Neal Boortz: If New Orleans Is Rebuilt, The ‘Debris That Katrina Chased Out’ Will Return
Neal Boortz: If New Orleans Is Rebuilt, The ‘Debris That Katrina Chased Out’ Will Return
Yesterday, hate-radio talk show host Neal Boortz mocked President Obama’s pledge to rebuild New Orleans, calling the victims of Hurricane Katrina human trash. This weekend, President Barack Obama told the New Orleans Times-Picayune that he “remains focused on rebuilding New Orleans and the Gulf Coast,” and anything less “would be a betrayal of who we are as a country.” Boortz responded on Twitter by attacking the “debris that Katrina chased out“:
Boortz, who regularly mocks Latinos, women and the poor — even calling Rep. Cynthia McKinney a “ghetto slut” — made an expansive case that the combined natural and human disaster of Hurricane Katrina actually helped the city of New Orleans on his June 24, 2009 radio show. Although Katrina’s devastation cost this nation $80 billion, killed thousands, and displaced a million people, Boortz believes “Katrina cleansed New Orleans“:
Katrina cleansed New Orleans. It just washed out a lot of debris, including human debris.
Boortz has also called the overwhelmingly black and poor victims of the Katrina disaster in New Orleans “human parasites” and “deadbeats,” even suggesting that a victim of Hurricane Katrina consider prostitution instead of “sucking off taxpayers.”
Boortz is nationally syndicated from Atlanta’s WSB, part of the Cox Enterprises empire, whose billionaire heiress Anne Cox Chambers is the richest person in Georgia and a million-dollar tax evader.
Probably if Hurricane Katrina had happened in 1980, the levees would have held. Global warming didn't cause Katrina, but it did cause Katrina to be more intense than it otherwise would have been.
22 Responses to “Neal Boortz: If New Orleans Is Rebuilt, The ‘Debris That Katrina Chased Out’ Will Return”
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This is hateful talk that completely ignores what I think is a valid topic for discussion when it comes to rebuilding any area (including New Orleans) that has been subjected, over the years, to the destructive forces of flooding and hurricanes. The truth of the matter is that there are many places in our country where people simply SHOULD NOT LIVE. Below sea level…near powerful rivers that have historically flooded and now are held in the banks by artificial means…barrier islands. We can choose to live anywhere we please, but we can’t keep blinking our eyes in surprise when disaster befalls us again and again. What’s that saying? Fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on you.
August 26th, 2009 at 3:15 pmHow long will we tolerate in the name of Freedom of Speech speech that is designed to destroy the commonweal? We would not tolerate yelling Fire in a crowded theater, but we do not mind the kind of hate speech that energizes the crazies and lunatic fringe to commit acts of violence and murder. Folks like Boortz have no reason to exist but to lascerate the body politic. We have such a crowd of these butchers of common sense and decency that we risk destruction of the very fabric of our republic.
We should remember that the French Revolution was preceded by a period of the most inflamatory publications in which the rulling class was depicted in the most vile and obscene of nartatives. These erotic/pornographic novels demeaned the aristocracy and dishonored them among the common people untl it was impossible for them to rule. Much the same thing is happening to the Democrats now who are being so vilified and demeaned that those who cannot distinquish between real reporting and the demoralizing fictions presented by Fox News and other talk show venues are beginning to believe the worst.
When will we act to rein in these vile talkshow hosts and require them to maintain some civility on the public airwaves?
August 26th, 2009 at 3:56 pmThe idiot has a right to say what he wants. Dont try to fight the Freedom of speech. Im not defending the sorry scum for saying idiotic things, I am how ever defending his right to say them. We have already sacraficed enough of our rights in the name of ’security’ and I dont want to see this one gone too. Let him huff and puff and show his @$$, the people that suffered from Katrina are not human debris as he says, he is the trash that is publicly showing himself for what he is. I am a HUGE supporter of freedom of speech, but thats not to say that if you say somethingthat bothers me you would want to cross my path. Just sayin.
August 26th, 2009 at 6:19 pmMy heart breaks when I hear the “people shouldn’t live in New Orleans because it is below sea level” bit.
Why does no one say “People shouldn’t live in central CA because it’s susceptible to wildfires?” Or “People shouldn’t live in cities along the Mississippi because it’s on a major fault line?” People shouldn’t live in Kansas because of tornadoes, or in the 15 different states that have volcanoes… There are many parts of this country that risk being devastated by natural disaster.
Fact is, 40 years lapsed between Betsy and Katrina. Aside from that New Orleanians have been pretty lucky. This is the reason why so many people thought it would be safe not to evacuate. Most have learned their lesson and the city is being rebuilt with durability and sustainability in mind. It is not as though New Orleans is an anthill being constantly stomped on and rebuilt. It’s a major port city and a cultural capital in this country.
As for Boortz – as someone who lost a relative and her childhood home in Katrina I am personally insulted.
August 26th, 2009 at 6:21 pmBeth,
August 26th, 2009 at 9:14 pmAs a New Orleanian, your words hurt just as much as Neal’s. Just so you know where we stand. You are one in the same. You both wish death to us and our culture. It does not matter either way. We are rebuilding the home we love. I wish we could have the support of our fellow citizens, but that is not to be.
All this talk of where people should and should not live is crap. I’m from New Orleans and lost both my business and my home. The U.S. Corps. of Engineers is to blame for the catastrophe. If the Netherlands, which is below sea level, can protect their citizens from this plight, then why can’t the U.S.? By the way, the levee and water protection system in the Netherlands was designed by no other than the U.S. Corps. of Engineers. Funny how we can provide services to other countries, but leave out own citizens susceptible to bullsh**!
August 27th, 2009 at 9:47 amI’m not interested in debating whether New Orleans should be rebuilt because there are expensive houses on the Outer Banks of NC that have been washed out to sea and they’ve been rebuilt time and again. The topic at hand is a vile and vulgar hatemonger. He and his ilk are stirring up and agitating the parts of our populace that believe everything that’s told to them that mirrors their long held racism and hatred. The GOP says they hold God, the Bible, and it’s teaching in the highest regard. What about love thy neighbor as thyself? These “conservatives” preach hate and not love. The purging of human “floatsom” by Katrina occured by way of governmental neglect. By that, I mean at a local, state, and federal level. That’s not to say that there wasn’t a criminal element that existed pre Katrina. The 2 years I lived in Gulfport immediately after the storm proved that. But the majority of people that were relocated were only guilty of never living anywhere besides New Orleans. People who are offended by this moron’s hate speech need to contact the corporate sponsors of his radio program as was done to another right wingnut: Glen Beck. Let the sponsors know you will boycott their products or services. Money definitely talks. It’s not enough to complain amongst ourselves at the outrageous and dangerous hate speech that agitates unstable people in our society. We must act to stop it by all legal means possible.
August 27th, 2009 at 10:08 amIt is apples and oranges, comparing New Orleans to central California, or living on fault lines, etc… The Mississippi River has been so grossly disfigured, the land area is unrecognizable to what it was even 100 years ago. The “dirty swamps” that were filled up took purposeful soil from the land of Louisiana and more specifically New Orleans itself.
People should live where they want to live, but don’t expect anyone to come to their rescue when their home is destroyed.
The problem here is that we have people screaming “racism” when people don’t advocate rebuilding NOLA. It has not a DAMN thing to do with racism and ridding the city of “debris.” It has everything to do with common sense.
August 27th, 2009 at 12:26 pmI agree with Mary. The only way to stop hateful speech is to get the corporate sponsors to take way AD revenues. Freedom of Speech is thankfully moderated by the those who fund the airwaves, tv, print etc. This guy is a hateful idiot. We need less of the hateful speech and more from kind, decent folks just trying to mind our own business and get by.
August 27th, 2009 at 1:41 pmBeth- “I’m . . . on a mission to help everyone save their own corner of paradise.” You know, I wanted to be really mean to you in light of this weird hypocrisy between your self-description and your comment, but I figured why slam a kid who is trying to do some good and interesting things. But please, consider this: Perhaps there are some places chickens just should not live. So, should you try try again despite the day of carnage because you believe in what you are doing, give up because you had a setback that may or may not repeat itself, or just blame the chickens for not realizing the fence (uh, levee?) was faulty and therefore they deserve what they get for continuing to live in your yard?
August 27th, 2009 at 5:27 pmKK — Read up on some environmental history. There aren’t many populated places in this country that are recognizable from 100 years ago. I could give relentless examples of environmental engineering, both deliberate and unintentional, as well as natural disasters where people doggedly rebuilt, from all over the country. Get some historical and geographical perspective. Start with William Cronon’s Changes in the Land , move on through the literature, and then perhaps you will be equipped to discuss those so-called apples and oranges.
August 27th, 2009 at 5:28 pmWhat determines…who is worthy or unworthy, who is “debris” or “treasure”…definitely not wealth nor an ignorant person like Mr. Neil Boortz here. Freedom of speech does not mean spewing abcess…
“Where listening ‘contains’ speech, WISDOM thrives” – Sandra
August 27th, 2009 at 5:40 pmRight on, Mary.
Because of the rabid right-wing yellow media playing to and stirring up the ignorant haters who lived crabbed, dull, miserable, frustrated lives and want to make sure everyone else does too (and just can’t stand our joie de vivre down here, or that anyone might be different from them), and the same hate-talkers’ insidious, constant hammering on the vague fear that somehow, somewhere, somebody is taking something away from the “decent god-fearing folk,” even if they can’t quite say what that thing is, now when something bad happens to someone else we get ignorant comments and self-righteous schaudenfreude, sometimes even from otherwise sensible people who apparently don’t realize they’ve been tainted by the very demagoguery they profess to despise. Our public discourse is right now so deeply infected by this virulent madness that it’s hard to even know where the center lies, much less whether it can hold.
Free speech is a good thing all around and must be preserved; it’s just sad that so many people’s minds are so weak they don’t even know they’ve been co-opted to help spread the hate/doom/judgmental propaganda, which is based on the type of vile falsities and intentional manipulations that Roger so adroitly pinpointed.
Allen is right, free speech for all, but don’t forget, there is such a thing as “them’s fightin’ words.”
New Orleans will continue to fight & rebuild, will continue to be an example of a strong regional culture that survives against all odds, both natural disaster and the unnatural corporate homogenizing of America, and in defiance of the instant-gratification-based “oh shoot it broke let’s just throw it away and get a new one” whiny defeatism so prevalent in our culture today, promoted by the corporate interests often behind the hateful & divisive propaganda. To paraphrase Country Joe:
Well, come on Wall Street, don’t move slow,
Why man, this is outrage au-go-go.
There’s plenty good money to be made
By supplying the fearful with the tools of the trade
PS Anyone who wants some tips for living in this new economy- come down to New Orleans and learn a lesson about how to survive, thrive, live and love in the face of the most demoralizing adversities. We’ve been doing it for years.
August 27th, 2009 at 6:09 pmYou idiots!!!! Polite speech doesn’t need to be granted protection. Global warming caused the levee to break is about as laughable as liberal hero Barney Frank. Why won’t the EPA take the global warming debate into a grand jury? Because it will get killed along with Al Gore’s carbon credit scheme. Oh, I forgot its not global warming now, it’s climate change…I remember a article in Newsweek in the 70’s that said we would be in an ice age by the 90’s. I guess if it wasn’t for mindless libs I wouldn’t have anyone to entertain me.
August 28th, 2009 at 3:39 amI have never listen to Neal Boortz’s program, but as one who has family that was evacuated for both Katrina, and one who is a survivor of Gustav, Mr. Boortz’s comments just shows how ignorant he actually is in many respects. New Orleans crime actually is increasing due to the parasites and opportunists that have moved in to replace those evacuated, but I guess he would have to be familiar with the subject in order to be at all credible.
Many Mexican illegals are working for the government contractors, and those contractors are withholding payment for their services, even the lower wages that hiring illegals entails for their ultimate profits – with the government’s implicit consent. Many opportunists and developers have moved in, and are making the historic City of New Orleans into another Santa Monica with their cookie cutter developments, and cheap construction worse than that which wsa found in East New Orleans prior to Katrina.
What an idiot.
Oh, and whoever wrote of the California wildfires, I’d check the credibility of the source of the stories on just how they occurred much more closely from now on. Since those fires are now burning for literally days at a time, most likely they were set by the government to keep the costs of lumber high, or in order to honor the free trade agreements with Canada for theirs, and purposely set.
They are burning trees to control the market, and so Arnie can get some more federal grant monies for the state budgets without accountability.
And if you haven’t figured that out yet, you better wake up to the corruption that is in this government, and soon.
August 29th, 2009 at 6:29 pmAnd actually, global warming would help the levees not hurt them in the slightest. It was erosion of the wetlands that has affected the New Orleans levee protection, which has occurred due to flooding which is historically cyclical on the Mississippi.
And these global warming nutjobs need to get a life, since the “global” is “warming” due to an increase in the earth’s core temperature. So these “scientists” that are blaming carbon are probably working for the chemical companies or utility companies whose profits for the bankers were the “source” of the global warming scam.
And will leave many more living in New Orleans homeless in the process.
August 29th, 2009 at 6:32 pmAnd something very interesting….do you notice now that most hurricanes, especially those headed for the U.S. with the likelihood of destruction, are given now German names?
August 29th, 2009 at 6:34 pmA few points:
1. Boortz makes his living saying outrageous things so that lots of people will react, some will listen and he and his station will make money. I deplore his remarks.
2. “We would not tolerate yelling Fire in a crowded theater, but we do not mind the kind of hate speech that energizes the crazies and lunatic fringe to commit acts of violence and murder.”
When Republicans are in power, the same thing happens: Bush, Cheney, et. al. were demonized; there was a film made of Bush’s assassination, tee shirts with his face in a bullseye, he was hung in effigy. And most of the violent protests that I can remember have been those by liberals.
3. You can lump all thought that you disagree with as stupid, but a brief listen to Rush Limbaugh or to Glenn Beck will convince any open minded person that they are intelligent, logical, knowledgeble and, for the most part, civil. Sure, they might drive you crazy, but they should not be silenced just because you disagree with their ideas.
Boortz, on the other hand, is more like a violent video game; I would rather that the fringe who agree with him get their aggressions out by listening to him in their cabin in the woods than by acting out!
August 30th, 2009 at 12:01 pmBoortz is right again!
August 30th, 2009 at 6:21 pmHe could have called them stupid, mob members, astro-turf and the other things the dems and liberals have been shouting about conservatives over the health bill…but that’s different…right? The shoe only fits when it’s on the other foot.
September 1st, 2009 at 8:37 amIf what Boortz claims is debris that will return if New Orleans is rebuilt, if it is really debis, who created it? I believe our government did that.We have been sitting around as nation of hard working, basically law abiding people not paying attention to the people that we elected to watch our backs. These people have made such a mess of this great country by trying to give help to the so called disadvantaged. There is no value in anything that is not worked for, (earned). I believe that we as a nation are finally waking up to what has been done to us and some one is going to pay. I wish there was a way to go back and redo the entitlements so those getting them had something invested in them. More people should be listening to Hannity, Beck, and Limbaugh. I pray that our country can be saved in a peaceful way, but I wouldn’t be surprised if it turned into something bad.
September 1st, 2009 at 11:35 amWhat a goofy bunch of ignorant and selfish fascists. What created the lower class in Nola was an unlawful extension of the exploitation which has continued since the time of slavery.
Smug, ignorant, uneducated bigots need to study more and shut up until they have something to say which is based on knowledge and understanding.
Neal Boortz is like many products of Texas A&M, a school I attended and understand. Bigoted, overbearing, and will do anything for a buck.
September 1st, 2009 at 10:15 pm