Friday, September 02, 2005

Should the games continue?

I'm a college football junkie and have been eagerly awaiting the start of the new college football season with as much anticipation as for the NFL. But under the circumstances should the games this weekend go on? Maybe it's too late for their cancellation to have any practical effect for the good of the people trapped in New Orleans. If the travel plans for those going to the games have already been made, does it make sense to send the fans back home so that greater room can be opened up for refugees in either stadiums or in surrounding hotels?

From Atrios it appears that the games in at least one college town have prevented the sending of refugees to a city with ample accomodations.

Beyond the practical implications of providing space and resources for the victims, does it make sense to direct as much focus, symbolic or otherwise, to the tragedy in NO rather than expending it on sports entertainment for at least one weekend while the relief of the refugees is presumably, at last, rectified?

One could argue that this week's events have been every bit as tragic and lethal to the country as those occuring on 9-11, albeit without the sinister unnatural causes. It would seem that this week's events are every bit as worthy of focus as those occuring four years ago, which as I speak are apparently still serving as the basis for a "freedom walk" sponsored by the Pentagon in commemoration.

Speaking of which, can we please have someone step up to demand that this Pentagon extravaganza and propaganda display be cancelled?

Although the president's acknowledgement today that the recovery effort has so far been "unacceptable" has been greeted with skepticism on the part of much of the left, I welcome the president's apparently belated recognition whatever its political nature. Admitting that things are not going swimmingly is at least a first step. How about following it up with requests to cancel this weekend's sporting events and to make the resources resulting available for the victims of the tragedy and to those providing relief? And how about following it up with an announcement that the 9-11 "walk" has been cancelled and therefore any further human efforts dedicated to its organization henceforth redirected?

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