Forgivable and Unforgivable Acts by Mayor Nagin

In the devastating aftermath of hurricane Katrina, people are trying to figure out how the tragedy could have been prevented or mitigated. I have one thing to say.

Hindsight is 20/20.

Of course, now, it is obvious that the people of New Orleans should have been evacuated, by force if necessary. But, before Katrina hit, many people still thought it might miss the city. Even if it did hit, many, even those who should have known better, did not truly believe that the levee would break.

And remember, if these things had not happened and the Mayor did spend untold amounts of money (and possibly used force as well) , he would have been blamed for the apparent waste.

Still, he should have offered a way for those who did not own cars to be evacuated. But it is forgivable that he did not foresee the dangers.

It is less forgivable that Mayor Nagin did not have the buses moved to higher ground so that, in the worst case senario, they could be used to evacuate the survivors.

It is even less forgivable that the Superdome was not stocked with food, water and hygiene products before hurricane season started given that the authorities knew it was going to be used as an emergency shelter.

And it is completely unforgivable that, after the disaster, Nagin lost control while on the radio.

After a disaster, rescue workers, police and the public all look to the man in charge for guidance, for the promise that things will get better and to be inspired to work together for a little longer until reinforcements can come in. After 9/11, Giuliani became 'America's Mayor' because he accomplished these things so well.

Nagin had one job after the flood: to keep his city together until help could arrive. By failing in this duty, he made things infinitely worse. I blame his falling apart for contributing to the New Orleans Police were quitting in large numbers, for the suicides of some New Orleans Police Officers, for the assaults, for the rapes, for the looting and even for the shootings at rescue helicopters.

If Giuliani had been the Mayor of New Orleans, things would have been much better there. If Nagin had been the Mayor of New York City in 2001, things would have been so much worse here.