Funny, but CNN’s comment system doesn’t seem to be working today.

CNN,

This is a horrible disaster, and you are making it much, much worse. I am deeply offended by the way that your anchors are egging on the blame of the government. The government did, and are doing, their job — they ordered NOLA to evacuate, and they are trying to help those who cannot help themselves. They warned them that this was the big one, and to get out now. The government is now trying with every resource they have to do the right thing, amongst crazy people shooting at them, raping and pillaging and desperation.

Are we so resistant to authority that we just ignore them when they tell us what to do? This is one important fact that I have learned in my 37 years of life. You cannot help people who won’t help themselves. Those people who were too stubborn to leave are the same ones that have sucked on the government tit their whole lives. I guess they were waiting for the big government to come and tell them individually that they needed to leave, as the government has become their mothers.

The government is slow as we have made them that way, by forcing them to have all of the checks and balances to keep themselves from liability. The government is responsible for those people who can’t help themselves, not those who choose not to help themselves. This means that the government should be helping the hospital patients, and yes, even the people in prison first—those people who were not capable of getting out of NOLA on their own. They must come before the people who were too stubborn to leave. With the exception of those in the hospitals, those in jail and the infirm with no family to help them, all of the people in NOLA could have left. If the planes could not take the tourists, the tourists could have gone north a little bit. They did not have to stay in NOLA. Anyone with a car could have left. Even if you did not have a car, you could bike or walk your way out of NOLA. I have seen MANY people who were more than capable of leaving NOLA—young, strong people–but did not, on their own free will. There should not have been one vehicle left in NOLA. Everyone knew this was going to happen one day, this was not a shock.

What is shocking is the way your news station is taking these unfortunate people, who are in the most desperate situation of their lives, and just milking their stories for the world to see. Yes, the stories are the most dramatic ones and the ones for which you get noticed. You are CNN for God’s sake, people notice you. You do not have to stir up controversy to get noticed and watched. You are taking these desperate people’s words and promoting hatred and rebellion toward our government when I think that it should be your duty to support our government in a disaster like this and help them in any way possible. What kind of interview was that with FEMA this morning? I will tell you, it was sickening. Soledad gives FEMA two options, either they are thrilled with the way things are going or they think they have messed up the whole thing. That is sick. FEMA is doing everything they possibly can to help, and you know it. You are just trying to stir up trouble, and that is sickening to me during this horrendous crisis that our country is going through. I can’t really believe that anyone in the government continues to allow you to interview them, and I surely don’t know why they do.

You yourselves are driving past probably thousands of people who need help to get to the heart of the story that will be the most scandalous and make our country look the worst, and get you the most viewers. I am sure FEMA, and the military, and the rest of the relief workers are stopping at the first people that need help, and slowly working their way in to where YOU are. Are you driving people out with your reporters and camera men? Are you bringing water in to these dying masses? You are a very wealthy company, where are the busses you have hired to help get these refugees out of NOLA? How much money have you donated to the relief efforts? Do you really believe that the government is not doing everything they possibly can to help these people?

Please, for the sake of the welfare of our country, reel in your mad dogs. We want to see stories of what people ARE doing to help, not stories of what the government is NOT doing. This is the most pitiful situation I have ever seen, and I feel deep, deep empathy for those people, even the ones that could have left but didn’t. Believe me, if I did not have small children, I would be there trying to help these people. As it is, I can send money, and house a family when my city runs out of shelter room, and that is about all. I ache to be able to do more to help. Are you aching to help these people? This is a time to come together to help, not a time to drive people apart. Do your part to help, and not be part of the problem. This is your responsibility as citizens of the great United States.

Christina Jones