POTEMKIN CALL TO ACTION

 

THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES IS AHEAD OF SCHEDULE ON ONE THING  One would have thought he would have waited to pose with the firemen until September 11 in New York.  One would have thought he would have waited to swipe some of their sweat until then, but public relations is hard work.  Apparently Monday was the day firemen were called into action . . . . to be the president's latest photo backdrop.

LOOK AT THE PRESIDENT SO PERFECTLY TIMED  See him rolling up his sleeves with firemen walking by his side.  Look, look, look, then turn away and try not to puke.

THE PRESIDENT WANTS FIREMEN IN LOUISIANA and Missisippi not to save people.  The Potemkin president needs firemen to save his sorry ass going up in smoke.  The firemen are burning with anger. Like many they will ask why a firemen is needed around Bush’s body. No spin doctor can keep prevent Bush from here being declared politically dead.

WHAT THE HELL is wrong with this country when firemen do PR?

[SALT LAKE TRIBUNE] “I would go back and ask the firefighter to revisit his commitment to FEMA, to firefighting and to the citizens of this country," said FEMA spokeswoman Mary Hudak.
“The firefighters - or at least the fire chiefs who assigned them to come to Atlanta - knew what the assignment would be,” Hudak said.
"The initial call to action very specifically says we're looking for two-person fire teams to do community relations," she said. "So if there is a breakdown [in communication], it was likely in their own departments."

BRAVE FIREFIGHTERS WILL NOW FLY INTO ACTION to hand out flyers.  Maybe somebody should tell Bush to take a flyer.

PREVIOUS HERETIK POSTS OF POTEMKIN BUSH [THE POTEMKIN COUNTRY] [SOME]

REQUIRED READING

[AP] BROWNIE DOING HECKUVA A PR JOB The top U.S. disaster official waited hours after Hurricane Katrina struck the Gulf Coast before he proposed to his boss sending at least 1,000  Homeland Security workers into the region to support rescuers, internal documents show.. Part of the mission, according to the documents obtained by The Associated Press, was to "convey a positive image" about the government's response for victims. . . .Brown's memo told employees that among their duties, they would be expected to "convey a positive image of disaster operations to government officials, community organizations and the general public."

[THE LEFT COASTER] FROM A DOCTOR TURNED AWAY I would like to know why I and so many other physicians told to stay home when they offered to provide medical care for victims of Hurricane Katrina.

Like most Americans, I watched in horror. I also felt helpless, guilty, and ashamed at what I saw. By Wednesday, I knew – didn’t the President know? -- that this was the worst disaster in American history.

[BILLMON] I guess this is what Bush was talking about yesterday when he called himself a "problem solver." But one of these days he and the Rovians really ought to take a stab at trying to solve other people's problems.
I'm just surprised they didn't shove some boots and a helmet on Shrub and stick him behind the wheel of a fire engine. Maybe with a big banner on the side: "Lets Roll!" [HAT TIP: RIGGSVEDA ]

[NIGHTLIGHT/RJ ESKOW] [SKIPPY] THE MISSION IS MANAGEMENT 
FEMA, ever mindful of its mission statement to focus on appearances rather than reality, is worried about its image: The U.S. agency leading Hurricane Katrina rescue efforts said Tuesday that it does not want the news media to photograph the dead as they are recovered.

[MICHAEL BERUBE] Now, some of you might object that this little stunt isn’t really an optimal use of first responders.  Some of you might point out that this little stunt leaves Atlanta and other cities with fewer experienced firefighters, as replacements are called up in their stead.  But unless you’re a really cynical SOB, you probably wouldn’t go so far as to imagine that President Katrina’s administration is sticking cities with the bill for those replacements.

THE SHORT AND NOT SO SWEET:  nTODD

THE HERETIK NOTES It is hard to turn on the television and see the victims unattended.  It is even harder to watch the posers pretending to care.   The same lack of thought that went into going into Iraq is the message coming now out of Missisippi and Louisiana. 

NARCISSUS knows nothing but his own reflection and we who would be voyeurs to the vision do only violence to our spirits. What must be said must be repeated, so this never happens again.

Comments

[Matt]

"Most Fake Moment Ever"

Most fake and among the most disgusting. Great post.

[Night Bird]

seeing that picture does not settle with me...

[DuWayne Brayton]

We have all been abandoned with the people of New Orleans and the gulf coast by our government. We have no leadership, no government, no security. To be sure there were failures on the state and local levels - there was nothing from the feds.

[ol cranky]

did I understand Olbermann correctly? did he say the 5 firefighters that were sent to Louisiana were sent there to stand by Nero for this photo-op?

[allie mcneil]

Come on over to watergatesummer or I also have http://nolacare.blogspot.com/ ....
You have a great blog..keep it coming...