This was planned neglect and the people who were neglected are predominantly
black and poor. So they are expendable. Of course, the folks who live on
your peninsula, along with the wildlife and vegetation, are also being
sacrificed, but more slowly and subtly by the US Military in the service of
national security. And all of us, and the whole world's eco cystem, has
been sacrificed for the benefit of multinational corporations and the profit
of their stockholders. Flint is only a more obvious, easy to understand
example of how greed sacrifices everything that stands in its way.
Miriam
-----Original Message-----
From: blind-democracy-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
[mailto:blind-democracy-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Carl Jarvis
Sent: Sunday, January 17, 2016 11:22 AM
To: blind-democracy@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [blind-democracy] Re: obama declares state of emergency in flint
Ah yes. The wheels of Justice turn exceedingly slow.
If this had been a planned Terrorist plot to poison an entire city, the
Federal Government would have sprung into action. But when the Terrorists
have citizenship and passports and money in the bank and influence in
Washington D.C., then there seems to be a different set of scales.
We, the People have been relegated to the status of Serf. At best, as long
as our money holds out, we are seen as Consumers. But Citizens?
Not for a long time.
Carl Jarvis
On 1/17/16, joe harcz Comcast <joeharcz@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
Obama declares state of emergency in Flint water crisis Paul Egan,said.
Detroit Free Press LANSING, Mich. ' President Obama on Saturday
declared a federal emergency
in Flint, meaning federal financial aid will be available to assist
with the drinking water crisis. But a request from Gov. Rick Snyder to
declare Flint
and Genesee County a disaster area was denied, a spokesman for Snyder
The president's actions authorize the Federal Emergency ManagementHouse. Rep.
Agency to
coordinate responses and provide 75% federal funding. The president
also offered assistance in finding other available federal assistance,
the news release
said. The order authorizes FEMA to provide water, filters, filter
cartridges and other needed items, FEMA spokesman Rafael Lemaitre said
on Twitter. "I
appreciate the president approving my federal emergency request and
supporting Flint during this critical situation," Snyder said in a
news release. "I
have pledged to use all state resources possible to help heal Flint,
and these additional resources will greatly assist its efforts under
way to ensure
every resident has access to clean water resources. Snyder on Thursday
night asked Obama for federal financial aid in the public health
crisis through
declarations of both a federal emergency and a federal disaster. No
disaster declaration was part of Saturday's announcement from the White
governor.
Dale Kildee, D-Mich., whose district includes Flint,'welcomed the
emergency declaration and issued a statement: 'I welcome the
president's quick action
in support of the people of Flint after months of inaction by the
The residents and children of Flint deserve every resource available
to make
sure that they have safe water and are able to recover from this
terrible man-made disaster created by the state. On Friday, Kildee'led
a bipartisan effort
in support of the request'for federal assistance. Kildee had long
called for 'Snyder to request federal aid. Typically, federal aid for
an emergency is
capped at $5 million, though the president can commit more if he
reports it to Congress. Under a federal disaster declaration, normally
reserved exclusively
for natural disasters rather than man-made ones such as the one in
Flint, much larger sums are available. Snyder's application said as
much as $55 million
is needed in the near term to repair damaged lead service lines and as
much as $41 million to pay for several months of water distribution
and providing
residents with testing, water filters and cartridges. In what's become
a huge government scandal, Flint's drinking water became contaminated
with lead
after the city temporarily switched its supply source from Lake Huron
water treated by the Detroit Water and Sewerage Department to more
corrosive and
polluted Flint River water, treated at the Flint water treatment
plant. The switch was made as a cost-cutting move while the city was
under the control
of a state-appointed emergency manager. The state Department of
Environmental Quality has acknowledged a mistake in failing to require
the addition of
needed corrosion control chemicals to the water. That caused lead,
which can cause brain damage and other health problems in children, to
leach into the
water from pipes and fixtures. Residents' complaints about the taste,
odor and appearance of the water, which began immediately after the
switch, were
largely ignored by state officials. The state also dismissed reports
of elevated lead levels in the blood of Flint children from
pediatrician Mona Hanna-Attisha
before for the first time publicly acknowledging a problem around the
beginning of October in 2015. U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich., said
in a news
release she appreciates "the president's quick action in responding to
the urgent needs of families in Flint. "I will continue to push for
federal resources
to address this crisis, and for a commitment of resources from the
state to meet the immediate needs of the community and to set aside a
Future Fund to
address the long-term needs of children and families," Stabenow said.
