the Voice of
The Communist League of Revolutionary Workers–Internationalist
“The emancipation of the working class will only be achieved by the working class itself.”
— Karl Marx
the Voice of
The Communist League of Revolutionary Workers–Internationalist
“The emancipation of the working class will only be achieved by the working class itself.”
— Karl Marx
Feb 4, 2008
A federal judge ruled that the Army Corps of Engineers was “guilty of gross incompetence” for the failure of the levees in New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina. But he said he could not hold the agency financially liable for any damage because the federal government has legal immunity.
The judge, Stanwood R. Duval, Jr., said he was powerless to rule against the government because the Flood Control Act of 1928 granted legal immunity to the government in the event of a failure of levees. This law was passed immediately after The Great Flood devastated the area around the lower Mississippi and killed thousands–also due to government incompetence and neglect.
A government that had the interests of the population at heart would not have to be taken to court for people to get compensation for the damage that occurred during Katrina. Such a government would have adequately prepared for such a storm. If it failed to protect the population, it would have rushed in to fix the damage it created.
But this government has done nothing but use Katrina as an excuse for its own brand of “urban renewal” in New Orleans–to move out the poor for the benefit of the wealthy.