What Plei said.

I still can't get into gmail. All I get is a page that says "loading...", but it LIES. It's annoying.

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My condolences, -t, to you and your family.

Happy birthday, Nutty!

Laura Bush implied today that the television footage we've seen doesn't reflect "what really happened."

Probably not. I think it may be worse than some have actually shown, especially considering the American press's reticence to show dead bodies (not that I really think this is a bad thing).

Cindy, the family doesn't sound familiar to me, although they certainly might have. I have run into friends in the Seattle airport before, although, not so much in the last few years. But I don't know anyone who has recently moved to the Boston area.

Don't we have another Alaskan here, in addition to you and libkitty, j? Oh, wait, I think we do and the Alaskan's name actually is Another Alaskan.

Indeed. I introduced AnotherAlaskan to b.org. He works with me here. Unfortunately, he's hooked on another board that's actually work related, and no longer comes to b.org, even to lurk. I tell him that this is a personal failing of his, but so far this has been ineffective in getting him back. He'll be thrilled to hear that folks remember his existence though!

"in Alaska" (her words, not mine--and my inner-Buffista really wanted to question her whether this was true for the whole state, or just their former school, but I was good) the snacks had to be healthy, and even when she'd baked Banana Bread, it was taken away from the kids, and they weren't allowed to eat it.

This is definitely not true for the whole state. I know that they serve crap all over, and have heard of friends at work bringing in cupcakes for their childrens' birthdays. They were having a big stink a year or so ago because it turned out that most high school students who ate on campus in Juneau were having Frito pie, which has about 2000 calories and teensy-weensy nutritional value. But despite the complaints, they still serve it.

I'm actually really curious as to where in Alaska this family is from, because my guess is that her statement isn't even true for most schools in her town (if the town is big enough for multiple schools). Odds are they're from Anchorage, both because they have half the population of the state and because they often tend to think of themselves as being the whole state, but you never know.

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Hey, Libkitty, don't suppose you happen to know a 50something couple named Julie and John, or her son, a nearly-30 fisherman named Aaron, do you?

t /Alaska Smallness Check.

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From Betsy's link:

FEMA is under fire for its slow response to the storm, which is feared to have killed hundreds. Federal aid was slow in reaching southeast Louisiana in the wake of the hurricane last week.

Isn't it in the thousands by now? (Unless they have one count for everyone killed by the storm, and another for everyone killed by incompetence after the storm) (which would be more accurate, but not something I expect to see with this administration).

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I think the "thousands" was just a guestimate. So far.

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Cindy, the family doesn't sound familiar to me, although they certainly might have. I have run into friends in the Seattle airport before, although, not so much in the last few years. But I don't know anyone who has recently moved to the Boston area.

They're a Coast Guard family, apparently. They may only be here for a year. I will update with more scoop when I get it. The woman is cute. She had a flippy little mini-kiltish skirt on today, and has a tattoo. She looks like she could be a Buffista Spirit Baby--far more than I do, for sure.

I'm actually really curious as to where in Alaska this family is from, because my guess is that her statement isn't even true for most schools in her town (if the town is big enough for multiple schools). Odds are they're from Anchorage, both because they have half the population of the state and because they often tend to think of themselves as being the whole state, but you never know.

She was probably just editing her background story as she told it. I just had that pedantic moment of "But...surely you don't speak for the whole state." In truth, I'm sure she wasn't trying to. It was a quick Q&A with the teacher, and one of the things the teacher mentioned was how personally Kindergarten and First Grade students take it, when you pack them a snack they don't like. A lot of parents figure they'll only pack healthy stuff, because if the kid has no other choice, he'll eat it, and he does, usually, but he also feels like, "Mommy knows I don't want apples, and she packed me an apple. She doesn't love me very much."

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I think it may be worse than some have actually shown, especially considering the American press's reticence to show dead bodies (not that I really think this is a bad thing).

That's a subject that the BBC America news is hitting hard -- why are dead bodies being left in the streets? And they're showing dead bodies (though at a discreet distance).

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Is it too early to start the "what should I have for lunch" talk?

How about the "what are people doing this weekend" talk?

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Odds are they're from Anchorage, both because they have half the population of the state and because they often tend to think of themselves as being the whole state, but you never know.

Ah, Anchorage. As close as you can get to Alaska without actually being in it. That's a subject that the BBC America news is hitting hard -- why are dead bodies being left in the streets?

I read that article. It's almost unfathomable.

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That's a subject that the BBC America news is hitting hard -- why are dead bodies being left in the streets?

And sadly, the closest they're getting to an answer is, "We're focusing on helping the living."

OK, fair prioritizing as far as it goes. But responders shouldn't still be having to choose between feeding the living and collecting the dead at this stage.

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