America’s Hotel Rwanda

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WPCNR News Commentary By John F. Bailey. September 2, 2005: It has been two days since WPCNR was the first media in the world to publicly go on record on the negligent effort by FEMA, the military, the Office of Homeland Security, the States of Louisiana, Alabama, and Mississippi, the President and all the President’s“professionals” in dealing with the Hurricane Katrina apocalypse.


 


Fact is citizens of the world, they were caught with their pants down, the boats in dock, the aircraft in the hangars, the food in the frig, the military on R N R  and the food not in the trucks, friends. It is a Pearl Harbor in the civilian sector.





In fact the Adminstration’s Fab Four  were on vacation and did not see fit to be on the American Titanic command deck when they took an iceberg in the bow. When they were told about the iceberg in the bow, they stayed in their cabin.  While New Orleans is still sinking, the Administration’s Crooners, Brown and Chertoff were singing “Closer to New Orleans to Thee,” and the cartoon genius in the White House, Karl Rove was paying more attention to creating photo ops Friday than finding shelter for the refugees.


 


What a pitiful performance.


 


President Bush, Vice President Cheney, and the National Security Advisor Condoleeza Rice, an African-American, were on vacation, friends.  Watching sunsets, playing tennis, shopping for stilettos.


 


I have a deal for Great Britain, we will trade you George Bush for Tony Blair straight up!


 


Not since Nero allowed Rome to burn has a ruler so miserably ignored its poorest citizens, pathetically allowed babies and children to die and let them down, and watched. They make Edy Amin look good.


 


Condoleeza Rice was shopping for killer spike heels in Faragamo in New York Tuesday night, and played tennis with Monica Selas in N.Y., and took in a show while New Orleans was and is still dying, real slow, according to Air America Radio 1190. Solid research there, Air America.


 


Dick Cheney was in Wyoming on vacation and get this today, the White House does not know when Mr. Vice President will be back. Mastermind Karl Rove was partying with Bush supporters Tuesday night. I guess he ate well. And were they having cocktails on Air Force One as they flew past “The Big Hard”?


 


I guarantee you ladies and gentleman if Grosse Point, Michigan, Beverly Hills, Scarsdale, Greenwich,  Monterrey Peninsula,  were underwater they’d have been a lot more attentive. But these were African-Americans in trouble in south New Orleans. This administration has cared less. Not appears.


 


They did or did not do, or could not do what they should have been able to do. Well, it’s too late now.


 


It is Friday afternoon as I write this to you from my office in White Plains NY. Nothing has changed since Wednesday. It is a SNABU…Situation Normal All Bushed Up.


 


What apparently are the  first convoys of food have arrived today. No one knows what food has been being served.  As I read the AP dispatch tonight, I read that 36 trucks with the National Guard arrived and “dozens” of buses behind them.


 


Five days after the hurricane blew in and blew out. Five days after the hurricane blew in and blew out. Five days after the hurricane blew in and blew out. You can drive across the freaking country in five days. Perhaps they should have considered a wagon train.


 


Why, because they had to load food on the trucks.


 


 I allege it was not ready. Prove to me it was on the trucks, Mr. President, on Wednesday. Where were the photo ops of the fleets of trucks leaving. They were shown loading them. Brown said to the AP they were ready to go Monday. What is the truth? Where did they leave from? The mile-by-mile progress? Where was that photo op? Because I allege they had to cobble together a convoy.


 


 I allege it was not ready to go or in place as Michael Brown says in questions and answers compiled by the AP. Prove it! Five Days for a lousy 36 trucks? “With a cigar chomping general” at the head. This is not The Cavalry. A Department of Public Works responds faster than the National Guard or FEMA.  You cannot make this stuff up.


 


We were told Wednesday the trucks were on the way. Well let us add up what we have learned:


 



  1. There were no trucks ready to go Wednesday packed with food, ice, blankets cots.

 


They did not arrive until today. Well as Roger Erickson on WABC Radio pointed out today, the trucks are arriving but the refugees are leaving! They are headed to Houston, San Antonio and God knows where next. Dozens of buses?  How many dozen?


 


Come on they need  around a thousand more buses with 15,000 refugees if we presume they have already moved out 12,000 or so. But no one knows how many they’ve moved out. Nobody knows. Nobody’s counting. They have no handle on it, ladies and gentlemen.


 


 Where are the buses you need,  Mr. Brown? Can any of these geniuses count people? They are like the City of White Plains Budget Department. At least they overexaggerate, Not under.


 



  1. These trucks were slow.

 


I drove from Madison, Wisconsin to Oxford, Ohio on the interstate in mid-August through the incredible Chicago traffic nightmare, the Illinois-Indiana transition boondoggle, and straight across Indiana to Oxford, a distance of 425 miles in 8 hours, with a stop for lunch.  If the trucks came from Canada they should have made it there Thursday at NOON, highballing.  If they were fully loaded.


 


These trucks supposedly were on the way Wednesday.  They arrived today, friends.  Where were they coming from? Where was the close-in contingency planning? Where was the private sector cooperation? Was it ever asked for? FEDEX has the largest airfleet in the country. They would have gotten everything there overnight. Ontime. Fred Smith should be running this whole effort not Michael Brown or Mr. Chertoff.


 


             I suggest that there was no food ready on the trucks. No cots. No ice. No nothing, and they cobbled together a convoy. It took them like three days!


 



  1. There was no crowd control.

 


No bullhorns. Jerry Springer suggested this this morning. Jerry I have newfound respect for you based on the comments on the radio this morning.


 


There were no signs. No meal preparation. We do not know what these wonderful, brave trusting BLACK people were eating.  Brown said in an interview with Soledad O’Brien, he first learned of the Convention Center situation on T.V. Really. He said they were air dropping food. They weren’t. He would not answer the question why there were no planes bringing in supplies. He ignored that. He lied on t.v. Thanks for asking Soledad, and your expression was pricelessly incredulous.


 



  1. There were no Porto-Sans.

 


Could somebody somewhere have donated about a gazillion Porto-Sans?  There are so many port-o-san companies all around the country. They needed those in place, then sanitation conditions would have been addressed. Porto-Sans are not nuclear reactors. A Fastpitch Softball Tournament Director could run this operation better.


 



  1. There were not enough generators, except apparently at the hospitals.

 


 There was no food at the hospitals. Why couldn’t they figure that out that they might need those generators in an “take-out” emergency? Why doesn’t the Superdome have generators? Why doesn’t the convention center? Too many “whys” to count on this story, ladies and gentlemen.


 



  1. There was no backup communications to coordinate movement.

 


There is still no communication and it is being used as an excuse by the miserably, pathetically inept Mr. Brown and Mr. Chertoff and all.


 


      Westchester County has such a system.  It was put in place after 9/11. With all the security conferences the security people in those three states, and FEMA held, this was stressed. Yet, you have a city, government agencies unable to coordinate movements when the electricity, cellular and landline phones go out. We were told there was no phone service. But last night, I saw on CNN someone talking a payphone in the heart of the city to Scotland!!! At least one phone in New orleans was working, probably the only pay phone. It was like a scene from Archie’s Tavern.


 


They can do it in Iraq. Communicate in Iraq to units in beautiful downtown Baghdad. Not here. Pathetic.


 



  1. There appears to be no central command center anywhere coordinating the effort.

 


       The talking heads Brown and Chertoff are shuttling from one network to another area in Washington, that is rarely mentioned. The guys running things are in Washington. I am sorry you have to be there.


 


They are watching television to see what is happening.   


 


            When the head of the FEMA Fumblers, Michael Brown can say he was unaware of a situation in the Convention Center, and learned about it watching TV, that tells you a lot more than we ever wanted to know. He said that on national television last night. How can you not know what the situation is, minute-by-minute? How can you not know? How can you not know?


 


 How can you make decisions? You can’t. That’s why you have thousands dead right now, because of this horrendous managerial ineptitude. Too many cooks cannot figure out how to start a recipe.


 



  1. There are no professional managers here.

No one is setting priorities still.  It is being handled like an advertising agency handles things, reactive, not proactive. This is an administration of former account executives and campaign managers who deal in creating reality and spin, and persuading the client, us, the trusting American public.


 


These smooth operators with their “values” are  right out of the Watergate gang.


 


But the Watergate gang never killed tens of thousands of people in a week by their negligence. This administration has. Harsh. It’s what they did.  It’s right out there on the T.V. But they’re telling us they couldn’t help it. We all have to pull together. A standard line. Well I do not see this administration pulling together for an all out effort, yet. 


             



  1. America’s air fleet, commercial, military, and civilian seems to have vanished, as well as the railroads.

 


            One Train cleared down a mainline from Chicago to Orleans with 100 freight cars brings in the equivalent of 200 trucks loaded with supplies if you think of it. If you piggyback the trucks you get even more stuff down there fast. There was no supply train, and last night one of the talking heads said the tracks were being cleared into New Orleans. Hey, how bout bringing the train and stopping it somewheres North…and driving the trucks off it and down?


 


Obviously no contingency plans were ever established to command the commercial airfleets to move things out pronto. Why not? What do we have all these military bases in the south for, if not to use them to protect and save Americans instead of  looking pained on T.V. I tell you, friends, the talking heads do not look pained enough. How about one “I’m sorry.”


 


The excuse for no planes:  Michael Brown says the New Orleans and Gulfport Mississippi airports were closed because of damage. And  the New Orleans airport was used for humanitarian supply flights. There is more than one airport in Louisiana and one airport in Mississippi. In World War II the Seabees got bombed out airstrips ready in hours for use.


 


Couldn’t we plan on doing that with the airports in a disaster? There are airports in Lake Charles, La., 200 miles away with a 10,700 foot runway; and 2 airports in Alexandria, La,  223 miles away with 9,000 and 7,000 foot runways. There’s Shreveport, too, in the northwest corner of Louisiana, 347 miles out. Brown in another place says planes are being used to bring supplies in. Could we fly them over the city? Drop things, if they are? Why does not the AP clarify that obvious contradition?


 


Why couldn’t supplies and troops be flown there and convoyed in? Why was there no plan to use them? Brown’s explanation for no air relief is preposterous and is being let slide because of media ignorance. We have never yet been told where the trucks (that mighty convoy as far as the eye can see of 36 trucks. More vehicles line up at the Tappan Zee Bridge every morning.


 


That is pathetic, in this man’s opinion. 5 days and we get 36 trucks of men and supplies. If there are more trucks…how about a list of how many. We were told by Mr. Bush Wednesday that 400 trucks were on the way. Well, where are the other 364? They cannot tell you because I believe they don’t know and nobody’s counting them in.


 



  1. There is no contingency coordinated local strike force in place for fire, electric, phone service in these states.

 


       How many other states have squandered Homeland Security money and not upgraded their infrastructure force abilities? Westchester County has this kind of system.


 



  1. The military resource is not being used.

As I write this tonight, I have learned that according to the AP, 7,000 National Guard troops are expected by Saturday, again by truck. But the First Calvary Airborne could have have flown in and parachuted in like Wednesday. Protocol, hierarchy problems?  And is the U.S. Air Force still in business, Mr. Brown? Is this that Mickey Mouse state protocol nonsense.


 


Hello — Louisana, Mississippi and Alabama can’t handle it. We knew that Tuesday.


 



  1. The buses were not contracted for until the emergency had already happened.

            If they were, where were they, Mr. Brown and Mr. Chertoff and Mr. Bush? Meanwhile where’s Trailways, where are the double length buses as we have in Westchester County and New York City that hold more people. They used school buses at first then came the luxury buses.  And they did not get them in there en mass! How about Winnebagos? On Wednesday we were told the buses were going to arrive.  Are there 1,000 more buses in the country, somewhere?


 


             Now, because there is no accurate reporting of the numbers, i.e., no central command, we are getting conflicting reports about how many people are left to evacuate! I heard on CNN at 3:45 A.M. E.D.T. Saturday morning all had been evacuated fromthe Superdome. I heard Jessie Jackson say on the Larry King Show, there were 200,000 left to be evacuated.


     


            No one in government knows or tells what is going on.


 



  1. There is no backup.

 


The New Orleans Police Force, Louisiana State Police were trying as best they can but they were not being coordinated. Now we are told that they are not reporting for duty last night at many precincts. This tells me they had no backup from Texas, Arkansas, or other states. Those states are sending guys on an ad hoc basis!!!!!    No planning, no contingency escalation of response in place. No mutual aid agreements that work. If they were in existence, they did not practice enough.


 


The firemen, the police the emergency workers are trying, but they need coordination and backup and relief. They’re trying, but they just can’t do it. None there, folks. Nobody is stepping up until late Friday.


 



  1.  There are no African-American leaders in America.

 


Where is Jessie Jackson, Al Sharfton, Colin Powell, Judge Clarence Thomas, Diana Ross, Tina Turner, Run DMC, and the black Senator from Illinois recently elected – where are those voices? Where are the clergy of America? White or Black?


 


      Well, at 4 A.M. E.D.T. Jessie Jackson is being heard from. He is asked by Larry King do you think President Bush doesn’t care, Jessie says, “Well, he doesn’t show it.” Thanks, Jessie. Right on.


 


Well I will say what the black celebrities and “leaders” of American are not saying and should be saying,


 


 “You’re killing black people. This is negligent genocide. If they were white you’d be doing a better job.”


 


Well, a rap star said exactly this on NBC tonight. “They don’t care about black peole.” Thank you, sir! He said they have said it is all right to shoot us. And they did.


 


Thank you! 


 


 This is the American Hotel Rwanda down there in New Orleans. This is Mogudishu.  Remember the Congo atrocities? Well, America and the United Nations ignored them, too. They asked for help, and no one wanted to because they were black. No one cared about the butchering then, and I will say it, nobody in the Bush Administration, the U.S. Congress is caring enough now. 


 


 But remember Bosnia? There the victims were white. Remember the Tsunami. There, the victims were wealthy vacationers. Well, we helped them and intervened in two days as Soledad O’Brien pointed out to Michael Brown. Spunky questioning Soledad.


 


 As soon as Mogudishu citizens attacked our Marines we bailed out, taking the excuse to leave.


 



  1.  These are black people begging for help in there. Patiently. It looks like a slave camp. 

They are trusting the politicians for the umpteenth time. Like the American Indian did. You have a bunch of white elitists in Washington to whom it appears that saving these wonderful brave people is a nuisance and an impediment to their vacation. All I have is words and a brain, and I am writing this because all those poor people are the bravest, toughest people I’ve ever seen. And the weakest, dumbest, most inept leaders America has ever had cannot figure out how to help them. I do not understand that, ladies and gentlemen. Do you? Harsh. YES. But NOT HARSH ENOUGH.


 



  1. This Administration is in over its head.

They cannot do their jobs. They make things up as they go along. That’s what they have done for the last four years and 9 months. You know what folks? We Americans who get things done have their pathetic management to have to train for the next 3 years, 3 months and 28 days. I notice now it is 1 A.M. the good news is they are only in office for 3 years, 3 months and 27 days.


 


Hell, the cast of “The West Wing” could do a good a job as we have seen done by the FEMA Fumblers, and “Jive Five” of Bush, Cheney, Rice, Brown, Chertoff. No, they’d do better.


 


The Democrats could run a dead person against a Republican in any election next year and win, probably for the next 25 years.  The Bush Administration by their ineptitude and callous indifference to this situation are doing to the party what Herbert Hoover did to them in the early 30s.  The next Democratic Presidential Candidate’s commercials are being seen right now on TV:


 


Video: Pictures of President Bush saying on televison, “This is a temporary disruption being dealt with by the federal government and the private sector.”


And one word, superimposed,  “Remember?”  Leader, 2008.


 



  1. This Administration is sensitive. The poor dears.

 


Reports on the media last night said that Washington and the Pentagon were upset about the criticism because everybody was trying the best they can and this was a cataclysmic event.


 


You deserve the criticism. It was your job. Your mission all of you  except the persons out there actually doing the work on the ground and in the stench, the mire, the nightmare. And, Mr. Chertoff and Mr. Brown, go to New Orleans, get your Guccis wet with sewage. It’ll be good for you.


 


 You have bungled it worse than Custer at the Little Big Horn. Custer did not hold press conferences and stage photo ops when he was orchestrating his boondoggle because of his mismanagement and arrogance. He at least was very busy trying to rectify his misjudgment.


 


It is too bad the Indians did not let Custer live to hold one last press conference for Matthew Keough. The Indians were not media savvy. What is best punishment for the bright neat, self-satisfied elitists in this administration is to expose them to scrutiny.


 


They hate that.


 



  1. There is no real leader or leaders here.

 


The cries for help on the television screen tell me this. You have nobody coordinating, planning, putting out fires, orchestrating. Handing them a water for Christ’s sake. They are being guarded like they are in a concentration camp.


 


 Why are Brown and Chertoff  holding so many interviews and saying nothing. When they’re giving interviews, they are not making decisions. Mayor Giuliani, I believe gave very limited briefings when he was managing 9/11. And, when he gave interviews he said something and gave facts. He gave you progress reports. He hurt. Mr. Brown and Mr. Chertoff and Mr. Bush do not hurt.


 


Brown and Chertoff are not managing. They don’t know how. No wonder we cannot manage Iraq, they do not know how or what they are doing.


 



  1. There is no sense of responsibility here.

 


The faces of the African-Americans and the poorest of the poor on our screen, are bewildered, they trusted their government. Their governments in New Orleans, in Louisiana, Alabama, and Mississippi and Washington, D.C. has failed them utterly, irretrievably, because it did not care enough about them. It did not appreciate their trust. They forgot their oaths.


 



  1. The Army Corps of Engineers have no clue how to stop this flood. 

      They’re trying things. But, hey, what are you going to do. It’s a big hurricane. Their excuse, according to Mr. Brown to the Associated Press: No one knew the levees would break, they thought they would just overflow at best. They thought. They thought. They thought. Not only that but they had trouble getting materials in to attempt to stop the break.  They thought, but did not sadly, think.


   



  1. John D. Rockefeller and Jay Gould are Saints compared to today’s oil companies.

 


As Bill O’Reilly asked a very overweight, pompous administration think tank guy last night, why couldn’t the oil companies cut their profits 20% and spare the hit? You got to hand it to the oil companies. They raised the price from $1.50 a gallon in the spring for regular to about $2.50 by mid August before the hurricane hit, now they have it up to $3 for regular. That’s good old American capitalism folks. Bullshit. That’s Comanchero marketing.


 


The Comancheros were a roving band of white men, Mexicans and Indians who preyed on settlers in the Southwest in the 1800s, selling them into slavery.


 



  1. Politicians protect each other. They do not protect you. They do not care about you.

 


When the Senator of Louisiana, Mary Landreau can repeatedly thank the President, and Presidents Clinton and Bush and congress for passing $10 billion aid, and not utter one word of criticism, you can see all the powerful in Washington are circling the wagons.


 


I mean Anderson Cooper standing out in there in the middle of New Orleans, was incredulous as Ms. Landreau babbled thanks.


 


Then we have Bill Frist of Tennessee, a doctor, for crying out loud. He realizes the seriousness of this because he now knows he now has no shot at becoming the Republican Candidate for President in 2008 because of this incredible historic crackup by Mr. Bush and his Jive Five. Somebody’s going to swing for all this. My bet it is Mr. Brown. Maybe the American people will forget this by 2008. I do not think so.


 


I mean they’re all thanking each other for their efforts. What efforts? Do you see any, ladies and gentlemen?


 


Oh, of course the official lines are we must pull together. We are all trying. Well, hello out there, you’re not trying hard enough. You’re not thinking. You’re not coordinating. It’s all screwed up. The administration is worrying more about their image than the babies.


 


 


Here is what I do if I am the Senator from Louisana, I go into the convention center and the Superdome. I comfort my people. But it just might soil Ms. Landreau’s dress and she might gag a little. And, the Governor of Mississippi, how about walking the beach and and the wreckage, you damn fool.


 


Hell, the Mayor of New Orleans said it best. He said, “Get off your asses and do something.”


 



  1. Nobody did a What If.

 


Here is Mr. Brown’s excuses to the AP for why not everyone was evacuated. He told the AP people wouldn’t leave and that plans had to be “crafted” in the future to evacuate and shelter those who did not or in the New Orleans instance, could not leave. Well, why didn’t they think of that last week? 112,000 households I  believe do not own cars in that city. Brown on aid being available: Brown tells the AP food, water and teams were ready to move in but the levee breaks made it unsafe to move into many parts of the city. We move our boys and girls around in Baghdad, a  considerably more dangerous environment. What kind of excuse is that? And there were not enough boats.


 


Brown also says the National Guard had 10,000 National Guardsmen dispatched across the region but that road conditions hampered their arrival. Could the AP have asked why the roads were not cleared to make way as a priority?


 



  1. They are blaming the looting for failure to rescue and feed the people.

 


      This is such a subtle prejudice, and it started working its way into administration statements and media reports yesterday, and was resounding in Mr. Chertoff’s comments and Mr. Brown’s comments. Because it’s unsafe and there are roving gangs, we cannot send in rescue crews. These lawless people are preventing us from rescuing. This is the lie.


 


They are blaming the residents. Commentators are trashing the people looking for food, at first, then they are changing this to calling them all animals. This rationalizes shooting them because they are animals.


 


       Well, Mr. and Mrs. America, don’t let them play you  for fools. If you had no food and water, you might look for it too. No excuse for shooting people though. But they are crazed. Now we are ordering to shoot to kill, I read today. There are hungry white people looting houses in Biloxi and they are not shooting them, or even thinking about it.


 


Well, come on if the military was in on Tuesday, that would not be occurring. Don’t let them blame the victims for their own mismanagement, no inept,  response.


 


25. They are calling ahead for vacancies.


 


      When the Astrodome was closed after only 3,000 residents were reported taken in, then the number was reported as 12,000, then another time at 15,000, when the original reports were the Astrodome would hold 25,000 refugees, it was obvious, somebody in Washington, just came up with the idea of housing them in the Astrodome. They adlibbed this, I allege. How can you not figure out how many beds you can put in any place? How? And it was closed by the fire marshall. This means folks, they never checked with the fire marshall. They adlibbed this housing.


 


       Thank the Red Cross and the Salvation Army, otherwise we’d be in a 1930s roaming population situation, even more. But, why did not they put the Red Cross into New Orleans? At least by the Superdome and the Convention Center that was not too dangerous. Bad decision.


 


       But, have their been any good decisions made the last 5 days. NO!


 


       They’ve all been bad.


 


 (Part II Continues in a first look at the media handling.)

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Power Has No Evidence Mayor Was Ever Asked to Sign Global Warning Agreement.

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WPCNR CAMPAIGN 2005. By John F. Bailey. October 2, 2005: Mayor Joseph Delfino in personal letter to WPCNR has denied ever being asked to sign a global warming policy statement, and denied any knowledge of ever being contacted to sign it. Candidate for Mayor, Dennis Power, in a news release this week, criticised the Mayor’s record on the enviroment and chided the Mayor on not signing the agreement.


Dennis Power, when contacted by WPCNR for an explanation of why his release said the Mayor did not “participate,” and what his source was for reporting such an accusation, said he drew it from The New York Times report of August 25 and by his own “backtracking” through CleanAirClean Planet’s  past website in which he found copy saying the Mayor did not participate. Power wrote the Mayor did not sign the CleanAir Clean Planet pledge letter. 


 WPCNR asked Mr. Power to find who at CleanAir asked the Mayor “to participate” and “to sign” the document and what CleanAir’s motivation was for reporting the Mayor was not participating.


Mr. Power said he was working on that and would get back to WPCNR.

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No Evidence of Gas Gouging in Westchesta. Spano Moves to Cap Sales Tax

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WPCNR County Clarion-Ledger. By John F. Bailey. September 2, 2005: According to Westchester County Department of Communications spokesperson Donna Greene, speaking exclusively to WPCNR this morning, the county Department of Consumer Affairs has found no evidence that Westchester gas stations are price gouging.


Greene said the Department of Consumer Affairs in its price survey of gas stations Monday, and in a repolling of gas stations on Thursday, is asking service stations to provide their invoices showing what they paid to purchase gas from their wholesalers to scrutinize whether the individual stations are piling on the pennies per gallon. So far, Greene said, Consumer Affairs Commissioner Elaine Price is finding no evidence that stations are passing along any more than their costs, but the jury is still out Greene indicated.  Greene told WPCNR the local service stations must purchase their wholesale gas with cash upfront, thus playing catchup with their cash price increases to pay for deliveries. At this time, Greene said Price indicated to her that it would be difficult to bring a court case on gas stations based on the invoice paperwork Price has seen so far.


Meanwhile in a news release this afternoon, County Executive Andy Spano has moved to ask Albany to institute a series of moneysaving measures on gasoline. The Department of Communications release stated Executive Spano–






        • will ask the state to give the county the power to cap the county portion of the sales tax levy on gasoline,
        • will call upon the state to cap its portion of the sales tax as well,
        • will ask the federal government to lower the flat taxes it imposes on gas,
        • has directed the county Consumer Department to investigate  — using subpoena power if necessary — gas stations that might be gouging the public.

“People are suffering. We have to do something,” Spano said. “I want to save motorists a few dollars on every fill up and at the same time make sure that no business is taking unfair advantage of the crisis caused by Katrina.”

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White Plains Police: We WILL Be Watching This Weekend.

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WPCNR POLICE GAZETTE. From the White Plains Department of Public Safety. September 2, 2005: The White Plains Dept. of Public Safety encourages SAFE DRIVING throughout the Labor Day weekend. Traffic Safety checkpoints will be conducted by the Police Bureau for your driving safety. Drivers should not utilize hand held cellular telephones while operating a motor vehicle. DON’T drink and drive and always use the appropriate seatbelt and restraint device.

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Mayor Will Partner With AmeriCares for Hurricane Relief

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WPCNR CITY HALL CIRCUIT. From The Mayor’s Office. September 1, 2005: Mayor Joseph Delfino announced today that the City of White Plains will be partnering with AmeriCares to raise money to benefit the victims of Hurricane Katrina. The relief efforts will last for six weeks, and will include a fund drive by children from the City of White Plains Youth Bureau, a benefit concert, and collaboration with local businesses.


 


“The destruction caused by Hurricane Katrina is truly horrific, and stands as one of the worst natural disasters in the history of this great nation. I am asking all sectors of our community to help us to reach out to those in need throughout Mississippi, Alabama, and Louisiana, whose lives have been forever changed by this terrible disaster”, stated Mayor Joseph Delfino.


 The funds will directly benefit the AmeriCares Hurricane Relief Fund, which is currently being earmarked for the victims of Hurricane Katrina.


 


“The situation throughout the Gulf Coast area remains critical,” said Curtis R. Welling, president and CEO of AmeriCares.  “We are extremely grateful for the support of the City of White Plains, which will allow us to help those who are in great need at this difficult time.”


 


AmeriCares is a nonprofit humanitarian aid and disaster relief organization that supports long-term medical assistance programs and provides emergency relief in the U.S. and around the world.  Since it was established in 1982, AmeriCares has distributed more than $4 billion in humanitarian aid to 137 countries.  For more information, visit the AmeriCares web site at www.americares.org or call 1-800-486-HELP. 

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FEMA Fumbles. President Procrastinates. Gulf Coast Dies.

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WPCNR NEWS COMMENTARY. By John F. Bailey. August 31- September 1, 2005: As I start to write this column, the President of the United States has completed a “low pass” in Air Force One over New Orleans, Biloxi, and the tragically stricken Gulf Coast.


 


What is President Bush expecting to see? What has he been doing since Monday noon?


 


Well, he and his government are now demonstrating perhaps the worst performance of a Presidential Administration in a national crisis in the history of the republic.





I tell you what I’d have done Monday afternoon if I were President, I would have gotten on the phone to the Joint Chiefs of Staff and said, get every available chopper unit, med unit, guard unit, aircraft, supplies,  airlifts, on route to the gulf coast and have them there by 6 PM, pronto or you’re all fired. 


 


He and all the president’s men and women should have had the brains to do this Sunday night.


 


Well, Wednesday afternoon 48 hours after the storm had left, the government has decided to route navy ships and a hospital ship to the area. The first of them, with hospital services on board, copters, and rescue crews will not arrive until Saturday, according to the ship Commander.



Is there something wrong with your television picture? You cannot make this performance of our government up. It is beyond belief.


 


 It is beyond incompetent. It is negligent. It is stupefying.


 


Even the Mayor of New Orleans says he is very disappointed in the Federal Government response. He lost it Tuesday night on CNN, bitterly criticizing the Army Corps of Engineers. At least he is not playing the stern grim-faced news conference game played by the President’s Homeland Security Advisor, the FEMA head, and assorted other flunkies.


 


 President Bush’s administration has dropped the ball big time on preparation, planning, response, and strategic management of a disaster, which they knew was coming.


 


There are no excuses, Mr. Bush, Mr. Rove, Mr. Brown, Mr.  Homeland Security.


 


The buck stops with you all. Have you been seeing those people wading in waist-deep water because the Army Corps of Engineers had no plan to fix the levees if they broke?


 


In a news conference, the Army Corps of Engineers all but admitted this, saying they are going to try everything to see if they can stop the leaks. They have to get the materials first. They can’t get them there. Are you kidding me? It is a tad late to be ordering materials.


 


As I predicted right after 9/11, I predict there will be another congressional investigation of the decision making involved in disaster planning after this one.


.


As of  2 PM  the water level in New Orleans has risen to the level of Lake Pontchartrain.  Well take a look out to sea, or look at the radar. There are more tropical storms on the way out in the intertropical conversion zone in the Atlantic off Africa. The Army Corps of Engineers better figure out how to fix those levees pronto.


 


As I write this, the government is holding dueling press conferences assuring all that they are doing “working tirelessly to assure,” but what are they doing? They certainly did not work tirelessly planning for this storm, did they?


 


They are making this up as they go along because the governments, state and local, were not prepared for a Category 4 hitting the area.


 


The federal government  had no plans in place just in case the levies breeched. A MNBC reporter, Steve Handlesman, I believe,  revealed tonight that the big levy that broke was supposed to be new hurricane-proof levee.


 


Well, it did not work, he reported.


 


Now as I finish this article at 12:30 A.M., September 1, they still do not have enough choppers or boats to rescue people. They do not have provisions for feeding persons left homeless. They are not even dropping food and water.


 


This brain freeze defies reason.


 


This is incompetent planning by the Federal Emergency Management Administration, and demonstrates, unfortunately, a naïve attitude on the part of  the state governments of Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama in organizing disaster response, in not planning for the food/water situation at the very least. They could not have planned much. This storm was on the way for 3 days!


 


The brave workers rescuing are not at fault. They just have very poor planners organizing emergency response.


 


In Mississippi for example, emergency crews and counties cannot talk to each other because there are no communications. People there have no food, no gas. They are roaming. Total anarchy.


 


Now, where are the food airlifts? Where are the water rescue units? Local people are doing it.


 


Where are the emergency housing plans? (Note: the military can set up bases in mere hours halfway around the globe. Let’s use that expertise for America.)


 


Meanwhile, my hat is off to the rescuers doing what they can, flying until they are exhausted. I regret you are not being supported by your federal government.


 


If you think I am being too harsh, and Wednesday morning quarterbacking, you can say that.


 


I think it needs to be said that there has been no quarterbacking at all.


 


 The inept performance of FEMA and the Gulf State Governments themselves speaks for itself.


 


They never planned on what to do – to answer the question  “What if the levee goes?” “How do we get everyone out of here?” They never planned on feeding people if they did have to evacuate. It is grimly obvious. What did they think might happen? What did they they think the people were going to eat?


 


Here’s what should be happening and what should have happened if they had been thinking, and what President Bush, if he were President, should be ordering as I pound this out:


 



  1. Planes in waves airflifting in food and water to the folks on the rooftops. Let’s get the commercial airlines involved, and FEDEX, and of course, the Air Force. Where are they? Have we seen any? I mean the supplies of food, cots, and bedding are coming in by truck according to the President’s press conference yesterday afternoon at 5.  There are no roads, guys.

 



  1. MedEvacs handling the hospital evacuations – before the storm, and particularly now. Just now they are trying to identify hospital facilities to move sick persons to. Just now they are bringing military hospital teams.

 


      The President announced he was sending them Wednesday.


 


 



  1. Navy Seabees repairing the major Interstates into N.O. Where are they? Two days later and no pontoon bridges. We do that in Iraq fast enough.

 



  1. A repair plan for the levees. Not an adlib plan. Shame on the Army Corps. And speaking of the levees, the New Orleans Times Picayune reported two years ago the levees could not withstand a Category 3 and above hurricane and no move was made to raise the levees. The budget was cut by this same President. More incompetence and failure to pay attention to infrastructure.

 


 



  1. A strong military presence house-to-house moving people OUT before the storm hit and now they need a strong military presence protecting order.

6. A plan in place to build tent cities. The FEMA head Michael Brown was saying he may house them that way tonight. Well, where are they? How about having this thought out a little, Mike?


     


      We built tent cities for refugees abroad. Why not here? I mean the anchor on CNN asked Brown if he had misjudged the storm and he did not really answer the question. He should have been asked, why are the facilities coming in by truck and not  military cargo planes which can carry a lot more than trucks and do not need roads.


 



  1. Mobilization to address the environmental disaster: the polluted water, the collection of bodies, the collection of wreckage, and ruined vehicles. That has not even been thought of, because the initial response is inadequate. You are going to need a lot of dumpsters soon.

 



  1. The problem of the oil platforms in the gulf…which will they address first

…the humans or the oil company profits.


 



  1. Freezing gas prices right where they are (at pre- $70 a barrel)and making the oil companies participate in fixing the disaster, not contributing to the misery of all the people in the area who cannot get cash out of an ATM on the Gulf Coast to pay for the gas with cash, even if it was available.

 


WPCNR has learned from a correspondent in Atlanta that gas stations are reporting  no gas, and that they expected prices to rise to $5.00 a gallon in the Atlanta area.


 


 Let’s have the oil companies contribute to the economy for a change, Mr. President, instead of looting it. Freeze those prices, and stop the profiteering. Let’s remember the oil companies have jacked prices about $1.00 already since the beginning of the summer. Now we’re giving them another 50 cents?


 



  1. Find some way to get fuel into the gulf states. The oil reserve was the right move by President Bush. One good decision out of 10 is a lousy batting average in crisis management.

 


Now, here is the real question. Where was President Bush the 48 hours from Monday noon until Wednesday at 5? He has to have a task force meeting to figure out what to do?


I always thought you figured out what to do before disaster struck.


 


 The task force meeting was the latest spin coming out of the all-news stations and television outlets at noon on Wednesday as we were all waiting for Air Force One to make its leisurely pass over the Gulf Coast. But, note, the news conference was held at 5 PM…not in prime time.


 


Well, they have had 13 years of FEMA experience to prepare for big time hurricane disasters, and they have dropped the ball. Hundreds are dying, now about to starve because, hey, there’s no food in New Orleans. There’s a lack of water.


 


Wednesday evening, one official was leveling with the public, the Mayor of New Orleans predicted that thousands were dead in the city.  This would mean that the toll of Katrina would well exceed that of 9/11.


 


Where’s a leader when you need one?


 


Sadly, America has no leaders. We just have politicians. Timid, vicious people who do not step forward, but wait and see and distribute the blame when their own incompetence compounds problems. Where are the Senators and Congressmen screaming for faster response? Not one has spoke up.


 


Hell, where are the Cessnas and general aviation planes that could be used to fly in food? Water?  That’s what the Civil Air Patrol used to do?


 


Where were the supplies of water ready to go? The President said Wednesday afternoon,  400 trucks were being loaded today. Then Brown said on television last night, the trucks were loaded earlier but had trouble getting there. Again that kind of spinning is irresponsible. Get the story straight. Did we load them Wednesday, or are they somewhere stuck in traffic?


 


 Where are the military cargo transports? We can drop water on forest fires in California…but not food for our American brothers and sisters in a disaster?


 


This week we are seeing first hand the incompetence of created bureaucracies in action. Only this time it is costing lives due to their negligence and inability to plan or even think how to handle “the worst case scenario.”


 


They have played a hunch and the citizens of the Gulf Coast is the victim of their malfeasance.


 


So somebody has to take charge of this situation.


 


It is the President’s job.


 


But Mr. Bush’s handlers are already saying well, he’s cut short his vacation to take charge. Well, do tell. What a good job!


 


How about picking up the phone, Mr. President and taking some action Sunday afternoon?


 


Friends I met in Lake Placid Sunday were telling me, well New Orleans was going to be destroyed. What were your advisors telling you?


 


No excuses. Everyone knew this was coming. This was no 9-11.


 


Wasn’t Mr. Bush a Boy Scout?


 


Well he was not prepared. He is not serving. He is not even thinking. How can you go to San Diego to give a speech when three states have had their guts ripped out?


 


How can you not personally, before the hurricane hits, check in with the states “in harm’s way” (one of Mr. Bush’s great overworked phrases),  and assure yourself that Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama have everything ready and in place in case just this thing happens? Or order in backup battalions. Or take charge, and say, you know, we’re sending in the marines anyway.


 


Talk and words which I write, are cheap.


 


Action takes brains, guts, savvy, and judgment. I have them this President does not.


 


 


Well I did not see those qualities from any official in Mr. Bush’s administration in the last 72 hours. Just calming blathering. Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama people are coping as best they can, but their government has let them down.


 


Mostly African-Americans from New Orleans poorest neighborhoods, they have shocked looks on their faces, not believing what has happened to them, and still is happening to them. They are so damn brave, it brakes your heart. With spirit.


 


And what a great idea: School buses to Houston? How about buses to a flotilla of commercial 747s in the nearest functioning jetport? Bus them to the jets. Come on Delta, we’re ready when you are.


 


And, hey, how long does it take to go from San Diego to D.C.? 6 hours right? The President could have been back in D.C. at nightfall Tuesday night.  Instead all his other flunkies are holding news conferences for him and giving no specifics, filling time until all the president’s men decide what do we do now?


 


But the longer the President was in the air, the longer he did not have to deal with the problem. I mean has any reporter asked why he has not left San Diego a little earlier? I mean they must have flown Air Force One at Cessna speed.


 


Sounds a lot like the Mr. Bush performance in 9-11. Doesn’t it?


 


Sadly, brains, savvy, judgment and guts are lacking in the Commander-In-Chief, who once again has left the bridge in a crisis, abdicates command, and shows he does not know how to act decisively when the nation needs that from somebody. No one in this administration acts decisively.


 


No excuses. I don’t want to hear “This was a big storm.”


 


Ask the poor people I watched on television tonight, who are 90% African-American, elderly, and young, if they think their government is doing a good job. How about the rescuers greeting those rescued with a bottle of donated Poland Spring. That would be a nice product tie-in on a real reality show.


 


Let’s hear an airhead ask that question, just once. And put the answer on.


 


Nobody in government aside from the Marines, our Navy, Air Force, Coast Guard, and the Army gets things done.


 


On talk radio Wednesday, a member of the 101st Airborne in Fort Bragg, said his unit is dying to go in and help, saying they could parachute in.


 


The military is there ready to help their own people.


 


It was not until 5 PM Wednesday that our President said he was ordering 10,000 more National Guard troops to go to N.O., that 400 trucks were on the way, that navy ships were on the way, and then taking a leaf from some local politicians, he does not take any questions.


 


I want to repeat that. The President did not take any questions on the biggest damn disaster this country has ever seen.


 


He said one other thing: four pathetic words that say a lot:


 


After listing the four priorities the task force was going to oversee and detailing the trucks, the ships, the medical supplies, and other steps, the President added brightly, 


 


 “And we’re just starting.”


 


Exactly, we’re just starting.


 


48 hours too late for thousands of persons they could not evacuate in time. 48 hours too late for those on rooftops in attics waiting for the rescue they thought would come.

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Mayor Delfino Responds to Dennis Power’s Charges on Global Warming “Snub”

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WPCNR MR. & MRS. & MS. WHITE PLAINS VOICE. By Mayor Joseph Delfino. August 31, 2005: The Mayor of the City of White Plains responds to his challenger, Dennis Power, who in a news release chided the Mayor for not signing on to an anti- global warming initiative:



Mayor Joseph Delfino. Photo, WPCNR News Archive.


John, I would appreciate the opportunity to respond to the statements made
by Mr. Power regarding the environment.

Thanks

Mr. Power’s charges are without merit. No one from the organization that Mr.
Power is referring to ever contacted me about participating in this noble
cause. I truly wish Mr. Power had simply picked up the phone and called me
about this letter rather than accusing me of not caring about the
environment. I have always been a proponent of environmental protection
initiatives and will continue to advocate for preservation of our vital
resources. I recently received the endorsement of the New York League of
Conservation Voters (NYLCV), because of my proven commitment to preserving
and protecting the environment.


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Most recently, I joined with more than 140 Mayors from across the United
States in signing the U.S. Mayors Climate Protection Agreement, which was
spearheaded by Mayor Greg Nickles of Seattle, WA. The agreement was passed
unanimously at the June 2005 National Meeting and has since garnered more
than 30 additional signatories. The agreement calls upon local
municipalities to take a more proactive approach towards environmental
protection. The agreement is a natural fit for the City of White Plain as we
have instituted numerous policies aimed at protecting the environment.

In fact, my administration has implemented the strongest environmental
program in the history of our city. My open space initiative has resulted in
the acquisition of numerous parcels throughout White Plains including the
D’Elia property which is a 6 acre parcel of environmentally sensitive land
that was slated for development. This purchase was the first time in decades
that the City had bought land for open space preservation and we have
continued acquiring other parcels. To date we have acquired more than 44
acres of open space.

I was also able to obtain unanimous support for the first ever open space
policy that protects natural resources and endangered species in White
Plains. In fact, environmentalists have called my Environmental Protection
Initiative one of the best in Westchester County. Additionally, the City of
White Plains has won awards for our alternative fuel vehicle program. Our
fleet includes nearly forty cars, trucks, and pieces of off-road equipment
which run on ethanol, compressed natural gas (CNG) and battery electric
power, and we are one of a handful of fleets in New York with actual
emissions reduction documentation.

We also established a citywide ordinance which prohibits the idling of a
diesel vehicle for more than three minutes. To insure our own compliance
with this rule, all medium and heavy duty Dept. of Public Works vehicles are
equipped with anti-idling devices which electronically shut off the engine
if they sense that the truck is not moving, nor performing stationary
power-take-off work.

We have also put into place environmental safeguards which require outside
developers and contractors to implement similar practices for their
construction vehicles (i.e., use of alternative fuels, ultra low sulfur
diesel, and latest technology diesel engine controls and emission reduction
devices). Before I was elected Mayor, very little was done in the area of
environmental protection in White Plains.

Working together with environmental groups, the Common Council, and members
of the community, we were able to make a real difference. It is that same
spirit of cooperation that will enable us to continue making real strides in
the future.


Mayor Joseph Delfino

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Hurricane Relief Check Donations Being Accepted by White Plains Red Cross

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WPCNR HEARTBEAT. August 31, 2005: The American Red Cross in White Plains advised WPCNR that residents desiring to pitch in and help the victims of Hurricane Katrina, can send checks to American Red Cross, 106 North Broadway, White Plains, NY, 10603, and mark on the check, how you would like the money used to help. Mark the checks “Hurricane Katrina,” and the Red Cross will forward the money to the national organization.

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Power Launches Campaign Chiding Mayor for Global Warming Snub.

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WPCNR CAMPAIGN 2005. From PowerforMayor. August 30, 2005: Dennis Power, Candidate for Mayor of White Plains has issued a statement on the city’s failure to support environmental initiatives to control global warming:


“Global warming is affecting everyone and it must be dealt with at the local level as well as at the state, national and international levels. It is discouraging that the Mayor of White Plains was not one of the signers of a letter to the governors of New York and eight other Northeast states urging the adoption of a regional plan to regulate greenhouse gases that contribute to global warming. Mayors and Supervisors of six Westchester municipalities and nearby neighbors in Connecticut, including Stamford, Bridgeport and New Haven, were part of a team of forty-two officials in the Northeast who are making it a policy priority to reduce global warming pollution.


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As reported in The New York Times August 25, leaders of mostly small to medium-size cities released a general outline of the plan called the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative. Coordinated by the environmental group, Clean Air-Cool Planet, the group emphasizes the benefits of reduced carbon pollution to local communities and fully supports the ongoing development of a cap-and-trade system for the power sector to lower carbon pollution across the Northeast.


 


“The White Plains administration must begin to think globally and act locally, especially when it comes to environmental issues. Being in the forefront with other regional leaders is important, but putting environmental planning into concrete action is critical. As Mayor, I will call for researching the very latest in clean-burning and alternative fuels and attempt to integrate their use into the city’s vehicles and buildings. I know that we can require by ordinance the use of low sulfur fuels. Having a few hybrid vehicles is a good first step, but does not put us in the forefront of modern technology. We need to apply energy-saving  approaches to more city vehicles, as well as to our buildings.


 


I would also encourage the use of solar photovoltaic cell arrays wherever possible. White Plains should be encouraging ‘green’ building design for new developments. I would also encourage pilot projects for the use of alternative biofuels, such as pelletized fuels, in compliance with the Governor’s request. This use of alternative fuels and energy sources would enable us to reduce our use of oil, reduce carbon emissions and enhance air quality in our region, thereby improving respiratory health and reducing health care costs. White Plains should show by example and be a regional model in reducing emissions.


 


“Smart environmental growth calls for the placement of air quality monitors in downtown areas to make sure we are in compliance with federal and state air quality standards. The one air quality monitoring station we have up by the water plant should be moved to the heart of downtown. We can then better understand the problem of air pollution, and effect policy change if needed.


 


“I would also like to see some small shuttle transportation around the city to alleviate the heavy traffic congestion and reduce carbon monoxide emissions. I would encourage, through economic rewards, car pooling for the large  businesses and organizations in our city. This would also be of tremendous help to so many seniors around the city who have no way to travel when shopping for food and other necessities.


 


“White Plains needs to be in the forefront on important issues such as enhancing environmental quality and needs to cooperate with regional government partners in effecting positive change. We must act locally and think globally. When a group of forward-thinking officials takes a stance on improving the quality of life for millions of people in the Northeast, White Plains needs to stand with them.”


 


Dennis Power is the Democratic and Working Families Party candidate for Mayor and a former member of the White Plains Common Council. He is a 26-year resident of White Plains.

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Akron Racers Win Pro Fastpitch Championship, 5-4, Juggernauts fall 6-3.

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WPCNR PRESS BOX. August 29, 2005: The New York Juggernaut fell 6-3 to the Chicago Bandits in the twilight Saturday night in Lisle, Illinois, on a three-run homer by Jennie Finch off Jodie Cox in the last of the seventh. The loss ended the Nauts’ bid to repeat as National Pro Fastpitch Champions.


The Akron Racers, eased past the Texas Thunder 1-0 in Saturday evening’s nightcap to move on to the NPF Championship game against the Banditas Sunday afternoon.


It was the Racers’ Day, as the Akrons overcame a 4-run deficit, beating the Bandits and Finch in extra innings, 5-4 to win the second NPF Championship.

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