Do We Have a Hurricane Maria Thread?

[Steve of phpBB]

Seems like a big deal - lots of Americans suffering in P.R.

I'm sure Congress will exercise its responsibility as the colonial power to make sure all funding is made available.

[Jerloma]

How do you solve a problem like Maria? How do you catch a cloud and pin it down?

[govmentchedda]

Coworker of mine can't reach her 80 year old parents, who live in Rio Grande, PR. They had a cistern and generator, but the cistern was knocked over during the storm.

[Steve of phpBB]

How do you solve a problem like Maria? How do you catch a cloud and pin it down?

See, the whole Maria and Puerto Rico and "always a Hurricane blowing" thing gives me more of a West Side Story vibe.

Although wasn't it Maria's sister singing PR's praises?

[Jerloma]

I actually never saw West Side Story.

[Johnnie]

My girlfriend's name is Maria.

I'm playing Rock You Like A Hurricane tonight.

( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

[Jerloma]

Ha!

(He's talking about sex if any of you prudes missed it)

[govmentchedda]

How do you solve a problem like Maria is from Sound of Music, not West Side Story.

Also, my coworker heard from her parents.

[Steve of phpBB]

How do you solve a problem like Maria is from Sound of Music, not West Side Story.

Yes. IIRC, West Side Story involves a character named Maria from Puerto Rico and a song where one of the characters talks about how there's always a hurricane blowing in Puerto Rico.

Also, my coworker heard from her parents.

That's good. Is the devastation as bad as they're reporting.

All this talk about how power won't be restored for four to six months - that seems crazy to me. I suspect they're using the code from Wrath of Khan.

[govmentchedda]

I knew I was missing something there with the musicals.

I initially heard 4-6 months for power as well. Now hearing 1 month. Who knows at this point? The family was thinking they'd be (relatively) fine, but their cistern fell over, and these folks are old. Pretty sure my coworker is going to fly them to Florida as soon as possible, and they'll be here for a while.

[Steve of phpBB]

Does anyone know what would be a trustworthy organization to donate to, that will ensure money actually goes to helping victims in PR?

I'd do the Red Cross, but I've been reading that the Red Cross may or may not use the money for a particular relief operation.

There's lots of Go Fund Me's out there, but I don't know how reliable they would be (or whether they are 501c3 registered).

Anyone?

[Shirley]

Maria gave us some pretty epic waves at the beach this weekend. Huge and nicely spaced. Quite fun.

[Johnnie]

Yup. Wet, wild, and crazy!

Oh, wait. You meant the hurricane.

[Jerloma]

(Sex again)

[brian]

Kind of sad and telling this thread was on the fourth page and the horror of what is happening in PR just kind of continues to go on and on.

Anyway, in that vein, a co-worker is doing a GoFundMe to try and help bring her sister-in-law, niece and nephew to the mainland to spend a couple of weeks around Thanksgiving on the mainland while they're still working on getting power back on in her village and to send some supplies back with them afterwards. As always with these contribute or don't, but wanted to present an opportunity to bring a huge amount of joy to one small family in PR. I can vouch this isn't some scam to try and get free airfare for the holidays. I don't think her niece and nephew have ever visited the mainland.

[Pruitt]

This Doesn't Pass The Smell Test

Tiny - like three full-time employees tiny - company from Montana gets huge contract to get the electrical grid running again.

Oddly, this company is run by an acquaintance of Secretary of the Interior Zinke.

The scale of the disaster in Puerto Rico is far larger than anything Whitefish has handled. The company has won two contracts from the Energy Department, including $172,000 to replace a metal pole structure and splice in three miles of new conductor and overhead ground wire in Arizona.

[rass]

Spokesman Chris Chiames dismissed criticism about the company’s qualifications. “We are taking personal risks and business risks working in perilous physical and financial conditions,” Chiames said. “So the carping by others is unfounded, and we stand by our work and our commitment to the people of Puerto Rico.”

"While others continue to flounder in their response to the crisis in Puerto Rico, unable to show even a bass level of competence, Whitefish is already perched on the brink of restoring power to some key industrial facilities on the island. Holy mackerel, I have a chub just thinking about what a great job we're doing!"

[tennbengal]

How can Puerto Rico leave the US? Like, can they get some other country to be a territory for and have that country help them?

https://twitter.com/maggieNYT/status/922769228586999809

By the way, Halberman wrote that piece and somehow never once mentioned Trump...

[Ryan]

I tweeted this a while ago, but Trump has absolutely told someone to just sell the island

[Steve of phpBB]

How can Puerto Rico leave the US? Like, can they get some other country to be a territory for and have that country help them?

See, to me that is why the US federal government has a bigger responsibility to help out the people there than the feds do in places like Texas and Florida. We are the colonial overlords of Puerto Rico. They have no sovereignty (unlike states). We make all their big decisions for them. The US would not allow them to become part of Cuba, for example, or to accept massive financial aid from China or Russia or whatever.

So since we have taken responsibility to govern Puerto Rico, we have the obligation to do it effectively. Blaming PR or its residents for their sorry financial condition or the state of their electrical grid pre-Maria is not okay.

[brian]

Not only that, but I'm not sure how if not Trump, how at least the Republican Party doesn't realize that all they're doing is forcing people to flee Puerto Rico for the US mainland where by the way they will be eligible to vote in 2020 and aren't going to be too likely to vote for the GOP.

I've seen estimates of as many as 200,000 will move, some to already Democratic strongholds like New York and New Jersey, but a LOT are going to move to Florida where Trump only won by 100K.

[Steve of phpBB]

Not only that, but I'm not sure how if not Trump, if not at least the Republican Party doesn't realize that all they're doing is forcing people to flee Puerto Rico for the US mainland where by the way they will be eligible to vote in 2020 and aren't going to be too likely to vote for the GOP.

I've seen estimates of as many as 200,000 will move, some to already Democratic strongholds like New York and New Jersey, but a LOT are going to move to Florida where Trump only won by 100K.

As long as 100K also move to Ohio and Pennsylvania and Wisconsin ...

[Gunpowder]

It's almost like your child got sick and you decide not to pay for his healthcare, primarily because he spent his allowance on his hockey equipment that you made him buy to play for his junior high school team.

[tennbengal]

How can Puerto Rico leave the US? Like, can they get some other country to be a territory for and have that country help them?

See, to me that is why the US federal government has a bigger responsibility to help out the people there than the feds do in places like Texas and Florida. We are the colonial overlords of Puerto Rico. They have no sovereignty (unlike states). We make all their big decisions for them. The US would not allow them to become part of Cuba, for example, or to accept massive financial aid from China or Russia or whatever.

So since we have taken responsibility to govern Puerto Rico, we have the obligation to do it effectively. Blaming PR or its residents for their sorry financial condition or the state of their electrical grid pre-Maria is not okay.

Exactly. This is an actual national shame, and I feel completely helpless - the US government is responsible for making this right and seems to have no collective interest in doing so.

[Pruitt]

Spokesman Chris Chiames dismissed criticism about the company’s qualifications. “We are taking personal risks and business risks working in perilous physical and financial conditions,” Chiames said. “So the carping by others is unfounded, and we stand by our work and our commitment to the people of Puerto Rico.”

"While others continue to flounder in their response to the crisis in Puerto Rico, unable to show even a bass level of competence, Whitefish is already perched on the brink of restoring power to some key industrial facilities on the island. Holy mackerel, I have a chub just thinking about what a great job we're doing!"

Puerto Rico's Governor Wants the Contract Rescinded

[Pruitt]

Contract Rescinded

Kleptocracy ahoy!

Ramos acknowledged that the island’s utility company did not require any substantial assurance that Whitefish would complete the work it had promised. PREPA did not require any performance bond, he said. By contrast, when the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers signed a $240 million contract this month for similar work with Flour, an engineering firm based in Texas, it required the company to produce a $150 million performance bond within five days.

[rass]

FEMA making Walmart look good

[rass]

[Ryan]

I knew Keebler Utilities shouldn't have gotten that contract

[Pruitt]

Trump’s comparison of Hurricane Katrina’s and Puerto Rico’s death tolls just backfired

Genius said it was 64. It's been pegged at 4,645. True, many of the deaths happened after the big baby left the island, but still..

https://www.washingtonpost.com/national ... 9b403f38bb

[Nonlinear FC]

It is all pretty gross, but that 64 number was a joke while he was on the ground. Reports coming out in the days that followed were estimating 100s, at a minimum. Then you've got issues where no power in that heat... You're going to have elderly passing away after a week of that.

I hate him for lots of reasons. The way this administration dealt with PR is criminal.

[Gunpowder]

True, many of the deaths happened after the big baby left the island, but still..

Sooooo basically the kinds that the government could have truly helped prevent?

[Nonlinear FC]

True, many of the deaths happened after the big baby left the island, but still..

Sooooo basically the kinds that the government could have truly helped prevent?

Exactly, things like people dying due to the elements in hospitals and retirement homes due to lack of electricity and running water.

[Pruitt]

True, many of the deaths happened after the big baby left the island, but still..

Sooooo basically the kinds that the government could have truly helped prevent?

I was just referring to the level of inaccuracy at the moment trump opened his maw.