Shame and Pity

I think the reality on the ground is simply too complex to accurately distill post hoc imperatives. A city with major access points destroyed cannot simply be invaded without a large, comprehensive logistical plan; otherwise the troops, instead of being the solution, become part of the problem.

But I agree with you that something is drastically wrong. Americans are dying in the streets of New Orleans, and those who don't make it out will die thinking they have been abandoned by their country. Citizens still trapped on rooftops waive the American flag in a desperate plea to a country that does not seem to care. The "Help Me" signs failed them in days 1, 2, and 3; nobody came, nobody noticed. Desperate, they put their last hope in a symbol that, unbeknownst to them, somehow means less than it used to.

Whatever is wrong, we need to fix it. I watch the news and all I feel is pity, and shame. Pity for our countrymen suffering and dying, and shame for our failure and helplessness. I will never be able to forget the incomprehension of a young mother, holding her dead five-day-old daughter in her arms, as the camera came in close.

Today her world was shattered. America came too late.