I CALLED IT

I complained yesterday Trump and FEMA were failing as regards Michael. They failed to show up for duty!

Trump needs to make a few visits to the devastated areas. More important than flying around the country doing 3 political rallies a week.

Someone commented today better the President stayed away at this time. Might disrupt recovery efforts. What recovery efforts as  you will see as this blog unwinds. The affected people need to know their leader is behind them and cares. He does not even have to bring paper towels.

The real failure at the moment if FEMA. Still in Washington. Doing TV shows trying to bullshit the country as to the great job being done.

I stated people needed the basics. Water and food first. Then ice, power, sewage, and shelter. Most of the tiny barrier towns are reporting it will be at least 2 months before they have water, sewage, and power.

What do they do in the meantime? The government, federal and state, must step in and help. One of the reasons government exists is to help in times of disaster.

No one appeared to be complaining yesterday re  Trump and FEMA’s failures. I decided too. Not because I am a genius. My age comes into play. Eighty three. I have seen a lot over the years. Puerto Rico and other disasters. Government failure in New Orleans. Government failure in general in time of need.

I was disturbed the media was not talking about no water, no food, etc.

So I expressed myself yesterday. Today, FEMA’s failure big time in the news. Trump’s failure not mentioned yet.

The cry from Michael’s survivors is, “We’re not getting any help.” There is no food, no water, no FEMA. Survivors are furious. They have been left to fend for themselves, with little help from the government.

The Panhandle’s Chantelle Goolspy an example. She was able to get through to FEMA in Washington by phone. We need help! She was told to call the Red Cross. The Red Cross told her to call 211. 211 is a Florida emergency help number.

She said, “We need food, water, anything, we’re not getting any help.”

She was told to hang on. Do the best she could. It would be a few days before food, water, etc. would be forthcoming.

The people feel they have been forgotten by the outside world.

There is the Lipford family. They own, live on, and work a 160 acre farm that has been in the family since the Civil War. Michael left them cut off from civilization. The older Mrs. Lipford says the family feels like it has been shoved back to frontier days. She washes clothes in a bucket. She bathes in a creek where her husband made a small wall of stones to hold water.

Their daughter is 23. She is wielding a chain saw to cut away fallen trees, except that every two hours she must return to the house to breast feed her 6 week old son.

Mr. Lipford said, “I want power and water. The rest we can deal with.” Shades of a strong self help person from another day.

Panama City Beach has resorted to self-help. Not waiting for federal emergency assistance. Volunteers from other Florida areas unaffected by Michael have brought food and water to Panama City. A food kitchen has been set up. Fifteen hundred meals were prepared for locals.

A church has set up 15 stations within Panama City where it is prepared to deliver meals every day. Ready to go. Need the food to cook, however.

One comment from the area: “The American people are helping us, FEMA will come into the game and get the accolades in six months.”

A federal, state and local Emergency Operation Center has been established at Gulf State College. Telling people they have to ration the food and water they have. The group’s primary concern remains looking for survivors. Sixty thousand residents remained.

Governor Scott impressed me with Irma. He is not with Michael. He too is advising: “Everybody just needs to help each other right now.”

Many get their water from wells. Wells not helpful at the moment. They run on electricity.

This failure should not have been. Everyone knew Michael was coming. Trump told us on TV no problem, we have enough money.

In due course, we should be told two things. One, why the failure to prepare. The other, why is the money supposedly available not being used.

Enjoy your Sunday!

MOTEL PRICE WAR…..1955 STYLE

This morning’s edition of the Key West Citizen reported a rather unique occurrence.

On this day in 1955, there was a motel price war in Key West. Things very competitive back then. Eight motels offered free rooms to tourists.

Never again and never more.

Speaking of the Citizen, I was glad to read in this morning’s edition that beginning October 7 the Citizen would be run as a daily. I assume this means every day. Not twice a week as was recently reported.

The talk on the street clearly indicates how unhappy the public was to learn the Citizen was cutting back to two times a week. You do not miss something until it is lost to you.

Tuesday Talk with Key West Lou. My podcast show. Aired last night for the first time in four weeks. An Irma disruption.

It felt good to do the show again. Hope you enjoyed it.

I had trouble hooking up with the station. Some technical difficulty. I got on with 5 seconds to go. I experienced a rush of adrenalin!

Someone commented she could not hear the audio last night, but was able to do so this morning in the archived version. Did any one else have the problem of no audio last night? If so, please let me know.

Mentioned yesterday my car battery was dead outside Denny’s monday night. Had it charged and drove home. Went to start the car yesterday. Dead again! Battery was tested. It has a bad cell.

Car sitting outside dead. No use.

Difficult to get a Volkswagen Beetle battery locally. Must come from Miami. Takes a week.

Finally found some one locally who had the necessary battery. He is stopping by at 2 to install it.

I have mentioned in the past the Justice Building Blog. Excellent!

Permit me to share a comment contained in the Blog’s 9/26/17 publication. Concerned Trump and people who work for him.

“All it takes for evil to prevail is for good people to remain silent and do nothing…..Evil cannot exist without the silence and compliance of good people.”

Trump’s election opened the door to nuts successfully running for office. Yesterday, Roy Moore won the Republican primary in Alabama. You are aware of his background. A radical thinker. Does not seem to believe in the Constitution. Lost his judgeship two times for not adhering to the law.

He may win the election in November. He will neither dance to Trump’s tune or anyone else’s. The Senate will be a crazy place.

Moore’s election following Trump’s is going to encourage other radical/defectivess to run. In today’s society, most will win.

Where is our country going? What is happening? Why?

An Irma update. Post Irma happenings.

Schooner Wharf is throwing a Thank You BBQ party tonight. Five to 9. For first responders, relief workers, and locals. Those who answered Key West’s call for help.

Food free.

Debris everywhere. Extensive clean up underway. Takes a while. In the meantime, the debris is beginning to smell. The smell not nice.

Lobster fishermen are taking a beating big time as a result of Irma.

Lobster fishermen in this area put down 1,000 to 5,000 traps. The fishermen I am referring to the ones who work in the Atlantic off the Middle Keys. Irma took most of the traps. They are nowhere to be found.

Some of the fishermen lost their boats also. One referred to Irma as “…..the storm of the century for us.”

Cudjoe took some hit. Some say Irma hit heaviest at Cudjoe.

Cudjoe’s clean up will be long. An odor permeates the Key. Not from debris. Sewage. One canal appears to have become a total drain for sewage.

We are two weeks post Irma. People still in need. Especially food and clothes.

Star of Sea opened a distribution center at Key Plaza. The lines of people waiting to get in continue to be long. As many as 50 persons on occasion.

Help comes in many forms and from distant places. Help not expected, but welcomed.

The Red Cross has established a base camp on Big Pine. It houses 80 disaster relief workers and volunteers. The base camp was brought to Big Pine and assembled by Red Cross volunteers from Copenhagen, Denmark. The Danish workers remain and continue to help.

God bless them!

Enjoy your day!

 

 

 

WHERE DID $500 MILLION GO?

On January 12, 2010, Haiti was hit with a 7.0 magnitude earthquake. More than 200,000 killed. The island devastated.

People responded. The American Red Cross alone received $500 million from donors.

It is now 2017. Seven years later. Where did the money go? Apparently not for new homes, roads and schools. Such a legacy not evident.

The Red Cross provided shelters to 130,000. New homes, only six. Food and blankets provided by the Red Cross, also.

The Red Cross has refused to provide a list of specific programs it ran, the cost and expenses related to each. Only provided was a pie chart showing percentage of money that went to each pie slice sector.

Haiti’s Prime Minister does not know where the money went.

I am not casting aspersions on the Red Cross. I would not expect  the Red Cross to be experienced in rebuilding a developing country. However, there are experts who do know and could be hired. The money went somewhere. The donors and people of Haiti have a right to know.

Stopped at the Cuban Coffee Queen for lunch yesterday. It had been a while. Cuban cheese toast and a cold Cuban coffee. Read the newspapers. The USA Today and the Wall Street Journal.

Three months ago, I became interested in female genital mutilation. Especially in Europe and Asia. I prepared notes to be used as the basis for a topic involving the mutilation on my podcast show. Tuesday Talk with Key West Lou.

I could see a discussion of the topic would take more time than normal. As much as 15 minutes. I put the notes aside for use another date when I had room for it.

Two weeks ago on April 11, I led with the subject on the show. It was interesting. Received many comments.

The USA Today I was reading at the Cuban Coffee Queen took me by surprise. The lead front page article concerned female genital mutilation. USA Today referred to it as “demonic.”

The USA article was primarily devoted to the problem as it exists in the United States. Exists meaning today. Note that I had dwelled on Europe and the Middle East.

Young girls are being mutilated in the United States. The female offspring of Muslim families. By a doctor or woman sworn to secrecy. As are the children.

What surprised in the article was the claim that fundamentalist Christians are also involved. To what degree not indicated.

Fundamentalist doctors available.

The story of a three year old girl was reported. She was taken by her fundamentalist mother to a fundamentalist doctor for the procedure. Clit removal. The mother told the doctor she feared her daughter would masturbate in later life. The deed was done with a swift cut of the scalpel.

Not to be left out, the article suggested some Catholics were believers/followers of the procedure.

Spent part of the afternoon fine tuning last night’s podcast show.

Dear friend, everyone’s friend, Patrick “Patty Cakes” Hayes is in Key West visiting. Bartender some 20 years at Square One, now the Ocean Grill. He retired and left a few years ago.

A good man. The best of the best.

Patrick, where are you? I want to run into you.

Lunch today at Salute’s with Amy Bondurant and her husband David Dunn. New to Key West. Recently bought and renovated a home.

Amy was Ambassador under Clinton and Bush 2 to a European organization. Her husband, a Washington attorney.

We have never met. Today the first time. Not sure how we have come together.

Medical science is amazing! Something new and beneficial everyday. Last friday in the Netherlands, a robotic arm was attached to a man. A mind controlled prosthetic arm. Snaps on to the bone. Clicks on. The wearer controls the arm by thought alone.

Enjoy your day!

 

GOOD NIGHT LAST NIGHT

It is hard to have a bad night in Key West. Last night was extra special.

It was the company, food, and ambiance.

I was at Berlin’s for dinner with Donna and Terri. Celebrating their anniversary. The event was two weeks ago. The party had to be delayed a bit. Terri was diagnosed with cancer.

Terri has just completed two weeks of chemo. Her last treatment was wednesday. She said she felt well enough to go out last night. Glad she did. She enjoyed herself immensely.

Shane and Gage bartending. The lovely Bria entertaining.

Lynda and Bob Frechette showed up. They were having diner at A&B. Joined us at the bar after their dinner. Two of the nicest people in Key West. Unquestionably.

A lovely young lady came up to me. Striking. Could not recall who she was. I’m George, she said. We hugged and talked.

George is a female. Through and through. Known as George in Key West. Whether her real name, I do not know.

George is Lisa’s friend. George bartends at Hogs Breath. The past 20 years.

I have only seen George 4-5 times in my life. First time was Lisa’s wedding 14 years ago. We met at the martini bar at the reception. Enjoyed a couple of martinis each while chatting. She looks today as she looked then.

I do not recall what we talked about. I believe she does. A mystery surrounds the conversation. She has never shared it with me.

I was glad to see her again. I have made a mental note to stop at Hogs Breath some evening to see her again.

My yesterday began with a 11:15 business meeting. Then a haircut with Lori. My appointment was wednesday. I forgot. Fortunately, I was able to get  in yesterday.

I am a quick haircut. All of 5 minutes. Number 1 on the electric  razor. My hair gone.

Yesterday was Lori’s last day on Southard. Beginning monday, her business Blown Away will be housed in a new building on White Street. Across from Sandy’s.

Stopped for lunch at the Cuban Coffee Queen. I had not been there for three weeks. Could not eat at the Coffee Queen while dieting.

As to the diet, it is ended. I stopped wednesday night.

I am disciplined till I am disciplined no more. I need to see success on the scale. Lost 8 pounds the first week. Only 3 the following two weeks. Not worth the self denial involved.

I am watching my eating, however. Last night at Berlin’s, I had a small salad and two stone crabs. Plus, three drinks. It’s the booze that does it. Wasted calories.

It is amazing how much better I feel since off the diet. I feel good!

I ordered a cheese toast and Cuban coffee. The cheese toast left me feeling heavy. Understandable. Cuban bread is made with pig lard.

Dinner with Dee tonight. Excellent company. She does not know it yet, but I am taking her to the vegetarian restaurant Cafe on Southard. I am not a veggie. However some one in my party when I was last there enjoyed mussels. I love mussels. And the broth made for bread dunking afterwards.

The weather continues to be perfect. Eighty by day. Seventy by night. No humidity. No need for air conditioning day or night.

Don and Chris have returned! Have not seen them yet. Received an e-mail form Don asking if I wanted to watch the Syracuse game with him tuesday night. Does not work for me. I do my radio show tuesday evenings.

Syracuse has basketball and football games today.

Playing South Carolina in basketball. Both teams undefeated. Syracuse a 6 point favorite.

The last football game of the season with Pitt. Pitt a 24 point favorite. I am glad the football season ends today. Syracuse has won only 4 games.

Now for Installment 22 of my rendition of Wright Langley’s History of the Key West Rotary.

It was May 20, 1950. Armed Forces Day. A parade down Duval.

The Rotary sponsored a float. The float highlighted Rotary International. Four lovely young Key West ladies on the float. clad in full length white dresses.

The ladies would not be so attired today. Not that they would be dressed risqué. Simply, less clothing is worn by all today.

The Korean War ongoing in the early 1950s. Our first war since World War II. America still concerned for their military. Vietnam would later change the feeling.

A December 1951 meeting was held at St. Paul’s Parrish Hall.

Retired Major Earl Dillon appealed to the Rotarians to donate blood. They were running out of blood on the front lines in Korea. The need desperate.

So desperate, front line soldiers were donating blood for their fallen companions.

I was in high school during the Korean War. Never knew of the blood problem.

Dillon had a son serving in Korea. Dillon read from a letter received from his son: “This is no police action. This is war!”

Rotary responded immediately. A special committee was formed to organize the blood donations. The Rotary gave mightily.

Enjoy your day!