The REAL Reason Why Republicans Want To ABOLISH FEMA: So They Can PROFIT From Natural Disasters

[Segami]

Hey JEB,....are you thinking about running 2016? Bashing Obama and FEMA.....why?



September 2011 Flashback:



It looks like we finally know the reason why Republicans are refusing to fund FEMA, the federal agency that responds to natural disasters.Former Republican Governor Jeb Bush is set to lead a newly formed FOR-PROFIT natural disaster response company. According to the Maritime Executive, Bush’s newly created firm, Old Rhodes Holding LLC, joined forces with O’Brien’s Response Management, a subsidiary of SEACOR Holdings, to form a for-profit disaster response company.



“We are pleased to enter into this partnership with one of the leading response organizations in the United States, backed by SEACOR’s global network,” Bush said. “Together we look forward to helping a broader array of organizations and communities become more resilient through preparation, response, communication and recovery.” Of course, this response team only helps people for a price. Rather than come to the aid of people affected by a natural disaster out of the kindness of their hearts, like FEMA and other organizations do, the response team led by the former Florida Governor will respond to disasters if the price is right. In other words, they’ll profit off of death and destruction.



All of this comes as House Republicans continue their assault against FEMA, an organization that helps people at no charge beyond the taxes paid to the United States Government by the American people. This is all too coincidental to not be connected in some way. If FEMA is non-existent, people, cities, and states would have to hire disaster response companies to come to their aid which is a recipe for fraud, as these companies could hold disaster areas hostage until they get the price they demand. Worse, these response companies could hold individual disaster victims hostage until the company gets the price it wants or ignore helpless victims altogether if they don’t pay the fee. Remember the home in Tennessee a couple years ago that was allowed to burn down by the local for-profit fire house because the residents failed to pay the fee? Well, you can bet that same scenario will play out across the country and on a more sickening scale.



This is precisely why we pay local, state, and federal taxes to fund our emergency services. Private companies only care about their bottom line and thus don’t care about the human lives at risk of dying in the aftermath of disaster. Their first priority would be money and they would fleece the people in their most desperate time of need. It’s a blood profit that each of us should find morally unacceptable.






http://www.addictinginfo.org/2011/09/16/the-real-reason-why-republicans-want-to-abolish-fema-so-they-can-profit-from-natural-disasters/


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[muntrv]

1. Ah disaster capitalism!

[Laurajr]

5. Another reason they wont address climate

Change it would hurt their new businesses bottom line....greed

[Segami]

14. Here is today's meeting with Jeb and Romney.

Now, I wonder what they talked about today......

CNN header:

Jeb Bush at Romney event: State and local response really matter....

The Axis Of Schemers are here together scheming on how to get their 'mitts' (lol) on the tax payer's purse by pushing forward their plan to privatize Emergency Disaster Response Services.




http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2012/10/31/jeb-bush-at-romney-event-state-and-local-response-really-matter/comment-page-2/

[kardonb]

61. gen. disc.

If those ghouls could make money out of their dead mother , they would . Absolutely soulless and shameless , their god is the $ .

[NoMoreWarNow]

74. ding ding ding!

we have a winner!

[central scrutinizer]

13. I recommend The Shock Doctrine by Naomi Klein

they have been doing this for years worldwide

[alfredo]

51. Iraq was disaster capitalism.

[Kurovski]

63. The Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism

it's a happenin' thing. As they say: should be required reading for voters.

http://www.amazon.com/The-Shock-Doctrine-Disaster-Capitalism/dp/0805079831

[brush]

43. Unfuckinbelievable!

There is no low these repugs won't stoop to. For-profit disaster response companies, my God! Money off peoples' mysery, right up Romney's alley. All they have to do now is get rid of the competition that does it for free FEMA (from our Federal tax money, what we have government for). And you can bet their lobbyists are already wining and dining the repug senators and congresspeople to make that happen. The Pres., Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi won't let that happen though. it takes constant vigilance to stop these fuckers from trying to make money off of every angle. Kinda like Romney's Bain investing in the fetus disposal business. And they're all allegedly against abortion.

[Rosa Luxemburg]

2. If the stock market crashes then the private FEMAs would vanish

[spanone]

3. romney said the best scenario would be handing it over to the private sector

that's venture capitalists like mitt.

so, no money? fuck you. swim asshole.

[Wounded Bear]

12. Correction....that's Vulture capitalists.....

[Laurajr]

4. Oh this makes perfect sense!

[Avalux]

6. Absolutely! And the worse the climate gets, the more they'll make.

Then they can all hop in a rocket ship and go to Mars when the planet is completely trashed.

[CrispyQ]

73. Yep. They think they are insulated from the shitstorm.

But they are wrong.




Mother Nature does not care how much you have in your bank account.

[ProfessionalLeftist]

7. BINGO! Disaster Capitalism. n/t

[ErikJ]

8. Pain Profiteering; like our health care system

[Segami]

16. Thats correct. Its no different. And they don't care except for the bottom line.

[dwilso40641]

9. sounds a lot like Halliburton

More vulture capitalization

[ailsagirl]

49. EXACTLY! Halliburton. That was a total rip-off of Americans' money. Never, EVER should have happened

[geckosfeet]

10. Of course. Just like they are profiting from education at all levels, health care, banking

and defense. It's all business. And that's how they run government - selling access and favors to the highest bidder.

[Honeycombe8]

11. That's almost as scary as the disaster itself. It would cost us MORE, wouldn't it?

We'd have to pay for the services AND a profit on top of that?

This smacks of that private contractor the military hired to handle certain things in Iraq. It has changed its name. It did some awful things over there, and some of those guys got an astronomical salary for just standing around doing nothing. All paid for by the American taxpayer.

[BlancheSplanchnik]

59. we'd pay their fees AND TAXES

I don't think for one second they'd return monies previously budgeted for gov't agencies back to the people. No, those dollahs would just find their way into repuke pockets.

[Politicub]

15. Same reason why the GOP starts wars. A few people make a lot of money off of the corpses of

our men and women in uniform.

Same thing with privatized prisons. Got to keep them stocked so a few people can profit off of destroyed families and misery.

[hifiguy]

17. Bingo!

Naomi Klein predicted this years ago.

[catbyte]

18. Bush's FEMA subcontracted work to cronies after Katrina & it was a clusterfuck

Romney would be much, much worse. I wonder how many people KBR would electrocute like they did to troops in Iraq.

[freshwest]

56. +1

[sabrina 1]

19. Shock Doctrine. They take advantage of people who are traumatized

and view them only as commodities to be profited from.

These people truly are EVIL! And from now on there needs to be a huge effort to stop them from destroying everything that is good about this country.

Eg, starting right now there needs to be a movement to pressure Congress into funding FEMA. And where are the people on our side producing counter arguments to Bush's disgusting profiteering off people's suffering?

We need Left Wing Think Tanks. Right Wing Think Tanks have been running this country for decades, making laws, pushing everything in a direction that will help them profit even from people's lives.

It's really up to the people now. If they succeed we will be living in the equivalent of Iraq and Somalia and Afghanistan, that was their dream come true. First they destroyed everything, then they gave contracts to Private Corps to rebuild. And a decade later NOTHING is rebuilt. If we want to see what they have in mind for America, we have only to look at where they have been already.
.

[Auntie Bush]

20. How the hell could any private disaster company afford to handle something like Sandy?

Only the US government could attempt such a thing. Are those people crazy/gready or what?

[tclambert]

26. First, they would only help paying customers. Second, when it really hits the fan,

the corporation declares bankruptcy, reneges on all their contracts, and the top tier of executives walk away with millions. A sort of Ponzi scheme, like Bain Capital, yet all legal because they bought the laws to make it legal.

[lolly]

52. And then the government will have to step in and pick up the pieces

So, taxpayers will pay twice for everything--and get much less for their money.

[dansolo]

70. The government would still be paying for it

These private companies are just middle-men. They will attempt to find the cheapest subcontractors, while skimming money off the top. But it will still be tax dollars that will be funding them. They will cost a lot more, and do a lot less.

[Arctic Dave]

21. K&R

[Ilsa]

22. There is no money to be saved by privatization.

Privatization always costs more because of the required Return on Assets.

Privatization is a horrible idea, and people will suffer if they are stupid enough to fall for it.

[Curmudgeoness]

23. And what would the scenario be

when we have a for-profit FEMA?

Your house is flooded, you are on the roof, a rescue boat comes......that will be $500 please. Oh, you don't have it on you? How about a credit card? No? Well, maybe a nice charity will show up to help you. Sorry. Really, sorry.

An earthquake hits. You lost everything. You don't even have water. No problem. We'll sell you a bottle of water for $10. Oh, you lost your money too? Too bad.

[tclambert]

30. "To all you family members in other states--Won't you pay to rescue your loved ones?"

"We have satellite phone banks set up at our rescue coordination centers. Operators are standing by."

[airplaneman]

35. actually it will be more like this.

They pull you off the roof of your house by helicopter and get your name and send a bill for $25,000 dollars. If you don't pay they take you to court and try to take your life savings and house. The court is on their side so your are going to have to forfeit your assets. Even if you try to declare bankruptcy they court will take most of your assents anyhow and turn it over to those you owe.
-airplane

[lyingsackofmitt]

24. Do you think

That heads of corporations that contribute to climate change the most are betting on it getting worse so they can somehow profit from it?

[reusrename]

25. Vulnerable people are an opportunity.

The more vulnerable, the greater the opportunity.

[TheKentuckian]

27. Never ask why in this life until you have followed the money and still don't have an answer

If TeaPubliKlans are involved then you messed up and didn't truly follow the money all the way.

[ananda]

28. Privatize profits and socialize costs.

And destroy the public commons in the process.

That's our Reeps!

[ProudProgressiveNow]

32. +1 nt

[Live and Learn]

39. +2 nt

[polly7]

29. That's exactly what I thought when I first read they wanted to defund FEMA, privatizing for

profit. But I had no idea a Bush was setting himself up. Evil asshole.

[ThoughtCriminal]

31. Just to be extra cynical

It's not that they don't believe in climate change. They have come up with a way to profit from it.

[We People]

45. Abolishing FEMA and privatizing disaster help may be the most horrific kind of privatization for the

U.S.

Those profiteering would be doing whatever they could to cause them so they could profit from them. SICK and actually suicidal, but I believe they are so obsessed about wealth that they'd do anything for profit. Including encouraging disaster that kills people.

This would be worse than privatizing roads, schools, and airport security.

That would be evil to the core, and the only thing more obviously evil would be for them to directly and personally kill. But carried to its logical conclusion - allowing the profiteering of every service possible - that's exactly what would happen.

And it would eventually mean NO disaster relief except to those who could afford it: the top 1%..

[lolly]

54. A closer analogy would be prison privatization

They profit off of increased incarceration--so they lobby to pass laws that result in more incarceration.

3 Strikes laws, anti-drug laws--whatever they can pass off as "tough on crime."

Then people die in their overcrowded, unserviced prisons. And taxpayers pick up the charges for all the extra prisoners.

[Brooklyn Dame]

33. That's all it has ever been about for them...

...dismantle government while lining their pockets under the guise of streamlining and making things more efficient. The sad part is their base buys that story.

http://borderlessnewsandviews.com/2012/10/president-obama-helps-disaster-victims-while-romney-takes-cheap-shots/

http://sulia.com/channel/all-politics-causes/f/c188f852-ed12-4b5e-9ecc-76e72e72db0e/

[Liberal_Stalwart71]

34. Nothing new here. They want to privatize every aspect of our lives to make a PROFIT!

[mile18blister]

36. What's to prevent them from creating a disaster and then profiting from it?

Maybe hurricanes and earthquakes aren't easy to rig, but wildfires are extremely easy.

[Segami]

37. The war on drugs.....

helps keep private prisons filled to maximum capacity = maximum profits paid for by the tax payers.

[Live and Learn]

42. +1 nt

[HeiressofBickworth]

38. As I mentioned on a previous thread,

I once worked for a disaster clean-up company. It was a subsidiary of the engineering firm I worked for. One of the engineers came up with an idea that he thought would make money -- cleaning up disaster-struck areas. Clients were cities, counties, states. There was a very involved computer program to track truck loads of debris as this information formed the basis of the billing method. He was right, the enterprise made a fortune and I, low on the totem pole that I was, received the largest bonus I had ever received in my entire working life. The company provided a much-needed service to local communities and, other than management, hired local people to do the dirty work and paid local prevailing wages. So where did the money come from to pay for all of this? The company billed the client and (with the company's assistance) the client billed FEMA. When FEMA paid the client, the client paid the company. What Jeb Bush is planning is to form a company just like the one I described. The Repubs may TALK about defunding FEMA, but when they form their disaster companies, they know that ultimately the money to pay for all of it will come from the Federal Government, because THAT's who has the money. Cash-strapped cities, counties, states or individuals in the midst of disaster do not have the funds to pay for the clean-up and they won't venture into this kind of business without lining up their paying customers in advance. ONLY the Feds have the actual money to pay. What Jeb et al are doing is placing yet ANOTHER corporate layer between the work to be done and the source of the money to do it (FEMA) in order to skim profit off of disasters. So once again, they are spouting ideas that have no bearing on reality -- not that we should be surprised about that. To pacify their small-government libertarian wing of their party, they will talk about defunding FEMA, but with so much money to be made in that industry, they will never actually do it. More bait and switch politics.

[Segami]

47. Thank you for sharing! Its an eye-opener!

[Delmette]

40. Check out HR 6346

Republican Dennis Rehberg introduced a bill to exempt insurance adjusters from overtime pay for two years after a natural disaster. WTF!

[SCVDem]

41. The government cannot discriminate!

But as we see with medical coverage and private insurance, they do!

Fuckl you Romney and every Bush!

[OnyxCollie]

44. Well *yeah*

The Bush 2000 campaign manager/FEMA Director, Joe Allbaugh, has his hands in private disaster response, as does his successor, Michael Brown.

[KauaiK]

46. Well, du'uh

The thugs want to privatize everything for profit! They do not understand "common good" and want to exploit everything for $$$. It is why Rmoney is their candidate.

[npk]

48. This makes no sense

FEMA already contracts a lot of clean up and recovery jobs to private companies through state emergency contracts and private work bids and such. Plus most middle class and upper middle class are forced to use their home owners insurance to cover the costs. Just because an area is declared a federal disaster area doesn't mean that everybody in that area gets relief or assistance through the government. Most of what the government handles is public infrastructure rebuilding, clearing roads, removing debris and that sort of thing.

There is little to no way a plan like this would work. You can't make citizens pay directly to cleanup or fix their city or town, at least not like this plan. People already pay for this service through taxes and the GOP would literally have to rewrite the tax structure for that and ammend parts of the constitution and that ain't gonna happen.

Besides how could they even enforce something like this. I mean if I live in a small town and a tornado hit and destroyed 100's of homes, if I have insurance I am going to have to go through my insurance provider and of course a private for profit company is going to fix my house. If I am poor and have no insurance, even under the current structure of how things work now FEMA is still not going to build me a new home, they will simply provide me with shelter and some monies to allow me to eat and perhaps get some new clothes, that's it. Are people under the impression that FEMA builds people new homes? I don't know?

Anyway if some private group tried this they would get nowhere. What are they going to do shake down poor people to pay for removing that huge oak tree in the middle of the road. And if the poor people in the neighborhood don't pay are they just going to leave the tree in the road and shutdown all traffic in the area.

This is just stupid nonsense from the right. It could never become reality. It's the same kind of tough pointless nonsensical recession talk these idiots start up every so often. It goes nowhere but they end up stiring up a bunch of controversy that gets their idiotic short minded base to pay attention .

[Marymarg]

50. Of course.

Anything to make a buck.
It is all about money, money, money. People be damned.

[The Wizard]

53. Disaster profiteers (NT)

[cbrer]

55. Hey, Grandpa's cancer doesn't have that high a profit margin...nt

[amborin]

57. K&R speaking of which...check out the privatization of prisons and halfway houses in NJ, eom

[mrmpa]

58. No shit, everytime............

I hear some idiot wanting to privatize some government agency or service, I know the bottom line is that it's for their profit.

So many times I hear people wanting to privatize the Postal Service. Well here's what will happen. 1. Employees will be paid minimum wage or less, with no benefits. 2. Service will be maybe 3 days a week. 3. If someone calls off, there will be no replacment and you will not get mail that day. 4. There will be no delivery of packages. 5. Employees will have to use their own vehicles or public transportation to get to their routes. 6. There will be no background checks of employees and there will be rampant theft.

Now transfer the above scenario to any agency or service that would be privatized.

[Fire Walk With Me]

60. Privatizing.

[caseymoz]

62. Beneath contempt.

Why do I think they'll be using prison labor from our for-profit prisons? Which should be abolished as well.

That being said, most conservatives who want to do away with FEMA aren't the ones profiting from it, but they don't have an objection to it. They're true believers.

[ArcticFox]

64. Well, duh.

[SomethingFishy]

65. Check out this Romney quote from today...

In Tampa, the Republican challenger said, "We love all of our fellow citizens. We come together at times like this, and we want to make sure that they have a speedy and quick recovery from their financial and, in many cases, personal loss."

Money, it's their god.

[Michigan Alum]

66. So everything can be done on the cheap and nickeled and dimed.

[upi402]

67. Yep. And choose the folks to help. And control people, repress people, grab power, divide us

all in a day's work- if you're Republican.

[politicat]

68. How do we make them understand that it doesn't work??

It's not profitable, not long term. I grew up in Arizona, and Maricopa County (oh, lordy, is that a hot mess) had the ambulance/EMS service outsourced. It was always in the red, always getting sued for something, and was investigated so many times for billing fraud, malfeasance, and general incompetence that the court costs alone were enormous. And then the companies running the service would go bankrupt, and the cycle would start again, but with worse service and less money (because the taxpayers would get annoyed about the wasted money and deplorable service).

It's like they don't realize -- or don't want to realize, which is effectively the same thing -- that they can't refuse to do business with all comers, they can't fire the public. They seem to so desperately want to fire everyone who doesn't pass their credit check. Math doesn't convince them, appeals to mercy fall flat, and the realistic alternative (bodies in streets) doesn't penetrate.

The privatization of public health care eventually drove me out of the desert, making me one of those who walked away from Omelas (though Maricopa County is no Omelas). FEMA is the bulwark against chaos.

[Care Acutely]

69. Thanks to the climate change (that they deny) it's a GROWING MARKET.

Gosh, this could be the next Coca Cola or Apple. And just like those "ground floor" opportunities, only those able to pay will be allowed to play.

Gee. Let's not. One too many disasters and we'll all be partying like it's 1929.

[Segami]

71. They don't care. These are greed driven corporatists that want to put everything up for sale.

[Tommy_Carcetti]

72. Two years of Rick Scott had me forgetting about how bad a governor Jeb Bush also was.

Thanks for reminding me again.

Truly disgusting.

[CrispyQ]

75. Everyone should watch this excellent video that Will Pitt posted:

Will's discussion thread: http://www.democraticunderground.com/10021659501

I shared it on FB & two friends also shared it. This needs to go viral. It's less than 4 minutes long. The graphics are fantastic. Show it to your kids. All kids. They need to know what they are facing if this continues.

Next time someone tells you the United States is broke & our seniors have to eat dog food & we have to cut the hot lunch program for our kids, tell them to watch this 4 minute video.

The out of control military industrial complex that President Eisenhower warned about is sucking up 53 cents of every tax dollar & they want more. Talk about entitlement!

[wakemewhenitsover]

76. You have got to be fucking kidding me.

OK. I know you're not.

[Swede Atlanta]

77. It is as bad as profiting from people's illness....

The rethuglikkkans will stop at nothing. They want to profit off of anything and they think they can make more money off of people's misfortunes. Since they have effectively killed any discussion of addressing climate change they KNOW storms and disasters such as Sandy will grow more frequent. How better than to bait the trap and then go in for the kill.

They are the most immoral and unethical crew I have ever experienced. I think they come a close 2nd to Pot Pol.