You Want It, You Got It: The Looting Continues Say what you want about the neocons, but you can't say they aren't optimistic. Their patron saint, Reagan, once remarked that "one man's terrorist is another man's freedom fighter", painting a rosy picture of the Contras. Now, these folks from the sunny side of the street see a tremendous opportunity in the aftermath of our nation's greatest natural disaster...A tremendous opportunity to push for a radical right-wing agenda: Drill the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, suspend environmental regulations including the Clean Water Act and the Clean Air Act, suspend prevailing wage labor laws, promote vouchers and school choice, repeal the estate tax and copiously fund faith-based organizations. These are just some of the recommendations a trio of hearty Heritage Foundation senior management officials are making to best facilitate the rebuilding of the Gulf Coast. Read It: Recommendation? Hardly. It's already happened. No bid contracts worked so well in Iraq, we'll try 'em here! Some of the first large-scale Hurricane Katrina relief and recovery contracts awarded by the Bush administration were awarded on a no-bid basis to corporations with strong ties to the administration and the Republican Party, according to news stories in The Wall Street Journal and other media. At the same time, the administration is using the catastrophe to push a reactionary anti-worker agenda, gutting federal regulations that protect worker safety and ensure quality work and living wages. Read It: He's Like The Soup Nazi, But With Oil! No Power For You, Hospitals! We've gotta get this fresh, hot crude to market! Shortly after Hurricane Katrina roared through South Mississippi knocking out electricity and communication systems, the White House ordered power restored to a pipeline that sends fuel to the Northeast. That order -- to restart two power substations in Collins that serve Colonial Pipeline Co. -- delayed efforts by at least 24 hours to restore power to two rural hospitals and a number of water systems in the Pine Belt. (Thanks to Faust of Manufactured Environments for the article) Read It: We're Not Playing The Blame Game* * Official copywrited slogan of the Bush Administration. Certain restrictions apply. "We" does not refer to Karl Rove or any other senior administration official whose sole purpose is to engage in the blame game. Slogan not valid in all areas. Faust pointed out this one too: Federal officials appear to be seeking proof to blame the flood of New Orleans on environmental groups, documents show. The Clarion-Ledger has obtained a copy of an internal e-mail the U.S. Department of Justice sent out this week to various U.S. attorneys' offices: "Has your district defended any cases on behalf of the (U.S.) Army Corps of Engineers against claims brought by environmental groups seeking to block or otherwise impede the Corps work on the levees protecting New Orleans? If so, please describe the case and the outcome of the litigation." Read It: http://www.clarionledger.com/apps/pbcs.dll/ article?AID=/20050916/NEWS0110/509160369/1260%20