Dear Editor,
The reason everybody cares about the government's response to Hurricane Katrina is that this is what could be happening here. This is a telling indication of the kind of response we could reasonably expect if we were to suffer a natural disaster or terrorist attack here: dismal failure at all levels of government.
Defending the president from any and all criticism, especially when it is appropriate and well-deserved, serves the country poorly. To fix what is broken, we must see clearly what is, not what the Republican propaganda machine wants us to believe.