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10% of the US oil production is off line due to Katrina. If we have another incident we could easily see US$100. a barrel for oil and $2.00 a litre for gas at the pumps. I would say the odds are in favour of us soon seeing $2.00 a litre for gas.

Instead of accepting responsibility for the disasterous response right wingers have now seized on a picture of some flooded school buses that were not used. From all accounts I have seen the Mayor of NO stayed in the city doing the best he could, with no help from Bush who was vacationing as usual at his ranch, or was he delivering some fund-raising speech in Idaho. Great president indeed!

Here's more: Editorials, Including Those at Conservative Papers, Rip Bush's Hurricane Response And it goes on and on. What's it going to take for you to realize Bush has disgraced America?

Unfortunately your tripe does NOT pass the test of time as it is Conservatives and right wingers who are bashing Bush. Here's a perfect example of what I am talking about: I've had it with George Bush - Adler - Wpg Free Press

Message to self: Anyways take an axe when going to the attic

You really are living in denial. First the denial about the levees NOT being upgraded properly, and secondly about the US Administration's response. Bush is going to be trying to do damage control over Katrina for the rest of his term, but as he was already so low in the polls, I would imagine that it will be impossible for him to recover. He will probably go down in history as the worst president the US has ever had. And just wait until next month when the grand jury reports!

Ottawa needs a high oil price plan: Duceppe Once again, where's Harper?

Regulate gas prices: Layton Does anyone else get the feeling that this may become our "hot button" issue this Fall?

Good article kimmy. Canadians need to get a better grasp of their history, especially of Western Canada. It's kinda hard to do when Toronto is the centre of the universe!

Criticism of Bush mounts as more than 10,000 feared dead Finally it is becoming crystal clear to all Americans what kind of president they have elected to the White House.

This appears to be the heart of your proposal. We have this law now. If you are caught with a weapon you are not supposed to own, ie, do not have a firearms licence for, you are supposed to be severely punished. This has been the law for some time. It is universally ignored. I can't recall ever reading about it being enforced - ever. I can't recall a single charge under the law. I'm sure there were some, of course, somewhwere. The closest I can recall was some criminals from Montreal who were arrested at gunpoint and had fully automatic submachineguns in their car. They were fined and then released. Let me list a few other laws we have on the books. For example, if you point a firearm at anyone you are liable for up to 5 years in prison. This is another law never enforced. Another law is "Use of a firearm in the commision of an indictable offense". This provides a minimum of 1 year and a maximum of 14 years additional prison time. Charges are usually laid using this, then withdrawn as part of a plea If you merely posess a weapon dangerous to the public peace for the purpose of commiting an offence you can get up to 2 years. Never used. If you are caught with a concealed weapon you can get up to 5 years. Never used. Or if you merely posess a restricted weapon (ie, a hand gun) without a licence you can get 5 years. That one is also rarely enforced, charges rarely, if ever laid, then plea bargained down. There are others, lots of them. Why, if you read through the crininal code you'd suspect that anyone caught holding up a convenience store would be so hammered by weapons charges they wouldn't get out of prison until they were tottering little old men. Instead ... well, we all know what weak sentences they get, and how quickly they're paroled back to the street. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Well then we need to enforce severe sentencing. What is stopping that from happpening? Do we not have enough space in our prisons? Is prison life too comfortable? We keep hearing stories about about how good life is in prison with great meals, satellite TV, horses brought in for Thatcher, etc., but I certainly would not want to go there to live. Violent offenders should be housed in prisons perhaps in the far North where they are forced to physically work a large part of each day in a productive way, to offset the cost of housing them. Are our judges being personally threatened so they are afraid to be harsher? Obviously the solution is NOT to allow more guns on the streets. I mean are we going to talk about this forever in Canada, or are we going to do something about it?

This appears to be the heart of your proposal. We have this law now. If you are caught with a weapon you are not supposed to own, ie, do not have a firearms licence for, you are supposed to be severely punished. This has been the law for some time. It is universally ignored. I can't recall ever reading about it being enforced - ever. I can't recall a single charge under the law. I'm sure there were some, of course, somewhwere. The closest I can recall was some criminals from Montreal who were arrested at gunpoint and had fully automatic submachineguns in their car. They were fined and then released. Let me list a few other laws we have on the books. For example, if you point a firearm at anyone you are liable for up to 5 years in prison. This is another law never enforced. Another law is "Use of a firearm in the commision of an indictable offense". This provides a minimum of 1 year and a maximum of 14 years additional prison time. Charges are usually laid using this, then withdrawn as part of a plea If you merely posess a weapon dangerous to the public peace for the purpose of commiting an offence you can get up to 2 years. Never used. If you are caught with a concealed weapon you can get up to 5 years. Never used. Or if you merely posess a restricted weapon (ie, a hand gun) without a licence you can get 5 years. That one is also rarely enforced, charges rarely, if ever laid, then plea bargained down. There are others, lots of them. Why, if you read through the crininal code you'd suspect that anyone caught holding up a convenience store would be so hammered by weapons charges they wouldn't get out of prison until they were tottering little old men. Instead ... well, we all know what weak sentences they get, and how quickly they're paroled back to the street. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Well then we need to enforce severe sentencing. What is stopping that from happpening? Do we not have enough space in our prisons? Is prison life too comfortable? We keep hearing stories about about how good life is in prison with great meals, satellite TV, horses brought in for Thatcher, etc., but I certainly would not want to go there to live. Violent offenders should be housed in prisons perhaps in the far North where they are forced to physically work a large part of each day in a productive way, to offset the cost of housing them. Are our judges being personally threatened so they are afraid to be harsher? Obviously the solution is NOT to allow more guns on the streets. I mean are we going to talk about this forever in Canada or are we going to do something about it?

Canada has been concerned about being hit by al Quaeda and the US has been concerned about another al Quaeda attack. It is hard though to imagine something happening that could be worse than Hurricane Katrina. If someone is out to get you I think it may well be impossible to stop them. Perhaps we would be better off to scrap, or at least substantially reduce all this massive effort to foil these attacks, and concentrate on reducing global warming, and preparing for future natural disasters. Canada and the the US both need to reassess its priorities. Canada simply cannot afford to continue to allow our policies to be driven by some nutbar in the White House. Has anyone every heard of the expression: THE BLIND LEADING THE BLIND For example both the West Coast of Canada and California we have been told by scientists are going to be hit with massive earthquakes. What kind of plans are in place to deal with such a catastrophe where all communications are disrupted and thousands of people may need assistance to survive? CANADA AND THE US HAVE BEEN SNOOKERED By the US and Canada diverting money going into dealing with protecting its citizens from natural disasters, and put into security, I believe that al Quaeda has won.

It's quite clear that President Bush is to blame. Even the conservative press is cutting him loose, as they eye their reduced chances in the 2006 Congressional elections: Why the Levee Broke

Here is an excellent overview of what has happened so far, including some very relevant pre-Katrina background, which is going to be published tomorrow in the New York Times: A Delicate Balance Is Undone in a Flash, and a Battered City Waits For good local news coverage the New Orleans Times-Picayune is a good place to start. They have just resumed publishing today: Link Here is a series of their articles written in June, 2002 Washing Away

August, that's an additional good point. So far the results here at MLW are: Con probably - 2 Cons definitely - 3 Libs definitely - 2 NDP probably - 1 NDP definitely - 2 Not voting - 1 Total - 11 votes I wonder if there is going to be one overriding issue for the coming election campaign. I don't think it will be SSM, or Gomery. And it's kinda hard to take down a government when the economy is so good. Maybe the overriding issue will be health care, although I'm sure younger people are probably getting a wee bit tired of this issue. Global warming, I don't think we are there yet in the minds of the average voter, although the price of oil certainly can focus the mind.

The Republicans have controlled the Congress and the Administration since 2000, and had time to have fixed the levees. They choose NOT to repair them and now NO is paying the price. The Republicans will pay a heavy price politically in the 2006 Congressional elections (1/3 of Senate and the entire House of Representatives). The big disconnect on New Orleans

I think that Katrina may well be the turning point in US politics that puts the Democrats back into power even possibly retaking control of Congress in 2006. The reprecussions are coming and they are going to come very quickly. This isn't an enemy attack so there will be no need for unity once people's lives have been saved. Bush will be politically savaged by the attack. United States of Shame A Can't-Do Government

Isn't this a good enough reason in itself to confiscate all civilian guns? I think it is.

Interesting stats. from Blair, Toronto's Police Chief. Anyway I say confiscate all civilian guns, and impose very harsh sentences for anyone outside the military who has one. The Roy Rogers and the Wild West eras are long over.

Interesting breakdown of voting preferences so far. It seems that perhaps Liberal fans, according to the recent polls, are under represented at MLW compared to the other political party supporters here, which is understandable considering they are the government, so their supporters are less likely to come onto discussion boards like this and complain about our federal government. Thanks to all those that have participated so far.

Since 2000 the Bush & the Republicians have ruled. Now they will finally pay the political price for their transgressions. If we had a similar type disaster in Canada I wonder who would be in charge. Do we know? Perhaps our governments need to explain to us how things would work in an emergency. Who was in charge in Quebec during the Ice Storm? Or the storm that hit Nova Scotia? We had better find out, eh! Link I just checked and Landslide Annie is in charge. I feel much better already!

Politically the Republicans have had things go their way since Clinton left politics, including the 2000 election which has left a sour taste about democracy in America for a lot of people. Katrina may well be the turning point.

I think this idea that bigger is better can be a fallacy especially when it comes to government services. The merger in the GTA is a good example. I'm sure it is a rare occasion that the citizens there now know their policepeople. One of the major problems we face with crime is that people will not talk to the police even if they have witnessed something. Well no kidding! We are rapidly losing our communities where people knew each other and we are now paying the price. I suggest we go back to smaller muncipalities where people know each other, and where we know the policepeople. It would make a difference. Governments are not businesses and people need to recognize that. Some things cannot be measured on a balance sheet.

Bakunin What was the reaction in the Bloc camp when the government survived the non-confidence vote last Spring? I seem to remember reading somewhere that Duceppe felt the Conservatives blew it by not supporting the Bloc's motion to bring down the government.