Andreas
09-02-2005, 08:06 AM
Former Special Forces soldier Michael Barnett, blogging as "The Interdictor", is providing a first-hand eyewitness account of the disaster in New Orleans, from the tenth floor of an office building overlooking the devastation. He and his team still have power, because they have a diesel generator. He's got a live video stream going and some photos.
"[...] Michael (son of Walter Block's Loyola colleague, Austrian economist William Barnett) works for the (http://blog.lewrockwell.com/lewrw/archives/008777.html) large domain name registrar Directnic.com, based in New Orleans. They are holed up in their offices on the 10th-11th floors of their office building in downtown New Orleans, still working and trying to defend themselves from the mob. Since they have the only Internet access in N.O. still working, they are broadcasting a live feed mms://204.251.3.10:1847 and also updating a blog about the New Orleans disaster (which has been apparently been covered on CNN and other media). Barnett and his guys are patrolling their local area and witnessing "Lord of the Flies" type scenes of destruction, looting, etc."
The Interdictor (http://mgno.com/)
Some excerpts...
August 29th:
For those of you who haven't been reading this, I'm on the 10th/11th floors of a 27 floor high rise at 650 Poydras in downtown New Orleans. [Some 60 NOPD guys are on the 18th floor. We're online because we're running a data center with our own power.] If you go to Google Earth or some other map program, we're the big brown building between Poydras ave and Lafayette Square and between Camp Street and St. Charles Ave. We're about 6 blocks from the river. We have a view (in the daytime) of the river, the twin spans over the river, the interstate, the Entergy building, the landmark building, the federal court of appeals building, a bunch of hotels, etc.
[...]
August 30th:
Right now, it's a matter of survival. There are 3 important aspects to surviving this: you need food/water/medicine, you need personal protection, and you need the means to conduct personal hygiene in such a way that you're not creating more of a problem than you're solving. For any media out there reading this, it would be very helpful for you to post guidelines for survivalist hygiene. This aspect is often the most overlooked. The possibility for disease is very high, especially in an area already infested with mosquitoes, roaches, flies, and rodents. Throw in dead bodies and unsatisfactory hygiene capabilities, overflowing sewage, etc. and you've got a recipe for an absolute disaster. And then, there are looters, drug addicts who can't get their fix, and opportunists.
[...]
If you have any survival tips, feel free to toss in your input. I've got a lot of survival training, but we've never trained for the total collapse of civilization (or I should say, my only training in that regard was from a military perspective).
[...]
I heard I was on CNN and it was mentioned that my tone is no longer optimistic. Let me just say that I am very optimistic. The city can descend into chaos for a little while, but eventually order will develop. Sure, it looks bleak, but we'll work through it.
I have a lot of people telling us to abandon ship and get out. Guys, that's not gonna happen. I'll eat roaches and drink the funky Quarter sludge in the gutters of Bourbon Street long before I abandon my city. I've got resources and will and so does my team, and we're here until this is over.
[...]
September 1st:
New Orleans Police Department Status: The situation for the NOPD is critical. This is firsthand information I have from an NOPD officer we're giving shelter to. Their command and control infrastructure is shot. They have limited to no communication whatsoever. He didn't even know the city was under martial law until we told him! His precinct (5th Precinct) is under water! UNDER WATER -- every vehicle under water. They had to commander moving trucks like Ryder and UHaul to get around. The coroner's office is shut down so bodies are being covered in leaves at best or left where they lie at worst.
They don't even know their own rules of engagement. He says the force is impotent right now. They have no idea what's going on, no coordination, virtually no comms, etc. the National Guard is gonna air drop a radio system for them with 200 radios? They are getting very little direction.
The 3rd District bugged out to Baton Rouge because they flooded out.
His quote: "It's a zoo."
More first hand information direct from him shortly. He's trying to recover.
I am not trying to be an alarmist, but until we get a military presence of signicance in the city, the roving gangs of thugs own the streets.
[...]
Security has become a major concern now, because the NOPD is ineffective and the looters/terrorists are roaming the streets. Word is now that they're lighting buildings on fire, but I can't confirm that. Anyway, we have to run guard shifts and patrol and it limits our downtime.
It is a zoo out there though, make no mistake. It's the wild kingdom. It's Lord of the Flies. That doesn't mean there's murder on every street corner. But what it does mean is that the rule of law has collapsed, that there is no order, and that property rights cannot and are not being enforced. Anyone who is on the streets is in immediate danger of being robbed and killed. It's that bad.
[...]
3. Can confirm: The National Guard, FEMA, the NOPD, and City authorities DO NOT have the city under control. There are live radio feeds for the National Guard comms and NOPD comms which have been circulating the web, and you can listen to the chaos and disarray for yourselves. I am not going to post the links, but I'm sure others have and will. I doubt the government's ability to reestablish order without a full active duty military presence to crush the mob mentality. This of course will mean no civil rights and everyone being treated equally -- as a criminal. Rock | Hard Place.
[...]
Situtation is critical.
I'm not leaving, so stop asking. I'm staying. I am staying until this shitstorm has blown itself out. Period. End of discussion.
Now for some updates:
1. Been too busy to debrief the police officer, so that will come later. Low priority now.
2. Buses loading people up on Camp Street to take refugees to Dallas, or so the word on the street (literally) is.
3. Dead bodies everywhere: convention center, down camp street, all over.
4. National Guard shoving water off the backs of trucks. They're just pushing it off without stopping, people don't even know it's there at first -- they drop it on the side in debris, there's no sign or distribution point -- people are scared to go near it at first, because the drop points are guarded by troops or federal agents with assault rifles who don't let people come near them, which scares people off. It is a mess. When people actually get to the water, they are in such a rush to get it that one family left their small child behind and forget about him until Sig carried him back to the family.
5. Lots of pics coming soon when Sig has time to update.
It's raining now and I guess that's a relief from the heat. It's hot as hell down there in the sun. Crime is absolutely rampant: rapes, murders, rape-murder combinations.
I have really cut back answering IMs. Not enough time. I apologize people.
In case anyone in national security is reading this, get the word to President Bush that we need the military in here NOW. The Active Duty Armed Forces. Mr. President, we are losing this city. I don't care what you're hearing on the news. The city is being lost. It is the law of the jungle down here. The command and control structure here is barely functioning. I'm not sure it's anyone's fault -- I'm not sure it could be any other way at this point. We need the kind of logistical support and infrastructure only the Active Duty military can provide. The hospitals are in dire straights. The police barely have any capabilities at this point. The National Guard is doing their best, but the situation is not being contained. I'm here to help in anyway I can, but my capabilities are limited and dropping. Please get the military here to maintain order before this city is lost.
Doing what we can, this is Outpost Crystal getting back to work.
[...]
I think I need to get out and get some fresh air. :(
Andreas
_____________
Besides the Red Cross (https://www.redcross.org/), here are other viable, FEMA-approved charities that could use a monetary donation right about now:
• Operation Blessing (http://www.ob.org/), 800-436-6348
• America's Second Harvest (http://www.secondharvest.org/), 800-344-8070
• Adventist Community Services (http://www.adventist.communityservices.org/disaster-response.htm), 800-381-7171
• Catholic Charities (http://www.catholiccharitiesusa.org/), 703-549-1390
• Christian Reformed World Relief Committee (http://www.crwrc.org/), 800-848-5818
• Church World Service (http://www.churchworldservice.org/), 800-297-1516
• Convoy of Hope (http://www.convoyofhope.org/), 417-823-8998
• Episcopal Relief & Development (http://www.er-d.org/), 1-800-334-7626 or
• Lutheran Disaster Response (http://www.lwr.org/), 800-638-3522
• Mennonite Disaster Service (http://www.mds.mennonite.net/), 717-859-2210
• Presbyterian Disaster Assistance (http://www.pcusa.org/pda/), 800-872-3283
• Salvation Army (http://www.salvationarmyusa.org/USNSAHome.htm), 800-SAL-ARMY (725-2769)
• Southern Baptist Convention Disaster Relief (http://www.namb.net/site/c.9qKILUOzEpH/b.224451/k.7BDB/Disaster_Relief_Homepage.htm), 800-462-8657, ext. 6440
• United Methodist Committee on Relief (http://gbgm-umc.org/umcor/emergency/hurricanes/2005/)
"[...] Michael (son of Walter Block's Loyola colleague, Austrian economist William Barnett) works for the (http://blog.lewrockwell.com/lewrw/archives/008777.html) large domain name registrar Directnic.com, based in New Orleans. They are holed up in their offices on the 10th-11th floors of their office building in downtown New Orleans, still working and trying to defend themselves from the mob. Since they have the only Internet access in N.O. still working, they are broadcasting a live feed mms://204.251.3.10:1847 and also updating a blog about the New Orleans disaster (which has been apparently been covered on CNN and other media). Barnett and his guys are patrolling their local area and witnessing "Lord of the Flies" type scenes of destruction, looting, etc."
The Interdictor (http://mgno.com/)
Some excerpts...
August 29th:
For those of you who haven't been reading this, I'm on the 10th/11th floors of a 27 floor high rise at 650 Poydras in downtown New Orleans. [Some 60 NOPD guys are on the 18th floor. We're online because we're running a data center with our own power.] If you go to Google Earth or some other map program, we're the big brown building between Poydras ave and Lafayette Square and between Camp Street and St. Charles Ave. We're about 6 blocks from the river. We have a view (in the daytime) of the river, the twin spans over the river, the interstate, the Entergy building, the landmark building, the federal court of appeals building, a bunch of hotels, etc.
[...]
August 30th:
Right now, it's a matter of survival. There are 3 important aspects to surviving this: you need food/water/medicine, you need personal protection, and you need the means to conduct personal hygiene in such a way that you're not creating more of a problem than you're solving. For any media out there reading this, it would be very helpful for you to post guidelines for survivalist hygiene. This aspect is often the most overlooked. The possibility for disease is very high, especially in an area already infested with mosquitoes, roaches, flies, and rodents. Throw in dead bodies and unsatisfactory hygiene capabilities, overflowing sewage, etc. and you've got a recipe for an absolute disaster. And then, there are looters, drug addicts who can't get their fix, and opportunists.
[...]
If you have any survival tips, feel free to toss in your input. I've got a lot of survival training, but we've never trained for the total collapse of civilization (or I should say, my only training in that regard was from a military perspective).
[...]
I heard I was on CNN and it was mentioned that my tone is no longer optimistic. Let me just say that I am very optimistic. The city can descend into chaos for a little while, but eventually order will develop. Sure, it looks bleak, but we'll work through it.
I have a lot of people telling us to abandon ship and get out. Guys, that's not gonna happen. I'll eat roaches and drink the funky Quarter sludge in the gutters of Bourbon Street long before I abandon my city. I've got resources and will and so does my team, and we're here until this is over.
[...]
September 1st:
New Orleans Police Department Status: The situation for the NOPD is critical. This is firsthand information I have from an NOPD officer we're giving shelter to. Their command and control infrastructure is shot. They have limited to no communication whatsoever. He didn't even know the city was under martial law until we told him! His precinct (5th Precinct) is under water! UNDER WATER -- every vehicle under water. They had to commander moving trucks like Ryder and UHaul to get around. The coroner's office is shut down so bodies are being covered in leaves at best or left where they lie at worst.
They don't even know their own rules of engagement. He says the force is impotent right now. They have no idea what's going on, no coordination, virtually no comms, etc. the National Guard is gonna air drop a radio system for them with 200 radios? They are getting very little direction.
The 3rd District bugged out to Baton Rouge because they flooded out.
His quote: "It's a zoo."
More first hand information direct from him shortly. He's trying to recover.
I am not trying to be an alarmist, but until we get a military presence of signicance in the city, the roving gangs of thugs own the streets.
[...]
Security has become a major concern now, because the NOPD is ineffective and the looters/terrorists are roaming the streets. Word is now that they're lighting buildings on fire, but I can't confirm that. Anyway, we have to run guard shifts and patrol and it limits our downtime.
It is a zoo out there though, make no mistake. It's the wild kingdom. It's Lord of the Flies. That doesn't mean there's murder on every street corner. But what it does mean is that the rule of law has collapsed, that there is no order, and that property rights cannot and are not being enforced. Anyone who is on the streets is in immediate danger of being robbed and killed. It's that bad.
[...]
3. Can confirm: The National Guard, FEMA, the NOPD, and City authorities DO NOT have the city under control. There are live radio feeds for the National Guard comms and NOPD comms which have been circulating the web, and you can listen to the chaos and disarray for yourselves. I am not going to post the links, but I'm sure others have and will. I doubt the government's ability to reestablish order without a full active duty military presence to crush the mob mentality. This of course will mean no civil rights and everyone being treated equally -- as a criminal. Rock | Hard Place.
[...]
Situtation is critical.
I'm not leaving, so stop asking. I'm staying. I am staying until this shitstorm has blown itself out. Period. End of discussion.
Now for some updates:
1. Been too busy to debrief the police officer, so that will come later. Low priority now.
2. Buses loading people up on Camp Street to take refugees to Dallas, or so the word on the street (literally) is.
3. Dead bodies everywhere: convention center, down camp street, all over.
4. National Guard shoving water off the backs of trucks. They're just pushing it off without stopping, people don't even know it's there at first -- they drop it on the side in debris, there's no sign or distribution point -- people are scared to go near it at first, because the drop points are guarded by troops or federal agents with assault rifles who don't let people come near them, which scares people off. It is a mess. When people actually get to the water, they are in such a rush to get it that one family left their small child behind and forget about him until Sig carried him back to the family.
5. Lots of pics coming soon when Sig has time to update.
It's raining now and I guess that's a relief from the heat. It's hot as hell down there in the sun. Crime is absolutely rampant: rapes, murders, rape-murder combinations.
I have really cut back answering IMs. Not enough time. I apologize people.
In case anyone in national security is reading this, get the word to President Bush that we need the military in here NOW. The Active Duty Armed Forces. Mr. President, we are losing this city. I don't care what you're hearing on the news. The city is being lost. It is the law of the jungle down here. The command and control structure here is barely functioning. I'm not sure it's anyone's fault -- I'm not sure it could be any other way at this point. We need the kind of logistical support and infrastructure only the Active Duty military can provide. The hospitals are in dire straights. The police barely have any capabilities at this point. The National Guard is doing their best, but the situation is not being contained. I'm here to help in anyway I can, but my capabilities are limited and dropping. Please get the military here to maintain order before this city is lost.
Doing what we can, this is Outpost Crystal getting back to work.
[...]
I think I need to get out and get some fresh air. :(
Andreas
_____________
Besides the Red Cross (https://www.redcross.org/), here are other viable, FEMA-approved charities that could use a monetary donation right about now:
• Operation Blessing (http://www.ob.org/), 800-436-6348
• America's Second Harvest (http://www.secondharvest.org/), 800-344-8070
• Adventist Community Services (http://www.adventist.communityservices.org/disaster-response.htm), 800-381-7171
• Catholic Charities (http://www.catholiccharitiesusa.org/), 703-549-1390
• Christian Reformed World Relief Committee (http://www.crwrc.org/), 800-848-5818
• Church World Service (http://www.churchworldservice.org/), 800-297-1516
• Convoy of Hope (http://www.convoyofhope.org/), 417-823-8998
• Episcopal Relief & Development (http://www.er-d.org/), 1-800-334-7626 or
• Lutheran Disaster Response (http://www.lwr.org/), 800-638-3522
• Mennonite Disaster Service (http://www.mds.mennonite.net/), 717-859-2210
• Presbyterian Disaster Assistance (http://www.pcusa.org/pda/), 800-872-3283
• Salvation Army (http://www.salvationarmyusa.org/USNSAHome.htm), 800-SAL-ARMY (725-2769)
• Southern Baptist Convention Disaster Relief (http://www.namb.net/site/c.9qKILUOzEpH/b.224451/k.7BDB/Disaster_Relief_Homepage.htm), 800-462-8657, ext. 6440
• United Methodist Committee on Relief (http://gbgm-umc.org/umcor/emergency/hurricanes/2005/)