Say a hurricane is about to destroy the city you live in. Two questions:
What would you do?
What would you do if you were black?
Sadly, the two questions don't have the same answer.
To the first: Most of us would take our families out of that city quickly to protect them from danger. Then, able-bodied men would return to help others in need, as wives and others cared for children, elderly, infirm and the like.
For better or worse, Hurricane Katrina has told us the answer to the second question. If you're black and a hurricane is about to destroy your city, then you'll probably wait for the government to save you.
This was not always the case. Prior to 40 years ago, such a pathetic performance by the black community in a time of crisis would have been inconceivable. The first response would have come from black men. They would take care of their families, bring them to safety, and then help the rest of the community. Then local government would come in.
No longer. When 75 percent of New Orleans residents had left the city, it was primarily immoral, welfare-pampered blacks that stayed behind and waited for the government to bail them out. This, as we know, did not turn out good results.
Enter Jesse Jackson and Louis Farrakhan. Jackson and Farrakhan laid blame on "racist" President Bush. Farrakhan actually proposed the idea that the government blew up a levee so as to kill blacks and save whites. The two demanded massive governmental spending to rebuild New Orleans, above and beyond the federal government's proposed $60 billion. Not only that, these two were positioning themselves as the gatekeepers to supervise the dispersion of funds. Perfect: Two of the most dishonest elite blacks in America, "overseeing" billions of dollars. I wonder where that money will end up.
Of course, if these two were really serious about laying blame on government, they should blame the local one. Responsibility to perform – legally and practically – fell first on the mayor of New Orleans. We are now all familiar with Mayor Ray Nagin – the black Democrat who likes to yell at President Bush for failing to do Nagin's job. The facts, unfortunately, do not support Nagin's wailing. As the Washington Times puts it, "recent reports show [Nagin] failed to follow through on his own city's emergency-response plan, which acknowledged that thousands of the city's poorest residents would have no way to evacuate the city."
One wonders how there was "no way" for these people to evacuate the city. We have photographic evidence telling us otherwise. You've probably seen it by now – the photo showing 200 parked school buses, unused and underwater. How much planning does it require to put people on a bus and leave town, Mayor Nagin?
Instead of doing the obvious, Mayor Nagin (with no positive contribution from Democratic Gov. Kathleen Blanco, the other major leader vested with responsibility to address the hurricane disaster) loaded remaining New Orleans residents into the Superdome and the city's convention center. We know how that plan turned out.
About five years ago, in a debate before the National Association of Black Journalists, I stated that if whites were to just leave the United States and let blacks run the country, they would turn America into a ghetto within 10 years. The audience, shall we say, disagreed with me strongly. Now I have to disagree with me. I gave blacks too much credit. It took a mere three days for blacks to turn the Superdome and the convention center into ghettos, rampant with theft, rape and murder.
President Bush is not to blame for the rampant immorality of blacks. Had New Orleans' black community taken action, most would have been out of harm's way. But most were too lazy, immoral and trifling to do anything productive for themselves.
All Americans must tell blacks this truth. It was blacks' moral poverty – not their material poverty – that cost them dearly in New Orleans. Farrakhan, Jackson, and other race hustlers are to be repudiated – they will only perpetuate this problem by stirring up hatred and applauding moral corruption. New Orleans, to the extent it is to be rebuilt, should be remade into a dependency-free, morally strong city where corruption is opposed and success is applauded. Blacks are obligated to help themselves and not depend on the government to care for them. We are all obligated to tell them so.
I agree with what the good Reverend has to say. This goes for all man kind. All race, all religions , all social groups.
posted on October 10, 2005 07:22:40 AM new
Interesting that you agree with him Colin. I kinda that it was cheap racist stereotyping. You have a few bad apples that got all the publicity and this "man of god" is unable to recognize that these people were the exception, not the rule?
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An intelligent deaf-mute is better than an ignorant person who can speak.
posted on October 10, 2005 07:35:36 AM new
What exception would that be fenix? Are you saying that Jackson, Sharpton and Farrahkan are not consider black leaders?
Are you saying that the these people are exceptions?
The exception would be someone from the left to come in here with open eyes and realize this man is telling it like it is.
posted on October 10, 2005 08:00:19 AM new
I'm saying that there were 1 million people living in New Orleans. Unless you think that only about 10K were black, the article above paints all black residents of the city with the same brush and of course, they picked the lower common denominator when they picked the paint. Yes, you have a criminal element within the city that showed their worst side, and you have people that don;t take responsibility for their own lives but that is not the majority.
I'm sure that it does help some to increase their feelings of superiority to believe that but then sooner or later, everyone has to take responsibility for who they really are and what they really believe.
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An intelligent deaf-mute is better than an ignorant person who can speak.
posted on October 10, 2005 08:14:12 AM new..I stated that if whites were to just leave the United States and let blacks run the country, they would turn America into a ghetto within 10 years. The audience, shall we say, disagreed with me strongly. Now I have to disagree with me. I gave blacks too much credit....
And statements like that,and people who agree with them in equivivating simply being of black skin makes one, or a group, 'immoral' and therefore potential criminals, is exactly why there are some very real racial discrimination cases before the courts.
It took a mere three days for blacks to turn the Superdome and the convention center into ghettos, rampant with theft, rape and murder...
That wasnt done by "BLACKS", it was done by a certain element of the community who happen to wear colored skin, who were probably the criminal residents of New Orleans all along, and who took advantage of a disaster.
posted on October 10, 2005 09:20:36 AM new
What I believe is that the cream will rise if we take away the barriers.
Affirmative Action
Unlimited Welfare
People who believe in themselves will always strive to do better. No matter what color they happen to be.
posted on October 10, 2005 09:48:11 AM new
Good column, Colin. And I agree with much that the preacher said.
It's true, imo, that liberalism/progressive thinking and socialists have been a major cause this problem. And the blacks of NO and most likely in other cities have allowed it to happen to themselves.
It's the liberal way....build government....government becomes your nanny...providing cradle to grave care-taking....and you create a dependent society that can't take care of themselves and expect/rely on the government to do so.
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And here was a little quote that speaks to the issue:
"FOR THE RECORD"
"How does one artfully say that out of a small percentage of America's population---13 percent---blacks account for 37.2 percent of all those arrested for violent crimes, 54.4 percent of all robbery arrestees, and are the known offenders in 51.3 percent of all murders?
The murder rate in the city of New Orleans stands at over 7.5 times the national average, and authorities convict only one in four arrested for homicide.
Speaking of 'inartful,' back in 1993, a noted civil rights leader made the following comment: 'There is nothing more painful to me at this stage in my life than to walk down the street and hear footsteps and start thinking about robbery---then look around and see somebody white and feel relieved.' The speaker? Jesse Jackson.
Despite calls to do so, [William] Bennett, as of this writing, refuses to apologize [for his comments regarding blacks, crime and utilitarian abortion]...
To so-called 'civil rights leaders' offended by Bennett's remarks, consider this:
As between urban crime and Bill Bennett's 'inartful' comments, which poses a bigger threat to the health, growth and prosperity of the black community?" ---Larry Elder
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"Whenever the nation is under attack, from within or without, liberals side with the enemy. This is their essence." --Ann Coulter
And why the American Voters chose to RE-elect President Bush to four more years. YES!!!
