Comments on: “Now Watch this Chord” or “Avec moi, le déluge”

By: Lee

Lee — Fri, 02 Sep 2005 06:54:15 +0000

Summer–I have no idea. How dare you question manifest destiny?

Whet: They knew the levee was gonna break before the levee broke. If GWB didn’t, he was the last to know. And that’s just sad.

By: m

Fri, 02 Sep 2005 06:20:35 +0000

summer, what was it reggie white said? white people are good at organising, so naturally, they’d find stuff!

whet: that’s a brutal imitation of a g-chord Bush is playing, too. I think I’m glad I wasn’t around to hear it.

By: summer

summer — Fri, 02 Sep 2005 05:38:41 +0000

@lee: lmbao.

and, uh, will somebody tell me why all the black people loot while the white people find shit? just a question.

By: w

Fri, 02 Sep 2005 05:19:12 +0000

Sure enough, the picture was taken on Tuesday at 1:30 ET:

http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmp.....0108301730

I.e. after the first levee broke. So, you were right. Bush strummed while New Orleans drowned.

It would be weird, after watching CNN fall desperately to the right for the past several months under the leadership of the one figurehead who is possibly dumber than GWB, turn into the Voice of the People as its anchors go one by one over the edge. I wish I had cable to see it happen.

By: m

Fri, 02 Sep 2005 04:42:11 +0000

I take back some of my hate about the coverage. CNN has had it. They are pissed. All night I watched as host after host took down gov't officials and started practically yelling at them. Aaron Brown lost it when he was told that the Astrodome is already full. Larry King stuck it to Barbour. Paula Zahn to the guy who runs FEMA, which has been gutted in the name of privatisation. But this takes the cake: Anderson Cooper tears at Mary Landrieu. Landrieu's a slippery DLC snake---she's done some good, but she's looking like a total ass now. Finally, the looting is still being misrepresented. Military helicopters can't continue rescue missions because of small fire? Like that shit would fly in Iraq? Everything is disorganised. Everything. And CNN is pissed. Watch the Cooper video!

By: Lee

Lee — Fri, 02 Sep 2005 04:31:26 +0000

To my understanding, Summer, that’s not usually what he does with goats.

Anyway, I’m currently waiting for the “war against weather” and the “illegal enemy tornado detention center.” Just saying.

By: summer

summer — Thu, 01 Sep 2005 17:22:16 +0000

i heard he read my pet goat after the guitar solo.

that might just be a rumor, though.

By: News from Around the World

News from Around the World — Thu, 01 Sep 2005 16:06:06 +0000

“Now Watch this Chord” or “Avec moi, le déluge”

Did someone notify the authorities:…

By: W

Thu, 01 Sep 2005 02:53:04 +0000

My understanding was that the pic was taken before the levees broke. I’ll try to do some research.

By: Lee

Lee — Thu, 01 Sep 2005 01:06:24 +0000

I think they’re picking each other off. It’s all over the internet news feeds, though. A cop got shot in the head, a looter got shot in a firefight with another one, a group of cops stranded on top of a hotel had to duck a bunch of bullets. The doctor who wrote the letter I linked to above said he heard regular gunfire within earshot of his hotel.

So, no, it’s not like the gratuitous looting that happens during a big blackout–these people have no idea when they’re gonna get clean water or food or diapers–but all the same it isn’t exactly a big happy cooperative survival effort either. Just more evidence that people are assholes.

It’s a nice object lesson, though, in why the “arm everyone” strategy doesn’t actually prevent crime. Not like we needed an object lesson, but hey. Like Iggy said, “eat or be eaten.” Or, like Iggy also said, “in the space age, the village idiot rules.”

By: m

Thu, 01 Sep 2005 00:15:14 +0000

I don’t fully understand what you’re trying to say, Manan.

Lee, I’m going by what they’ve been showing on the news, etc. On CNN last night, there was no talk of people grabbing guns, etc. Though apparently someone on Hannity asked if it was ok to go pick off “looters.”

By: manan

manan — Wed, 31 Aug 2005 22:23:23 +0000

Oh yeah. Also, white people are putting cash on the flooded registers while all those black people, who stayed behind for this very purpose are enjoying their lootish [sic] behavior.

In related news, TPM Cafe put some more info on the NO levee debate.

By: Lee

Lee — Wed, 31 Aug 2005 21:54:10 +0000

Call me a heartless prick, but the looting sounds pretty rough. Not a matter of people taking things they need (one FEMA official pointed out that most of the items taken constituted “benign” looting–i.e., they were taking stuff they needed to survive). That point’s been made, and that’s not what the concern is: among the first items to clear the shelves were guns. Apparently the entire gun section of a Wal-mart store was empty. People there say there are armed gangs roving the streets. Sorry, but that’s fucking scary.

RoxPopuli posted one eyewitness account here.

Also, here’s her readers’ takes on that lovely photo.