Shoot Them, For They Have No Water

One New Orleans resident describes the conditions in her apartment building as the flood waters began to rise. Within thirty minutes, the water had risen above the level of the front door. The force of the onslaught tore the door from its hinges. As the water level rose, the family living on the first floor began to pound on the ceiling and scream for help. The pounding grew gradually weaker, and finally ceased. The woman reporting all of this was one of the lucky. She found her way to the attic, and furiously pounded on the roof until a portion gave way, allowing her to climb up on the roof where she was rescued by a passing boat.

Over in the convention center, where thousands of people were told to seek shelter, there is no food, no water, no relief from the stifling heat. A frustrated group of refugees finally broke through the doors of the food court, where they discovered palettes of food and drink.

So what's the big concern for our friends on the right side of the aisle? Looters. Here's a sampling of blog entries from the right:

BARKING MOONBAT EWS -- Shoot To Kill

ANKLE BITING PUNDITS -- The Bleeping Looters - Shoot Em

BOORTZ -- Should we shoot to kill looters?

Now, here's the thing -- this is a tragedy of incomprehensible proportions. Some unknown number of people were trapped in their homes and apartments after Katrina passed, when they had reason to believe they were safe, as the breached 17th Street Canal began to empty the contents of Lake Pontchartrain into New Orleans. We should be concerned for them.

Some unknown number of people are trapped in their homes, safe from the flood waters, but without fresh water, without food, without electricity, without the means to travel. Some of them are sick, some will become sick. Some have alredy died because their medicine ran out or the oxygen tanks were empty; others will die. We should be concerned for them.

Hundreds of thousands of residents of New Orleans were able to evacuate when the call came. Most of them, when they return -- if they return -- will find their houses uninhabitable, ruined by the flood waters, contaminated by sewage and sludge and God-knows-what. We should be concerned for them.

Some unknown number of tourists were trapped in New Orleans, booted out of their hotels, and sent to the Super Dome or the Convention Center to fend for themselves, to attempt to survive among the tens of thousands of other refugees struggling to cope with the lack of food and water and toilet facilities. We should be concerned for them all.

And yes, there were looters, some who foraged for the necessities of life, and others who saw an opportunity to steal that which they might not otherwise have been able to obtain. And what were they going to do with their newly acquired bounty? Wade through the sludge to return to their flooded homes? Park their fancy new television on their porch and wait weeks or even months for the electricity to be turned back on?

A funny thing happens to a town -- any town -- when there's no law enforcement. The lawless run amok. There were criminals in New Orleans before the flood and during the flood. But law enforcement was rendered powereless. There was no way to patrol the streets, no way to communicate with one another, no way to know where they were needed. And the criminal element, never known for its cerebral capacity, was smart enough to know that they could do what they wanted.

But rather than offer mindless remedies such as "shoot them all," shouldn't we be wondering why New Orleans wasn't immediately flooded with National Guard soldiers? Shouldn't we wonder why the President didn't immediately muster every available resource? Shouldn't we wonder why it wasn't until September 1, five days after the start of this tragedy, that the first food drops were made?

And there's plenty more to wonder about in the coming weeks, months, and years. Why weren't the warnings heeded? Why were flood protection funds slashed? What in the world did George Bush mean when he said "I don't think anyone anticipated the breach of the levees" when, in fact, everyone anticipated the breach of the levees?

But you know, right now our thoughts and prayers should be with the victims of the storm, whether in Louisiana or Mississippi or Alabama or Florida. "Shoot them all" may have a nice sound to those who like that sort of thing, but it's not much comfort to the victims.