Ex-FEMA Chiefs Says Agency Must Change - Yahoo! News: "In a telephone interview Friday, Paulison said the agency's integration with the Department of Homeland Security is an asset, not a weakness.
Linking the two gives FEMA easier access to a multitude of resources and federal agencies during major disasters, he said. One lesson of Katrina, he added, was that the combination of formerly competing entities helped eliminate some confusion on the ground.
He also said he hasn't seen any evidence of FEMA's budget being drained by anti-terrorism programs.
'FEMA had money last year it didn't spend,' Paulison said."
Mr. Paulison looks like a regular sort of guy... I never would have guessed he spends much of his time in some sort of alternate universe.
If Paulison believes the 'combination of formerly competing entities helped eliminate some confusion on the ground' -- then he either a) has a truly novel and terrifying idea of how much worse things could have been in the post-Katrina period or b) he has a truly novel and terrifying idea of exactly what purpose FEMA was to serve in the post-Katrina period. If FEMA had intended to delay basic emergency aide to the citizenry of the Gulf Coast for several days or more knowing it would result in greater casualties... If they truly knew what they were doing when they turned back private attempts at relief and effectively sealed off the entire area like a huge mass grave in-the-making... If their purpose was then to sink those truly in need of assistance in a quagmire of paperwork or send them out on fruitless treasure hunts for elusive service centers... while passing out $2000 debit cards to people not located in the disaster area so they could go get tattoos... If they realized the futility of telling victims to contact them via an 800 number in an area where 800 number service was not available for weeks -- and then referring those same victims who finally managed to reach them via telephone to a website for registration in an area where there was no internet access and the computers were underwater... If any of this was intentional; If any of this was the direct result of some well-orchestrated maneuver on the part of a government agency under the heading of 'Homeland Security'; If the actions of FEMA were not the result of widespread incompetence and 'confusion on the ground' -- then, my friends, we are all in a whole lot of trouble.
And just when I start thinking it can't be true - and Mr. Paulison is simply woefully deluded... I run face-first into the final quote of the article: "FEMA had money last year it didn't spend."
The costliest 'natural disaster' of our time... When would have been a better time for FEMA to drain its coffers? Could they not find anything to spend the money on? -- I have some suggestions for them...
Maybe there's something they're planning to do with the money this year that we should know about....
Start stockpiling your food and water, people...
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