FEMA Funds Abuse

[wkmac]

http://apnews.myway.com/article/20060614/D8I7RQ7O1.html

At first I laughed as I read what was purchased but then the reality of the many people suffering, many who because they happen to be prior to the storms considered more well off (read average middle class folk) and were turned away for some of the benefits. Just a damn shame to see these low lifes cheating the system when that money could have helped others who were really hurting.

A Boston TV station did a segment on how the displaced storm victims in their area were doing and to their shock they found many who were buying alcohol, wandering mall areas drinking, going to strip clubs for lap dances, etc. and all on FEMA money. I do remember this story being links here but in a thread way back I'm sure.

I'm sure the majority of people use the money towards more getting their lives back together but it's a damn shame there's no mechanism in place to control this kind of nonsense. Shame we can't round these people up to some remote location and in effect drain the gene pool!

Harsh? Oh yeah but no more harsh than them using the gov't by the point of a gun to force me to fork over money that I work hard for that enables them to do this. Oh don't believe at the point of a gun part? Don't pay the tax or your portion that goes to that and refuse with all your might and see what happens!

Believe me, I sleep well at night after having these kinds of thoughts all day so deal with it!

 

[scratch]

wkmac,

I agree with your post, way too much of this money was handed out without any consequences and abused. In the Atlanta area, where we live, we had tens of thousand evacuees move here, I live off I-20 and can remember how crowded my little town was the Saturday after Katrina hit. I remember some of this FEMA money showed up in the strip clubs here. We still have some "Ray Nagin For Mayor" billboards up, hard for me to believe that idiot won re-election.

I found a displaced New Orleans Package Driver on my delivery area a few days after Katrina. His house was right beside one of the levees, and it was a total loss. He was smart and got out, his insurance covered his material losses. I was able to hook him up with my Center Manager and he was rehired in my Center. He has twenty plus years in, he was put on bottom of our seniority list and is still here as a swingdriver. He hopes to stay here, he said he was going to quit UPS if he hadn't got on. No way will he go back to New Orleans.

 

[wily_old_vet]

Scratch-Glad you were able to help out a brother. The waste being reported is only because this was such a high profile issue (Katrina). Unfortunately it goes on in every gov't program, it's just not highlighted the way this is. Also can you imagine the screams that we would have heard if the money was not given.