Lessons From Katrina

It's been about five years since the devastation of New Orleans and the surrounding area by Hurricane Katrina -- a disaster made even worse by the incredibly slow reaction to it by the Bush administration. The city of New Orleans is still trying to recover from that storm and its aftermath.

As we mark the fifth anniversary of the hurricane, it seems appropriate to ask if we are better prepared for another storm like this. Have we learned any lessons from Katrina? Over at Where's The Outrage, Errington C. Thompson has listed five lessons that Americans (and the American government) should have learned from Katrina. I like his list and think he's absolutely right. I hope these lessons have indeed been learned and we never have to witness that kind of massive incompetence again.

Here are the lessons that should have been learned:

* There should be no political considerations when doling out aid.

* Experts are experts for a reason. They should be in charge of planning and resource management.

* We as Americans do a bad job of planning for future problems. Money was consistently diverted from the levees into projects that would give politicians "more to run on".

* There is no excuse for not getting help to everyone within 48 hours -- no excuse.

* This could happen again.