A modest suggestion

I don't think (generic) you actually improve your blood pressure by rampaging on about the shortcomings and questionable priorities of the current administration.

The current FUBAR along the Gulf Coast reflects more on the last several generations than the last several years. I'm old enough to remember planning for nuclear evacuation, and disaster planners saying "Okay, I got five million people out of New York City alive. What the FUCK do I do now?"

Katrina was not and is not, in point of fact, a worst-case scenario.

But go ahead and bash Bush & Co. to your heart's content. Bashing politicians, of whatever stripe, is a public good. They've earned their lumps and a few more besides.

Gee, I didn't know _that_...

Hey, I knew that the batteries in both of my UPS units were dead. One, Trip-lite, serves the laptop, basically as a line filter, and doesn't have a replaceable battery. The other, APC, _is_ "user serviceable" but was an "I'll get around to replacing that someday."

Well, yesterday that latter unit started imitating power outages on its own. I guess it requires at least minimal battery to function. So today I bought a new, larger capacity, unit with more outlets. Maybe I'll even order a new battery for the APC unit....

On folks who stay

For that government guy who likes to blame the victims....

Even with people who _had_ the means to get the hell out of Dodge, there remains an aspect of human nature deep enough to have earned its own cautionary fable. It's called "The Boy Who Cried Wolf."

The Gulf states have hurricanes. Every year. And every year, people are told to evacuate and storms turn aside or turn out to be survivable. After a while, you shrug. "Hey, I've lived through hurricanes before. Had one just two years ago. I'll stay."

Then there really _is_ a wolf, and some of the folks don't believe you....