Be Prepared

From 58 different counties in Iowa, South Dakota and Nebraska, a group of Boy Scouts gathered in Iowa this week at The Little Sioux Scout Camp for special preparedness training. These boys are considered the 'cream of the crop'. Little did they know the training they received the day prior would so suddenly come into play as a reality.



With little to no warning, these 100 scouts and their leaders were struck by a tornado. The devastation left 38 wounded and 4 dead. Had it not been for the disaster training they were provided with the day prior, the numbers could have been higher. Ranging in ages 13-18, these scouts stepped up and took charge. There was no whining or waiting for someone else to come and take care of them. They helped each other, gave first aid and comfort.

Others could take a lesson from all of this. For instance, the Katrina 'victims'. There was plenty of warning to evacuate New Orleans. Unfortunately the government in New Orleans and LA did not take heed. It appears that without the push of the 'powers that be' to tell people to leave and leave now, they waited for someone to do it for them. Were they waiting to be led by the hand away from disaster? Were they in denial? Was it more exciting to stupidly party and wait it out? Did many just not have transportation available to go? In that case of the latter, put THAT blame of the mayor of New Orleans. If you do not believe it, just remember the many, many school busses that had been available to transport people from danger but were last seen sitting in or under water. Whatever the reason, they were warned and many chose NOT to do anything.

Now, 3 years later we still hear the whining and complaining from these people. Instead of taking the matters into their own hands they have continued to live in FEMA housing and complain about that. They continue to live off the handouts of entitlement programs, many not working or even attempting to look for work. Many squandered their Red Cross and FEMA money on new cars, big TV's, stereo systems, expensive clothes. Now, you might find me harsh with these statements, but unless you were there after Katrina and during Rita as I was..you need to shut up. Granted, not all of the refugees did this. I saw many who took their money and were able to then find their way to family in other parts of the country. Some already had found jobs and used that money to get their families out of the shelters and into their own apartment or house.

Then there are the rest,the ones who will forever live on the handouts if we continue to provide them. They need to take a lesson from these scouts and from other sections of the country where tornadoes and floods have devastated many families. These people have immediately taken action to start cleaning up the mess and planning for their future....while waiting for help.

Thank GOD for these scouts. They are our potential leaders. The whiners in this country need to sit up and take notice. Congress could take a lesson from them. Lord knows, those people could not fight their way out of a wet paper bag with instructions and help.

Our prayers go out to all of the families, to the scouts and their leaders. We pray for those who were not so fortunate to survive: Aaron Eilerts, 14..Josh Fennen, 13...Sam Thomsen, 13...Ben Petrzil, 14.