by TChris

An economics professor believes oil companies gouged consumers when gas prices soared in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. Eight governors have asked the oil president to investigate his oily industry buddies:

"When the wholesale price of gas went up by 60 cents almost overnight, oil companies were obviously using the most devastating natural disaster in our nation's history to reap a windfall at the expense of American consumers," said the letter, which was initiated by Gov. James E. Doyle of Wisconsin and was signed by governors from Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, Montana, New Mexico, Oregon and Washington.

The governors would also like Congress to enact legislation requiring the oil companies to disgorge their excessive profits.

by Last Night in Little Rock

The NY Times today has an article about what the Paleo-Cons in Congress want to cut to finance Katrina relief. But, instead of eliminating current pork barrel spending, like the $250M bridge in Alaska to serve 80 people, PBS is a target:

by Last Night in Little Rock

UK citizens sent hundreds of tons of food to Katrina victims, but it languished in a warehouse, became unusable or was quarantined because it was from overseas, and was being transported to an FDA warehouse to be incinerated as reported here, written by a UK free lance writer.

The LA Times reports:

Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Tenn.) conceded that he could not overcome Democratic opposition to a joint investigation.

Markos at Daily Kos says credit where credit is due:

Two pictures worth 1,000 words: As glad I am that these animals were saved, the comparison to how humans were treated in the aftermath of Katrina tells a shocking story.

by TChris

Raw Story has an advance copy of a speech that John Kerry will deliver today at Brown University. If only he had been this forcefully critical of President Bush during his campaign, he might be president today.

I know the President went on national television last week and accepted responsibility for Washington's poor response to Katrina. That's admirable. And it's a first. As they say, the first step towards recovery is to get out of denial. But don't hold your breath hoping acceptance of responsibility will become a habit for this administration. On the other hand, if they are up to another "accountability moment" they ought to start by admitting one or two of the countless mistakes in conceiving, "selling", planning and executing their war of choice in Iraq.

by TChris

No level of government did an adequate job of helping hospitals and nursing homes that failed to carry out their responsibility to evacuate patients from New Orleans. The consequences of those failures were often fatal.

Of the dead collected so far in the New Orleans area, more than a quarter of them, or at least 154, were patients, mostly elderly, who died in hospitals or nursing homes, according to interviews with officials from 8 area hospitals and 26 nursing homes. By the scores, people without choice of whether to leave or stay perished in New Orleans, trapped in health care facilities and in many cases abandoned by their would-be government rescuers.

by Last Night in Little Rock

Today's NY Times has a Frank Rich op-ed piece entitled Message: I Care About the Black Folks, which is about the unmasking of George W. Bush.

by Last Night in Little Rock

Mayor Nagin says parts of NOLA will be reopening in phases and people should return, as reported here. Vice Adm. Thad Allen, the new director of the NOLA relief effort, says "Not so fast," as reported on CNN.com and FoxNews.com

by Last Night in Little Rock

CNN.com reports here that Congress ordered FEMA in 1997 to study an evacuation plan for NOLA in case of a Category 3 or greater hurricane or levee break but that it apparently never happened.

by TChris

For all the promises to cut through red tape, there are still thousands of evacuees who aren't receiving the services they need. In fact, government officials still can't get a handle on the number of survivors and they don't know where many of them ended up.

"I don't see much evidence of overall planning and guidance," said Richard Murray, a public policy expert in Houston, which is hosting thousands of evacuees.

by TChris

In 1991, hundreds of retail stores sued three companies for conspiring to drive up the price of infant formula. Pursuant to a 1993 settlement agreement, $91 million was paid to consumers who were victimized by the conspircy. Another $940,000 was set aside to pay late claims. As of 2000, after payment of expenses, $700,000 remained in the settlement fund.

Judge Maurice Paul in Tallahassee ruled at that time that the remaining money should be distributed "for a purpose similar to that represented by those who sued." His reasoning may be stretched, but his heart was in the right place when he ruled on Sept. 8 that the money should be donated to the Red Cross to benefit Hurricane Katrina survivors.