It's called empathy...

As I was surfing through some blogs recently, I noticed a lot of talk about welfare and poverty. Mostly it was connected to the Katrina catastrophe - as in why didn't those people just leave before? The assumption being put out that most everyone in the New Orleans area could have gotten out if they wanted to.

That got me thinking a bit and I decided to put together some rough numbers and requirements to leave the area and head to safety. I based it on a family of five with one pet.

First off, I'm assuming this family has a running vehicle. I think that's fair enough since pretty much everyone reading this will have one or two sitting in their driveways. Now, figure that car gets about 20 MPG and has a 20 gallon tank. At $3.00 a gallon, you could fill that baby up with $60 and realistically figure on getting 400 miles away. That would be great if you have a friend or some family within that distance. Problem solved.

If you don't have a place to stay, you'll need to find one. A cheap ass motel is going to run about $30 a night, if you can find one. Chances of finding one are slimmer if you brought that pet with you. By the way, good luck finding a $30 motel with a big storm coming.

How long are you going to be gone? Is it just going to be a day or two, or a week or two?

The thing is that most of us are sitting here playing the "well, I would have..." game, but we're not even considering the position these people were in. Sit down and try to figure what you would really have to do to leave your home and everything in it behind with little notice. How long did you plan your last vacation? What if you didn't have a credit card? What if you couldn't access your cash? How much do you have on you right now? How far will that get you?

Have you factored in two kids crying, a dog whining, and seeing your wife or husband sobbing? How much did you love that dog you left behind to possibly die of starvation and lack of water? What if - like one family that stayed behind - you only have a pickup and not enough room to fit your entire family in it? Would you leave some behind? Would you send them on and stay behind?

Do you know if your Mother has gotten out already? You've been trying to call her, but the circuits are overloaded, try again. What can you fit in your car? What's essential? How long do you have? Did you leave work early to get out? Did you cash your check? Is there even a bank open?

What if that car doesn't make it? What if it starts stalling again? They said you should fix that thing. Maybe it will be okay.

Throw in some confusion...is the hurricane going to hit you? Is it going to miss? Did they say Category 3, what 4? Was it 5? Crap, crap, crap... Did you get hold of your mother yet? You try, but you can't hear... Kids! Kids! Shut up! No, no...it's okay Honey...Daddy didn't mean to get mad...Everything's going to be just fine...Oh God, oh God, why is this happening to us?!

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Suppose you did stay. Maybe you couldn't get out. Maybe you thought you would be safer in your own home. Maybe you're just an honery bastard. Why you're stuck in hell doesn't really matter much...

Did you lift your little ones up into the attic as the water climbed up the stairs? How does it feel up there? Is it hotter than shit? I'm guessing it is. How much of that gallon jug of water is left? Maybe you were lucky and managed to grab a couple boxes of crackers and a two liter of Pepsi.

It's been three days.

Does the urine smell yet? The feces? What did you wipe with up there? A shred of paper wrap from the insulation? Nothing. Have you managed to knock a hole in the roof yet? How many helicopters have you heard fly overhead? Have you yelled for help? Prayed for help? How are your kids doing?

Maybe you weren't trapped in an attic. You're lucky enough to be able to wade through the fetid water to what's left of the store.

You can't just take that stuff. Are you kidding? You're not going to let your family starve. You carry as much away as you can, but it's not really much. Hopefully it will get you through until you're rescued.

Maybe you're still in shock, or just starting to feel it's effects. You're frantic. You have nothing. Food is short, water is short...it's getting shorter. You don't have much cash. There's a $300 stereo. Maybe you could trade it for something later. Maybe get a few bucks. I think you'll be disappointed when all you can get is $20. But that's better than nothing right?

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Anyway, until people learn how to feel some basic understanding for their fellow man, maybe they should just keep quiet. Maybe instead of wondering how people can loot, and why didn't they just leave, we should be wondering what kind of people allow it to take three days to start saving people.

It's called empathy, it leads to compassion...and if you can't muster a little of it, I don't really want to know you.