The State of the Union, June 19, 2008

"I really don't have much of an opinion of his coming," said Lashawn Baker, 33, whose family was just starting to clean her flooded home in a southwest Cedar Rapids neighborhood. "It took him a long time to get to New Orleans and he didn't help any of those people, so I don't think he's going to do anything to help Cedar Rapids now that he's here."

I find it astonishing that this quote would be featured in a news article so prominently, and would so utterly and completely knock down the legitimacy of a presidential administration.

We are living in a time when the President of the United States of America can visit an American city that has suffered from a natural disaster and a news organization runs a story that says, basically, the President of the United States is a worthless figurehead who doesn't care about the American people...

President Bush, surveying the aftermath of devastating floods during a lightning-quick tour of the Midwest on Thursday, assured residents and rescuers alike that he is listening to their concerns and understands their exhaustion.

"Obviously, to the extent we can help immediately, we will help," said Bush, still mindful of criticism that the government reacted slowly to Hurricane Katrina three years ago.

"You'll come back better," the president said while being briefed by state and local officials at a cinderblock emergency operations center set up at a community college here, part of a three-hour tour. "Sometimes it's hard to see it."

Bush was in Europe when tornadoes hit and heavy rains sent rivers surging over their banks, killing at least 24 people, the majority in Iowa. Flooding forced tens of thousands across six states to flee their homes and washed out millions of acres of prime farm and grazing lands. He made a point to try to show his deep concern while overseas and traveled to Iowa just two days after returning.

...and the reaction to that fact is a collective "so what?" Not only is it not news, it's not even the point of the story.

-WS

Midwest Flood Photos

These photos come from a variety of places and sources throughout the affected areas. Sometimes the aftermath is just as bad as the event itself.

Cedar Rapids IA:



Clarksville MO:




Hannibal MO:


Amana Refridgeration Plant, Middle Amana IA:


Cedar Rapids IA:


Hannibal MO:

Watching the river rise

After hearing on the local news that they were filling sandbags about fifty miles upriver, I decided to go down to the observation deck at the Westport Landing and take some pictures of the rising Missouri River - especially after I checked the national weather service website and saw that all along the Missouri, there are flood warnings for every county.

From the observation deck, looking north across the river, you can see that we are above flood stage, and the river is up to the leafy canopy of the trees closest to the water on the north bank, but no one here is panicking. We have a pretty good levee system, and there is no call going out for volunteers to fill sandbags. But if they do, we'll be there. We may live on the top floor of a building that sits on top of the tallest hill in the county, but if our neighbors need a hand, we'll extend ours.

More pictures below the fold.

Looking upriver.

The railroad "bridge to nowhere"

North, across the river.

These last two are from the ground, about 100 yards east of the observation deck.

The river is probably not going to cause Kansas City any problems, but the creeks and tributaries that empty into the Missouri may cause some problems for the folks who live along them. If you are in a county with a flood warning, be careful, pay close attention, and always have a plan to get to high ground if necessity should dictate.

If you're on the east side of the state, they are sandbagging all along the Mississippi, and could probably use your help. They are already facing a flood of 1993 proportions. The swollen Missouri heading their way is not going to help matters any.


This image is from the Wikipedia entry on the flood of 1003 and shows the high-water mark reached during the floods of 1844, 1951 and 1993.