Monday, November 13, 2006

Robin Hood in Reverse: Corporate and Government Looting of the Gulf Coast


If this doesn't frost your cookies, there's probably no helpin' ya:
(By Bill Quigley, at Truthout.com)

Robin Hood stole from the rich and gave to the poor. On the Gulf Coast, the reverse is happening. Federal, state and local governments are teaming up with corporations and developers to systematically steal hurricane relief funds from the poor to enrich themselves.

Billions of dollars were given to help the communities damaged by Katrina. The people gave this money to help the working, elderly and disabled people of the Gulf Coast rebuild and restart their lives after Katrina.

The need is still great. Over 300,000 people remain displaced from the City of New Orleans alone. Hundreds of thousands of others on the rest of the Gulf Coast are also not home. Over 80,000 families in Louisiana are living in FEMA trailers. Texas says they have 250,000 displaced people, and Georgia reports another 100,000.

Tragically, money that was supposed to go to those in need is instead being diverted by federal, state and local politicians and corporations who have swooped down on these billions and are taking them for other purposes.


What corporations?

Just the 'usual suspects': Haliburton/KBR, Bechtel, Blackwater, Fluor, and other GOPuke-connected outfits.

The plan for N'Awlins has, for a long time, been to create a nifty, psuedo-funky, gated community/fantasy land for the wealthy to live in ante-bellum splendor and where the rubes can be shocked by the southron decadence...

Seems to be working out swell...

No comments: