Galveston's Mayor ORDERED all city employees NOT to TALK to news reporters! MEDIA BLACKOUT! What are they hiding???

I really want to know what they are hiding. Logic tells me it is being hidden to ultimately cover up the total number of dead. Now why is this a big deal when they were warned? The usual suspects, republicans protecting the "Bush Legacy" have been given their marching orders. It's an election year. They don't want to help Obama. They don't care about the human toll, haven't we figured this out? Time will tell.

The truth will come out about how incompetent FEMA was in handling this once again and the Republican administration is responsible.

On the area websites people say there were long long lines at the gas stations and not enough gas to go around for people to leave. It was chaotic.

None of this adds up. If there really were tens of thousands there where are the relatives screaming for information? Are they being shut up as well?

>>snip: "None of this adds up. If there really were tens of thousands there where are the relatives screaming for information? Are they being shut up as well?"

Good question. We were hearing that thousands stayed on the island, too, so maybe that number was over-estimated? I can't imagine many people staying in place after being told they would face "certain death"!

horrific.
I can't imagine what those washed to sea felt in the last minutes of their lives

FEMA screwed up AGAIN! What a bunch of confused, arrogant folks. Chertof should be fired.

utter distruction is utter distruction..find the dead .begin clean up.let resident salvage what they can .then rebuild better .. .help the displaced from going insane with worry....they lost so much.they need support wherever they are and a new fresh start as soon as possible...

Can anyone find message boards looking for missing friends or relatives in the Galveston area?

I can't.

More pictoral updates from Galveston via an indepedent website.

[link to jakeabby.com]

Incredible overlay photos of before and after Ike.

He told the idiots in NO to leave too. You people want the government to take a dump for you to.

From what I have been able to observe the Coast Guard, National Guard, FEMA and just neighbors have been doing a very good job at trying to survive and recover from this storm. There is only so much that can happen so fast.

No body has screwed up anything except maybe the news media. People foolishly stayed and blew off the warnings, mainly because the news media over blows and hypes everything. That causes people to not react when they should. Not to mention the complete lack of important information from radio stations in favor of finding pictures and stuff for those of you that want to make a political football out of this catastrophe.

There are REAL people dead and hurting and there are REAL people here working to save them. You should really have a clue before opening that sewer you call a mouth or spewing that garbage scowl full of swill you call critical thinking.

That goes for most of you who think this is a game to capitalize on for November. You make me sick.

Are you the type, Elijah, that would just quietly que up when told and not ask questions? Would you just fade into the background when you see an atrocity perped and drive it from your mind?

Or, are you a special ops type trying to deflect criticizm when it just might be deserved?

Last I took notice we still have SOME of our rights, free speech among them, and to that end if WE don't stay on top of things which are DELIBERATELY BEING HIDDEN from public view, the bush administration and future administrations will continue to allow us to learn only that which they want us to learn.

Ignoring the fact that there IS a MEDIA BLACKOUT on portions of Galveston does no one any good.

It's especially not good for those who want open, honest, and transparent government.

No, I am the type that is still clearing debris, fixing fences and tarping roofs. Your the type that jockeys a keyboard hoping to score some points for the DNC.

Pretty disgusting really. I thought I would take a break after 4 days.

Why not come down and help. Go see for yourself. Oh yeah, your too busy typing up propaganda. There is no atrocity here other than what mother nature made and people refused to heed.

Later.

Whoa. Hold on.

YOU are in Galveston?

Not sure about Eli, but I see someone who doesn't know dick about the situation first hand, likely has never been through a similar situation, and just wants to whine about it because it suits her political agenda.

Ever been through a Cyclone Polly?....I have, major ones too. I can tell you first hand that you don't know shit about what the aftermath is like. If some reporters aren't allowed to get their asses shined and carted around by city empoyees? it's because they have more important things to do. If they aren't allowed in certain areas yet, it's because they will be in the way and because the people in charge don't want to expend the resources to mind them.

Face it you don't give a shit about being transparent about all the Ice, water and evacs that have been done there, because those things won't suit your purpose. Ever think that maybe announcing that there are X amount of dead in certain area would cause a rush of desperate people that did evac that couldn't do a thing anyway and would likely cause more harm than it would help? That maybe people will be indentified and relatives contacted before they might see something on whatever news station feels like drooling over dead and hurt people on the tardtube?....nahhhh, that doesn't matter as long as you can play politics with it, right?

Don't worry you'll get a body count soon enough and you can play blame someone for it in due time. Meanwhile real rescues are going on and I for one am glad to see they don't give a fuck about getting the press in as if THAT is more important than getting rescue missions and real life aide into the worst hit areas.

I am about 28 miles North of it right now. Got access to power last night about 7pm.

As was proven with Katrina, my dear SHR, reporters can get into places such as they did at the superdome and interview people WHILE the rescue effort is still underway.

Don't go charging in on your high horse at this point in the game because you think you have a political statement to make under the guise of being in support of CENSORSHIP of the highest order.

Homeland Security was mentioned as being on the island, FIRST. What does that tell you?

This bushchit administration is involved and that doesn't bode good.

Normal Americans don't like coverups, censorship, or screens placed at the front door of THEIR White House.

This is no dayum different.

Well, since you are close by what have you heard about the media blackout? Have you any information on a clearing house (website or other) where people can learn about their families or friends?

The biolab was definitely on Galveston, but was it on the West End of FM 3005?

LOL....the only blackout is in your mind, which is hard to fathom due to you transparency. I am not the one a political statement, you are btw.

POST YOUR PICS@!@@!

POWER TO THE PEOPLE

There was a local press conference just a bit ago by the Mayor of Galv. I only picked up on bits and pieces. I think the main issue was health concerns. They have the sewer backed up and just don't want anymore issues to deal with than they have. I am sure that they have little to no interest in the gore picture the media is after at this time.

It has been hard to make cell phone contact because of power and random tower destruction. Some services fared better than others. If they were on the island without any protection it probable they are gone. The surge was 14-15 ft all the way up the bay. I think the island was nearly completely submerged. A good part of Kema is gone.

The first thing was the Coast Guard and Black hawk helos. They were in the air as soon as the winds allowed. They have been going non stop since.

The Houston Police have been everywhere with a strong presence too as have the Fire and Rescue clearing roads and trees. All those guys are working hard.

FEMA was within Houston on Saturday coming in from the SW first to my knowledge. Access to Houston is far easier than New Orleans. There was a lot of issues with getting around flooded areas until late Saturday night. By Sunday they had made it as far south as League city. They started in major shopping centers with generators, food, water, ice etc.

It was possible to get supplies to most people by Sunday night or Monday morning. I went through only about 1/2 my water by then. Galveston I am not so sure about. The water should have receded by 15-18 hours I believe. but that's hearsay. The bridge in made it, so they can get there as soon as the water backs off if it hasn't already. Moist people are dealing with what's in front of them and I don;t have a grasp of the whole area at all. Just what I can hear.

Gas is getting easier to get, the power is on various places and getting better. We hear the Calvary is on the way with much more man power from as far as Canada. Pallets and pallets of generators have been sent in as well as wood, shingles etc. This is a big place and the shear size of this operation is incredible. There is far more than just Galveston at stake.

Neighbors had to help each other the most first and having supplies was crucial. They had buses running in Galvston until Friday morning. There is no reason they should have stayed. I even saw a lady who was interviewed that said she stayed because it would be a hassle with pets and her kids to leave. I don;t even know if she made it. Won't be anyone's fault but her own though.

This place is a disaster area, but people are working hard to get it back. Just don't make it a game of government failure or call the Gov a coward. It was a storm Polly and 'Americans', Texans, those passing through are dealing with it as best as humans can. This just isn't a something to exploit.

That's about all I can think of now. I need to get some more work done as I am set to head away next Monday. No one planned this or wanted it. It just is.

That's bullshit. They were BEGGED to leave for DAYS, leading up to Ike. Certain death of you stayed. That's the person's responsibility. If they wanted to be stupid and die, that's their fault. It was 1000% unavoidable.

My sister in Texas (Tyler) just sent the following from the Tyler Paper.

[link to www.tylerpaper.com]


File photosMark Collette and Rhiannon MeyersThe following is a first-hand account of the destruction of Galveston Island by Hurricane Ike by Mark Collette, former Tyler Paper reporter, who lives there with his wife, Rhiannon Meyers, also a former Tyler Paper reporter and now a reporter for the Galveston County Daily News.


Collette sent an e-mail, from which this information was included, to let friends and family know they are doing fine.


-------------------------------------------------------------​-------------------



The island, as a whole, looks like a war zone. The structures that weren’t destroyed have been ruined by water. Fire destroyed at least 17 buildings. One entire apartment building collapsed.


Every structure built over the water in front of the Seawall was destroyed and left little trace, except for the Flagship Hotel, which was severely damaged and separated from the island.

Some people are believed to still be inside but cannot be reached immediately because the pilings on the building were damaged, so a helicopter can’t land on top.

Much if not most of the property on the Bolivar Peninsula is now debris. Homes on the West End of Galveston Island that used to be behind the dunes are now over open water. The Seawall was covered in chunks of concrete that weigh hundreds of pounds.

Authorities are still in search-and-rescue mode. About 24,000 people didn’t heed evacuation orders. Rescuers are leaving the dead in houses and moving on to look for the living.

Unlike in New Orleans after Katrina, they are not spray painting a giant "X" on a building when they find bodies. Instead, they are putting discrete stickers on the buildings. On the one hand, government officials seem to be trying to keep the media from portraying the true extent of the disaster, but on the other hand officers are tipping off reporters about deaths and rescues.

Rhiannon said the amount of buildings reduced to rubble suggests that more bodies will be found and the magnitude of the disaster will become clearer in the coming days.

A couple thousand have probably been rescued, a couple thousand have left the island on buses since the storm. Thankfully, for those who remain, the government has arrived with food, water and ice, and the weather has cooled so that people can stay comfortable just with open windows.

Rhiannon said those now choosing to remain on the island are mostly poor, homeless, sick and/or elderly. One guy on Bolivar refused to leave because rescuers refused to accommodate his pet lion. The folks on the peninsula are a different breed.

Boats and other debris crashed into the causeway linking the island to the mainland. Construction on the new causeway was almost complete before the storm, but the southbound side was still a section or two short of reaching the mainland. Now, the lanes of the northbound side that were being used for southbound traffic are inaccessible because the road buckled in the storm.

Because of that and lack of services, it’s going to be a while before anybody is allowed back on the island. There’s talk that the city plans on letting only residents back in on Tuesday, and even then making them return to the mainland by nightfall. I doubt this will happen by Tuesday because of the ongoing search and rescue efforts.

As for our first-floor apartment (located a few blocks inland from the Seawall), there were 8 inches to a foot of water inside. This means water at street level was at least waist deep, and it also means there wasn’t any part of the island’s surface that didn’t get submerged.

The walls in our apartment that are parallel to the Seawall had watermarks as high as three feet, suggesting that waves rolled through the building somehow, even though the windows didn’t break. Rhiannon said the smell is awful. But we have renter’s insurance, and I took all the photos and most of the other keepsakes with me when I evacuated.

At the top of a fence at a school near our apartment, Rhiannon saw debris that got caught when the water was at or above the fence. That means that area was under at least 8 feet of water.

(During the hurricane) Rhiannon and about 800 other reporters, city officials and emergency workers holed up in the San Luis Resort hotel on the Seawall. The hotel is built atop an old military bunker and is probably the highest point on the island.

The storm surge never made it into the lobby, but rainwater penetrated the upper floors, drained through the walls and bubbled into the lobby, covering the floor by a few inches.

Before the wind got too strong, Rhiannon was on the 15th floor with a group of firefighters who watched fires burn around the city and were unable to do anything about it because most of the island was already under water. When the wind picked up, everyone went downstairs.

She and the rest of the newspaper staff have been resilient. The newspaper’s normal disaster plan calls for establishing a temporary copy desk in Houston while some reporters stay on the island at the Daily News, a super sturdy building with huge generators.

No one counted on water rising high enough to flood the generators. Editors were cut off from reporters, and reporters from each other, so for the first day following the storm, the reporters were basically operating on auto-pilot with very little coordination, but you wouldn’t know it from the stories they filed.

Many thanks for all your thoughts and prayers

Ok, you just sit right there.

I'll go grab this video I want you to see and then you can tell me what you think the guy's saying.

brb

SHR, here's the video of Governor Perry:

[link to abclocal.go.com]

Military Industrial Complex 2.0

blackwater research it