The real mismanagement seems to have been the selection of unqualified politcal cronies to positions of power in the emergency management field. On the day that happened, many were doomed. The failures are myriad. Congress, local and state governments, federal government. Many of the failures have been going on for years. Some happened after the fact.

Homeland security is a joke. The national guard is out of the country. Racial discrimination and the welfare state have created a more or less permanent underclass. The elderly are the most vulnerable. Many are ignorant and lawless. We should do better. But I teach. Having met the students, I know that many are difficult to help.