Staten Island Resident Confronts Chuck Schumer; 'We Are Gonna Die!'

[WTJ]

WTJ, you want to look at it in context without the emotion. It's just my opinion, but I think it's more appropriate right now to help people in need and mourn with them as they go through this. There's plenty of time to point out how they were wrong in their mindset later. Right now, they need friggin' blankets, food, water and protection from looters. Seems kind of callous that you and OTHERS would just come right out and point out how unfortunate these people are that they have that "mindset" without even so much as saying "that sucks" to the fact that there's a bunch of people dead. All that does is alienate people with that mindset against people with our mindset. Again, just my opinion. That, coupled with the fact that you talk like Spock makes me think you're an EMOTIONLESS, GREEN-BLOODED VULCAN!!!

Seriously, I don't blame them for having that mindset, I blame the SNAKE-OIL POLITICIANS who sell them the idea that more gov't. equals total security. These people are victims twice over. Once from the hurricane and again from the scumbag pols they put their faith in to keep them safe, warm and fed when the **** hit the fan.

HAHAHAHAHAHA! Yeah, it does sound that way I suppose. Not the first time I have heard that either. You are absolutely correct in the second paragraph.

Given the scope of the disaster, statistically there are NOT that many fatalities. While one is too many, in the past the numbers would have been much higher. The conclusion is that some of the methods obviously work. The trouble with pointing out later that "the mindset is wrong" is the short-term memory. A month from now the question will be "Sandy who?", meaning that this problem WILL repeat itself. The state of Florida had these problems and corrected a great deal of them after Andrew.

If someone doesn't ask the hard questions now this will happen again. It appears that, all of the emotion, propaganda, and rhetoric concerning Katrina aside, we didn't learn much about mitigating the aftermath of tropical WX impacts on major urban areas. What did seem to work was the warning and notification systems.

It looks like at least SOME of these people CHOSE to ride this out without preparation. Those that had no choice? I am with ya. That sucks!

Now I will be taken to task for using the work 'statistics'.......Standing by.....

 

[sanjuro893]

HAHAHAHAHAHA! Yeah, it does sound that way I suppose. Not the first time I have heard that either. You are absolutely correct in the second paragraph.

Given the scope of the disaster, statistically there are NOT that many fatalities. While one is too many, in the past the numbers would have been much higher. The conclusion is that some of the methods obviously work. The trouble with pointing out later that "the mindset is wrong" is the short-term memory. A month from now the question will be "Sandy who?", meaning that this problem WILL repeat itself. The state of Florida had these problems and corrected a great deal of them after Andrew.

If someone doesn't ask the hard questions now this will happen again. It appears that, all of the emotion, propaganda, and rhetoric concerning Katrina aside, we didn't learn much about mitigating the aftermath of tropical WX impacts on major urban areas. What did seem to work was the warning and notification systems.

It looks like at least SOME of these people CHOSE to ride this out without preparation. Those that had no choice? I am with ya. That sucks!

Now I will be taken to task for using the work 'statistics'.......Standing by.....

You definitely hit the nail on the head about "Sandy who?" There was a hurricane earlier this year that hit the gulf coast called Isaac. It flooded a lot of the same areas outside of New Orleans as Katrina, but with a lot less damage and a lot less loss of life. I think there were some lessons learned there. But unfortunately, as you said, some people will never learn. But the more people rely on their government to do it all, when that gov't fails to deliver the moon and stars as promised, that's when WE gotta step up and fill in the gaps. I think THAT frees more people up from being too reliant on gov't. than anything else.

 

[Glocktogo]

I don't know the situation up there, but I do know that those people are screwed and I'm not taking any pleasure in their suffering.

I'm in full agreement with you on this one. I wouldn't take one iota of pleasure in anyone's suffering. I would however start telling these people exactly what to do and when to do it. If you're not gonna take some responsibility for your own survival, you'd best be ready to take orders from those that are gonna save your butt.

It's kind of like a conversation I had with a female coworker the other day. She said she knew she should be interested in politics and voting, but she just didn't care. I asked her if she was willing to accept whatever those that won dictated to her? She said yes. I don't have a problem with her attitude. I do have a problem with anyone who expects things and isn't willing to accept the conditions placed on them.

 

[Boehlertaught]

I feel sorry for the folks and pray all will be OK for them in the near future. I have to admit I am getting a bit tired of seeing the media put footage of folks there demanding government help. I don't remember a lot of that going on during the 2007 ice storm here. Well, we were without electric power for 17 days so that may be why we didn't watch the news.

 

[aeropb]

Maybe if you weren't such a ****ing idiot you wouldn't have been caught in a known, well predicted, supermassive natural disaster. Life lesson #1......... Survive.

Honestly, if a world record tornado planted on the Earth 500 miles from your house, was making a sustained beeline towards your house over the course of many weeks, and yet still by the time it arrived you didn't GTFO............... you lose. Mother nature is a *****. There is a reason humans don't live too long in the wild. Natural disasters have wiped out hundreds of millions of people who didn't know what was coming.

 

[dwkennedy]

I feel sorry for the folks and pray all will be OK for them in the near future. I have to admit I am getting a bit tired of seeing the media put footage of folks there demanding government help. I don't remember a lot of that going on during the 2007 ice storm here. Well, we were without electric power for 17 days so that may be why we didn't watch the news.

Staten Island, being just barely above sea level, was under a mandatory evacuation order. This lady shouldn't have even been there, she could have easily bugged out before the storm hit (several days warning was given) and living it up in a shelter someplace safe.

During the Great Ice Storms that knock out power around here (and therefore my central heat) I crank up my $100 kerosene heater and stay toasty. Not sure why people in the frozen north would not have an alternate source of heat, or a spare blanket, or something. Sometimes old does not equate to wise.

Why didn't she ask Schumer for a ride to a shelter, if she was so afraid for her life? Why does she demand that the government put trucks full of generators, gasoline, food and clothes on her corner "right now"?? I think there's an entitlement mentality going on here...

Then again, Staten Island is one of the most highly taxed pieces of real estate in the world, so maybe it is reasonable to expect the royal treatment from the government.

 

[jakeman]

If you are dependent on the government for almost anything, I'm afraid you are going to be disappointed more than you are going to be pleased, especially in times of crisis.

If you possess the mentality that it's the government's responsibility to "come and save you" in times of a natural disaster, you stand a real chance of dying in a natural disaster because of that mind set.

 

[Wild Weasel]

A lot of those folks escaped with nothing but the clothes on their back. Nor'easter headed their way today. They are living the apocolypse in real time.

Escaped it? They have been forecasting for days when do start listening?

 

[BadgeBunny]

If you are dependent on the government for almost anything, I'm afraid you are going to be disappointed more than you are going to be pleased, especially in times of crisis.

If you possess the mentality that it's the government's responsibility to "come and save you" in times of a natural disaster, you stand a real chance of dying in a natural disaster because of that mind set.

Bad as I feel for the suffering going on, ultimately THIS is the truth. Every day I become more and more convinced that "Idiocracy" is a documentary ...

 

[SMS]

All of Staten Island was not under mandatory evacuation order...only the low lying areas in "Zone A". Another little tidbit, Staten Island is reportedly a largely white, middle class, Republican voting area heavily populated with cops and firefighters. Funny how our stereotypes of "New Yorkers" can be wrong when painted with a broad brush.

They got hammered with an epic storm, the likes of which most Okies can't even comprehend....and a few folks are on TV airing it out...But I'm willing to bet that for every person on TV crying for a blanket, there are dozens more making do and helping each other out.