Monday, September 1, 2008

Gustav Dumps Rain on Gulf Coast: Millions Leave


Hurricane Gustav continued to pour rain on the Gulf Coast on Monday afternoon as officials keep a close eye on the levees to see if they will hold up in the torrent. There has already been reports of over spill.

In scenes reminiscent from Hurricane Katrina, millions fled New Orleans and the surrounding areas Sunday as the Super Storm approached the United States.

The storm has already killed over 80 in the Caribbean.

Donations for the displaced victims are being organized through the Red Cross. Go to www.redcross.org to see how you can get involved.

On Bosco Radio: News and Information link to New Orleans News Station WWL 870 AM for the most up to date information.

The Republican National Convention has scaled back it's schedule on the first day in the wake of the Hurricane. Bosco Radio News and information also has links to live coverage of the convention.

1 comment:

Doug Vehle said...

Well, it sounds like the bullet has been dodged. The oil derricks off the coast didn't take a direct hit from the worst intensity, so there's no real damage to oil production. The initial storm winds sent waves over the top of the levees but they've held. The remaining surge is expected to bring seawater that will overflow onto land, but the storm itself fell to level two over land, but hope is rising that the damworks, which were not to be completed until 2011, will manage.

In itself they're reporting did more damage. But I think the story was that Katrina itself had about passed when the levees gave way, if I remember this right. Rita and Wilma that followed were bigger, but didn't do the damage because they didn't hit vulnerable levees.

So, speaking of damage control, does this help or hurt anyone in the election? Republicans up for reelection are breathing a sigh of relief that Dubya won't be speaking at their convention. John McCain, a huge critic of the government response to Katrina gets to comment on the improvements during convention week. In fact, the republicans in general get to be high profile on hurricane response. And the convention has become a telethon, they have "150 operators standing by," and I'm sure the 800 number will roll across the screen onstop on the pool feed. All in all, the crowd who had the baggage to carry over Katrina are getting a second chance when they need it most.

Obama reportedly is already giving his speech about 'It may have been better but it's still not any good,' even BEFORE he knows how things turned out. Looks like this time he's going to steal McCain's act as the cranky one.

So just like that, the Democratic Convention that had promised to be the big hit this year went lackluster and doubtful would provide the post convention bump for Obama. And now what had seemed like the uncomfortable necessity of the republican convention might be turning into a grand slam for them. As they say in sports, it's why you still have to play the game.

Ah well. I remember Labor Day weekend of 2005 looking at motorcycles, planning on the bank openingon Tuesday to get the cash once I picked one out. By Monday the news was so bad, and I knew I wasn't going to enjoy the bike if I bought it, so the Red Cross got the money. That whole sense of loss over Katrina might explain why I've bought 5 bikes since then. (Hey, at least leave the room to gag, okay. . . ?)