In a press conference given this morning Houston's Mayor, Bill White, expressed amazement at the fact that people in some of Houston's neighborhoods had already come out of their homes to deal with the after-effects of hurricane Ike themselves.Mayor White noted that in one neighborhood residents did not wait for city maintenance crews to come to their neighborhood to begin the clean-up process. Mayor White said that several neighbors had come out of their homes with chain saws, had cut up downed trees, gathered up scattered debris, and unblocked drainage culverts. They stacked the debris out of the way opening road access and as a result of unblocking the culverts the water levels in the neighborhood had already begun to drop.Why is it that the Mayor would express amazement that these people would actually take matters into their own hands rather than to helplessly wait in their homes for their government rescuers to clear the roads and open the culverts? Could it be that the Mayor subscribes to the notion that only the government can take care of its otherwise helpless subjects? Such a personal subscription (people are dependent on government to take care of them), would account for the Mayor's amazement.Though he seemed amazed that these residents would act for themselves, Mayor White seemed genuinely proud of these people. Though they seemed to be able to take care of themselves without government help Mayor White still thought that they needed a bit of government aid and reminded them that it might not be a good idea for them to cut up trees which had power lines entangled in them.We saw just these sort of private citizen actions taken in Mississippi and Louisiana following the devastation of Katrina. Even as everyone was tossing scathing criticisms at the ineffectiveness of FEMA and local and state officials in coming to their aid, we saw private citizens, not public employees, making a difference in hard-hit communities. Not only were local residents taking matters into their own hands, but several private citizens from neighboring states came to help their fellows in time of need. Just as we see in Houston now, we saw private citizens then taking up chain saws and clearing neighborhoods of fallen trees and debris, which were blocking the roads.It still seems that not all of the People are yet totally dependent on government in all areas of their lives; the People still retain the capacity to help themselves...to Mayor White's amazement.
This is definitely the sort of thing that pisses me off most about statists, pols especially. Not only do they act as though people are incapable of acting for themselves to get what they want (and therefore the state is needed to cover every facet of life or else the universe would explode), they honestly believe it.
Diminishing Marginal Utility - IT'S THE LAW!
Solomon: This is definitely the sort of thing that pisses me off most about statists, pols especially. Not only do they act as though people are incapable of acting for themselves to get what they want (and therefore the state is needed to cover every facet of life or else the universe would explode), they honestly believe it.
Sometimes I wonder if the family structure of authority & power is just absolutley crushing the fight for liberty. Politicans are equivalent to step-parents on a power trip, imo.It pains me to think of that, though.
"Look at me, I'm quoting another user to show how wrong I think they are, out of arrogance of my own position. Wait, this is my own quote, oh shi-" ~ Nitroadict
If people break out of the infantalized-shell the government officials have created for them...why the government officials won't have their own little fiefdom anymore. Can't have that.
Ed D.:Though they seemed to be able to take care of themselves without government help Mayor White still thought that they needed a bit of government aid and reminded them that it might not be a good idea for them to cut up trees which had power lines entangled in them.
That actually sounds like good advice.
You never know when some yahoo decides to hook their generator up to the house wiring with a spliced together extention cord without tripping the main breaker and making some downed power line 'live'.
One of my friends has a side job with FEMA and they're sending him down there today, I'll have to call in a few days to see what kind of bang-up job they're doing to help the people of Houstintown.
Ed D.: Why is it that the Mayor would express amazement that these people would actually take matters into their own hands rather than to helplessly wait in their homes for their government rescuers to clear the roads and open the culverts? Could it be that the Mayor subscribes to the notion that only the government can take care of its otherwise helpless subjects? Such a personal subscription (people are dependent on government to take care of them), would account for the Mayor's amazement.
Why is it that the Mayor would express amazement that these people would actually take matters into their own hands rather than to helplessly wait in their homes for their government rescuers to clear the roads and open the culverts? Could it be that the Mayor subscribes to the notion that only the government can take care of its otherwise helpless subjects? Such a personal subscription (people are dependent on government to take care of them), would account for the Mayor's amazement.
apparently, you are unfamiliar with bill white, houston's mayor. this is not the first time that he has dealt with disaster. he oversaw houston during katrina. not only does bill white believe that the citizens of houston can take care of one another, but he's given ample evidence of it, time and time again... just as he did during this press conference. bill white ran on a platform of involving citizens in every level of gov't. if you saw problems, report them. if you could help, do so.
he has repeatedly stated that you do not need to involve the government in order to be a volunteer. if you have food and water, share it with people who don't. if you have electricity, invite your neighbours who do not. if you CAN, then DO... and while houston citizens are helping one another, he's working behind the scenes to try to get assistance to those who need it most.
during katrina, i sat in on the mayor's conference call, as he connected those who were in need with businesses and individuals who had resources. need 5 days supply of bottled water? who can donate it? who can get it there? he made all the connections. just as government is ~supposed~ to do.
you're really having to dig for something to bash him with, if warning people to beware of power lines, grates in your craw. heaven forbid a government official warn people to be safe, because he cares about them... and make no mistake, bill white cares about houston and it's people. we could do alot worse for a mayor... and we have in the past.
people are immensely able to do for themselves... to a point. higher level organizing is necessary as well. we need food, water, and ice to get to people. we need gasoline to get into areas. we need power restored, water restored.
during a time like this, when there is terrible devastation surrounding the city, those stories of neighbours helping neighbours need to be heard. people need the morale boost. those stories make you ~feel good~. it makes dealing with things that much easier and some of the stories ARE amazing. how many of you would go out during the height of a hurricane to drive someone you don't know to the hospital? kudos to all those people and kudos to bill white for recognizing the efforts of the citizens of houston.
now, i've to go deliver water to people standing in line at fema pod points.