Progressive Democrat Issue 42: THOUGHTS

Every year as the anniversary of the 9/11 attacks approaches, I am forced to reflect on that day--the sound of the planes hitting; the shocked faces of thousands of people walking uptown, away from the horror; the ashes of the WTC falling like a light snow over my neighborhood that night; the realization that SOMEONE has just attacked the city I live in. Since that day we have learned the identity of that SOMEONE who perpetrated the attack and we also have learned that America had some warnings of the 9/11 attacks. I have felt rage at Bush and the Republicans for their failure to heed those warnings and for their failure to capture Osama bin Laden. That rage continues to this year, the fourth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks with the Bush administration never having admitted their failure to heed the warnings and still failing to get the people responsible for the attacks.

But this year is different. This year my rage at the Bush administration for its failures regarding the 9/11 attacks is actually overshadowed by a new rage. Before 9/11 we knew attacks were planned, but we didn't know WHEN. With hurricane Katrina, the Bush administration had not only warnings of what would happen if a category 3 or higher hurricane hit near New Orleans, but they also had every weather channel in the nation tracking Katrina as it headed right for Louisiana and Mississippi. This time, Bush knew EXACTLY WHEN disaster was going to hit America. And he still failed to do anything. I was amazed at his lack of leadership after 9/11, but after Katrina hit, he was even worse, continuing to enjoy a vacation as thousands of Americans died and suffered. Furthermore, Bush again is refusing to take responsibility for his failures to be prepared. Bush and the Republicans cut funding for repairing the New Orleans levees, an act that is directly responsible for most of the flooding of New Orleans. They need to admit their mistakes! Their failure to heed warnings and admit mistakes killed Americans on 9/11 and killed Americans in New Orleans. What’s next?

Hurricane Katrina showed us a glimpse of our future. Or, at least, one possible future—the one that we will experience if we keep on our current path as a nation. Katrina showed us two aspects of this future. It showed us the fate of our coastlines if we don’t take global warming seriously. And it showed us the fate of our nation if the Republican visions of trickle-down, favoring the wealthy and starving our domestic government to a bare minimum continue.

The Republicans didn’t want to see millions suffer. But they did want our government pared down to a minimum. They have been paring away the mechanisms of government since Ronald Reagan, but it has accelerated under Bush. Levees were neglected. First responders are understaffed and under-funded and often sent off to Iraq. Emergency help was minimal. Bush’s government left everything to the local and state governments and to individuals. That is the vision that they have for government—the burden carried by state and local governments and individuals looking out for their own interests.

Katrina showed us the results of that policy. The anarchy, the deaths, the suffering could have been largely averted if we had a strong government that took responsibility for keeping Americans safe. But that costs money and the number one concern of the Republican Party is to cut taxes. The number two concern is to invade other nations for some greater glory that I don’t quite understand. Keeping America and Americans safe costs money and the Republicans do not feel that the Federal government should spend that money. They feel that it is not the responsibility of the Federal government to shore up levees or help out in an emergency.

We now know the consequences of that policy. If the price isn’t paid to maintain infrastructure, levees break, people starve, and anarchy ensues. If the price isn’t paid, people die. If the price isn’t paid our economy and our infrastructure suffer and we become more and more like a third world nation. The outcome of the Republican policy of “starving the beast” and putting the burden on the individual and the local government in essence will ultimately result in a situation like Somalia—local big men lording it over their turf like dictators and poverty engulfing the majority of citizens.

We are still far from that level. But we are heading in that direction. We now have our warning about what it means to have a weak Federal government with responsibility for nothing but defending the borders (has Bush even done THAT?) and regulating inter-state commerce. (Oh, yeah, and regulating a woman’s body). Bush did not want millions to suffer, but his vision for the Federal government results in the suffering of the poor, the downtrodden, the huddled masses. The Republican vision takes from all of us and gives only to the rich and their corporation.

It is up to the Democrats to advocate for the poor, the small businesses, the farmers, the average American. We know that a nation can only be strong if its government is strong enough to be prepared and to take decisive action in a crisis. We know that when the next Katrina hits we need to be ready and willing to help. America needs the Democrats if we want to avert future suffering of the magnitude we have just seen.

Am I politicizing tragedy? Certainly no more so that Bush did with 9/11. But the truth is, the chaos that we just witnessed really is the result of Republican anti-Federalist policy. Neither party WANTED this to happen. But only Democrats are willing to give the government the strength and money that is required to prevent or mitigate such disasters. This is the fundamental difference between the parties and Katrina reminded all of us why we are Democrats.