Adventures in Bureaucracy
Two days after the disaster the government is mobilizing. A departmental e-mail went out today asking for volunteers down South, especially those with commercial licenses, bilingual skills (somehow I don't think Slavic languages will do much good) and experience with logistics.
I've heard of people complaining that it's too slow, but that doesn't strike me as fair, considering that the whole infrastructure is smashed. It's not like you can fly bulk supplies in when the runways are under water. Only today are officials making contact with some of the worst-hit areas in Mississippi. Still, it's heart-rending to see all the suffering in our own country.
In other local news, the one gas station on the corner DROPPED its prices over night, to $2.959 a gallon. I'm guessing both of them will be over $3 by the weekend.
The devastation caused by hurricane Katrina is astounding. It's 21st century America - you don't expect to read about
the evacuation of an entire city.
The economic damage is
apparently huge as well, and already rippling across the country. The corner gas stations I pass every day have already upped their prices. One was up 12 cents a gallon over yesterday; the other raised its prices 20 cents a gallon, breaking the $3 limit. The prices went up before the remnants of Katrina even came through the Washington metro area.
I can't argue against most of
this, and it's expressed so well... especially:
"
I am sick of youth culture. It should be banned, and Stuffy Old Person Culture needs to take over. There was once a time when young college men dreamed of becoming old and respected, or at the least they dreamed of becoming Fred Astaire, who was at least urbane and could dance — real dancing, not that that bonobo-monkeylike humping and gyrating “young people” do now....So-called “youth” culture took the country over years ago, and it’s contributed to the demise of, among other things, dignity, civility, and taste."
Amen, sister.
The debate goes on at "A Small Victory" over one of the not-so-pressing issues of our day:
The Go-Go's vs. the Bangles. I have to agree with the first commenter: "Woman-for-woman, I think the Go-Go girls could have kicked the shit out of the Bangles."
I come down for the Go-Go's. They had happy, upbeat songs that I really liked, and hearing "Vacation" always takes me back to the good old days, when music was music. Sounds kind of crusty, huh? I first realized I was getting older when I looked at a top ten list in the newspaper and couldn't identify any of the songs. Now I can't even identify most of the singers, and my clock radio is set to the smooth jazz station, because the other formats were just too much for that hour of the morning.
No, I can't forecast the weather by various aches and pains - yet - but the top of the proverbial hill is definitely in sight.
Today's word for the day:
rhoticism.
Another field feminized. I've heard similar complaints from people in the government, from State Department people I've talked to in particular.
This is interesting. I knew that the Flemings and the Walloons were not on the best of terms in Belgium, but I didn't realize it was playing out in the political system the way it is described
here. Kind of ominous ramifications for Germany if it plays out the same way there.
