September 10, 2005
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SATURDAY PHOTOAs the flood waters recede in the south (see photo), FEMA would like you to know that there are WAY less dead bodies than we ever need to worry about and therefore the news media is not allowed to come aboard on retrieval missions thank you very much. Well, that’s not going to fly folks. CNN, for one, is suing. See article. Doesn’t it kind of remind you of the no body bag pictures from the various wars we seem to keep starting? Personally, I totally see that folks might not want to see their dead relatives’ bodies on TV. I don’t think this is about that. The photographers can photograph in a way that doesn’t reveal specific identities. But, come on, how tasteful is death by drowning and isn’t this really about covering up the whole disaster the administration has compounded? So anyway, I’ve noticed a major sanitizing of Katrina going on in the media this week – stories about pets reunited with their owners and “happy endings of all kinds. FEMA director Brown got axed and is clearly taking all the heat that should be going to his superiors who hired him in the first place. Some evacuees are about to arrive in my own city and already I hear murmurs about “safety issues” for both them and us. It’s trickling down -stay tuned.
Deep Thought: “Instead of half-mast, maybe you could fly a flag at three-quarter-mast for a guy who’s in a coma. Then, if he gets worse, the flag gets lower, or if he gets better, it starts to move up, so you can just look at the flag and see how he’s doing.”
Today I am grateful for: Valves
Guess the Movie: “ Which one of you nuts has got any guts?” Answer: One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, 1975.
Winner: tearsign.
Katrina Fuels Global Warming Storm
by Alister Doyle
OSLO – Hurricane Katrina has spurred debate about global warming worldwide with some environmentalists sniping at President George W. Bush for pulling out of the main U.N. plan for braking climate change. (Rest of article here.)
End of Day: 8:58 pm
+ = Everything is actually all fine.
- = Burying head in sand.
Comments (11)
I’m not that educated about the media and the bodies. As a former journalist, I think access and open policies are critical. However, if it were my loved one, I don’t know if I want CNN there filming the corpse. Seems ghoulish, really.
Yeah, I read the article on that. Looks like CNN won the battle and are allowed to go. It’s not the workers’ say to decide if the media should film it or not (I mean, we can film dead bodies if they’re beheaded or blown up in war), but I have to say I kinda’ understand. In SCUBA diving, it’s not unusual for wreck divers to find bodies (in shipwrecks) but there’s some reverence about photographing or moving those bodies (which may have been there for decades).
Oh and the movie: the fountain throwing One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest.
You betcha – McMurphy.
Katrina should be spurring mighty debate…
Katrina was not a nice lady!
CNN won, they get to go in, however I dont have cable so unless network news is able to show them i’ll miss that, not that i want to see it , it just shouldnt be kept secret.Very reminescent of Vietnam .
I was happy to hear the liar was fired ! How could a person pad a resume , take on such a responsibilty without the right knowledge, thats crazy. What was he thinking , what was Bush and the others thinking who hired him?
A change is in the air , good or bad I feel somethng has shifted.
Peace and Love:)
I dont watch many movies, no guess on that .
Yes, the spin doctors are working overtime. Its sick and sad.
The body thing is a touchy issue and I think most of us don’t want to see them but I think its important that it be recorded as evidence of how the government terribly mismanaged this crisis and therefore helped cause these deaths.
Dear Lionne,
I ‘m sure you know that the “powers that be” which includes the media wants our heads to remain buried in the sand when it comes to “the truth” which has never been pretty. They will always tell us “it’s for our own good” as they lie to us and try to pander to us. Yes, this is exactly like the body bags photos. It’s very tragic that the greatest country in the world still feels a need to lie to the people who supposedly “run” it.
Michael F. Nyiri, poet, philosopher, fool
The “spin doctors” are definitely hard at it to divert us and get their light-and-mirror show going! Great comments.
I just heard that some hospital was flooded to the second floor. Just insane. And by the way? Re: global warming? Now is not the time to play the blame game. Or hadn’t you heard? :p
This whole crisis of katrina must make us email our senators and the president about global warming. Gobal warming caused Katrina we need to take political action on that so it doesn’t happen again. Thanks for the good thoughts Andrea. Judi
I’m an appreciative reader. Thanks for all you do and say.