by the Way . . .

On November 10 we reported what a hard time Russ Hayward and one Mr. Davis were having getting more money out of FEMA. Russ, have you checked your breath? Over in Jackson, where, 160 miles from the coast, Katrina hardly got in a lick, FEMA and the Red Cross gave out $62 million of aid. For most recipients the only damage was spoiled food in the freezer. Full disclosure: due to a power outage I lost food in my freezer (even some steaks), and got nothing from FEMA, but no grudge.

FEMA sent aid to thousands of county residents, including 7,622 checks for $2,000 for emergency assistance. A FEMA official telephoned Larry Fisher, director of the county emergency department, to find out why the county had only reported 50 uninhabitable homes, and about 4,000 with any damage at all. The FEMA official told Fisher he would have to increase his number, but Fisher had photographs proving the non-extent of the damage, and told the official "I am not going to change my figures up to yours. You want to start investigating, by all means do so". FEMA officials said they were not aware of the conversation. A FEMA spokeswoman said "Do you slow down [assistance] to dot every single i and cross every single t?" The executive director of the area chapter of the Red Cross pointed out that there was really no way to immediately determine the extent of the damage without going out and driving around.

According to the NYT, a Ms. Alexander got a call from her cousin that the Red Cross was giving out money but when she got there the crowd was so big she chose not to wait. And back home, she called the charity's toll free number and got $900. She had no damage other than spoiled food. "I was blessed", she said.

Meanwhile, over in Iberia Parish, west of New Orleans where only three mobile homes had any damage, FEMA handed out 404 $2000 checks. While there has been some criticism, it is clear that the "trinkle down" theory is working. Everywhere there were reports that the checks were immediately cashed and spent on items like jewelry, firearms, DVD movies and electronics. Why should this boost to the local economies depend on Katrina's arbitrary path?