Katrina hearings re-run beginning now C-Span2. Bear with some of

[cantstandbush]

the witnesses. Mama D rambles at first but eventually gets down to specifics. Especially watch the women who testify about how they were treated by NG and military. Just watch the whole damn thing so you don't have to guess about what is rumor and what is fact.

[cantstandbush]

1. By the way, have plenty of tissues handy and maybe a good drink. n/t

[Sapphire Blue]

2. K & R!!!

[AuntPatsy]

3. I will turn it on now.

[deminks]

4. Watching. Thanks! nt

[Al-CIAda]

5. If Moma D is anything like she is at the weekly town hall meetings

in N.O., look out! She's going to turn that place out!

[No Exit]

40. She was great, and she absolutely looked like New Orleans

personified.

I know there are plenty of people from New Orleans who have nothing to do with, you know, voodoo society, or Marie Laveau's legacy, or just the "rich culture" that everyone talks about, or Dooky Chase, Buster Holmes, etc.--but to this here "whitey" who lived in N.O. for many years, that woman looked like the personification of New Orleans. And she lives on N. Dorgenois.

[Lindsay]

6. Thanks for the heads-up.

I saw the tail end of the hearing, and wanted very much to see the entire thing.

[Sapphire Blue]

7. kick

[AuntPatsy]

8. Listen to this woman now.

[AuntPatsy]

9. A woman claiming this administration guilty of genocide with regards

to the victims of NO...

[No Exit]

42. Mama D showed the compassion that certain people are known

for. There are people in this world who will forgive you no matter what you do. No matter what. And she is of those people: she referred to George W. Bush as "poor baby" and said she didn't blame him.

Another of the women testifying was a bit closer to reality as *I* see it--and she DID blame George W. Bush, and named him.

[AuntPatsy]

10. New Orleans NOT for sale, whoever these people are, they will NOT

eliminate our people..very powerful voice from this woman..she looks ready to burst in to tears any moment, she cannot understand why this is continuing here in this countr, she is fifth generation.

[Lindsay]

11. She speaks in powerful

poetry, doesn't she - Dyan French. Awesome.

[AuntPatsy]

12. I agree, I have chills listening to this woman.

[AuntPatsy]

13. I didn't come to represent me, I came to represent those people

sitting on the streets right now, less than five hundred thousand people spread over five states, why? They still have a half a billion to spend and yet say they are out of money, they meaning fema...

[Anita Garcia]

58. Truth to Power

"Katrina didn't do this. The isms did this."

"What insane group of people separated the children?...Where are our children?...Where are our deceased?...Where are our rights as Americans?"

"Why are some parts decorated for Christmas and not others?"

"Why can we go to the Tsunami and New York and get this straight"

"How is that we can create an agency to buy our land 'cuz it's not good enough but we can't buy it?"

"New Orleans is not for sale...we ain't going no where."

"Who come rescue with guns, no life vests, no supplies?"

- Momma D (Dyan French) C-SPAN evacuee hearing

[AuntPatsy]

14. How were we supposed to get out? Fly, get out on a broom,

she blames mr bush for all this, those la folk, she wants to thank General Enre, and eighty second airborne, they only ones who did not call filthy names, they smiled and brought peace and love..

[AuntPatsy]

15. Everyone should be listening to this woman's account of the

aftermath of Katrina, omg, we should be forced to listen to her! Its our duty as Americans to ensure other citizens are taken care of, this is more than an outrage, this is blight on our nation that such even happened never mind continues.

[berner59]

17. Wait until Shays accuses these women of lying....

Hell hath no fury like that of poor black women really pissed off...this gets even better in a little bit...

[No Exit]

46. Yeah... if he thought they'd start crying, he SURE hasn't been to N.O.!

[cantstandbush]

54. What really got me was hearing about guns pointed at children's

heads. And hearing how the woman's son was called the "N" word by the authorities on the scene. And then to learn that over 6,000 children are STILL MISSING!!! Where the hell is the outrage? This just so heartbreaking.

Do any of you think anything will be done about this...ever?

[libnnc]

16. Shays you bastard!

You're gonna sit there and listen to Dyan French.

Asshole sitting there looking impatient...

[AuntPatsy]

18. STill living in a ightmare, still crying day after day, this is so heart

breaking..a shameless kick to keep it visiable

[WarNoMore]

19. Wait til you hear Buyer.

I was screaming at the jerk.






on edit--it must have been the 2d round of questions. sorry.

[AuntPatsy]

20. Oh wow, who is this tool trying to trivalize the death of so many?

[Ms. Clio]

21. Oh god watching it now watching that jackass deny those people's reality

And he's a fucking idiot who doesn't know that concentration camps go back to the Boer War,and didn't originally come equipped with gas chambers.

These hearings will live in infamy, and in the work of historians for decades, for the rest of this nation's existence.

[AuntPatsy]

22. Mr Miller wants to know what the victims would have him ask

the president?

Dyan French, one incredible elightnened and amazing woman as have been all those speaking in defense for so many.

[AuntPatsy]

23. For the mayor, they want to have answers why more is not

being done.

[No Exit]

24. Republican Rep. Ryan of Florida is offended

because one of those black New Orleanian women called a place near the interstate and Causeway Blvd. a "concentration camp."

She said she and several relatives were in a crowd going out of Orleans Parish, through neighboring Jefferson Parish, getting away.

They were herded into a sort of fenced-off area that was either under, or part of, the interstate and a large highway called Causeway Blvd. (which has interstate-style ramps.) And the Jefferson Parish cops, and/or military helpers, used guns to keep them walled in.

She called it a "concentration camp." Mr. Ryan was offended. (Not sure why... he's not even from Jefferson Parish, LA...) Arguing ensued.

Give him hell, lady!

[AuntPatsy]

25. Shays acting like an ass, ;-( How dare he look like this whole

interview is boring him

[AuntPatsy]

26. Terrol Williams wants to know why everything was so disogranized.

Shay asking if Patricia Thompsan got help. She says yes, in Texas, they helped her get a house etc. Keys to the house before they even got vouchers.

Thanking the people of America for their outpouring of aid and compassion..

One lady said I have nothing to give, woman told her her love was enough...Leah Hodges speaking...

A tree fell on someone's house, fema said there was no damage..

Shay saying fema got basically blamed for everything, Leah says they deserve it..he is a jackass.

[AuntPatsy]

27. Leah saying fema argued with them, were rude, put down

wrong information on forms that were used for getting help so they could be ignored and or tied up in red tape..

Leah Hodges saying fema foolish, they were criminal in many aspects of how they treated those in need.

[Ms. Clio]

30. "Do you have confidence in the number of dead being reported

by authorities," McKinney asks.

And they all responded, "No!"

[AuntPatsy]

32. Nor do I, why isn't the media being more diliigent as they were

during those first days? It is like they have conviently put these people on the back burner and only give a few sound bites very widely spaced apart..

Conspiracy? Ignore the facts which in fact need to be found with questions, so NO questions? therefore no media?

[Ms. Clio]

38. It's never mentioned at all--remember the 9/11 body count was constantly

discussed; and the recovery of the bodies hugely emphasized? This has just been completely different, and it's just so incredibly and bone-chillingly obvious.

I can't believe I didn't know about this until I signed on tonight--thanks to the OP and you for this thread!

[AuntPatsy]

45. I thank the Op as well for shaming me into insuring I watched it.

I have no excuse that I didn't watch it earlier and I humbly applogize to the American people for my lack of ignorance.

[No Exit]

48. I know for a fact this is true.

My friends from N.O. and Mississippi went through it. Regarding the federally-backed flood insurance, some of them are still going through it.

[AuntPatsy]

28. Shay is being obnoxious seriuosly acting like they dont even

deserve to be heard..

Im surprised these women don't rise up and pop him one..

[Ms. Clio]

31. I missed most of this--supposed to be repeated at 11:55?

[AuntPatsy]

33. Im not sure but I would not be suprised if this is repeated

at least once every day this coming week.

[No Exit]

37. Not sure, but catch it if you can. It's absolutely high drama!

[Ms. Clio]

41. From reading this thread, I see Shays basically called somebody a liar

Unbelievable.

[No Exit]

49. He called at least 3 of them liars!

And then he said, "You're under oath, you know."

Fuck him and his intimidation tactics. Even a looter would have more credibility than he does. (Of course, being a republican congress member, he IS by definition a looter.)

[AuntPatsy]

50. Ahhh, he's a republican, that explains it now.

[No Exit]

53. He is the epitome of the out-of-touch

"white man". Any white who sees his performance should be able to understand the disconnect that sometimes occurs between whites and blacks.

[Ms. Clio]

51. Infuriating that an elected official would treat American citizens

in such a bullying and dismissive fashion. I think my blood pressure will go through the roof watching that.

[No Exit]

52. Yes--THEY are OUR servants! Our public servants!!!

But don't ever say that over in freepsterville. Those people actually think we are all here to sustain a luxurious, dignified, Important existence for the occupants of congress and the white house.

[AuntPatsy]

29. These women feel they are the only hope many victims have..

All very well stated their cases and anyone who was not moved has no soul, Shay has NO soul...

who is he?

[Lindsay]

34. I noticed most of the Repug reps seemed to want to convince

the witnesses that the local government was entirely to blame.

There to get the talking points out, not to listen.

[AuntPatsy]

36. It was something I noticed too, shame on me, I didn't realize

how bad it still was...

[No Exit]

43. Exactly! They're keeping score, while these women are just telling

what NO ONE DENIES was a true horror story.

And the repuke puds are keeping score: "That's 3 who blamed the governor vs. 1 who blamed the president... did you get that down? Oh, and that Dyan French woman, she blamed Mary and Mitch Landrieu once--did you get that down?"

[No Exit]

35. Everything she's saying about FEMA is true!

"They are rude to you on the phone, they keep you waiting for weeks, months, etc., with no clue of what's going on..."

All true. All true. And it's happening to whites, too--and it's happening to property owners, and business owners, too! I say that, b/c those damn repukes had better realize, that if they couldn't care less that FEMA is giving a bunch of democrat "poor blacks" the runaround, they could at least worry that FEMA is ALSO giving the runaround to people who vote republican.

My N.O. friends (who left behind a 100% ruined, flooded house and its contents) have re-located here, in my city. They didn't have a permanent phone, so we told them to give our home phone number to anyone they wanted to have call them back.

One night, for example, I got a call at 9:30 p.m. It was some woman, asking for Mr. Jones, my New Orleanian friend. The woman didn't sound professional. She didn't seem to know what exactly she wanted. I asked her who she was. She said she was from FEMA and said, can you give me his number. (He'd just gotten his own number.)

I hesitated b/c she didn't sound like she was from FEMA--she sounded, frankly, like a crank caller or something. She got very offended when I hesitated. Finally I bit the bullet and gave out my friend's new phone number.

Luckily, she DID turn out to be from FEMA.

These friends, older New Orleanians, have had many contacts with FEMA and with the federal-backed flood insurance people--some in person, some by phone, some by letter. Almost never do they speak to the same person twice. They've been given a small advance, since they clearly DO have flood insurance. But they still haven't been paid for the value of what they lost.

It's runaround city with FEMA/the feds/federally-backed flood insurance. And if my friends didn't have retirement income which is portable, they'd be up shit's creek--as are thousands of other displaced people, b/c NOBODY CAN GET ANY ANSWERS, even now.

[AuntPatsy]

39. Did you hear Dyan saying that Fema still had over a billion dollars

that was supposed to be going to the victims and as of today still has yet to be accounted for?

[No Exit]

44. Yes, she said even if they'd given each victim a million bucks,

they'd still have something like 10 billion or so left.

[AuntPatsy]

47. Unbelievable, should be front page news every day until

Fema answers to that obscene amount of missing funds...

[cantstandbush]

55. On 4 "recommended?" Don't you folks think this should be top news?

I am amazed. This is info about the fascist state and how it treats citizens. It could be you in the next catastrophe.

[FreedomAngel82]

56. I watched a few minutes of it earlier

and wow. One republican chair guy was so rude to them and tried to not get them to compare it to the concentration camps since no one was put into gas chambers etc. but it's still appropriate with how they were treated. Especially in their own homes by the military! But I read that they had a private group called Blackwater or something like that. Wouldn't surprise me since I think martial law is illegal in the country.

[Lars39]

57. Here's link to Blackwater site. They're mercenaries.

http://www.blackwaterusa.com/