BAYO'S PERISCOPE

Dr. Samuel Bayo ArowolajuWednesday, September 14, 2005
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HURRICANE KATRINA:
WHERE IS GOD IN ALL THESE……? PART I



Guvaka Reid, of New Orleans, feeds her ill six-week-old son Edmonte Percy at a shelter for Hurricane Katrina evacuees in the Reliant Center in Houston, Texas, Wednesday, Sept. 14, 2005.
y heart, full of good will and best wishes,
Goes to the Osundares, and all the victims
Of the disaster called Hurricane Katrina.
To their families and friends, I say;
Remain steadfast in your supports.
To the dead, if you can hear me, I say,
Even death is not the end for the living.
To the living, I know you can hear him, I say,
It is the bend and not the end, for a happy living.
There is hope for a better, greater tomorrow
If we keep the hope alive today in our sorrow.
It may be stormy and cloudy today;
A silver lining sky remains behind the cloud always.
The storms and the clouds will be over some day;
One day together, we will all be smiling,
As we see the silver lining becomes sun shinning.



(Dedicated to Professor Niyi Osundare, a seasoned teacher, poet, writer and author; his wife, and other victims of Hurricane Katrina. Professor Osundare is currently in Birmingham, Alabama).

Hurricane Katrina that plunged the Gulf Coast into chaos, agony, disaster, death and destruction was not sudden and unexpected. What was unexpected and unimaginable was the degree of unpreparedness or inert, lethargy or apathy and the grave lack of urgency or direction by a leadership that wants to be seen as the best in times of crisis and war and a nation that prides itself as the first and best in all things - the first of the first world and the best of the best world. We were made to believe that nobody could have prevented the 9/11 but from fresh information coming in now that cover story for inefficiency can no longer hold. We now know better from reports and testimonies from those at vantage positions that if we have had better listening ears and sharper prying eyes, 9/11 and the horrors of the day and years that follow would have possibly been prevented. Here we are, face to face with predictable and predicted Hurricane Katrina. Yet, our leaders failed and faltered in times of grave and great need. The same leaders making the same mistakes of caring very little or not at all about the well being of the people they rule. It is not true that nobody expected Katrina and its attendant woes.

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About five years ago, on July 10 2000, Time Magazine, in a patriotic and 'prophetic' cover story virtually compared the deluge that would come upon the Gulf States when a Category 5 hurricane unleashed its ferocious power with that of the days of Noah. Though the writer did not name the hurricane Katrina, he specifically said that because of the impact of a category 5 hurricane, Lake Pontchartrain would pour its waters into New Orleans, causing a flood of Noah's day proportion. Then hear this: "Then things would get ugly. Evacuation routes would be blocked. Buildings would collapse. Chemicals and hazardous waste would dissolve, turning the flooded waters into a lethal soap. In the end, what was left might not be worth saving. There is concern it would essentially destroy New Orleans." The writer prophesied.

Also researchers, weather forecasters and hurricane watchers have shown unparallel foresightedness of what would happen if a hurricane 5 were to envelop New Orleans. Just last year in 2004 a dress rehearsal for coping with a likely catastrophe of the nature of Katrina was staged. Called Hurricane "Pam," the type of Katrina was vividly anticipated, simulated and prepared for. They also predicted that when and if this happened, the city's water anchor called levees would no longer hold. Using computer simulations, it was demonstrated perfectly how New Orleans would be swept away like a ship without an anchor. How tens of thousands of New Orleanans would be left behind on rooftops, treetops and holding on to whatever they think could save their lives. They described the various possible rescue operations that could be in place including their possible successes and failures. Accurately they said that 80% of the city would come under toxic water. That was exactly what Hurricane Katrina did to New Orleans recently.

There is no prophet or prophetess living or dead, after the time of Jesus Christ, who has said anything with such a flawless accuracy. All the so called self-appointed or self-anointed seers, prophets and prophetess of today knew nothing or said nothing this. An ordinary but visionary writer and researchers have become the Noah of our times while the men and women "who speak for and with God" failed and faltered in what they see as their callings to warn the people of this and other dangers and perils of great proportion, the 9/11 inclusive. Then, where is the responsiveness of our leaders who heard and knew about all these but failed to do something about it or respond more efficiently and effectively when Katrina came down. The only thing some of them remembered was that New Orleans will be so devastated that "what will be left might not be worth saving".

In the same way, if the same leaders have not betrayed the trust of the people entrusted to them at elections, if indeed they were elected, America and Americans, nay, the world would have been saved the horrors of the 9/11 and the aftermath. Those thousands of men, women, and children killed in Afghanistan and Iraq would have been such untimely deaths. Regrettably, thousands of our young men and women whose blood, limbs, and life were lost on the soils of Afghanistan and the sands of Iraq would have still been proudly wearing their cherished uniforms today. Today, they would have remained sons and daughters to their parents, husbands and wives to their spouses and fathers and mothers to their children. Maybe American would have been spared the misfortune of another four years of the George Bush administration and the consequent current American ballooning National Debt, which by projection may hit $521 billion in the year 2009. Yes, there is no doubt, George W. Bush could be the most godly, benevolent, and compassionate man but with a current job performance rating of 39%, those highly esteemed personal qualities and character have not translated him into being the best president that American need this time.

There, they were; pictures on the pages of Newspapers and Magazines showing roof of homes and apartment blocks floating like cardboard papers on the waters of Lake Pontchartrain, which has suddenly made the streets of New Orleans its new terrain. There they were as unbelievable as they appeared; yet, pictures don't lie; are images from the TV tubes in our living rooms, showing thousands of people milling around in hunger, thirst, confusion and frustration. There, one can see horrific photographs of bloated floating dead bodies. On wheelchairs were some, who must have waited in vain for help, which never came before death came to end their suffering in their sited positions; on the only means of mobility that they ever had. Some were still lucky as they were trapped on the roof tops waving whatever came handy to attract attention for rescue. Some in the face all odds were still patriotically clinging to their symbol of nationalism and allegiance; the Stripes and the Stars, which they waved anxiously to show that they were Americans and not Rwandans; in dare desperation for survival.

In spite of years of warning and waiting, our leaders only prepared our people for despair, aches and pains of the body and soul. Only those who were above the poverty level and who have the means moved out of the way of disaster called Hurricane Katrina. Traveling in their RVs and SUVs, Trucks and Mini-Vans, Cars, horses and carrying their precious possessions, they moved to safe havens on higher dry grounds as far as they could go. Surely as it seemed, these lucky few could not be the ordinary folks. The question might be: what is the social and economic stratification of the people hard hit by Hurricane Katrina in terms of color, race, sex and age?

The most glaring division seen throughout the world, thanks to CNN and other cable networks and photo journalists is that of the poor and underprivileged; not just black and white. Simply put, out of 100 faces of the trapped and the dead New Orleanans, 90 were those below poverty level; black and white. These are people who could not afford RVs, SUVs and Trucks. We do not expect those on wheelchairs or those who cannot drive nor have the means of transportation, to evacuate. This crisis has just exposed America's hypocrisy of being the richest and most powerful country in the world, yet, with so much poverty, hunger, and homelessness, in the midst of opulence. Katrina did not just exposed America's poor; it exposed the leadership to the same level of crisis management of the third world countries that make headlines news on the TVs and newspapers.

Was Katrina a racist pounding and killing the black while letting the white go? Heck No. Does it mean that the whites were wiser and willing to save their lives while the blacks were stupid and ready to sacrifice their lives to Yemoja, the goddess of the seas? Absolutely No. For God's sake; why should people read racism into a natural disaster that knows no white or black or brown but only knew and brought destruction and death, aches and agonies to all that came its way, even animals and trees? What is questionable and condemnable is the reaction of our leaders who have become too privileged to remember the under-privileged and who have become too comfortable to remember the displaced and discomforted. There are whites as well as blacks today who behave in a way reminiscence of the old slave masters because they are rich and privileged.

Starting with the local officials who were on the ground in New Orleans; to the President in White House, they all failed the victims of Hurricane Katrina and the nation. The most important duty of the government from the ancient to the modern is to protect the lives and property of the governed. This is why the people willingly surrender their collective will, power and authority to the government. This sacred duty of the government is not to be performed as an after thought or reaction to criticism but through meticulous planning and foresightedness. Just like the time of 9/11, the government has failed the governed again to protect them but more than the 9/11, in the case of Hurricane Katrina, they failed to protect and failed to rescue. There in no excuse for this unmitigated failure, which they did not even realize. The guy whom President Bush commended as "doing a heck of a job" has been dumped and dropped shamefully for incompetence though under a political cover story of resignation. No one resigns when he is "doing a heck of a job".

All the officials grossly underestimated the killing power of Katrina. In a sordid misjudgment, the local officials opened the doors of the Superdome like that of the Noah's Ark to save the drowning people. Unlike the Noah's Ark, however, the Superdome could not float and sail to safety. For those who earlier considered themselves lucky and saw the Superdome a safe haven, they erred, as it later became a fool's paradise and a safe hell. The Superdome soon turned out to be a 'Superdoom' for the people who ran into it. They sort for refuge, but they became refugees and some of them in death became part of the refuse, which eventually sent them out.

Rapper Kanye West, on a TV cable network and at prime time openly said that President George Bush does not care for the black people. Kanye is a black man, who must have spoken with anger and frustration because most of the people affected by the Storm of Mass Destruction of Katrina were black people. Personally I don't know George Bush well enough to be able to defend him like his wife did that he cares for the black people. However, even if Kanye West's allegation is true, I will not conclude that that was why the Department of Homeland Security failed to secure the Gulf States from the mass destruction brought upon it by Katrina. It is not the reason why FEMA or any other authority charged with the welfare of the people failed and faltered in times of need. After all, the incompetence and inaction of all these officials and agencies including the presidency, affected both black and white people alike. From the ruins of New Orleans came reports and images of white helping blacks and vice versa. In far away Minneapolis is a white family who provided a year free rent home to a black family who are victims of Hurricane Katrina. They have never met before the hurricane sent the black family out of their homes, down south. There abound throughout America, kind white and black people with big hearts from where compassion flows without regards to race.

When reminded that Bush's policies and programs like the tax cut, Iraq war, energy and gas bills have been making the rich richer and the poor poorer. His supporters countered by asking: Did George Bush says that only the blacks should be poor? It is true that all the privileged and rich people have benefited from the Bushnomics; whether white, black, brown and yellow. After all, there are privileged Black, Hispanic and Asian Americans in his cabinet all flying the flag of affirmative action or racial quota system. One thing is sure, if it is true that President Bush doesn't care for the black people, it is not because he is white or representing the white race of President Bill Clinton and William Cohen, the immediate past Secretary of Defense. I know some white men and women who have dedicated and committed their lives to alleviating the sufferings of the black people. There were white folks jailed, lynched or killed along with black folks during the struggle for racial equality in America and South Africa's apartheid era. This is however, not denying the fact that there are some whites and blacks who as individuals are prejudice to their marrows as racial bigots.

To say that President George W. Bush is a racist may be unfair for a President who was elected by the votes of black and white voters. What I cannot deny, is if anybody accused George Bush of not caring for or about the poor people, black or white. How do I know? Check out his programs and policies since occupying the White House. I have said this several times; let me repeat again that poverty has no nationality, no race, no color and no creed. The personality, character and social habits of the poor are not as distinctive as the color of their skin and eyes. From the streets of Los Angeles to those of Chicago and New York; from Atlanta to Detroit and Miami; Oregon to Mobile and New Orleans; from the ghettos of South Africa to the slums of Maroko and Ajegunle in Lagos, to the street beggars in Kano and the poor fishermen with broken fishing nets in Port Harcourt in Nigeria, a hungry man is always an angry man. It is therefore disrespectful to the black race to say that the blacks in New Orleans were looting while the whites were taking stuff from water soaked and abandoned stores. This is especially in a dire situation of the survival of the fittest when officially, Pharmacy stores in the town was forced open (looted so to say), to take drugs out and administered to the sick and the dying.

All the officials from the President in the White House to the Mayor of New Orleans knew or should have known that it is the 350 miles long system of levees that separated the dry lands of New Orleans from the waters of the Lake Ponchartrain and the Mississippi River that tower it. We all knew that the city is below the sea level and that any overflow or shedding of waters for whatever reason will flood the city. All our leaders, at all levels of government ought to have known that the levees could only withstand a category 3 storm. Weeks or days before Hurricane Katrina hit our shores, we all knew it was going to be category 5. Though it slowed down to category 4, it was still more powerful than the levees that gave way for the waters to flush away the city.

It has now been confirmed that previous military, administrative and political efforts and pressures have been futilely made for years to increase the strength and protective power of the levees and ability to withstand more than category 3 storms. Under President George Bush, and between years 2001 and 2005, out of a request for the sum of about $496 million made, the administration approved about $166.5 million, which was later upgraded by the Congress to the sum of $249.5 million. This by all standards is still less than what was requested to prevent New Orleans from the deluge that drowned it recently. Today, the same administration that would not release less than half a billion dollar has released about $50 billion towards the effects of their previous inaction and may be willing to spend $500 billion. Penny wise and dollar foolish! NO, they are very smart guys and they know what they are doing. In politics, if you don't spend money on emergencies, you don't make money.

Some of the questions that have not been answered and for which correct answers may never readily come are: What went wrong? Were our leaders helpless or hapless or both? Have our priorities been wrong or tainted for political expediencies? Has our focus been too much on terror, and weapons of mass destruction which are not there at the expense of storms of mass destruction that lap our shores and knock our doors with much more predictable ferocity, alacrity and regularity? Have the resources or the wealth of our Nation been over heated or over diverted to funding egoistic and politically motivated grandiose or avoidable projects like war in Iraq and rebuilding what we deliberately, but naively destroyed? Who is to blame, the rulers or the looters, the bureaucrats or the politicians, the federal government or the state or local government? Man's incompetence and inaction or a God's willingness not tamper with our wills however ungodly and deadly they may be?

It is not surprising. In all situations that are above human expectations and understanding, most people hand it over to a power that is above man's knowledge and comprehension. We suddenly become fatalists. Everything good or evil suddenly becomes the will of God. We often make God or the Devil the author of all of our unthoughtfulness and foolishness. Even criminals blame the Devil for their criminal intentions and activities. This is why some sociologists have theorized that God is a creation of man's inability to solve his own problems. Some religious people have attributed the coming of Hurricane Katrina to the wrath of God over America's sinfulness. Some have gone to the ridiculous extent of saying that it is because of the sins of abortion in America. The eye of Katrina at landing was said to be the shape and size of fetus normally removed in abortion clinics all over America. In the same way somebody sent an e-mail to me on the 9/11 attaching the picture of the burning and falling towers with "the face of the Devil". This was also an attempt to justify the hands of the Devil, in the atrocious crime against humanity by fellow men, which the 9/11 represented.

A Church Pastor as a reaction to Katrina wrote on the sign board of his church, "Welcome to Sodom and Gomorrah" insinuating that America has become the biblical Sodom and Gomorrah destroyed by fire, thunder and brimstone. The embattled Mayor of New Orleans, Ray Nagin, almost in tears, asked the nation and maybe the world by extension to "pray for us". Many others including survivors, friends, family and Christians and Muslims or others who believes in one or the other God have been organizing prayers all over the world in churches, mosques and shrines since Hurricane Katrina unleashed its mayhem. My question simply is: Where is God in all these?

To be continued in Part II Katrina: Where is God in all these……..

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Copyright - 2005 Dr. Samuel Bayo Arowolaju