Neil Cavuto:

When this kind of stuff happens to other folks, we’re there. When this kind of stuff happens to us, who’s here?

I know we’re a rich country. But I think it a bit rich so few call to wish us well in this country. Perhaps some have and perhaps I’ve missed it.

All I know is a lot of poor folks here got hit here. Would it kill the same foreigners we’ve helped there, to offer support here?

I don’t expect a telethon. But how about a call on a telephone?

Maybe some countries have offered rescue personnel. I just haven’t seen them. I’ll keep looking. I’ll keep waiting. I’ll keep wondering.

All I know is for now, the silence is deafening. And the water in New Orleans isn’t the only thing that stinks.

USA Today:

From papal prayers to telegrams from China, the world reacted with an outpouring of compassion Wednesday for the victims of Hurricane Katrina in messages tinged by shock that a disaster of this scale could occur in the United States.

[...]

Venezuela’s government, which has had tense relations with Washington, offered humanitarian aid and fuel if requested.

The storm was seen as an equalizer — proof that any country, weak or strong, can be victimized by a natural disaster. Images of flood-ravaged New Orleans earned particular sympathy in central Europe, where dozens died in raging floodwaters only days ago.

French President Jacques Chirac and German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder sent messages of sympathy to President Bush. Chirac, who has famously quarreled with Bush over the Iraq war, addressed this letter, “Dear George.”

Pope Benedict XVI said he was praying for victims of the “tragic” hurricane while China’s President Hu Jintao expressed his “belief that that the American people will definitely overcome the natural disaster and rebuild their beautiful homeland.”

Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II also sent a message to Bush saying she was “deeply shocked and saddened” at the devastation caused by the hurricane and expressing her condolences, “especially to the families of those who have lost their lives, to the injured and to all who have been affected by this terrible disaster.”

The U.S. Embassy in Bern, Switzerland — a capital at the foot of the Alps hit by flooding last week — said calls were rushing in from Swiss individuals and institutions looking for a way to donate to relief efforts.

“We are getting calls from the Swiss public looking to express their condolences, (and) people are also asking for an account number where they can make donations,” said spokesman Daniel Wendell.

You gotta’ wonder, of all the things Cavuto could have editorialized on the day after an American city was decimated, why he chose this.

Before going live with his red meat for Europhobes, you’d think Cavuto might have checked the wire. Or given the overseas support a day or two to actually begin to roll in, then to get reported. And even if he’d been right — why would it matter? I thought the lesson the pro-war crowd would have us learn from Iraq is that don’t need the rest of the world.

Reminds me of all that “stingy” crap from last December — when all the usual suspects piled on Jan Egeland for comments he never made.

Amazing how quickly both sides have manipulated this thing for cheap political points.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, August 31st, 2005 at 5:50 pm by Radley Balko and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.