Text 12278, 36 rader
Skriven 2005-09-17 16:31:48 av SHANNON TALLEY (1:275/311)
     Kommentar till en text av Paul Sanders
Ärende: Re: Katrina
===================
Joining in kind of late in the conversation -- but -- 

> Seems to me that if 'your' news sources are saying that Blanco didn't
> declare a state of emergency on the 26th then they are not all that
> fair & balanced.

Take into consideration what a state of emergency actually means.  A few 
days after the hurricane, the governors of both North Carolina AND Virginia 
declared states of emergencies to freeze gas prices and prepare the public 
for any possible supply ramifications as a result of the hurricane. 
Declaring a state of emergency is 'SOP' in virtually any case where the 
state needs to respond to a public incident or disaster and -- more often 
than not -- it's for smaller issues than it is for larger issues.

"A state of emergency allows state and local officials to immediately spend 
money for public safety and storm clean-up. It also allows the state to 
request federal money for its cities and towns."  It is nearly always 
recommended to the governor by the State's Emergency Management Agency (or 
office depending on the state).

However, this is not to be confused with a "Federal State of Emergency". 
The federal EO provides for a broader range of powers by the President (EO 
#12919).

Regardless of what the news agencies actually reported, I'm sure the state 
of emergency was actually declared -- it's just not that big of a deal 
because they are declared very frequently.

I'm not exonerating the unresponsiveness of the governors office though. 
They are to blame for much -- if not nearly all of what "didn't go right" in 
the aftermath of the hurricane.

Shannon 

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