I heard an interesting perspective today on NPR today that the US response has, in fact, been excellent, and that people are getting a very unrealistic picture of what is and could be possible under the circumstances. I am unclear on the guy's credentials other than he is an author (but on what I don't know) and a veteran of numerous international natural disaster response teams.
And I'm not sure centralization hurt this effort, as FEMA has no first responders of its own -- at best it coordinates efforts. I've been tangentially involved in coordinating relief efforts on the ground through a couple of natural disasters (Hurricane Andrew in 1992 and flooding in 1996-7 in the midwest) and I know that media reports don't always present the 'fairest' picture of the situation... just the most dramatic.
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And I'm not sure centralization hurt this effort, as FEMA has no first responders of its own -- at best it coordinates efforts. I've been tangentially involved in coordinating relief efforts on the ground through a couple of natural disasters (Hurricane Andrew in 1992 and flooding in 1996-7 in the midwest) and I know that media reports don't always present the 'fairest' picture of the situation... just the most dramatic.