You ever notice-and this bugs me-that when a natural disaster hits, someone feels compelled to hoist a flag up.

why?

Does nationalism somehow defeat nature?

Was the natural disaster a plot against America?

and.....why no cross? no prayer gathering?

Its a subtle nod the the AMerican Civil Religion......

in times of old-Catholic or Protestant-when a natural disaster struck, the people prayed and REPENTED their sins........you find both Catholic and heretic alike had tracts on the nature of storms, repentance,sin,etc.....

now we sing "God Bless (because we tell Him He has to) AMerica" and/or foist up a flag.....

Do any of you think that  hurrican Isaac was a weather modification?   It seemed like a very unusual storm.  It just churned and churned over New Orleans.  It devastated the area......again.
I hope if any of you live in that area, you will get out of there.  Florida residents and Texas residents  should consider  leaving also.  

You ever notice-and this bugs me-that when a natural disaster hits, someone feels compelled to hoist a flag up.

why?

Does nationalism somehow defeat nature?

Was the natural disaster a plot against America?

and.....why no cross? no prayer gathering?

Its a subtle nod the the AMerican Civil Religion......

in times of old-Catholic or Protestant-when a natural disaster struck, the people prayed and REPENTED their sins........you find both Catholic and heretic alike had tracts on the nature of storms, repentance,sin,etc.....

now we sing "God Bless (because we tell Him He has to) AMerica" and/or foist up a flag.....

I never thought of it that way before

Why do they not heed warnings in NOLA?  I remember the night before  Katrina the night before NPR was doing interviews. I could not believe they had bars open! Those interviewed had very arrogant views and did not heed warnings to prepare.

 On the news we saw people in line for the emergency shelter with televisions?  Wouldn't you be carrying water? I couldn't believe seeing grown men in line with televisions?. Men should be carrying supplies and providing security and working non stop in a situation like that.

Cities in Florida turns into a ghost town the day before,  people and institutions  prepare. They breath the word tropical storm and the ATMs and gas are out 2 days before. The hospitals discharge everyone that can possibly be discharged. I've never seen so many doctors in one place like I did a few days before a hurricane was expected.

It's not a big deal to keep a backpacks with water, granola bars, alochol swabs and plastic bags for waste.  The able bodied should be prepared to the best of their ability and helping those who can't care for themselves.

Tiffany, as a native of New Orleans myself, I have to ask: You're from the midwest, right?

I might even guess upper midwest...like Minnesota?

No,  where did that come from?

Being from NOLA what is your take on what I saw? Was the media just picking out the unprepared? I remember hearing women complaining there were no diapers. I was shocked at hearing interviews with professionals like doctors at how unprepared they were.

Where did the midwest thing come from? Midwesterners have a way of being pedantic with reards to authority I have observed, and  always oversimplify things.

So, the question *you*  ask (explain what  you saw) would a)require more time than I have and b)require me to see what you saw firsthand to eliminate some possibilities.

Here's a oversimplified answer that  works because these  are the people the press focus on, so it should apply:

Many  people   stay  behind are  from/ in  the  worst  neighborhoods. If  the  storm  blows  over,  the looters  will  have free  reign if  they're not home, and  those neighborhoods  have  the most  looters.  These  elderly and infirm  that  they  offer free  airlifts  or  transport  have  often  spend  quite  awhile  obtaining  a  few material  comforts  legitimately.  If you're  stuck in  your  house because  you're  old  and immobile  your TV is (unfortunately)  pretty damned important to such  a  person. People don't  live in extended families  anymore so grandma has  no company except that TV.  Because  we  live in a culture that  doesnt value the elderly no  on comes  to visit  them, etc. So, they stay put  with their 'stuff.'

If  you saw a guy carrying a TV  it  is a  similar reason: if he can  carry it,  it can be  carried off, and  is probably the only thing of significant worth (large/flat screens are quite cheap by historical standards but *can* still run close to a grand or at least several hundred and it will fetch maybe a hundred or two in a stolen goods transaction.

So theyre carrying it because that's their only easily stolen (as I said, they're able to carry it so someone else could) and reasonably valuable item. It's unlikely that they just can't miss an episode of Honey Boo Boo.

Wherever you are from, you strike me as someone who has never lived in a bad area (not that there's anything wrong  with that).

I've lived in bad areas but that isn't relevant to the post about not preparing.

I appreciate you explaining that about the elderly and holding on to their things.

Not exactly. I  said the elderly *stay*.  The poor and  healthy *carry their TVs*  (or anything  likely to get looted) when they split.

And  I notice I  didnt  address  your other  question about  preparing,  and  I will  have to spell  that answer out as well it seems. No inference-drawing from you-- are you sure  you're not  from  the midwest?

So,  many  people in  the gulf don't "prepare" (at  least as it pertains  to  hurricanes, people's  individual  ideas about the direction the  world is heading is another thing and  they very well could  be  quite  prepared  in  that  regard for all I  know)  because  hurricanes are a dime a dozen.  If they left  the house  everytime  a  hurricane  warning  was issued they'd never come home.  Hurricanes are a way of  life there, it is easy to become flippant.  And the  warning  system cries wolf excessively. You learn there to  discern when it's  *really* time  to leave,  not when NOAA  or the  weatherchimp tells  you. Sometimes you'll  be wrong and stay, more often you're right when you stay. It's  a bit of confirmation bias, but it's human nature.  I live in California now, and we have earthquakes all the  time. You'd be lucky if I woke up anymore, or said anything besides "pass the gravy please". 90% of Californians don't even have a single gallon of  water or even a flashlight  (of  the  ones I talk to). My house  has been here over a hundred years, so I'm not sure anything is going to happen myself besides a power outage, but I have water, food, medicine, etc. I'm prepared for several scenarios actually, but  earthquake should be statistically what  I focus on. Interestingly, doesnt even cross my mind in my prepping.  I think more about the Three  Days of Darkness with  blessed, wax candles, prayer/confession, window coverings etc  and that might not  happen in  my  lifetime,  but an  earthquake  is sure to.

So, if you lived in the  gulf your  attitude towards hurricanes might change is what I'm saying. They've been in the news  in  the last 7 years  quite  a bit with Katrina and all, but keep in mind we did  with  a  levee system  that  was nearly (and over)  100  years  old  in  many  spots and further, we hadn't  had a Katrina-like flood for a few hundred. Flooding yes, but wiping out everything? Nope.

There was no reason to believe Katrina was going to do what it did, until  it did.

My  dad  always evacuates if it's even 50/50  because  my grandparents were typical  natives who continued life as usual when a hurricane warning was issued.  One day he woke up and his  bed was getting sloshed around and floated around in his room.  The water was pretty high and scared him good. I would say he was 9, or maybe  6.  I forget.

Anyway, it scared him as a kid. He has nightmares about it.  He says it  still wakes  him up from time to time because, even though nobody died and my grandpa laughed  and  picked him up and carried him being chest  deep in water himself, for  a minute he thought he was going to die. That   sticks with you. Anyway, he evacuates  always, but *even  he*   says he is totally  irrational, acting out of trauma, and thinks he is over the top. My  uncles, aunts, etc never evacuated, my  grandparents didn't that I can remember.

I could go  on.