0 comment Sunday, June 15, 2014 | admin
I'd like to say that I am sending up prayers and good wishes for our friends on the Gulf Coast who are in the path of Hurricane Gustav. Let's hope that it will not be as devastating as Katrina, and that lessons were learned following that latter disaster which will save many lives this time.
It seems to me that it was around this same time three years ago that Katrina hit. I certainly remember reading the urgent, grimly-worded warnings from the Weather Service about the threat posed by the storm. And yet I remember reading stories about people partying in New Orleans while waiting for Katrina to hit.
There are always heedless people, people who think courting danger is fun, and people who are just plain sorry, who don't want to make the effort to evacuate. That requires too much planning and preparation and work. Some people will just stay inert and hope for the best, or trust that others will come along and rescue them should their fecklessness get them into trouble.
But watching the news coverage, it occurred to me that with these mass evacuations, there are probably government plans for a little more social engineering. Hey, we've got all these people packed up and on the road; why not inject a little more 'diversity' into some towns that aren't vibrant enough? Seize the day. Can't let a chance like this go to waste, right?
And sure enough, there is a story today about how Kentucky is prepared to welcome some needed diversity.
Three years ago, many of the Katrina refugees were taken to far-flung and unlikely places like Salt Lake City or Colorado.
How'd that work out? Clearly that's one lesson that hasn't been learned from Katrina.
Over at Man-Sized Target, Christopher Roach discusses the situation.
Maybe I am misunderstanding him, but it appears he is proposing more of what was done last time with the evacuees.
But surely a lot more would be spent on moving people to higher ground, perhaps in other parts of the region where relatives live or in completely new cities where their neighbors� good habits would rub off, just as New Orleanians� bad habits often bring out the worst in locals.''
I don't think that moving people from high-crime, unproductive areas to 'productive and safe' places like South Dakota, Maine, or Oregon, will cause the refugees to adopt the good habits of their new neighbors. Has that happened in any of the cities where they were relocated three years ago?
Unfortunately, I think all too often, a little leaven leavens the whole lump, and the character of the host communities is changed for the worse. Maine, for example, is one of the more homogeneous (shall we use the unfortunate term 'white-bread'?) areas of the country which has been 'enriched' with refugees from Somalia; I doubt any of the local Maine citizens' ways have rubbed off on the Somalis.
As I never tire of saying -- actually, I do tire of saying it, because it seems so self-evident -- the people make the place. Maine and South Dakota and Oregon were traditionally safe, orderly places precisely because of the people who made up the vast majority of the population there. The people make the place.
(Unfortunately in the case of Oregon, which is being transformed in some areas into a 'vibrant' outpost of Aztlan, now there are gangs, drugs, and stabbings at quinceaneras. Celebrate diversity.)
By the way, just google 'quinceanera stabbing' and see how many hits you get.
As to the people of New Orleans, they were adamant that they preferred to have a 'chocolate city', so why not respect their wishes and give them their preference? Why relocate them into 'vanilla' areas and thus deprive them? Obviously it's to serve the diversity agenda; no more distinct flavors, just one multicultural blend is all that will be on the menu from now on.
It seems to me that it was around this same time three years ago that Katrina hit. I certainly remember reading the urgent, grimly-worded warnings from the Weather Service about the threat posed by the storm. And yet I remember reading stories about people partying in New Orleans while waiting for Katrina to hit.
There are always heedless people, people who think courting danger is fun, and people who are just plain sorry, who don't want to make the effort to evacuate. That requires too much planning and preparation and work. Some people will just stay inert and hope for the best, or trust that others will come along and rescue them should their fecklessness get them into trouble.
But watching the news coverage, it occurred to me that with these mass evacuations, there are probably government plans for a little more social engineering. Hey, we've got all these people packed up and on the road; why not inject a little more 'diversity' into some towns that aren't vibrant enough? Seize the day. Can't let a chance like this go to waste, right?
And sure enough, there is a story today about how Kentucky is prepared to welcome some needed diversity.
Three years ago, many of the Katrina refugees were taken to far-flung and unlikely places like Salt Lake City or Colorado.
How'd that work out? Clearly that's one lesson that hasn't been learned from Katrina.
Over at Man-Sized Target, Christopher Roach discusses the situation.
Maybe I am misunderstanding him, but it appears he is proposing more of what was done last time with the evacuees.
But surely a lot more would be spent on moving people to higher ground, perhaps in other parts of the region where relatives live or in completely new cities where their neighbors� good habits would rub off, just as New Orleanians� bad habits often bring out the worst in locals.''
I don't think that moving people from high-crime, unproductive areas to 'productive and safe' places like South Dakota, Maine, or Oregon, will cause the refugees to adopt the good habits of their new neighbors. Has that happened in any of the cities where they were relocated three years ago?
Unfortunately, I think all too often, a little leaven leavens the whole lump, and the character of the host communities is changed for the worse. Maine, for example, is one of the more homogeneous (shall we use the unfortunate term 'white-bread'?) areas of the country which has been 'enriched' with refugees from Somalia; I doubt any of the local Maine citizens' ways have rubbed off on the Somalis.
As I never tire of saying -- actually, I do tire of saying it, because it seems so self-evident -- the people make the place. Maine and South Dakota and Oregon were traditionally safe, orderly places precisely because of the people who made up the vast majority of the population there. The people make the place.
(Unfortunately in the case of Oregon, which is being transformed in some areas into a 'vibrant' outpost of Aztlan, now there are gangs, drugs, and stabbings at quinceaneras. Celebrate diversity.)
By the way, just google 'quinceanera stabbing' and see how many hits you get.
As to the people of New Orleans, they were adamant that they preferred to have a 'chocolate city', so why not respect their wishes and give them their preference? Why relocate them into 'vanilla' areas and thus deprive them? Obviously it's to serve the diversity agenda; no more distinct flavors, just one multicultural blend is all that will be on the menu from now on.
Labels: Diversity, Multiculturalism, Refugees, Relocation, Social Engineering