The Loss of NOLA through the eyes of Anne Rice.

[Scrooge McSam]

But to my country I want to say this: During this crisis you failed us. You looked down on us; you dismissed our victims; you dismissed us. You want our Jazz Fest, you want our Mardi Gras, you want our cooking and our music. Then when you saw us in real trouble, when you saw a tiny minority preying on the weak among us, you called us "Sin City," and turned your backs.

Anne, take heart. Our country hasn't failed us. Ordinary citizens, stunned by the inaction and downright incompetence of our leaders, are stepping in to fill the gaps. Late? Certainly! We ALL, even those who have historically opposed this administration, wanted to believe that our leadership simply could not be this inadequate. Our trust in them, no matter how grudgingly given, was misplaced and valuable time was lost. For days, people, ordinary working joes, doctors, fishermen, air boat drivers, engineers and on and on and on have been begging to get into the city to help, while FEMA lays the blame for the crisis on the very victims it's there to assist.

Our country is not the swaggering grinning psuedo cowboy in the White House. It's not the network of political whores on K street. It's not the profit driven media, who until this week were willing to play the game in exchange for cocktail party invitations and private audiences with this week's designated liar.

Our country hasn't failed us.

Our government has failed us.

Our elected leadership has failed us.

It's up to us to change it.