New Orleans suffered $75 billion in flood damages when 1995’s Hurricane Katrina struck. As usual, the media portrayed it as a record storm, doing record damage. The second is correct, but as far as being a record storm, forget it. Katrina came ashore as a category one, and airport wind speed was 98 Miles per hour. As usual, the stupid media portrayal is all wrong, because the damages was not caused by Katrina, but by poor levee maintenance by the U.S. Corps of Engineers.
The Nifty Corps of Engineers, had $750 million to repair the levees, but conveniently spent it elsewhere. (I wrote a column mentioning this 6 years ago, if you want to search ’archives’). Katrina did absolutely no wind damage as hurricanes are wont to do. Rather, the $75 billion in damage was caused by flooding, mainly in the 9th Ward of New Orleans, although 80% of New Orleans was under water, to one degree or another.
I well remember watching the whole thing happen on TV. The levee burst, and millions of tons of water rushed out, flooding New Orleans. I watched Helicopters dropping cement slabs and boulders to try to stop the flow. The wind was not blowing, or helicopters couldn’t have flown with cement and boulders.. I watched it for hours…horrified at what was happening. The flow came not from Katrina, but from a broken levee, which kept a huge canal from flooding New Orleans.
We visited the 9th Ward last winter in a trip to New Orleans, and it is virtually empty. It was a horrendous disaster, caused by guess what? The good old Uncle Scam, who promptly told everyone that Katrina did all the damage. Practically everyone still believes that Katrina did it, just like they believe that Lee Harvey Oswald shot JFK. Thousands in New Orleans know a truth, and there is a massive class action suit against the Corps of Engineers, but will a government paid judge, rule tens of billions against his employer? We’ll see.
Governments always lie about themselves, to make themselves look smart, efficient, and of course the absolute pinnacle of righteousness. Not Just Uncle Scam, but governments everywhere.
Rinos and Democrats
Just a moment of diversion if you please. I love Gilbert and Sullivan Operettas, which poked endless fun at the British Government and Monarchy. As I am writing this, I am listening to H.M.S. Pinafore, and one of the ditties reminds me of Demos and Rinos (Republicans in name only). “I always voted at my party’s call, and never thought of thinking for myself at all.”
P.S. The Comex caused correction in silver is re-testing its bottom, but keep the faith. If my years of experience tell me anything, it’s DO NOT SELL AT THE BOTTOM. I’ll bet anyone that a year from now, we’ll have $60 silver or more.