I'm Shamelessly Expoiting This Tragedy ...I'm using it to further my political agenda of impeaching this president. Shame, shame on me...That's what I'm assuming the pious Glenn Reynolds of Instapundit would say. Shamelessly evoking a tragedy for political gain? You mean, like 9/11, Glenn? Here's what I'm going to do, and there's not a damn thing you can do about it... Every time someone mentions the tragedy of New Orleans, I'm going to link it to the war, just like you linked the fu*king war to September 11th, 2001. Do you know what the difference is? There's actually a clear, indisputable connection between this tragedy and the war. How about this...I'm able to walk and chew gum at the same time. Why can't I both help the relief effort, and criticize the government that is responsible for the botched relief effort simultaneously? If you're looking for ways to help, Faust, who thoughfully considers all options, suggests checking out MoveOn.org: "MoveOn.org's HurricaneHousing.org encourages people to donate short-term housing to those made homeless by Hurricane Katrina. Already more than 50,000 beds have been offered. While housing offers in the Southeast are the most useful, people anywhere in the US are encouraged to participate. Even providing temporary housing for pets can be useful." If you have any other suggestions, I'd be happy to pass them on. While it's admirable to encourage people to step up and contribute, the message should also be sent to the administration that disaster prevention and relief is a basic, essential service that people should expect from the government, not "a thousand points of light". The politicians are on the defensive, and they damn well should be. Americans don't like seeing people die on the streets four days after a hurricane. If you want to see things like this continue to happen, be sure to vote for candidates whose only concerns seem to be cutting taxes for the wealthy and fighting a war in Iraq with National Guard troops on stop-loss orders.