Windy disconnect

On Saturday, a horribly destructive cyclone hit Burma. Two days later, Laura Bush declared that the U.S. stands ready to send "substantial" disaster assistance to Burma provided its government plays nice. That's about as long as it took after Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast for her husband to make his famous flyover of devastated New Orleans as he flew home to Washington after vacationing in Texas. If Burma's autocrats follow his schedule, they're due on Wednesday to compliment the leader of their emergency response effort for doing "a heck of a job."

The obvious question for the first lady is how well any "substantial" American aid to Burma would compare to the inadequate and dilatory assistance her husband's administration has provided to New Orleans. Put another way, one wonders if even Burma's autocratic government beat the Bush administration's sorry record of succoring its stricken communities.

Note: this was originally posted on ketches, yaks & hawks 5 May 2008