General: Feds Won't Enforce Evacuation

General: Feds Won't Enforce Evacuation
Sep 11 9:45 AM US/Eastern

WASHINGTON

The commander of active duty troops involved in hurricane relief efforts said Sunday his soldiers will not enforce New Orleans' order for residents to evacuate the flooded city.

Army Lt. Gen. Russel L. Honore said military units are continuing to provide food and water and other aid despite the order, which he indicated is the responsibility of state and local authorities to enforce.

"Federal troops will not be involved in the direct evacuation in any way, of any one, from their home. That is a local and state law enforcement task not to include federal troops," Honore told CNN's "Late Edition."

He added that local officials and the National Guard also are providing food and water to people who have stayed.

Thousands of residents are defying orders to leave the city, but security forces were not physically forcing anyone to go. The mayor, Ray Nagin, had warned that residents could be forcibly removed, but authorities have been reluctant to take that step.

Honore, who heads the military's Joint Task Force Katrina, said that over the next three days, officials should learn how many people died in New Orleans. He said the preliminary figure of 10,000 offered last week by some officials was "a number we'd be very happy to be wrong about."

Honore also addressed the issue of media access during recover efforts. The Bush administration, challenged in court by CNN, agreed on Saturday not to prevent the media from following the effort to recover the bodies of Katrina victims.

On Thursday, Honore said the media would be allowed "zero access" to recovery efforts. But on Sunday, he said reporters and photographers have "total access" to the area.

"I can't swing a dead cat without hitting a reporter," Honore said.

He said his concern had been that news media would report deaths before family members had been notified. Reporters also were denied a seat on rescue craft because of concerns for overcrowding, he said.

The government is not permitting photographers to join rescuers in boats or helicopters during the mission to recover bodies from flooded homes.

No one is being forced, (3MB Download from Fox News O'Reilly the Brownshirt WMV Video or here for the original uncut 7.8MB WMV Video version) except by the California Highway Patrol and other government Jack-Booted Thugs, in New Orelans, Louissianna. And how about this video link from CNN?

These are grown men and women who have decided to stay, and some have made, or are making arrangements, or trying to with private relief, but that just won't do now will it? Of course not, as government, or government approved entities, have proven repeatedly that it, or it's designated proxies, should be in charge, right?

Of course, many will try to make nice and find excuses for such stupidity, and others will be polite in their criticisms, but I will not, as the last forty years of government help created this damn mess to begin with. At least three generations of people who have been taught to depend upon the state for their lives, and who have no desire to fend for themselves or plan for disasters. City, county, state, and federal governments who are corrupt, petty, and too incompetent to follow their plans in case of disaster. And of course, asswipes of every stripe are trying to make political hay of the mess to further their agendas that I will provide no links to.

The united States, whose, nearly entire population, is a Christian people, and one of the major edicts of those teachings is that God helps those who help themselves, or, if you prefer as I do, the old Boy Scout Motto: Be Prepared. Nevertheless, one cannot prepare for all contingencies but Man is very intelligent and adaptive, that is unless he is bred and taught to believe he cannot. That only the Great Masters of government can save and provide- wait a minute, that sounds an awful lot like a religion, doesn't it?

Trust NO ONE that comes to you and says give up your Freedom and Liberty and I will provide for you, as that lowly being is only after one thing- your enslavement.

--WP