Balkinization: Baghdad and New Orleans

Baghdad and New Orleans

Sandy Levinson

Tomorrow's NYTimes includes a column by Bob Herbert, which includes the following:

What is actually happening is worse than anyone had imagined.

New Orleans is a mess. It was brought to its knees by Katrina, and is being kept here by a toxic combination of federal neglect and colossal, mind-numbing ineptitude at the local level.

The police department here is a sour joke, and crime is out of control. More than 16 months after the storm, children roam the streets with impunity during school hours. Debris still covers much of the city. Doctors, hospitals and mental-health facilities are in woefully short supply. Thousands of residents are still living in trailers, and many thousands more are stuck more or less permanently out of town.

The result is that blacks and whites, feeling unsafe physically and frightened by the long-term prospect of dwindling opportunities, are eyeing the exits.

So the obvious question is this: If the US (and Louisiana) cannot establish any working government/civil society in New Orleans sufficient to allow credible claims of progress, why would any sane person believe that the situation would be better, at least over the next, say, six-nine months, in Baghdad? Is there any reason to believe that the present Iraqi "government" is any more competent than the governments of Louisiana and New Orleans (I put the national US government to one side)? Are the Iraqis less corrupt, less caught up in the most pernicious forms of ethnic hostility, etc.? And, perhaps most to the point, what responsibiliteis does the US have to give entry visas to undoubtedly brave Iraqis who have in fact risked their lives over the last months or years to try to assist the US? Don't we in fact have an obligation to make sure that what happened in the last days in Vietnam does not happen in Iraq?

Posted 11:45 PM by Sandy Levinson [link]

Comments:

The Herbert op ed is yet another example of unfounded partisan sniping from the Dem paper of record.

It takes a great deal of hutzpah to blame the federal government for the utter failure of the Dems controlling the state and city to start rebuilding efforts.

Compare the complete lack of progress in the Dem state of LA with the clean up and rebuilding efforts in the neighboring GOP states of TX, MS, AL and FL. MS was hit far worse by Katrina, yet they managed to finish the cleanup in 11 months and are rebuilding their coastal towns and cities as we post.

In reality, the enormous ongoing rebuilding efforts in Iraq bear a much closer resemblance to those of Jeb Bush's superb effort in Florida after being hit by 5 major hurricanes rather than the pathetic inaction of the Dems in LA after being hit by one hurricane.

Here is a GAO review of the construction in Iraq contracted by the military alone, which you will not see reported in the NYT or much of the rest of the media.

http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d0730r.pdf

# posted by

Bart DePalma : 9:18 AM

Related to the US rebuilding effort, the Iraqis themselves are rebuilding their country at a record pace. Quite to the contrary of the image portrayed by our press of an Iraq in chaos, Iraqi double digit GDP growth is the fastest in the Middle East.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16241340/site/
newsweek/

While it was good of Newsweek to actually cover this story, the question I have is why this story was not leading in every paper and newscast in the country?

# posted by

Bart DePalma : 10:48 AM

I am more than willing to blame the Democrats who are said to control Louisiana. The point is not to cast partisan blame, but to point out that Louisiana has, for decades, been a culture of political corruption, and Katrina has not changed that.

Similarly, the Middle East can also be described, in large part, as a collective culture of corruption, with regard to the way business is done. To expect the US funds to be used in a way that would pass muster in most of the US is a fantasy.

# posted by

Sandy Levinson : 11:10 AM

"Bart" DePalma says:

The Herbert op ed is yet another example of unfounded partisan sniping from the Dem paper of record.

Can you say argumentum ad hominem?

It takes a great deal of hutzpah to blame the federal government for the utter failure of the Dems controlling the state and city to start rebuilding efforts.

As Prof. Levinson points out, his claim is independent on who is to blame for the Katrina debacle (but we do have, "Brownie, you're doing a heck of a job...."). "Bart" simply missed the point here.

Compare the complete lack of progress in the Dem state of LA with the clean up and rebuilding efforts in the neighboring GOP states of TX, MS, AL and FL....

Ummm, they weren't cities of a million flooded for months

... MS was hit far worse by Katrina, yet they managed to finish the cleanup in 11 months and are rebuilding their coastal towns and cities as we post

Huh? Maybe we could say that the Gulf of Mexico was "hit far harder" than was any land mass (this is true, if you want to look at wind speed). But I note an absence of cites by "Bart" to his facts here.

In reality, the enormous ongoing rebuilding efforts in Iraq bear a much closer resemblance to those of Jeb Bush's superb effort in Florida after being hit by 5 major hurricanes rather than the pathetic inaction of the Dems in LA after being hit by one hurricane.

IC. So it was Jeb Bush's superb work that made a difference in the case of Hurricane Andrew.... Oh, wait....

Here is a GAO review of the construction in Iraq contracted by the military alone, which you will not see reported in the NYT or much of the rest of the media.

http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d0730r.pdf

What does this have to do with the price of tea in Sri Lanka?

Related to the US rebuilding effort, the Iraqis themselves are rebuilding their country at a record pace....

Why, almost enough to stay even. I note, just for kicks, that Dubya's latest speech wasn't heard in Baghdad because the power was out....

Quite to the contrary of the image portrayed by our press of an Iraq in chaos, Iraqi double digit GDP growth is the fastest in the Middle East.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16241340/site/
newsweek/

Wow. Just wow. Talk about missing the picture.

While it was good of Newsweek to actually cover this story, the question I have is why this story was not leading in every paper and newscast in the country?

Because, considering the carnage, terrorism, slaughter, lawlessness, unemployment, health issues, and general FOOBARedness of Iraq, it's just a curious sidenote.

Cheers,

# posted by

Anonymous : 2:20 PM

"Bart" DePalma hasn't got the latest "talking points memo":

Here is a GAO review of the construction in Iraq contracted by the military alone, which you will not see reported in the NYT or much of the rest of the media.

Here ya go, "Bart":

"But in 2006, the opposite happened. The violence in Iraq -- particularly in Baghdad -- overwhelmed the political gains the Iraqis had made. Al Qaeda terrorists and Sunni insurgents recognized the mortal danger that Iraq's elections posed for their cause, and they responded with outrageous acts of murder aimed at innocent Iraqis. They blew up one of the holiest shrines in Shia Islam -- the Golden Mosque of Samarra -- in a calculated effort to provoke Iraq's Shia population to retaliate. Their strategy worked. Radical Shia elements, some supported by Iran, formed death squads. And the result was a vicious cycle of sectarian violence that continues today.

"The situation in Iraq is unacceptable to the American people -- and it is unacceptable to me. Our troops in Iraq have fought bravely. They have done everything we have asked them to do. Where mistakes have been made, the responsibility rests with me.

"It is clear that we need to change our strategy in Iraq."

Cheers,

# posted by

Anonymous : 2:46 PM

Ahhh, the definitive measure of "progress"....

Cheers,

# posted by

Anonymous : 3:04 PM

And this just in.

Cheers,

# posted by

Anonymous : 3:06 PM

And this.

Cheers,

# posted by

Anonymous : 3:55 PM

"Bart": I live in Florida, which was hit with Wilma (the worse hurricane we've seen here in 50 years) and I have family/friends in both TX and MS.

South Florida is still a mess; that's your GOP leader Jebush. (I'll also add that it is still a mess mostly in Broward County, where I live; not so much in Miami-Dade county. Why? Because a) Jeb is from Miami-Dade County, and it is not as "blue" of a county, and b) as mentioned, Broward is a solidly "blue" county. How's that for partisan, Bart?

TX did not get damaged hardly at all, and most especially not enough for you to so disgustingly compare it to what happened in LA.

MS is still in a terrible, horrible state; my family/friends there are still unable to return to many parts of the state. It is overshadowed in the news because of the damage to LA, and deservedly so, since the damage in LA was worse, but it's hardly able to be compared. And the cleanup is HARDLY "finished" as you claim.

I take it you haven't been to these places and have no loved ones there. I have lived in FL through all 5 of your "major hurricanes," really one 2 of which were terrible, and none of which were nearly as damaging as Katrina. Jeb Bush did not do a superb effort in FL; as I said, he made sure the areas most hospitable to him were cleaned up faster- and in these other areas that are still awaiting some cleanup and help, the homicide and suicide rates have gone up considerably. But there's no comparison between FL and AL.

# posted by

Anonymous : 1:11 PM