Nine-Eleven Plus Four

There is a story told of when Harry Truman left office as President. Commenting on his successor, he was heard to say: "Poor Ike. He'll get in here and still think he's in the Army; telling everybody, do this, do that, and wondering why it doesn't get done."

Closer to the present, the Mayor of New Orleans ordered those left behind to converge upon the Superdome. There, many were effectively abandoned by the city to starve or die. Those who lived did so in horrible conditions. How did the Mayor fail? Or did a subordinate fail? Or does it really take the Governor of Louisiana 24 hours to get back to His Honor with a decision?

Now, let's move on up the ladder.

In August of 1969, following a tornado that hit our town, I returned from camp, to learn that I had been appointed provisional senior patrol leader for a unit of a dozen Scouts, joining other units in the disaster area. Of course, in these litigious times, the most the BSA would have boys do is hand out leaflets. (At least that's the impression they gave me at a Roundtable last year.) I wonder if that experience would render me more qualified to run the Federal Emergency Management Agency, than the political hack who's there now. His previous job was running a trade association for Arabian horse owners. At least he'll know where not to step, assuming he knows which end of the horse to check.

Many pundits in the blogosphere and beyond, will have more to say concerning the above. In an inspirational 1982 speech at Columbia University, the late Admiral Hyman Rickover said: "Unless the individual truly responsible can be identified when something goes wrong, no one has really been responsible." Four years after the Big Wake Up Call, we're still unprepared -- at the Federal, State, City, and (lest we forget!) the personal level. I recommend the wisdom of that old sailor (who during his life was also a devout Catholic) for those who dare to lead, and have the audacity to expect us to follow.

(PS: As far as this writer is conerned, rescue helicopters in New Orleans should have had armed escorts, ready to take out shooters from the ground on sight.)