As the horror that is the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina becomes more gruesome by the hour, our government continues to believe photo opportunities and promises are enough.

More than a week after Hurricane Katrina hit, New Orleans might be under some scant control, but other regions of Louisiana still desperately need help. The incredible suffering by the people of Louisiana doesn’t appear to be enough for urgency.

Our government has failed New Orleans and outlying regions, and thus our entire nation. President George W. Bush has promised that the Department of Homeland Security has made this nation safer, yet it has become tragically apparent that our nation’s defenses are nothing more than a Potemkin castle constructed of bureaucratic bickering and red tape.

If our federal government cannot effectively deal with a natural disaster that we know is coming, how can it deal with a secret terrorist attack? Rather than see and act on the perilous position our nation is in after Hurricane Katrina, Bush arranged a mock construction effort at one of the breached levees for pictures to be taken, according to a news release by Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La.

Our federal and state governments failed in Katrina. If they fail through their constant corruption and negligence, citizens will be forced to find other means. Bush’s initial concern about looters is ludicrous. If the emergency response efforts were functioning, there would be no need for people to steal to survive.

Thomas Jefferson said that if a government failed to provide means necessary for survival of the people, the people have a right to start a new government.

The U.S. government has failed time and again to provide the means for dignified survival for blacks and poorer classes. Looting and riots are justified when people are pleading and not listened to by their government. Our government cannot continue to turn its back to the needs of the population. Racial and class issues that have been simmering for decades are beginning to boil.