If Cuba had attacked Puerto Rico with 1000 soldiers

[Tom Rinaldo]

The damage they could have inflicted on that island would not be 1/1,00oth of what Hurricane Maria caused there instead. Yet Trump would have responded immediately with tens of thousands of troops to counter the Cubans. They would have begun arriving last week and our forces would all be in place now. Our Navy would have a flotilla stationed off shore Puerto Rico as we speak. Marines would be landing in amphibious vehicles

Our military knows what to do when you can't drive a truck loaded with supplies across an open land border. An ocean don't stop our Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines, no matter how large it might be. They wouldn't wait for some bankruptcy court to determine who would foot the bill. Congress would have dropped everything and met in emergency session to clear any and all obstacles to military action.

Three and a half million American citizens are marooned in utter devastation. From this point on their deaths mount geometrically. What the fuck do we have a military for if it isn't to protect American lives? It's so called Commander in Chief is more concerned about an alleged desecration of the American flag by kneeling professional athletes than he is over the destruction of the land over which it flies, and the desperation of our citizens who struggle to cling to life there.

[hack89]

1. You do know that the Navy and Marines have a flotilla off of Puerto Rico?

been there for several days. And that there has been a steady stream of Air Force planes into Puerto Rico? It has been going on for days.

The issue is pretty straight forward - the ports are wrecked so ships cannot enter yet. The airports are wrecked so they are operating at limited capacity. That is what the military has been doing for days - opening the ports and fixing the airports.

[Orrex]

2. :thumbsup:

[Tom Rinaldo]

4. It needs to be the equivalent of war time footing

It's true I don't know all the details. I never doubted that our military would be present and doing incredible work relative to the size of their deployment. It is the scale of the deployment I'm concerned over. Things will spiral out of control very quickly without food, water, relief from overbearing heat and the lack of fuel to run generators and operational medical facilities. A massive effort is needed, the type our military is capable of in time of war..

[Tom Rinaldo]

7. In the first six days after the hurricane made landfall here, the Navy had deployed just three ships

"SAN JUAN, PUERTO RICO - The Trump administration is rushing military hardware and personnel into Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands as it becomes increasingly clear that the U.S. government response to Hurricane Maria so far has been inadequate and overmatched by the scale of the disaster.

In the first six days after the hurricane made landfall here, the Navy had deployed just three ships, citing concerns that Puerto Rico's ports were too damaged to accommodate numerous large vessels. But harrowing reports of isolated U.S. citizens struggling in the heat without electricity and running low on food and water have now spurred the Pentagon to throw resources into the relief effort even though they haven't been specifically requested by territorial officials..."
http://www.nola.com/hurricane/index.ssf/2017/09/as_puerto_rico_struggles_to_re.html

So local officials may share part of the blame. But drones were flying over Puerto Rico the next day. The scale of the devastation was visible The delay over a full mobilization is unconscionable.

And three ships does not a flotilla make.

[uponit7771]

11. The ports are no longer the issue the gov and FEMA are reporting lack of drivers

[LanternWaste]

3. US put close to 10,000 tons of supplies into Berlin every day for three months via air.

US put close to 10,000 tons of supplies into Berlin every day for three months via air. Over half the supplies were simply air-dropped-- no need to even land the aircraft.

History gives us many different answers to any given obstacle, while the foolish and the simpletons tell us why it can't be done and accuse those around them proposing any solution as being 'knee-jerk.'

[hack89]

5. Berlin had power and working airports.

and hardly any supplies were air dropped.

Once the the ports and airports in Puerto Rico are working (which should be very soon) then the pace of relief efforts will skyrocket.

[Tom Rinaldo]

6. I've seen additional reporting and no, it isn't just ports that need reopening etc.

There are already large amounts of essential resources stacked up in containers that are not being redistributed because the national logistical infrastructure is inadequate to the task. It is not just temporarily closed ports and airports that are in the process of being restored. That is something the military can impact in a positive manner. There are also urgent calls for the need for additional security resources - a severe lack of personnel. That is something the military can impact in a positive manner. It is isolated regions away from the capital that are not even being surveyed on the ground to assess the extent of urgent needs.

I am not being critical of the military. I am highly appreciative of their expertise and the efforts those already in Puerto Rico are making. It is civilian leadership in Washington that I fault. When a U.S. hospital ship was not even being readied for deployment until over a week into this disaster - when it was apparent that a High Category 4 hurricane was about to devastate Puerto Rico before Maria even made landfall, that is a failure to respond in a manner commiserate with this crisis. A mobilization on the scale needed has not been initiated. That's not the military's failure, it is Trump's.

[maxsolomon]

8. Cholera

Delays caused by blocked/damaged roads I can understand. But, if there's a Cholera outbreak, we'll know the response is a failure.

[Tom Rinaldo]

9. The only question is the degree of the failure

There are many things that slow down the delivery of relief. You mention some. But another is the failure to commit adequate resources in a timely manner on a scale that recognizes the degree of the humanitarian catastrophe immanent.

[maxsolomon]

10. But that's nuanced - and Uninformed Voters don't do nuance.

There will always be room for Conservatives to dispute, obfuscate, diminish, and excuse their failures.

The frustrating thing is that this is Obama's FEMA. How could Trump's flying monkey's fuck it up so quickly?