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PeakTrader:

When should the Administration take responsibility for its actions rather than continuing to blame Bush? Can we really blame the bomb in Times Square, the rig explosion in the Gulf, and the slow economic expansion on Bush?

Unlike Times Square, 9/11 was unexpected, hurricane Katrina was an act of God, rather than poor regulation or negligence, and this is the Obama economic "expansion."

When a ship explodes under the captain's watch, should the prior captain be blamed? The disasters happened under Obama, and ultimately they're his responsibility.

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Anon:

Are any of those things an Obama adinistratin ACTION?

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PeakTrader:

Yes, incompetence, negligence, etc. are actions. What if the bomb in Times Square went off? Also, what about the mining disaster? If there's a depression, why not blame Bush?

The policy seems to be if it's bad, blame business or Bush. If it's good, praise government or Obama.

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Anon:

Wanna bet the beaurocrat who was supposed to inspect that rig is the same person that had the same job under Bush?

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PeakTrader:

Well, if it was, it didn't blow up when Bush was his boss, did it?

Unlike, Clinton, Gore, Kerry, and Obama, Bush had some actual business experience, although that's viewed as negative, or even criminal, by many.

Obama should've focused on economic growth and jobs rather than his big pet projects.

It has been a waste, while the country suffers.

Obama is undoing the greatest and most efficient economy the world has ever seen.

As for hurricane Katrina:

Debunking the Myths of Hurricane Katrina:

"The response to Hurricane Katrina was by far the largest--and fastest-rescue effort in U.S. history, with nearly 100,000 emergency personnel arriving on the scene within three days of the storm's landfall.

Dozens of National Guard and Coast Guard helicopters flew rescue operations that first day--some just 2 hours after Katrina hit the coast. Hoistless Army helicopters improvised rescues, carefully hovering on rooftops to pick up survivors. On the ground, "guardsmen had to chop their way through, moving trees and recreating roadways," says Jack Harrison of the National Guard. By the end of the week, 50,000 National Guard troops in the Gulf Coast region had saved 17,000 people; 4000 Coast Guard personnel saved more than 33,000.

While the press focused on FEMA's shortcomings, this broad array of local, state and national responders pulled off an extraordinary success--especially given the huge area devastated by the storm. Computer simulations of a Katrina-strength hurricane had estimated a worst-case-scenario death toll of more than 60,000 people in Louisiana. The actual number was 1077 in that state."

http://www.popularmechanics.com/science/environment/2315076

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Yes, the Gulf Spill Is Obama's Katrina
Where was the White House plan, and why has it been so slow to make decisions?
MAY 27, 2010

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704717004575268752362770856.html?mod=rss_opinion_main

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Wall Street Journal -- President Obama has repeatedly said his Administration is doing everything in its power to expedite the oil clean-up and mitigate the damage. But in the two weeks immediately after the spill, 13 foreign governments reached out and offered their assistance. The U.S. response? Thanks, but no thanks. Blame it on the protectionist Merchant Marine Act of 1920, also called the Jones Act, that requires ships working in U.S. waters to be built, operated and owned by Americans.

Michael Barone -- And what about the decision not to waive the Jones Act, which bars foreign-flag vessels from coming to the aid of the gulf cleanup? The Bush administration promptly waived it after Katrina in 2005. The Obama administration hasn't and claims unconvincingly that, gee, there aren't really any foreign vessels that could help. The more plausible explanation is that this is a sop to the maritime unions, part of the union movement that gave Obama and other Democrats $400 million in the 2008 campaign cycle. It's the Chicago way: dance with the girl that brung ya.

https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=28997633&postID=3372593983921502243

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June 26, 2010

The Avertible Catastrophe in the Gulf

"The Dutch know how to handle maritime emergencies. In the event of an oil spill, The Netherlands government, which owns its own ships and high-tech skimmers, gives an oil company 12 hours to demonstrate it has the spill in hand. If the company shows signs of unpreparedness, the government dispatches its own ships at the oil company’s expense. “If there’s a country that’s experienced with building dikes and managing water, it’s the Netherlands,” says Geert Visser, the Dutch consul general in Houston.

In sharp contrast to Dutch preparedness before the fact and the Dutch instinct to dive into action once an emergency becomes apparent, witness the American reaction to the Dutch offer of help. The U.S. government responded with “Thanks but no thanks,” remarked Visser, despite BP’s desire to bring in the Dutch equipment and despite the no-lose nature of the Dutch offer — the Dutch government offered the use of its equipment at no charge. Even after the U.S. refused, the Dutch kept their vessels on standby, hoping the Americans would come round. By May 5, the U.S. had not come round. To the contrary, the U.S. had also turned down offers of help from 12 other governments, most of them with superior expertise and equipment — unlike the U.S., Europe has robust fleets of Oil Spill Response Vessels that sail circles around their make-shift U.S. counterparts.

The Americans, overwhelmed by the catastrophic consequences of the BP spill, finally relented and took the Dutch up on their offer — but only partly. Because the U.S. didn’t want Dutch ships working the Gulf, the U.S. airlifted the Dutch equipment to the Gulf and then retrofitted it to U.S. vessels. And rather than have experienced Dutch crews immediately operate the oil-skimming equipment, to appease labour unions the U.S. postponed the clean-up operation to allow U.S. crews to be trained.

A catastrophe that could have been averted is now playing out."

~Lawrence Solomon in The National Post