured that if he went down to Crawford, Cindy Sheehan would overshadow him, so that was crossed off his list. Venezuela was open. Yeah, that's the ticket. Next thing you know, Jackson is addressing the Venezuelan National Assembly, useful idiot-style.

Unbelievable.

Naturally, Aljazeera picked up on this story.


Hugo Chavez and Jesse Jackson

Addressing the Venezuelan National Assembly on Sunday, Jackson called for the US Justice Department to investigate the statement by famous evangelist Pat Robertson, who last Monday said of Chavez: "I don't know about this doctrine of assassination, but if he thinks we're trying to assassinate him, I think that we really ought to go ahead and do it."

Jackson, on a three-day visit to Venezuela to meet Chavez, politicians and community leaders, also called on US President George Bush to express "a swift rejection" of Robertson's statement.

"It must be unequivocally clear that such a heinous act is not desirable nor designed nor planned. We must use power to reduce tensions, reduce the rhetoric of our threats," Jackson said.

"It was such a repugnant, immoral, illegal statement," he said.

...US officials last week distanced themselves from Robertson's comments.

This is completely insane!

Robertson is a fool. Not surprisingly, he said something ridiculous.

He is not a member of the Bush administration. He is not an elected official. He does not make U.S. policy. He's the host of the 700 Club.

An appropriate reaction would be for his sponsors to pull their ads, resulting in the cancellation of the program. Robertson would lose his forum.

What does Jackson expect to accomplish by going to Venezuela and talking to Chavez? I guess he didn't think that organizing one of his trademark boycotts would get noticed in this summer of Cindy.

This is just another in a line of recent non-scandal scandals, created by the media, special interest groups, and PR firms.

Robertson is accountable for his words. The Bush administration is not responsible for what Robertson says.

The liberal media once again expose the double standard they employ.

For example, at the time of Bill Clinton's "troubles," Alec Balwin made some incredibly reckless remarks. During a 1998 appearance on Late Night with Conan O'Brien, Baldwin said that House Judiciary Committee Chairman Henry Hyde should be stoned to death and his family killed.

Baldwin ranted:

"If we were living in another country, what we, all of us together, would go down to Washington and stone Henry Hyde to death, stone him to death, stone him to death! Then we would go to their house and we'd kill the family, kill the children."

I don't recall Jackson demanding that the Clinton administration apologize for Baldwin's "repugnant, immoral, illegal statement."

It's absolutely crazy for Jackson to be supporting Fidel Castro's buddy, Hugo Chavez. It's even crazier for him to suggest that the U.S. Justice Department should investigate Robertson's comments.

I have an idea. Jesse Jackson and Jimmy Carter should plan a trip together--Dictator Tour '05. They could join forces to undermine the Bush administration.

Hurricane Katrina

Hurricane Katrina is an extremely dangerous Category 5 storm on the Saffir-Simpson scale. Maximum sustained winds are at 175 mph. Katrina continues not only grow stronger, but it continues to grow larger. Hurricane-force winds extend 90 miles from the center on the eastern side of Katrina, 75 miles to the northwest and 50 miles to the southwest. Sustained tropical storm force winds are not far from the Gulf Coast and should move in later this afternoon. Katrina has turned and is moving northwest at 13 mph with a turn to the north expected tonight.

Everyone along the northern Gulf of Mexico should be completing preparations for a major hurricane and take heed of evacutation orders. Hurricane warnings are up from Morgan City, La., to the Florida-Alabama border. This includes the city of New Orleans and Lake Pontchartrain. A tropical storm warning and a hurricane watch have been issued from the Alabama-Florida border eastward to Destin, Florida and from west of Morgan City to Intracoastal City, Louisiana.

A storm surge of 20 to 25 feet or more is possible along and to the east of Katrina's landfall point Monday. On top of the water rise, pounding waves of 20 to 40 feet will produce catastrophic damage at coastal locations.

Effects from Katrina will not be confined to coastal areas. Once Hurricane Katrina makes landfall, it will progress inland Monday into Tuesday with a trail of flooding rains and damaging winds across Mississippi and Alabama and then into Tennessee. Torrential, flooding rainfall is possible with the remnants of Katrina well inland, possibly into the Ohio Valley, Great Lakes and the Northeast later this week.

This would be a good time to pray.

Katrina has already claimed seven lives in Florida.

My prayers go out to the families of those lost in the storm, as well as to all those impacted by Hurricane Katrina.

Pray that Katrina weakens and pray for the safety of those in her path.

Fred Phelps

SMYRNA, Tenn. (AP) -- Members of a church say God is punishing American soldiers for defending a country that harbors gays, and they brought their anti-gay message to the funerals Saturday of two Tennessee soldiers killed in Iraq.

The church members were met with scorn from local residents. They chased the church members cars' down a highway, waving flags and screaming "God bless America."

"My husband is over there, so I'm here to show my support," 41-year-old Connie Ditmore said as she waved and American flag and as tears came to her eyes. "To do this at a funeral is disrespectful of a family, no matter what your beliefs are."

The Rev. Fred Phelps, founder of Westboro Baptist in Kansas, contends that American soldiers are being killed in Iraq as vengeance from God for protecting a country that harbors gays. The church, which is not affiliated with a larger denomination, is made up mostly of Phelps' children, grandchildren and in-laws.

The church members carried signs and shouted things such as "God hates fags" and "God hates you."

...Hundreds of Smyrna and Ashland City residents and families of other soldiers turned out at both sites to counter the message the Westboro Baptist members brought.

So many counterdemonstrators were gathered in Ashland City that police, sheriff's deputies and state troopers were brought in to control traffic and protect the protesters.

Self-proclaimed Democrat Fred Phelps is a sick, sick man.

He is not a man of God. Not only is he preaching a message of hate, he's exploiting the deaths of members of our military to push his own agenda.

In that sense, he's similar to the Code Pink, Cindy Sheehan, radical Left extremists. Although Code Pink has shown up at Walter Reed to taunt wounded troops, even they haven't gone as far as to protest at funerals.

Phelps and his group are more offensive and exploitative than the radical Bush-hating Left. That's saying a lot.

Thankfully, there have been counterdemonstrators to overpower the Phelps crowd.

Still, a funeral is no place for demonstrations of any sort. It is a solemn rite, not a free speech forum. To disrupt a funeral is the height of disrespect.

It is absolutely disgusting that Phelps would stage these protests. He no doubt believed that he would get media attention by doing so. He was right.

I am sickened by his message and his methods.

Combative Joe Biden

Joe Biden, presidential wannabe, was on today's This Week.

Apparently, Biden is modeling his run for the presidency on the John Kerry strategy--flip and flop, try to be a hawk and a dove.

Biden was raising his voice, taking dramatic pauses, looking down and aside as if to maintain his composure. It was quite a performance. Very powerful. (It honestly gave me a headache.)

When his blustering grandstanding is filtered out, little of substance is left.

A few points I managed to glean from the spectacle:

1) Biden is for winning the war in Iraq, BUT... ( The "buts" are many.)

2) Biden wants a set date for troop withdrawal.

3) Biden believes that Bush has failed miserably in his handling of Iraq.

4) Biden believes Bush has no plan and a plan is needed. (I can almost hear John Kerry saying, "I have a plan.")

5) Biden said Bush must "get rid of Rumsfeld."

Finally, George Stephanopoulos asked Biden the obligatory question.

To paraphrase Steph, he inquired, "Since your last visit, are you any closer to making a decision about running for president?" (By the way, his last visit seems like it was just a week ago.)

Biden said, "I'm closer to it."

Steph replied, "That's good to know."

What an odd comment from Steph!

"Good" in what sense? Was that an endorsement? Does he think Biden being on the campaign trail will benefit Hillary Clinton? "Good" how?

Very strange.

Unless, he's completely out of touch with reality, which is a definite possibility, Biden must know that he won't get the Democrat nomination.

In the end, I don't think Biden really plans to run for president. Much like John Edwards, he's running for the number two spot on the ticket.

I have Campaign 2008 fatigue already, and it's only 2005.