On June 19th, I wrote my original article, Voices of Katrina and much to my amazement, the letters keep pouring in from that still devastated region. While I feel like the ‘Dear Abby’ of these victims, unlike the real advice columnist, I am overwhelmed and do not even know what advice to give them. But, I do feel it important to tell their story and will continue to do so.
What I cannot understand is how this run-away-freight-train called the United States government can even think about spending billions in order to help illegal immigrants to come in from the shadows so to speak through this ‘Grand Compromise’ bill as Lou Dobbs calls it, but this ineffectual government has not fully addressed this systemic problem. This is blight on our nation and it should embarrass our elected officials’ world-wide. To President Bush, Senators Kyle, Kennedy, McCain and those that do support this immigration bill; how about helping your fellow Americans first and foremost. To any of our esteemed presidential candidates that voted in favor of this bill the last time it was brought up; exactly where are your priorities?
To my readers, I strongly urge all of you to see exactly who voted in favor of this ‘Grand Compromise’ bill by going to this link at the Lou Dobbs web site. Pay close attention to which presidential candidates voted in favor of it and hold all of them accountable through your non-support of their candidacies.
I guess the one letter that jumped out at me was the one written below by EJG in which his son is now serving as a proud Marine in service to our country in Iraq. His son is sacrificing so much namely his life, and the least this government could do would be to lift a finger to help a Marine’s father.
I know that some of these letters are quite lengthy and these are only a portion of the ones that I received subsequent to that original article, but here is my challenge to all of my readers. I want all of you to shut that immigration bill down by calling your senators and telling them that their first duty is to our American citizens first. After all, it is their hard earned tax money that goes to pay these elected officials. They owe these victims. They owe nothing to those that knowingly broke our laws and came into this country illegally. In this country we punish law breakers and do not reward them. That goes equally for the corporate masters that employ them. They too have broken our laws and it is about time they be made to answer for their crimes.
Without further adieu, I now give you more voices of Katrina. Please read them and then act by calling your senators to shut the immigration bill down!
Jayne wrote:
I lived in Metairie, a suburb of New Orleans. We lost our home. We lived in Texas for a year and now live about 50 miles from our home. The rents are too high to move back there. I am so happy someone is still pulling for us to recover. Thank you very much, Jayne
Bill wrote:
You are right, Mary. I am from St. Bernard Parish, Louisiana and every house and business was wiped out from Katrina. It has been almost two years and I am still fighting the system to just get an SBA loan to rebuild.
I have not received any help other than FEMA which has been paying my rent till we get our new house built. We have been fighting the Road Home program because they come in and low ball the value of your house. You have SBA saying we cannot give you enough money to rebuild because you would have been made whole. And what I do not understand about SBA is it is a loan it’s not something they just give you.
You have to pay them back but you still get hassled. I do not understand our government how they can help every other country but cannot help the Gulf Coast. I even wrote a letter to Mr. Bush about why I could not get enough money to rebuild another house in a much safer place in Louisiana. Did not receive much of an answer other than SBA could only loan us so much and we would have to secure other funding and I said, what other funding. I am 53 years old and now am going to have a 30 year loan to pay back. My house was paid for and was looking forward to retirement but I guess now I might not see even this house paid for. But you are right if I could ask another country for some kind of help, I sure would. Thanks for listening. BILL of St. Bernard Parish, Louisiana
Christa wrote:
Thank you Mary for your article on June 18th about the Big Easy. I understand how everyone is getting tired of hearing about New Orleans. I am getting tired of being let down by the government I pay taxes to. Living here in New Orleans is anything but “Easy”. When they refused Castro and Chavez’s help for us, I was mortified; thousands of my neighbors were suffering. We needed all the help we could get. Our city has been let down. It is a common joke now that we are a living in a Third World City down here. C’est la vie. As they say we are the City that Care Forgot. Maybe they will figure it all out after they get control of all the oil on this planet. Thank you again Mary for still caring.
EJG wrote:
I have to give a high five on your article. It's almost two years since Katrina flooded my home with eleven feet of water due just to our Government levee failure. I'm still working on restoring my home with my own savings and still waiting for the Louisiana Long Road Home money, while my oldest son (Marine) serves his time in Iraq. What a hell hole I'm in!!! Thanks Mary for your good intentions.
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