The Big Me vs. Hurricane Katrina – Personal Essay The importance of memory cannot be underestimated. It is because of memory; we are able to learn a great deal of information, which in its turn prevents us from repeating mistakes that were being committed in the past. The memories of Katrina began to fade out in public consciousness, nevertheless, for those who had experienced this natural disaster at first hand; it will forever remain as a proof of fact that the policy of multiculturalism is harmful for this country. In fact, Katrina helped many Americans to realize that our nation cannot really be thought of as united, when it comes to facing a crisis. This natural disaster showed that Americans are separated along racial lines more than politically correct propaganda would like to admit. Let me relate a few personal accounts of dealing with the hurricane, as the person who observed the destruction of New Orleans in making.
At the time of hurricane, I was in Biloxi and for me it seemed like the danger of hurricane was being a bit exaggerated. This is because we all know that the American Medias like to blow things out of proportion, in order to gain public attention. Nevertheless, the first time I realized that things were getting out of hand, when I saw a bus full of fleeing White folks at the gas station. To my amazement, it was being escorted by two trucks with armed men inside. When I asked why was it necessary to have an armed escort, they told me that Blacks got loose. Apparently, in New Orleans the overwhelming majority of Black people were not preoccupied with saving their lives or surviving, as Medias tried to portray, but with looting the stores. They needed plasma TVs and Mp3 players more than they needed food and water.
The Term Paper on Collective Memory
Collective Memory Collective memory has become a topic of rather heated debates recently, both in political and sociological fields, and there are a couple of solid reasons for that. Certainly, there are a lot of horrifying and hideous acts that some countries and individual leaders have committed, and there are a lot of reasons why the present generation wants those acts forgotten by everyone. ...
At that time, I did not know about what happened to the group of English tourists, who decided to seek refuge in the Superdome, along with thousands of Black people. Yet, a few days later, my friends told me their story. Of course, the mainstream media never mentioned it, as if nothing had happened. Yet, I was able to find about this story on the site of National Alliance. Here is how Shaun Walker describes it: There was one tragic case with some English tourists that were trapped in New Orleans and foolishly went to the Superdome. These English people didn’t understand the race issue too well These poor English tourists were really in the dark.
They had to endure hell on Earth living with ten thousand Blacks who were having sex with each other, urinating and defecating on the floors, stealing from one another, attacking one another, and several documented cases of children being raped. The Whites had to form a circle to defend their lives (Walker).
I was not there at the time, to say that I had witnessed it with my own eyes, yet I find this story as being very credible. There was a total chaos, during the hurricane Katrina. Nobody knew what to do; peoples main concern was how to get as much money as possible from the government. Let me tell you another anecdotic story. My aunt is a nurse, she was being sent to New Orleans as a part of hurricane relief. Upon her arrival to Biloxi, she was given a brand new GMC Envoy vehicle by the local Health Department. After spending a few days in New Orleans and after having realized that nobody really required her help, she went back to Biloxi to bring back the vehicle.
However, by the time she arrived there, the Health Department office had been relocated. Eventually she was able to find a new location of the office. Yet, by this time, the records of her receiving the vehicle were being lost. She was being told that she could not leave this vehicle and fly back to Connecticut. My aunt realized that she was simply given the new GMC, without anybody wanting to take it back from her, after her mission was over. She had no choice but to drive it back to Connecticut, while hoping that eventually she would be able to return it to the government. Yet, even today, the vehicle remains in her garage, being totally forgotten by the officials.
The Essay on Poverty What Makes People Poor
The rich, the middle class, and the poor; are described by the way we live and the amount of money one has. There are many different ways of describing what poverty is, whether it is by how you live, how much money you have, or in statistical terms. Poverty isnt always a bad thing it is just another way of living, another way of life. There are different kinds of poverty that you can measure. ...
She had no option but to keep it. Isnt it an anecdote? Government spends millions of dollars on Katrina relief, without keeping a record. No wonder, that thousands of people were able to receive huge amounts of money, while posing as a hurricane victims. Our government is very generous; it can order a poor family to get out of its house for not paying taxes, while throwing millions of dollars on the air, in order to help the needy children of Somalia or to help the poor victims of Katrina. I have personally seen some of these poor victims, who were driving a brand new sport cars, while snorting cocaine and making fun of stupid hard-working whities, whose tax` dollars went to provide these parasites good living. It is the memories of Katrina that made me doubt the governments official doctrine of multiculturalism for the first time.
I have never seen the victims, in the true sense of this word. I have only seen looters, robbers and criminals. I have seen the civilization, which was created over hundreds of years, being plunged back into the savagery within a couple of hours. I have seen governments incompetence, when it came to dealing with the most basic situation. This is why I believe that my memories of Katrina will always be the foundation, upon which I base my worldview. Wishful thinking can only remain legitimate until the time when the objective reality rejects its notions, as it happened during the Katrina. It is impossible to erase memories in ones mind, especially when they relate to something as memorable as witnessing a natural disaster turning into the social one. I remember people trying to capitalize on this disaster, claiming that that had lost all their possessions, while they never had any.
At the same time, I remember orderly behavior of whities, who despite the hardship tried to maintain social order. It is because of them that the epidemic of looting did not spread outside of the area, which was being directly affected by the hurricane. While witnessing the social effects of Katrina, I realized once again the validity of the statement Gun and the kind word are better than just a kind word alone. Apparently, during the natural in America, the matter of survival is more related to having a gun than to the availability of food, water and shelter.
The Essay on Effects of Public Policies and Government Entities on Social Class
As discussed earlier, there can be many aspects that may affect social classes and these changes and differences can be seen almost everywhere. In this society, starting from schools, workplaces, clothes, music and even the lives in which people live in are all affected in one way or the other by social class. When it comes to a school, teachers may favor students coming from higher classes, and ...
Bibliography:
Walker, Shaun The Tooth Fairy and Interracial Harmony. September 17, 2005. ADV. National Alliance.
January 21, 2007. http://www.natall.com/adv/2005/09-17-05.html Abstract: In this essay, I relate my personal experiences, related to hurricane Katrina. Outline: Story about armed refuges p.1 Stories about English tourists in Superdome and about my aunts trip to New Orleans p.2 Conclusion p.3.