The Conservative Zone

Here's a good article, Jack Kelly: No shame. The federal response to Katrina was not as portrayed.

The MSM and Democrats (generally the same thing) have been relentlessly Bush-Bashing in the "fact" that aid didn't come fast enough. Hence the title to this post.

But, as noted below, Federal aid has been faster in the aftermath of Katrina than it has with other natural disasters.

Jason van Steenwyk is a Florida Army National Guardsman who has been mobilized six times for hurricane relief. He notes that:

"The federal government pretty much met its standard time lines, but the volume of support provided during the 72-96 hour was unprecedented. The federal response here was faster than Hugo, faster than Andrew, faster than Iniki, faster than Francine and Jeanne."

For instance, it took five days for National Guard troops to arrive in strength on the scene in Homestead, Fla. after Hurricane Andrew hit in 2002. But after Katrina, there was a significant National Guard presence in the afflicted region in three.

And of course, the blowhards in the opinion pages waste no time in roasting Bush:

Journalists who are long on opinions and short on knowledge have no idea what is involved in moving hundreds of tons of relief supplies into an area the size of England in which power lines are down, telecommunications are out, no gasoline is available, bridges are damaged, roads and airports are covered with debris, and apparently have little interest in finding out.

So they libel as a "national disgrace" the most monumental and successful disaster relief operation in world history.

These "Gratificationists" (how's that for a new word!) expect everything to be put back the way is was, like they see in those 30 second insurance commercials. They expect rescuers to be rescuing people the second the rain stops, if not in the middle of the storm. They expect things to happen instantaneously, and it is just not possible under these rules of physics.

Yes, there were screwups and miscommunications on all levels of the disaster relief. Supplies were turned away, or sent to the wrong area, but on the whole, things have gone well. Just not fast enough for the Gratificationists.

The outpouring of generosity of the American people has been unprecedented, approaching $1 Billion dollars in private aid. Then you have the thousands of workers who have donated time and effort to feed and house the survivors. Thankfully, stories abound in the local news. One that I heard was about a couple invited 52 people into their home. The neighbors provide bags and bags of groceries every day to feed them, and the lady whos house this is breaks down and wonders if she's doing enough.

That, my dear readers, is the real America.