by John M. Curtis
(310) 204-8700

Copyright September 2, 2005
All Rights Reserved.

aced with skyrocketing prices and short supplies, President George W. Bush urged consumers to stop buying gasoline in the wake of hurricane Katrina. Press reports don't give the complete picture of what exact fraction of the nation's gasoline supply or refining capability was really disrupted by hurricane Katrina. Petroleum experts believe the Gulf Coast only accounts for only 7-10% of the nation's refining capability or supplies. Yet gas prices leaped between 20% and 200% almost instantaneously, as unscrupulous wholesalers and service stations exploited the crisis. “Don't buy gas if you don't need it,” Bush told reporters at an impromptu news event. “It's going to be hard to get gasoline to some markets,” said Bush, not explaining the precipitous and unjustified jump in gas prices. Apart from certain parts of the Gulf Coast, there's no excuse for price-gouging elsewhere.

      Instead of scolding consumers, Bush should warn oil companies that market manipulation and price-gouging would not be tolerated. Many states attorneys general are looking into price-gouging, threatening stiff penalties for exploiting consumers. Wall Street preys on external excuses to hike commodity prices. Hurricane Katrina was the perfect storm to continue the unrelenting escalation in oil and pump prices. Telling consumers to stop buying gas doesn't begin to address how publicly traded oil companies exploit crises to hype profits. Engaging in a feeding frenzy, oil companies and refineries have no compunction about gouging. Without some leadership at the White House, there's no end to spiraling oil and gas prices. President Bush must do more than lecture motorists. Publicly traded companies must also show some responsibility in times of national crisis.

      Bush urged patience to hurricane victims, assuring dislocated residents that help is on the way. It's easy for bureaucrats to counsel patience when they're not starving or dehydrated from prolonged exposure to the elements. Thousands of impoverished residents without access to private or public transportation couldn't escape the deadly path of hurricane Katrina. New Orleans' levees, earthen dams and concrete dikes couldn't withstand the storm surge, flooding 90% of the city, leaving thousands stranded and fighting for their lives. Without a rapid federal response, panicked and shell-shocked residents, faced with dehydration and starvation, began looting, not, as authorities would have you believe, for pleasure but to cling to life. Watching family members drown in New Orleans' murky water-world created the kind of helplessness and desperation causing chaos.

      Watching New Orleans' trapped residents fend for themselves demonstrates the survival instincts of human beings faced with extinction. Looting and mayhem are a direct consequence of a besieged population realizing that local, state and federal authorities had no immediate rescue plan for Katrina's victims. It's not helpful for authorities to call the situation rioting, when trauma victims were left to fend for themselves. With the government boasting about its Federal Emergency Management Agency or rapid response from the military, is it any wonder that African American residents question the delayed response? “Many blacks people feel that their race, their property conditions and their voting patterns have been a factor in the response,” said Rev. Jesse Jackson, injecting race into the debate over what caused the government's delayed response.

      For hurricane victims facing dehydration and starvation, it's unrealistic to counsel “patience.” Patience won't save children from the ravages of Katrina. Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Babineaux Blanco warned New Orleans' remaining residents that lawlessness and rioting would not be tolerated. Together with President Bush, Blanco promised to restore order by sending 40,000 troops to the watery city while the Army Corps of Engineers worked feverishly on plugging Lake Pontchartrain's 500-foot gash in the city's 17th Street levee. Had troops arrived with food, water, and, yes, empathy, instead of M16 rifles, the crowd dynamics might have changed. While there's no question that a small band of gangsters roamed the streets, the vast majority of the city's residents were not, as described by the White House and governor's office, looters, rioters and lawbreakers.

      New Orlean's shell-shocked victims exhibit classic symptoms of post-traumatic stress, showing the confusion and disorientation expected from the worst natural disaster in U.S. history. Calling dislocated citizens looters exacerbated racial tensions, ignoring the population's struggle to survive. “I know this is an agonizing time,” said Bush, responding to criticism from the press and New Orleans' Mayor C. Ray Nagin that the state and federal government's response was dangerously slow, costing untold numbers of lives. “I ask their continued patience as recovery operations unfold,” said Bush, antagonizing residents and infuriating civil rights leaders trying to figure out the reasons behind the government's delayed response. Bureaucratic inertia and incompetence no doubt slowed the government's reaction time. You can't blame New Orleans' residents for trying to survive.

About the Author

John M. Curtis writes politically neutral commentary analyzing spin in national and global news. He's editor of OnlineColumnist.com and author of Dodging The Bullet and Operation Charisma.

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