BEHIND THE CURTAIN....

September 5, 2005 10:10 AM

BEHIND THE CURTAIN....George Bush's photo-op tour of New Orleans yesterday has apparently driven Louisiana Senator Mary Landrieu over the edge. Today she blasted FEMA for its feeble response to Hurricane Katrina and Bush for his phony, stage managed promises of action:
posted by Postroad (133 comments total)

ZDF News reported that the president's visit was a completely staged event. Their crew witnessed how the open air food distribution point Bush visited in front of the cameras was torn down immediately after the president and the herd of 'news people' had left and that others which were allegedly being set up were abandoned at the same time.
posted by mert at 10:16 AM on September 5, 2005

I'm at a loss to understand this.

I hate Bush as much as the next guy, perhaps more. He's cynical, selfish, and doesn't give a damn about killing people, that's well established.

But is even Bush prepared to go into a disaster zone, set up a fake emergency operation just for the cameras, then remove it when the cameras leave?

Please, somebody link to some evidence that can tell me we're missing something here.
posted by cleardawn at 10:21 AM on September 5, 2005

Sounds like he doesn't give a shit about anything that can't advance his personal goals immediately.
posted by Balisong at 10:26 AM on September 5, 2005

ZDF News reported that the president's visit was a completely staged event.

Can anybody find this on ZDF's site itself? I tried and failed, but I don't speak German so that's not too surprising. (Also, is ZDF a TV channel or show, or a newspaper, or just the website, or what?)
posted by jacobm at 10:27 AM on September 5, 2005

ZDF is Zweites Deutsches Fernsehen, a public TV station. I'll dig for the report.
posted by muckster at 10:28 AM on September 5, 2005

I can't believe I have any reserves of disgust left when it comes to Bush, but here he is, plumbing peculiarly repulsive new depths. (Assuming this is true, obviously.)

And I'm looking forward to seeing how Bush supporters spin this one - 'it may have been a fake emergency operation, but there were real ones nearby that he couldn't visit for security reasons' isn't going to cut it, really.
posted by jack_mo at 10:32 AM on September 5, 2005

Please let this not be true. Good god, what people do for money and approval.
posted by arcticwoman at 10:33 AM on September 5, 2005

"I saw it on TV! It must be true!"

... why is that movie still applicable?
posted by SpecialK at 10:36 AM on September 5, 2005

ZDF is a channel. ZDF Heute is their daily television news program. I couldn't find much about this, either, from this link.
posted by Rothko at 10:37 AM on September 5, 2005

Here are a few paragraphs:


Räumarbeiten nur für Bush?
Wo der US-Präsident das Katastrophengebiet besuchte, räumten Hilfstrupps vorher ordentlich auf - aber nur dort. Aus Biloxi zitierte ZDF-Korrespondentin Claudia Rüggeberg verzweifelte Einwohner, Bush solle in seinen Limousinen statt lauter Bodyguards und Assistenten lieber Hilfsgüter herbeischaffen.

Entlang seiner Route hätte Räumtrupps vor Bushs Besuch Schutt weggeräumt und Leichen geborgen. Dann sei Bush wieder abgereist "und mit ihm", so Rüggeberg, "die ganzen Hilfstrupps". An der Lage in Biloxi habe sich sonst nichts verändert, es fehle an allem.

Quick & dirty translation:

Clean Up only for Bush?

Where ever the US president visited the stricken areas, helpers cleaned up--but only there. From Biloxi, ZDF reporter Cluaida Ruggeberg interviewed desperate citizens, who said that Bush should bring food and water instead of body guards and assisstants. Along Bush's route, cleaning crews removed debris and corpses. Then, Bush left, "and with him," said Ruggeberg, "all the help crews." The situation in Biloxi remained unchanged; people remained in need.

All ZDF Katrina Stories.
posted by muckster at 10:37 AM on September 5, 2005

It's not just ZDF. Landrieu saw the same thing at the 17th street site - they set up an aid camp, had all sorts of equipment, water, food etc there - Dubya came and did his compassionate conservative softshoe routine, and the next day, it was all gone again.
posted by stenseng at 10:37 AM on September 5, 2005

Also, is ZDF a TV channel or show, or a newspaper, or just the website, or what?

ZDF (for "Zweites Deutsches Fernsehen" or 2nd German TV Channel) is "Germany's national public television broadcaster. It is an independent nonprofit corporation under the authority of the Länder, the sixteen states making up the Federal Republic of Germany."

More about ZDF here (in English).
posted by flug at 10:37 AM on September 5, 2005

Fuck you, Kansas, die die die.
posted by The Jesse Helms at 10:38 AM on September 5, 2005

From NoLa.com (the Times-Picayune):

On ABC-TV’s "This Week with George Stephanopoulos," Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La., said she broke down in tears as she looked down at the breached 17th Street Levee from a helicopter Saturday and saw only a single crane working on repairs.

There was a lot more activity the day before, when President Bush toured the area, she told Stephanopoulos, making it seem like a photo op designed to show more being done than really was, she said.

"There is such suffering and devastation," Landrieu said on ABC. "It is mind-boggling to everyone in Louisiana, including myself, why the president did not send forces earlierearlier."

posted by Miko at 10:42 AM on September 5, 2005

If this is true, and I've heard it from more than one source, this is rather disgusting.

It's also one of those reasons why I really distrust American media. If this happened, the media reporting on this Potemkin president is just as culpable as he is, because they witnessed the sham and did not reveal it.

That makes them accomplices. You can't hide crap like this without their help.

Maybe there is some explanation, but I'm well beyond the point where I expect it. This is nothing different that "mission accomplished" in principle, only degree.
posted by teece at 10:42 AM on September 5, 2005

All hat and no cattle.
posted by Balisong at 10:44 AM on September 5, 2005

Couldn't find much from the video clips, either.
posted by Rothko at 10:45 AM on September 5, 2005

And I'm looking forward to seeing how Bush supporters spin this one

They won't have to. The news sources that most Americans get will give it minimal coverage, if any, and the dems in Congress will fold the minute somebody says "politicizing Katrina".

I'm at a loss to know what's to be done. Something over 45% of Americans will support Bush no matter what he does. Up to a point they'll excuse it, beyond that point they'll ignore it and/or call you a liar. The other 55% are laughably easy to send into disarray, especially when the other guys have all the money and newspapers... and control of a decent chunk of the voting systems. This will not change until the majority get together and actually fight. But they often find it easier and more satisfying to attack each other; not all the time but often enough to prevent any real coalition from forming.
posted by George_Spiggott at 10:46 AM on September 5, 2005

Here's the clip from "This Week" with Landrieu and the lone crane.
posted by homunculus at 10:47 AM on September 5, 2005

It's also beyond dispute at this point that Bush's visit grounded all rescue flights in NOLA, at a time when people were dying at 8 an hour (or was it 8 day?) because of lack of help. So he's not off the hook with his visit even if this is false, which I doubt that it is.

There is some number of people that died in NOLA because rescue helicopters could not fly when he was there. If I was president, that shit would not have happened. Let the helicopters fly, or I don't go. Apparently no one in Bush's administration cared to think about that little point.
posted by teece at 10:48 AM on September 5, 2005

From this transcription of a BBC broadcast this morning:

Announcer: The relief operation is the largest ever conducted in America. It’s being coordinated by the US Northern Command in Colorado. Leftenant Commander Sean Kelly explains how the relief effort is being organized.

Kelly: US Northern Command is the command that coordinates the military support for our federal and state agencies. They call up and request a capability and we try and provide that capability, whether it’s medical resources, search and rescue helicopters, food, water, transportation, communications; that’s what we provide.

A: So it sounds like you’re providing a bit of everything. I mean, do you know how much you’re actually providing?

K: Right now we’ve got 4,000 soldiers, sailors, airmen and marine and coast guardsmen supporting this. They’ve delivered more than 9 million meals, I can’t remember how many millions of liters of water.

A: 9 million meals? Do you actually have 9 million meals?

K: It’s those "meals ready to eat". The packaged meals that the Army takes out with them out in the field. We have 9 million of ’em ready. I know at least 100,000 went to the Superdome the other night to help the people out there in New Orleans. So they’re staged at various places throughout Mississippi, Alabama, and Louisiana.

A: Now I’m sure you’re aware of the criticism that the authorities have been slow to respond to this. When did you get the order to start relief work?

K: NorthCom started planning before the storm even hit. We were ready for the storm when it hit Florida because, as you remember, it crossed the bottom part of Florida, and then we were planning, you know, once it was pointed towards the Gulf Coast. So what we did was we activated what we call defense coordinating officers to work with the state to say okay, what do you think you’ll need, and we set up staging bases that could be started. We had the USS Baton sailing almost behind the hurricane so that after the hurricane made landfall it’s search and rescue helicopters would be available almost immediately. So we had things ready. The only caveat is, we have to wait until the President authorizes us to do so. The laws of the United States say that the military can’t just act in this fashion, we have to wait for the President to give us permission.

That permission came some days later evidently.
posted by y2karl at 10:50 AM on September 5, 2005

Video clip of Landrieu's outburst.
posted by Zurishaddai at 10:50 AM on September 5, 2005

If this happened, the media reporting on this Potemkin president is just as culpable as he is, because they witnessed the sham and did not reveal it.

It's true. But it's the producers and editors in the studio and their higher-ups that are to blame. The reporters may have reported it, for all we know. We'd have to be looking at satellite feed to see it, though.

Why not write the outlets and ask if it's true - ask to see a report on it?
posted by Miko at 10:53 AM on September 5, 2005

The other day, a friend of mine was at a shelter waiting for food when the line slowed to a crawl. When he got to the front, he saw that the multiple volunteers who had been serving refugees had been replaced by one person: Laura Bush. Oh, and a film crew.

Bastards.
posted by brundlefly at 10:55 AM on September 5, 2005

The other day, a friend of mine was at a shelter waiting for food when the line slowed to a crawl. When he got to the front, he saw that the multiple volunteers who had been serving refugees had been replaced by one person: Laura Bush. Oh, and a film crew.

There goes my stomach again.
posted by Miko at 10:56 AM on September 5, 2005

The ZDF story was posted in one of the Katrina posts a couple of days ago ... here
posted by squeak at 10:59 AM on September 5, 2005

We'd have to be looking at satellite feed to see it, though.

Can anyone say some more about this? I'd like to learn how it works. I've noticed a lot of "off-air" clips apparently come from live satellite feeds that anyone can listen in to with the appropriate equipment. I'd like to learn how this works.
posted by odinsdream at 11:00 AM on September 5, 2005

How about this?
posted by Miko at 11:04 AM on September 5, 2005

Yeah, you can snag most of the raw feeds if you have access to a sattelite dish. I remember tuning into the 96 presidential debate feeds and seeing Bob Dole and Clinton shooting the shit before the show.
posted by stenseng at 11:05 AM on September 5, 2005

odinsdream, perhaps free to air?
posted by shoepal at 11:06 AM on September 5, 2005

odinsdream: I wish I knew. The last time I was able to view direct feed was when I worked for a newspaper. We had a satellite dish, and many of the obscure channels are raw feed from mobile units to studios. It's fascinating, and I wish I could tap that to watch New Orleans footage.

My brother said the other day that he was watching feed on the local New Orleans TV stations. In fact, even though I hate the network, the reason that Fox's video has been the best so far is that they do have local affiliates' cameramen on the ground -- people who work in NoLa all the time, and who know where to go to get stories. I haven't explored enough to see whether any of them really do have a link to direct feed or whether my brother just meant 'coverage'. Maybe you could find some by Googling around.
posted by Miko at 11:07 AM on September 5, 2005

It was Thursday that Landrieu was ineffectually kissing ass. So, was she a tool before Saturday or after?
posted by nj_subgenius at 11:08 AM on September 5, 2005

If only for the symbolism, I rather think that "Criminally Negligent Homicide" could be considered as "high crimes and misdemeanors."
posted by tyllwin at 11:11 AM on September 5, 2005

I do have access to a satellite dish. It was left here by the previous owner of the house. I think that step is fairly obvious. It would be the following steps that I would not understand. If I bought a commercial DirecTV box (which I have no use for), I'd be able to tune in to "official" broadcasts. This isn't what I want to do. If anyone knows more, please let us all know, it would be very very interesting.

nj_subgenius, she's a tool all the time. That's what politicians are. The difference is, she's now recognized she's a tool, and she is not happy about it.
posted by odinsdream at 11:13 AM on September 5, 2005

I may be a complete cynic but I can't help but believe that the dressing down she received from Anderson Cooper has as much to do with Mary Landrieu's change of tune as anything else. She should send him a thank you note.
posted by Carbolic at 11:16 AM on September 5, 2005

Does this help?

When I was using this stuff it was 10 years ago. We had a wacky remote directional dial and a phone book with numerical coordinates for a directory. I have no idea how satellite TV works now.
posted by Miko at 11:20 AM on September 5, 2005

Personally, I have no doubt that there was staging for Bush. There is always staging for the President wherever he goes, always. Pretty much any President. There are vast teams of guys who fan out in front of everything making sure whatever is in frame coincides with whatever they want to present. This happens with all Presidents. Well, the last four, anyway. And it's always sort of disgusting. It's just disgusting on a much higher level, this time.

And, sadly, cynically, I can't totally escape the thought that Cooper made her look pretty bad the other day, and Landrieu is trying to do a little make-up work here. I hope not. But I really don't have much respect for any elected official anymore. Just to get to the point of being elected on any kind of national level means you have to discard a bunch of basic humanity, it seems.
posted by umberto at 11:20 AM on September 5, 2005

Carbolic, you beat me. Glad I"m not alone in my uncomfortable cynicism... I gotta go back to the old preview.
posted by umberto at 11:21 AM on September 5, 2005

I had to quit watching when she started getting emotional about the "crane". I'd seen that section quoted before I watched and asssumed she was at least talking about an actual bird. I figured it might be manufactured emotion but I didn't expect construction equipment to be the focus.
posted by Carbolic at 11:24 AM on September 5, 2005

OK, so apparently, the remarks by reporter Christine Adelhardt were on ARD's Tagesschau rather than ZDF, and according to this page, ARD purged them from their online archives. There is a mirror of the paragraph here. The Google cache is gone already.
posted by muckster at 11:25 AM on September 5, 2005

Meanwhile, Karl Rove orchestrates a political response.
posted by The Jesse Helms at 11:25 AM on September 5, 2005

umberto: and nj_subgenius beat me.
posted by Carbolic at 11:26 AM on September 5, 2005

Here's Reuters Raw Video. It's small chunks, not streaming feed, but unedited.
posted by Miko at 11:26 AM on September 5, 2005

but unedited.

Sorry, false, mistake. Upon more exploration, I realize some are field-edited pieces filed as complete reports. The ones labeled 'rough cut' are field-edited as well, but interesting.
posted by Miko at 11:29 AM on September 5, 2005

Bush: SELL THE RANCH.
posted by drezdn at 11:46 AM on September 5, 2005

My take on Landrieu is that she needed a few days away from the Washington beltway before the influence of the surrounding stupidity-field there wore off. The vigorous shaking of Landrieu by Anderson Cooper while he screamed, "Snap OUT of it, woman!" didn't hurt, either.
posted by deanc at 11:50 AM on September 5, 2005

Photos from the President's first visit to the gulf region after the hurricane.
posted by bk at 12:01 PM on September 5, 2005

Makes me wonder if he brought the flag with him, and if it was pre-soiled, or soiled there with real live hurricane dirt.
posted by Balisong at 12:05 PM on September 5, 2005

From dKos: Dutch viewer Frank Tiggelaar writes:

There was a striking discrepancy between the CNN International report on the Bush visit to the New Orleans disaster zone, yesterday, and reports of the same event by German TV.

ZDF News reported that the president's visit was a completely staged event. Their crew witnessed how the open air food distribution point Bush visited in front of the cameras was torn down immediately after the president and the herd of 'news people' had left and that others which were allegedly being set up were abandoned at the same time. The people in the area were once again left to fend for themselves, said ZDF.

Here's an article from Haute.de run through Google's translation (referenced above). Video of the reporter in question, in German. Can anyone translate?
posted by moonbird at 12:07 PM on September 5, 2005

In the meantime, let's rap!
posted by furiousthought at 12:13 PM on September 5, 2005

Miko: "When I was using this stuff it was 10 years ago. We had a wacky remote directional dial and a phone book with numerical coordinates for a directory. I have no idea how satellite TV works now."

I'm pretty sure they encrypt most of not all of the raw feeds now. I don't believe you can just grab DirecTV's signal and watch it without the decoder card in the box - although there's plenty of places to get it illegally, I'm told.

(I don't have a dish, I have Comcast cable, legally)
posted by zoogleplex at 12:25 PM on September 5, 2005

Here's an article from Haute.de run through Google's translation (referenced above). Video of the reporter in question, in German. Can anyone translate?

Yes, they haven't pulled the part from archives. The video is the same mentioned in the article (my father had told me about it, I didn't see it myself when it aired).

Here is an exact translation. I tried to keep the barely contained snarky tone while leaving it true to the words:

Announcer: The latest update now live from Biloxi, Mississippi, by Christine Adelhardt

Adelhardt: Two minutes ago the president drove by here in his convoy. But went on here in Biloxi during the day is really unbelievable. Suddenly rescue teams showed up, suddenly heavy salvaging equipment was here - you didn't see those all the days before. And this in an area where it really wouldn't be necessary to clean up big time, because nobody lives anymore around here. The people are more in the inner areas of the city. The president travels with a press group - this way, these press people have beautiful images that are supposed to convey "the president was here, and the help - it will come as well". The extent of the natural disaster has shocked me. But the extent of this theatrical staging today is shocking me at least as much. With this, back to Hamburg.
posted by uncle harold at 12:30 PM on September 5, 2005

Very rough translation:

Adelhardt: Two minutes ago, the President just traveled through with his convoy. What happened here today in Biloxi though is quite unbelievable, suddenly troops, military rescue and clean-up crew and equipment, which had not been seen before all day. Not very important as no one lives here anymore; people are now further inland. The President traveled with a press convoy, which took beautiful pictures that should impart that the president was here and that the help is also coming. The catastrophe shocked me, but the planned scene I saw here today shocked me just as much. Back to you in Hamburg.
posted by Rothko at 12:30 PM on September 5, 2005

Echo...
posted by Rothko at 12:32 PM on September 5, 2005

... But what went on here in Biloxi ...
posted by uncle harold at 12:33 PM on September 5, 2005

(Belatedly: thanks for digging that up, muckster.)
posted by jacobm at 12:35 PM on September 5, 2005

Good find, Moonbird. I watched a bunch of her reports but couldn't find the one about the Bush visit. Rough'n tumble translation:

Christiane Adelhardt: "Two minutes ago, the President and his convoy passed by. What happened here in Biloxi during the day is truly incredible. All of a sudden, there were the disaster recovery crews and vehicles that were nowhere to be seen during the days before. This is an area where the recovery and cleanup aren't particularly necessary because nobody lives here. People are closer to downtown. But Bush travels with a press corps that now has terrific images which seem to say, 'The President was here and help is on the way.' I was shocked by the extend of the catastrophe, but I'm at least as shocked by how completely staged this event was."

On preview, I am shocked by how slow I am.
posted by muckster at 12:37 PM on September 5, 2005

But the three are remarkably close. So let's call the translation verified ;)
posted by uncle harold at 12:39 PM on September 5, 2005

Yeah, two very different things. The satellite feeds that would provide raw network footage are associated with giant 19080's-era dishes in landfills now (think Oliver Wendell Jones Sr.'s giant taco dip bowl). DirectTV is no different from cable.
posted by yerfatma at 12:40 PM on September 5, 2005

Thanks for the translations -- this is surely MetaFilter at its finest.
posted by footnote at 12:53 PM on September 5, 2005

I had to quit watching when she started getting emotional about the "crane".

Not me, I saw the video and it was indeed a pitiful sight, the one little crane compared to the breach. She seemed to be laughing at it initially, it was pretty laughable. It looked like it might take a few weeks to put a dent in the work at that rate.

I watched CNN last night (don't watch much tv) and the couple clips they had in a tight loop (rioters, looters, shooting of contractors, Broussard crying) it didn't really seem as well balanced as the couple video clips that have come through here, and furthermore, I don't need a 5 minute loop to drive home reality, it just sort of clicks the first time.
posted by nervousfritz at 1:04 PM on September 5, 2005

I saw reports on a reputable Polish website that Karl Rove was wolfing down MREs three or four at a time while many starving babies and pregnant women standing outside of the 17th Street levee looked on with horror. Then Rove tossed the wrappers on the MREs at the gathered women and children and told them that he might be convinced to give them some of his leftovers if they would dance for him. I cannot believe that the American media are trying to cover this up. This is a complete whitewash.
posted by esquire at 1:13 PM on September 5, 2005

esquire: wtf?
posted by muckster at 1:16 PM on September 5, 2005

esquire: Care to link to that website?
posted by Hot Like Your 12V Wire at 1:20 PM on September 5, 2005

I believe that was an attempt at "humor," 12V. Because callous disregard that leads to plentiful & unnecessary death is funny as long as you mention Poland.
posted by muckster at 1:24 PM on September 5, 2005

I think that's a joke.

Too bad the rest of this stuff isn't.
posted by Miko at 1:26 PM on September 5, 2005

Esquire made a funny!

Er, nevermind, that was just the funny sound s/he made whilst dropping a steaming turd in the middle of an otherwise reasonable discussion concerning a genuine human tragedy, all the while flailing his arms and yelping: "Look, everybody, I made a poo-poo!" - the two are oft-confused, I understand. By the by, that's excellent use of a holiday intended to honor working folks, Esquire. You really showed those liberal elites!
posted by joe lisboa at 1:26 PM on September 5, 2005

I cannot believe that the American media are trying to cover this up. This is a complete whitewash.

You need some new material. The exaggerated mock outrage gag is getting really old.
posted by Armitage Shanks at 1:31 PM on September 5, 2005

But is even Bush prepared to go into a disaster zone, set up a fake emergency operation just for the cameras, then remove it when the cameras leave?

You fail to understand that Bush is a puppet. He only reacts to the strings as they are pulled by the puppeteer. As long as the show is wowing the audience, nothing will change. Who is/are the puppeteer(s)? We can only speculate but he/they are plenty smart and devious.
posted by a_day_late at 1:52 PM on September 5, 2005

Bush built an entire ?theatre? when he came to Ft. Drum (10th mtn division), NY in 2002. Seating for 8,000 troops, and a stage. Mostly a mass of 2x4s and planks. In the middle of an open field, it went up in two days, and was gone in three.

Elections for NOLA are going to be very interesting. There will be no ongoing disaster (the hurricane is over, as compared to the gulf disaster that is still in full motion). I think all of the local politicians are going to be bagged.
That being said, I keep wanting to see at least one high ranking fed fired on live TV. I don't care for Bush, but he could have at least marched out with the FEMA dude, and on live TV: "You are fired for incompetence. EOM."
posted by buzzman at 1:54 PM on September 5, 2005

"Bush: SELL THE RANCH."

Fuck that, pitch some tents on it and bus in a shitload of refugees. Or, even better, use the newly-blessed-by-the-Supreme-Court eminent domain powers of local government to take property, y'know, for the common good, and GIVE IT TO THE REFUGEES.
posted by mr_crash_davis at 4:17 PM on September 5, 2005

I am shocked and displeased that ARD has decided to remove Adelhardt's report without explanation.
posted by oaf at 4:17 PM on September 5, 2005

Something over 45% of Americans will support Bush no matter what he does. Up to a point they'll excuse it, beyond that point they'll ignore it and/or call you a liar.

Surfing some other communities, I see a healthy patriotic backlash against "the Germans" already.

10 years to complete and utter xenophobia?
posted by dreamsign at 4:22 PM on September 5, 2005

Joe Lisbo -- don't get tendinitis patting yourself on the back for such a poignant and profound discussion about a third-hand account from some German website. Even the German website that spawned this thread has eradicated the subject references from its archives already. If I had dropped a steaming mess of caca in the middle of these rants, it could only have improved the credibility and SN ratio. And next time, I'll put something proletarian at the end of my satire so as not to ruin your Labor Day. We need a higher minimum wage! Okay. Done with that.

Armitage: You are behind the times. My mock outrage happens to be the new black (and the constant attacks on Bush based on Euro-websites could be the new pink). The people, united, will never be divided!
posted by esquire at 4:29 PM on September 5, 2005

I am shocked and displeased that ARD has decided to remove Adelhardt's report without explanation.
posted by oaf at 7:17 PM EST on September 5 [!]

That is rather disappointing. I'd expect self-censorship from American media, but had higher hopes for the state of journalism in Europe, and especially Germany.
posted by Rothko at 4:30 PM on September 5, 2005

Help is on the way...Former FEMA Director and Clinton Appointee James Lee Witt is now on the scene!
posted by DetroitWonk at 4:31 PM on September 5, 2005

Esquire, what are you talking about, "third-hand accounts ... from Euro-Websites?" ARD is not "some German website," it's very much respected national TV, and you can watch the reporter yourself. That makes it first-hand, no? And I don't see rants here, either.
posted by muckster at 4:40 PM on September 5, 2005

He's trolling. Let's drop it.
posted by Miko at 4:57 PM on September 5, 2005

He's not even trolling very well, as he just reveals that he doesn't know anything about German media.
posted by oaf at 5:13 PM on September 5, 2005

I am shocked and displeased that ARD has decided to remove Adelhardt's report without explanation.
posted by oaf at 7:17 PM EST on September 5 [!]

That is rather disappointing. I'd expect self-censorship from American media, but had higher hopes for the state of journalism in Europe, and especially Germany.
posted by Rothko at 4:30 PM PST on September 5

Have you emailed them to say so? I'm just about to. (I had been planning to ask them to provide an English-language transcript.) How else are they supposed to know that large numbers of people want that video as accessible as possible?
posted by cybercoitus interruptus at 5:21 PM on September 5, 2005

Point taken, Miko.
posted by muckster at 5:28 PM on September 5, 2005

No, I haven't, but I probably should.

I'm glad I got a heads-up on this, however, because I was able to save the podcast from that tagesschau, so I can play it back just to reassure myself that the report was, in fact, there. Searching the site still reveals the video clip of Adelhardt's report, but it's definitely no longer paraphrased at this URL like it was last night.
posted by oaf at 5:29 PM on September 5, 2005

I don't believe you can just grab DirecTV's signal and watch it without the decoder card in the box ...

Just to be clear, this is not at all what I'm interested in. DirecTV has its own official channels, and that's all they broadcast. I'm not interested in watching stuff illegally.

What I am interested in is watching the rebroadcasts from remote media vans to their headquarters, for example. There is a lot of stuff that is broadcast freely on the air, and I've noticed several events in Europe that post satellite transponder coordinates and settings (for instance, the World Tribunal on Iraq) that could somehow be used to jack in to that feed and rebroadcast it locally. This is what I'm interested in doing, which is not illegal.
posted by odinsdream at 5:30 PM on September 5, 2005

Joe Lisbo (sic) -- don't get tendinitis patting yourself on the back for such a poignant and profound discussion about a third-hand blahblahblah ...

Uh, dude, I didn't even contribute to this thread. I was simply pointing out what a jackass you were being, as a few folks apparently interpreted your asinine comment as serious. I while I appreciate your proletarian shout-out, don't you have, like, a motion to be writing or something?

Armitage nailed it and you know it: your mock outrage party left you stranded at the punchbowl thoroughly amused with the fact that you pissed in it - depsite the fact nobody showed up to your lame-ass shindig.
posted by joe lisboa at 5:33 PM on September 5, 2005

And yes, would someone be so kind as to translate this short video piece from the German correspondent? She's cute, if... that.. helps...
posted by odinsdream at 5:33 PM on September 5, 2005

odinsdream, that is the clip three of us translated earier in the thread.
posted by muckster at 5:38 PM on September 5, 2005

Barbara Bush: Things Working Out "Very Well" for Poor Evacuees from New Orleans

By E&P Staff - Published: September 05, 2005 7:25 PM ET updated 8:00 PM

NEW YORK Accompanying her husband, former President George H.W.Bush, on a tour of hurricane relief centers in Houston, Barbara Bush said today, referring to the poor who had lost everything back home and evacuated, "This is working very well for them."

The former First Lady's remarks were aired this evening on National Public Radio's "Marketplace" program.

She was part of a group in Houston today at the Astrodome that included her husband and former President Bill Clinton, who were chosen by her son, the current president, to head fundraising efforts for the recovery. Sen. Hilary Clinton and Sen. Barack Obama were also present.

In a segment at the top of the show on the surge of evacuees to the Texas city, Barbara Bush said: "Almost everyone I’ve talked to says we're going to move to Houston."

Then she added: "What I’m hearing is they all want to stay in Texas. Everyone is so overwhelmed by the hospitality.

"And so many of the people in the arena here, you know, were underprivileged anyway, so this--this [she chuckles slightly]is working very well for them."
posted by madamjujujive at 5:44 PM on September 5, 2005

Esquire: Bush/Rove sycophants like you are going to drive the stock price for lip balm companies through the ceiling.
posted by caporal at 5:46 PM on September 5, 2005

"And so many of the people in the arena here, you know, were underprivileged anyway, so this--this [she chuckles slightly] is working very well for them."

Whoa.
posted by muckster at 5:51 PM on September 5, 2005

"And so many of the people in the arena here, you know, were underprivileged anyway, so this--this [she chuckles slightly]is working very well for them."

To lose everything and then end up in a relief center in Houston--I'll bet those folks just think they've died and gone to heaven!
posted by leftcoastbob at 5:53 PM on September 5, 2005

"And so many of the people in the arena here, you know, were underprivileged anyway, so this--this [she chuckles slightly]is working very well for them."

OK, it's just a short skip from that to "let them eat cake." Now remind me, what's the part after that?
posted by a_day_late at 5:56 PM on September 5, 2005

The doubters will not be swayed by this, but I still got to say that ARD is the epitome and prototype of serious, fair, responsible, and balanced journalism. I have yet to see a tv station that rivals it in that regard. Most don't even come close. BBC comes near it - but there are probably others that I don't know.
posted by uncle harold at 6:02 PM on September 5, 2005

The Marketplace audio where Barbara Bush made her comments can be heard here: Houston, we may have a problem.
posted by F Mackenzie at 6:02 PM on September 5, 2005

odinsdream, what you want are wildfeeds, they're on C-band satellite systems so you need a full sized dish between 6-8 feet. There should be a lot of websites that explain how to do it, since wildfeeds are really popular with tv addicts who have to see episodes of their favourite shows before they officially air on a network (shows are typically sent to satellite a week in advance & the networks grab the show from that feed). Anyway, google is your friend, and orbit mag may have info too.
posted by zarah at 6:06 PM on September 5, 2005

I do believe this is the straw, and I hear the camel's back breaking.

We'll see a change in Congress in '06, the presidency in '08. Between this and the war, the Republicans' malfeasance is all too obvious now, even to many Republicans.
posted by zardoz at 6:32 PM on September 5, 2005

I'm not so optimistic. The spin machine has over a year before the 2006 election.
posted by oaf at 6:36 PM on September 5, 2005

I'll bet those folks just think they've died and gone to heaven!

Why yes, Mrs. B! In your view, I suppose the only ones lucker than these fat'n'happy refuegees are those who did die and went to heaven! Well, they were underprivileged anyway. So it's working out very well for them.

Ugh. This stuff is bad. Someone with good media skills should put together a montage of the many callous quotes we've seen uttered this week. You know: "Trent Lott's gonna build a fantastic new house!" and "We've heard people don't have food and water, we'll see if it's true" and this one. It would make a fabulous campaign commercial.
posted by Miko at 6:56 PM on September 5, 2005

Paul Krugman: Killed by Contempt
posted by muckster at 7:05 PM on September 5, 2005

Good piece, muckster. He nailed it.:


...the federal government's lethal ineptitude wasn't just a consequence of Mr. Bush's personal inadequacy; it was a consequence of ideological hostility to the very idea of using government to serve the public good.
posted by Miko at 7:13 PM on September 5, 2005

"And so many of the people in the arena here, you know, were underprivileged anyway, so this--this [she chuckles slightly] is working very well for them."

Babs must be relieved that she doesn't have to waste her beautiful mind thinking about them.
posted by Armitage Shanks at 7:27 PM on September 5, 2005

Ho-hum - more of the same...

FEMA Delays Nevada Officers' Deployment

More than one hundred law enforcement officers from Nevada are still waiting for their orders to go to the battered Gulf Coast. FEMA asked for law enforcement volunteers on Friday. Fifty southern Nevada and 53 northern Nevada officers answered the call.

They quickly prepared to leave only to be told at the last minute to wait. Everything is on hold at the moment. The gear sits inside the fence at the downtown Area Command loaded on trucks. One phone call, expected to come Tuesday or Wednesday, will mobilize 103 Nevada law enforcement officers. They are wondering why it hasn't come yet.
posted by madamjujujive at 7:45 PM on September 5, 2005

Keith Olbermann smackdown

snippet:
"And most chillingly of all, this is the Law and Order and Terror government. It promised protection — or at least amelioration — against all threats: conventional, radiological, or biological.
It has just proved that it cannot save its citizens from a biological weapon called standing water.
Mr. Bush has now twice insisted that, "we are not satisfied," with the response to the manifold tragedies along the Gulf Coast. I wonder which "we" he thinks he's speaking for on this point. Perhaps it's the administration, although we still don't know where some of them are. Anybody seen the Vice President lately? The man whose message this time last year was, 'I'll Protect You, The Other Guy Will Let You Die'?"
posted by CunningLinguist at 7:50 PM on September 5, 2005

We had the USS Baton sailing almost behind the hurricane so that after the hurricane made landfall it’s search and rescue helicopters would be available almost immediately. So we had things ready. The only caveat is, we have to wait until the President authorizes us to do so. The laws of the United States say that the military can’t just act in this fashion, we have to wait for the President to give us permission.

Video of BBC broadcast y2karl was quoting.
posted by blendor at 7:52 PM on September 5, 2005

Damn proud to watch this community working.



As for the POTUS and the clusterfuck...
*spits on the ground, turns back, walks away*
posted by Smedleyman at 8:00 PM on September 5, 2005

Federal troops refuse to let specialists rescue Notorial Archives

The Notorial Archives hired Munters Corp., a Swedish document salvage firm that freezes and then freeze-dries records to slowly remove moisture from them, to rescue the documents. But Munters refrigerated trucks were turned away by uniformed troops as they tried to enter the city, said Stephen Bruno, custodian of the archives.
posted by F Mackenzie at 8:05 PM on September 5, 2005

hey, how bout Keith Olbermann for president?

That clip is excellent- thanks.
posted by madamjujujive at 8:10 PM on September 5, 2005

I always heard that Barbara Bush was a cold fish, but then we shouldn't be too surprised. She raised her son to be completely empathy-free and by their fruits you shall know them.
posted by Secret Life of Gravy at 8:16 PM on September 5, 2005

And now, we have lovely folks like Oprah and Dr. Phil visiting the Astrodome. You just have to wonder if they're visiting because they truly care or because they know it will get good ratings.
posted by Serena at 8:46 PM on September 5, 2005

Tomorrow I will storm down to Scholz Beer Garten and demand they change the name to "freedom potato salad".
posted by chipr at 8:52 PM on September 5, 2005

Hitchens on Katrina.
posted by homunculus at 9:16 PM on September 5, 2005

I have this sinking feeling that our lovely current adminstration is trying to move this all into military hands, to keep things "under wraps".
Just a hunch.
posted by threehundredandsixty at 9:18 PM on September 5, 2005

I liked how Olbermann worked in the Churchill quote.

The context of that IIRC was during debates about the growing gap between the RAF and Luftwaffe, ca 1937, when Churchill was out of goverment (no cabinet post) and being a right curmurdgeon and "hawk" in public about the growing threat of Hitler in Europe. The Baldwin government, either in a debate or during Questions, made the statement that they didn't have a mandate from the public to spend more on the RAF, and Churchill rightfully teed off on that.

One of the better histories I've read is Churchill's 6-volume history on the war. It is highly revisionist and whitewashing, but it does tell one hell of a story.

posted by Heywood Mogroot at 10:51 PM on September 5, 2005

(the tape on those boxes cover the "Made in China" stamps)

Same shit, same *sshole.
posted by Heywood Mogroot at 10:56 PM on September 5, 2005

Do you realise how much it would cost and how long it would take with backorders it would take if we only used relief supplies made in America?

I'd be happier if they were, but for numerous priorities, they are not.
posted by Balisong at 11:18 PM on September 5, 2005

The fact that they tape it out means they are ashamed that they can't put boxes that have big American flags and MADE IN U.S.A. in bold type on the side.

But six feet of opaque masking tape is so much cheaper to 'solve' the whole problem of political fallout.
posted by Balisong at 11:21 PM on September 5, 2005

Balisong: this picture is from 2003. The backdrop behind WhistleAss was a prop flown in from DC, while the real deal at that site was at his feet.
posted by Heywood Mogroot at 11:36 PM on September 5, 2005

The thing that annoys me the most about the Bush administration is that when he became president, the republicans talked about how government would be responsible again. Not once has anyone been fired in the Bush administration for making a mistake. Not over 9-11, Iraq or this.
posted by drezdn at 11:41 PM on September 5, 2005

This doesn't really make sense. If the accusations are true, why aren't the residents of the area screaming at the top of their lungs about what a fake the whole thing was?
posted by b_thinky at 11:43 PM on September 5, 2005

I doubt anyone was actually around to watch what was going on. Right next to the breached levee, that's not where you'd find too many people just loafing about the neighborhood, eh? Y'know, where the water is really deep.
posted by zoogleplex at 1:00 AM on September 6, 2005

why aren't the residents of the area screaming at the top of their lungs about what a fake the whole thing was?

Anyway, I think they are. I think we've only just begun to hear it. One problem is that a lot of them are poor; we don't tend to listen to or believe the poor. Another is that right now, most of the victims are too shell-shocked to be thinking beyond outrage. It took the 9/11 families quite some time to emerge from their grief enough to organize. The same will be true of these victims. And there are many, many more of them.
posted by Miko at 6:25 AM on September 6, 2005

Asking the media to attack people for putting on media events is a waste of breath. Ever see how devoted an abused dog is to it's owner because it's so desperate for those few morsels of affection? The press is no different - their continued existance depends on those junkets and conferences, even if they're all bullshit. Ask too many tough questions in a briefing and you find you don't get called on in the future. If your success revolves around showing your 'talent' interacting with Ari or the Prez that translates into real money.

Or more briefly, the slogan isn't "We report in the staged BS, you decide!" because then who would watch?
posted by phearlez at 9:24 AM on September 6, 2005

Er . . . wingnuts on this thread are ready to believe even the most implausible reports of callousness by members of this administration, and I am the troll and the jackass? I don't mean to judge your ways of demonizing people so indiscriminately, but I do object to Oaf's insulting suggestion that my knowledge of German media outlets if insufficient. You, sir, have gone too far.
posted by esquire at 9:26 AM on September 6, 2005

b_thinky writes "If the accusations are true, why aren't the residents of the area screaming at the top of their lungs about what a fake the whole thing was?"

Right now they're not likely to be sitting at home watching cable TV, what with cable being out, their being displaced to different states, and their homes being flooded with water, fuel, feces, and possibly human remains.

Also they're kinda busy trying to piece together the remnants of their shattered lives. Of course I'm only referring to those who survived.
posted by clevershark at 9:47 AM on September 6, 2005

esquire writes "wingnuts on this thread are ready to believe even the most implausible reports of callousness by members of this administration, and I am the troll and the jackass?"

This is a President who is, on every trip, accompanied by hundreds if not thousands of Secret Service agents. Do you honestly think that he would have an impromptu chance encounter with someone who hasn't been previously "cleared", especially in an area from which reports have come of gunshots being fired at rescue personnel?

If you do there's this bridge you might be interested in acquiring...
posted by clevershark at 9:51 AM on September 6, 2005

Bush's response, in pictures
posted by homunculus at 1:15 PM on September 6, 2005

"DMort is telling us to expect up to 40,000 bodies," Dan Buckner said, quoting officials with the Disaster Mortuary Operational Response Team, a volunteer arm of Homeland Security.

His partner, Dan Hicks, of Paducah, Ky., was deployed Monday. Buckner, of Dickson, is on standby. Their funeral home is one of several collection sites for donations to be taken to the Red Cross in Fayetteville on Wednesday for transfer to places in need.

The 40,000 estimate does "not include the number of disinterred remains that have been displaced from ... mausoleums," Buckner told the Times-Gazette Monday.
posted by amberglow at 1:45 PM on September 6, 2005

I do object to Oaf's insulting suggestion that my knowledge of German media outlets if insufficient.

You're the one saying that ARD's unreliable.
posted by oaf at 8:29 PM on September 6, 2005

One problem is that a lot of them are poor; we don't tend to listen to or believe the poor.

Another is that their wholly reasonable grief may explain to some their unhappiness with how things were (not) handled. That will be enough for the GOP and who knows, maybe the media too, to explain their response in entirety.
posted by dreamsign at 10:26 PM on September 6, 2005

Why would I want to buy a bridge? And why would I think that the President is not surrounded by armed guards, especially in an area where people are at risk? I don't get your point.
posted by esquire at 7:58 PM on September 7, 2005

Oaf: you have a valid point. Do you mind if I contact you off-line to see if you can help me get my little brain around the intricacies of German media? I have had this narrow-minded focus on the American media and occasionally the BBC and a couple of Japanese newspapers, but I am trying to grow out of it so that I can become a better person.
posted by esquire at 8:00 PM on September 7, 2005

11 GOP Congresspeople voted AGAINST the Katrina Aid funding bill-
Rep. Joe Barton - TX
Jeff Flake - AZ
Virginia Foxx - NC
Scott Garrett - NJ
John Hostettler - IN
Steve King - IA
Butch Otter - ID
Ron Paul - TX
James Sensenbrenner - WI
Tom Tancredo - CO
Lynn Westmoreland - GA
posted by amberglow at 3:17 PM on September 8, 2005

It's been posted elsewhere here today - but, deserves a repost in this thread. From Sky News:


posted by ericb at 3:25 PM on September 8, 2005

bastards: Meanwhile, the president has suspended minimum-wage rules for the reconstruction effort, arguing in a proclamation that "The wage rates imposed by section 3142 of title 40, United States Code, increase the cost to the Federal Government of providing Federal assistance to these areas."

Good thing there are no problems with poverty or inequality in the Katrina-affected areas where these jobs will be located.
posted by amberglow at 3:28 PM on September 8, 2005