I'm not sure how many of you reading this read any of my other friends' pages, but inasmuch as I've had to deal with, a LJ friend (though she's got much better friends than I) of mine was originally stranded in New Orleans but thankfully made it out before anarchy really set in, catching a ride to Texas and heading to Atlanta from there to be with friends and family.
scyllacat is thankfully safe outside of the city, and there are plenty of us who are relieved to hear that. But she's also becoming a bit of something more ... surprisingly, her journal's gotten some international attention as a European news outlet (I think it's a German website, but I could be wrong) ran a piece on bloggers who were posting their own stories of coping with Hurricane Katrina. She's gotten messages of support from people half a world away who read her story and wanted to send sympathy. I realize I might be spotlighting her (so I hope she's okay with this much), but I just wanted to echo a point she made in her journal. The people left in New Orleans aren't all looters or threw hurricane parties or were too stubborn to leave. When the city really came under the target of the storm, services and transportation shut down quickly, and ANYONE without a car was quickly left adrift. Imagine how many people in any large metropolitan area get around without cars, and you might start to see the difference. It really is a difficult time in a difficult place, and it will take a lot of work to make things right again in New Orleans, or even just reasonably safe. I wonder how far that particular stereotype is getting spread by the tendency of the news media (particularly American news media) to focus on the chaos and hype the destruction and disorder.
Thanks tochrysalis for this link, but in terms of an interesting and humorous-but-justified viewpoint, I give you Foamy the Squirrel's Take on Hurricane Katrina. Having raved and ranted about several topics before with much witty humor, I was glad when he weighed in on the victims' side.
On a side note, I want a button that says something like [Foamy says, "Get Out There And @#*$-ing Help!"]. Might have to make one. Hell, Foamy's creator could even sell them and donate proceeds, since (like me) not everybody can fly down to New Orleans and pitch in labor. I lack helicopter resources and armed military support. When the army is dropping cases of water from the air instead of handing it out on the ground, you know it's not easy in the Big Easy.
For anyone who does want to donate, Amazon's got a page up for collecting online donations to the American Red Cross Hurricane Relief Fund. As of this writing, they've collected over $3 million dollars.
Back to your regularly scheduled pookah-musings in this space later. After sending one more hug to the 'kat. Glad you're safe.
- Pookah
scyllacat is thankfully safe outside of the city, and there are plenty of us who are relieved to hear that. But she's also becoming a bit of something more ... surprisingly, her journal's gotten some international attention as a European news outlet (I think it's a German website, but I could be wrong) ran a piece on bloggers who were posting their own stories of coping with Hurricane Katrina. She's gotten messages of support from people half a world away who read her story and wanted to send sympathy. I realize I might be spotlighting her (so I hope she's okay with this much), but I just wanted to echo a point she made in her journal. The people left in New Orleans aren't all looters or threw hurricane parties or were too stubborn to leave. When the city really came under the target of the storm, services and transportation shut down quickly, and ANYONE without a car was quickly left adrift. Imagine how many people in any large metropolitan area get around without cars, and you might start to see the difference. It really is a difficult time in a difficult place, and it will take a lot of work to make things right again in New Orleans, or even just reasonably safe. I wonder how far that particular stereotype is getting spread by the tendency of the news media (particularly American news media) to focus on the chaos and hype the destruction and disorder.Thanks to
chrysalis for this link, but in terms of an interesting and humorous-but-justified viewpoint, I give you Foamy the Squirrel's Take on Hurricane Katrina. Having raved and ranted about several topics before with much witty humor, I was glad when he weighed in on the victims' side.On a side note, I want a button that says something like [Foamy says, "Get Out There And @#*$-ing Help!"]. Might have to make one. Hell, Foamy's creator could even sell them and donate proceeds, since (like me) not everybody can fly down to New Orleans and pitch in labor. I lack helicopter resources and armed military support. When the army is dropping cases of water from the air instead of handing it out on the ground, you know it's not easy in the Big Easy.
For anyone who does want to donate, Amazon's got a page up for collecting online donations to the American Red Cross Hurricane Relief Fund. As of this writing, they've collected over $3 million dollars.
Back to your regularly scheduled pookah-musings in this space later. After sending one more hug to the 'kat. Glad you're safe.
- Pookah
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*sigh*
-Tiffani