The people who help...

Firefighter Charged In News Stand Attack
Sep 12, 2005 2:35 pm US/Eastern
(1010 WINS) (NEW YORK) A firefighter who had just attended a memorial service for a comrade killed in the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks was charged with assaulting an immigrant worker who claimed his attacker told him he looked ``like he's al-Qaida,'' authorities said.

I hope this man never shows up to save my life.


And in other news, president Bush once again states the blatantly obvious, but only to obscure the facts:

"Storm Didn't Discriminate"
President Bush denied Monday there was any racial component to people being left behind after Hurricane Katrina, despite suggestions from critics that the response would have been quicker if so many of the victims hadn't been poor and black. "The storm didn't discriminate and neither will the recovery effort."

This might be crediting Bush with too much subtlety, but it should be noted that he makes no claims as to whether all previous rescue efforts up to now have been discriminatory or racially biased.

And as many sources have noted, the storm did discriminate in effect, if only because poor people were historically disenfranchised and forced to build and live in more fragile, exposed areas and in less sturdy homes.

In this way tornadoes don't discriminate one way or another against trailer homes, but trailer homes get destroyed more than other homes. Therefore if we need to help people recover from tornadoes, we are more likely to be helping poor people.

~A