Democracy Now! Independent News (09/08/05) avi

Headlines for September 8, 2005 - 25,000 Body Bags Ready In Louisiana - Federal Government Attempts to Block Press Access To New Orleans - Rep. Pelosi Calls On Bush to Fire FEMA Head - FEMA Filled With Political Appointees, Not Disaster Experts - Five Die From Bacteria in Contaminated Flood Water - Schwarzenegger to Veto Same Sex Marriage Bill - 16 Die in Car Bombing in Basra -- FEMA Chief Brown: Former Head of the Arabian Horse Association Qualified to Manage Agency? -- We speak with Judd Legum from the Center of American Progress about FEMA's role in handling the catastrophe in the wake of hurricane Katrina. -- Why FEMA Failed: The Bush Administration and Disaster Relief -- As Republican leaders announced a joint House-Senate inquiry into failures surrounding the response to Hurricane Katrina, we take a look at why FEMA failed with Salon.com staff writer Farhad Manjoo who writes, "Ideologically opposed to a strong federal role in disaster relief and obsessed with terrorism, the Bush administration let a once-admired agency fall apart." -- Politicizing Disaster Relief: How FEMA Overcompensated Florida Citizens in the Run-Up to the Presidential Election -- We look at FEMA's disaster response in Florida in the fall of 2004, and how the presidential election played a role in the distribution of hurricane aid there. -- Toxic Soup: The Deadly Floodwaters of New Orleans -- As the toxicity of the New Orleans' floodwaters grows worse, we look at the environmental and public health dangers looming in the city. We speak with a chemical toxicologist and independent water-consultant about the problems brewing in the water of New Orleans. -- Depleted Disaster Aid: Rejecting International Donations and the Using Of Resources in Iraq -- While international donations have been pouring in for victims of hurricane Katrina, the Bush administration has been somewhat reluctant to accept offers from countries like Cuba and Venezuela. We speak with Phyllis Bennis of the Institute for Policy Studies about international donations and how essential resources have been stretched thin by the war in Iraq. {Democracy Now! is a national, daily, independent, award-winning news program airing on over 350 stations in North America. Pioneering the largest public media collaboration in the U.S., Democracy Now! is broadcast on Pacifica, NPR, community, and college radio stations; on public access, PBS, satellite television; as a "podcast," and on the internet. The program is hosted by award-winning journalists Amy Goodman and Juan Gonzalez and produced out of the Downtown Community Television Center, a community media center in New York Citys Chinatown. Democracy Now! is funded entirely through contributions from listeners, viewers, and foundations. We do not accept advertisers, donations from corporations, or donations from governments. This allows us to maintain our independence.} http://www.democracynow.org