 |
|
Title: The Great Deluge: Hurricane Katrina, New Orleans, and the Mississippi Gulf Coast
ISBN: B0017I0GP8
Author:
Douglas Brinkley
Publicate Date: 2006-05-01
Publish: 2006-05-01
List Price: $29.95
Average Customer Rating: 4.0
Format: Hardcover
 |
|
|
|
|
Amazon Lowest New Price: $6.63
Amazon Lowest Used Price: $5.97
Amazon Merchant Price: $7.99
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Customer Review: |
|
1: The Best Book About Hurricane Katrina
I am a certified floodplain planner, storm spotter and emergency manager. I have read numerous books about Katrina. I rank this book the best because it was the most comprehensive. Brinkley did not just mention New Orleans. I was at a floodplain management conference in Biloxi 16 months before Katrina and went to New Orleans on a tour as part of the trip, so I had an interest not just in the human suffering, but seeing an area I visited severely damaged. The book was poignant as he mentioned Bay St. Louis' destruction. I had empathy for that area after a waitress in a restaurant in Gulfport told me before I left that I needed to visit her hometown, Bay St. Louis, because she was proud to live there. Seeing the pictures along U.S. Highway 90 was chilling. Also, reading the stories of the Superdome left an indelible. I also liked the coverage of the government infighting. Best of all, Brinkley reported and did not make himeself too much of the story where there was two competing angles.
|
2: Excellent Account Marred by Political Bias
This book is an otherwise excellent account of the events surrounding Katrina, but is marred by a significant political bias. Brinkley gives the incompetent governor Blanco a pass, yet, he sees the Bush administration and FEMA as the ultimate Dark Force. While Blanco's failures are understandable due to the scope of the crisis or the pressure she was under, failures of the federal government and Bush Administration were the result of racism. The reality, that the basic problem was caused by incompetent state and local government governments who failed to provide even the most basic planning for what was an inevitable event, is ultimately overlooked in favor of laying blame at the feet of FEMA (although, Mayor Nagin's gross incompetence is pointed out time and again -- in the end, Brinkley allows this fact to be overshadowed by has Bush and FEMA-bashing). As an example, Brinkley is critical of Bush "flying over" the region in Air Force One, in lieu of getting out and walking amongst the angry crowds. Obviously, no president would ever be permitted to do such a thing.
With that criticism, I will say that the book is very well-researched and in my view, a riveting account of the events. It is replete with interesting vignettes of tragic stories, heroic acts, well-known figures and ordinary people. I found the story of Charmaine Neville, raped upon the rooftop of Drew Elementary school, while simply trying to get some badly needed rest, a compelling story. Her subsequent heroism and decision to take control of her circumstances was inspirational.
I found the accounts of Mayor Nagin's activities during the crisis particularly interesting. While his incompetence did come through, more interesting to me were the accounts of his "hiding" out, his emotional character, and what can only be considered as erratic behavior.
On the criticism of FEMA which WAS warranted, more substantive detail and less opinion would have been nice.
Anyone who has an interest in New Orleans or Katrina and its aftermath ought to read this book. It is a fascinating account of America's greatest natural disaster, at least in modern times. While the political opinion must be taken with a huge grain of salt, I would not want to have overlooked this excellent account of these events on that basis.
I am hopeful there will be a volume two that covers the details of the post-Saturday aftermath in some detail.
|
3: A Polemic that may Stand the Test of Time
This is a passionate and moving polemic against rank incompetence and lack of empathy that made the Katrina disaster worse than it had to be. Brinkley is so effective in portraying Mayor Nagin's cowardice and Secretary Chertoff's arrogant indifference that one feels real rage and an overwhelming desire to smash their bureaucratic snouts.
But polemics don't usually stand the test of time. I imagine that as more information and government documents emerge, and as we view the response to Katrina with the benefit of more time, the definitive history will then be written. But, Brinkley's book will always be valuable, in part because of his first hand interviews and in part because he has the judgment and insight to make some very thoughtful, non-polemical points.
First, Brinkley demonstrates the importance of leadership at the top. My own prejudice is that this is a factor that Americans overvalue and even obsess about, as manifested by the idiotic compensation structures of American executives. But leadership is critically important, and this book could serve as a case study for Harvard business school students about what not to do in a crisis. The biggest problems appear to be denial and groupthink. Mayor Nagin is a deer in the headlights; FEMA Director Brown thinks he's still dealing with a Florida style hurricane; Governor Blanco is slow to react; Bush holds a meeting right before the hurricane hit where nobody follows up with bald language about how this could be the great disaster we've been worried about for generations and how we have to get ready to fight the equivalent of a war. Also, Brinkley does a great job of demonstrating how leaders must be willing to throw the playbook out and improvise. This is what every general discovers when he throws out the battle plan after the first shot is fired.
Second, Brinkley demonstrates how the new post-9/11 security consciousness can warp decisionmaking. The problem is not that "Brownie" and Chertoff are completely incompetent. Even Brownie has some skills. The problem is they are bureaucrats obsessed with security and control. Brownie refuses help from third parties because he wants to control the disaster scene. We've got to keep new looters out, or keep out rescuers who will tax scarce resources in the zone. The problem is, when you have a disaster like this, you've got to draw on what resources you can find even if that means giving up a little on control. Chertoff's focus is on threats from terrorists. But, his Department was given jurisdiction over natural disasters and he had to make that a priority as well. It really doesn't matter to the corpse if it was killed by a man made bomb or by a natural missile hurled by a hurricane.
Third, Brinkley shows how quickly the social order can break down. He does not mince words when it comes to the thugs who delighted in the destruction. There is no question that some people raped,looted merchandise that had nothing to do with their immediate survival needs, and maliciously damaged property (including a bizarre need to take a "big dump" on all property they vandalize). Rescuers felt unsafe and this inhibited their efforts, though reports of sniping at helicopters were greatly exaggerated. The New Orleans Police completely abandoned their posts and many did a poor job of doing anything useful upon their return. And they were a counteproductive force in keeping rescuers out in the interests of security and in their disregard of the deteriorating conditions at the Superdome and Convention Center.
Fourth, the breakdown in social order invited the easy blame-the-victim response, which was aggravated by the race issue. The hold-outs could be blamed as stupid and as inviting the disaster. But Brinkley demonstrates the failure of Nagin and others to get the word out to evacuate and to marshal the buses and trains needed to transport people without cars. It would have been very easy to transport people. But there was no plan in place, and no one seized the initiative. And of course, much of the "looting" was for simple survival, given the need for food and water. And the thugs were a very small minority, though a small minority can do tremendous harm.
Fifth, the lack of planning or common sense intitiative was appalling. New Orleans is a bowl, ready to take on water from the Gulf and surrounding lake. Obviously, when the great flood threatens, you get assets and people (buses, police, rescue equipment) out of the area so you can come back in after the flood. Nobody thought about this very simple tactic.
Sixth, the cronyism of FEMA is damning. It had a contract for buses with a company run by Republican contributors. They were not able to respond. Greyhound offered its help and could have sent in buses right away. Brown was not willing to tell the contributor to take a hike and to take advantage of Greyhound's help. That's why people continued to suffer at the Dome and Convention Center for days after the tragedy.
Seventh, Bush's failure to respond indicates his underlying flaws. He's more of a scripted President who does not respond well to new and changing events. He does not shake the bureaucracy out of its groupthink and denial by asking hard questions during meetings and forcing people to confront unpleasant realities.
Eighth, there are good guys in this story. The Coast Guard was exceptionally well led with great people who did an excellent job of rescuing victims. But, as with 9/11, much of the popular media's focus has been on the performance of those in authority. However, one can argue that with respect to both tragedies, the most compelling heroism came from the common citizen. Brinkley does a good job of showing the heroism of many citizens. These efforts have not been sufficiently appreciated, in part, perhaps, given the political need to blame the victim -- i.e., to minimize the tragedy by playing up the thuggery of some of those who stayed on or the supposed foolishness of those (without transportation) who "chose" to ride out the storm.
This is a very good book. It's written in anger, but also shows exceptional insights.
|
4: Brinkley gets much of the story correct
I just reread this book after two years. My first time around I was skeptical how insightful a book could be so soon after Katrina. On my second go round with The Great Deluge, I was impressed by how much of the story Brinkley got right.
* The New Orleans Police Department was as dirty, corrupt and unprofessional as ever. The breakdown of the force was incomprehensible.
* Mayor Ray Nagin was a weak and shallow man with little leadership skills besides self-promotion.
* Governor Blanco was an earnest but overwhelmed figure who didn't understand her own state government well enough in order to harness resources before and after the hurricane.
* FEMA Director Brown was a lightweight political appointee who should have never been in such a key position. However, to his credit he did seem to realize early on that he would need help from above to manage the recovery process.
* Homeland Security Chief Chertoff showed a total inability to process important information, thus completely misreading the situation and failing to alert his boss to the massive mobilization the situation demanded.
* President Bush, who put people like Chertoff and Brown in jobs for which they they were ill-equipped.
If you're looking for more detailed information on specific aspects of Katrina, other books may provide better reading. However, if you want to read one book that gives you an overall perspective on what happened and why, then Brinkley's book is the one to read.
|
5: How hard it is to face the truth how hard it is to stay in a room
Brinkley's facts are confirmed by contemporaneous news reports and videos available on YouTube. Furthermore, New Orleans was written off because the white people with cars got out, and black and white people so feckless as to not have cars don't count in America. They are left to die alone, and then explode all over their pathetic homes in the heat, as was my neighbor during the Chicago heat emergency of 1995 because so many people in America don't count.
Go ahead and hate your neighbor, go ahead and cheat your friend. Go ahead, and post silly lists of grammar mistakes and run your stupid yap about "liberal agendas". Go ahead and generalize from your service in some military unit reluctantly and slowly detailed to help out, give us your worm's eye view, soldier, boast a little, you may even have the right.
But please don't say it didn't happen. And then don't say they deserved it.
Brinkley's book documents discoveries reminiscent of what Allied soldiers discovered in WWII: death camps.
"Brownie" (Michael Brown, the joke who was appointed head of FEMA) at least tried to do his job, this book documents. The real villains are as usual "flag rank", whose personal coldness is evident, to a frightening degree in reports of their conduct when not on camera and in their eyes when on. What they do to their wives speaks volumes. Can't trust 'em.
Many people reading these reviews work BELOW a bright line in American society which in the last twenty years is crossed, is risen above, only when you demonstrate the ability to (1) find the people who count, who have money and power and (2) write off the rest. It happens in little software development groups and it happens in the large.
Ask yourself, why wasn't Chertoff let go after Katrina? Why wasn't he fired? Why wasn't he outsourced? There's probably more compassion in India.
THE ONES IN POWER WHO KILL PEOPLE DO NOT ADMIT GRIEF. THEY WILL NOT STAY IN A ROOM WITH A DYING BABY. THEY WILL NOT SPEND THE DAYS IT CAN TAKE.
- Jenny Holzer, MOTHER AND CHILD
The conceptual artist Jenny Holzer inscribed those words in 1990.
|
|
|
|
|
