Most companies and agencies can run with their chief incapacitated, provided the worker bees have what they need to do their jobs.

Hey, no kidding. I feel like I am paying premium taxes, and getting less-than-premium services.

Speaking of premium... Most of the people I've talk to seem to be most angry about the rise in gasoline prices. Hello? 20 oil rigs in the Gulf disappeared, and the two major pipelines that supply the eastern seaboard were damaged. Of course that's going to affect supply, and thus prices. I wouldn't be surprised if the oil companies took advantage of it, but most local station owners have taken profits of only pennies to keep from driving their customers away. Sheesh. The gas prices are the least of our worries.

Get in your car and drive away from the major cities (and north, if you ask me, when possible) is the safest response to disaster in my book.

Except when leaders of neighboring municipalities are keeping you out by shooting at you. I mean, shit. Even the people who could walk out weren't allowed.

I read somewhere that a whole lot of top people in some department that oughta have been on top of this were in Greece for somebody's wedding.

They can turn around and come home. If anyone can get an international flight quickly, it's going to be members of a government.

When Hurricane Floyd was on its way toward the Atlantic coast (Carolinas, I think) in 1999, President Clinton was in New Zealand, meeting with President Jiang of China. He cut short his meetings overseas and flew home to coordinate the rescue efforts, one day BEFORE the hurricane hit.

Hello, all. I celebrated my birthday with a swankeriffic dinner (Mediterranean; I had grilled lamb with tzatziki and a fava bean moussaka, and lemon-ginger tea, and date tartlets for dessert) and then a loss to the Yankees (I only saw a few minutes at the end) and then a good yelling session at the 3rd floor frat-type boys in my building who thought it was a great idea to play beer pong in the back yard without warning their neighbors.

Hurray? But they did get quieter, and they had even cleaned up before 11am the next morning. And then I had a conversation topic to use when introducing myself to the neighbors, C. and G. and their two under-three toddlers. Somehow I think the frat-type boys will quickly discover that this is not a beer pong neighborhood.

I have aperitif wine and cheese and raspberries fresh from the garden. Till about an hour ago, I was so stuffed up (and Benadryl knocked me over and stole my lunch money) that I could not taste them, but I am thinking, when you are at home, it is okay to drink aperitifs without any intention of actually having dinner. Right? Right?

I hab a code too, Nutty.

Except when leaders of neighboring municipalities are keeping you out by shooting at you. I mean, shit. Even the people who could walk out weren't allowed.

That wasn't offered by way of criticizing or even analyzing the people who couldn't escape New Orleans. That was offered as a more likely way to be safe than relying on our Government Safety Agencies.

I'm just saying, sometimes everything is just a huge clusterfuck all the way around.

because they were primarily going to do community relations work, not rescue.

Oh, good. That was what New Orleans needed.

I'm just saying, sometimes everything is just a huge clusterfuck all the way around.

No, really?