From: Article about FEMA Director's comments

"The federal government has moved about 500 generators to help local governments get infrastructure back up at places like shelters in case they lose power."

Shouldn't "local governments" already have this stuff in place? Hasn't there been state and local emergency planning for, like, forever? If the NWS has been saying that there was going to be a huge ice + snow storm, wouldn't you think that folks like the power companies would already be pre-positioning assets (crews and trucks) to deal with the problem? (They generally do. In this case, the damage may be so widespread as to tax the ability of the various power companies to handle it, which is why they have reciprocal agreements with other power companies all over the country to get crews in to help.)

Is 500 generators really going to help when the headlines say that 1/3 of the US is locked in a deep freeze? I think one of the local Home Depots here had that many on pallets in stock one year they were expecting a hurricane that didn't happen. One store. FEMA has what resources?

During Hurricane Katrina, FEMA was part of the problem.

I agree - the state/local gov't should have this kind of stuff on standby.  The state/ local governments get money to use for homeland security and can only use the grant money for things like APCs and stuff like that. A lot of the times they can't actually purchase useful stuff.

Heck, if those 500 generators are mounted on 18 wheelers and each one cranks out a megawatt or so, then yeah - they'll do some good assuming they have offer a free fuel contract along with the genny.  If it's a few pallets of 3kw ETQ generators, then no it won't do much good at all.

The current administration isn't going to fall victim to the same accusations it laid against the former administration for expecting local and state agencies to do their jobs.  Particularly since they're all about top down infrastructure rather than bottom up.  The more the feds do in any given case, the more they'll be expected to do the next time up to and until they've accrued all power unto themselves and the states/counties/cities are empty husks

Why do we need generators when we have "Hopes and Dreams"

What happened to green energy?  Can't we just inflate our tires or something?

What happened to Civil Defense? Towns had contingency plans in place and the resources to mostly take care of themselves.

The cycnic in me would like a shot at answering your question:

This isn't 1960 anymore. If towns kept this stuff in stock year-round they'd have to maintain it. So rather than do that for the one time in a decade it would be used, they just plan on calling the Feds for help that one time.

The lask of pre-planning is astounding at all levels. My local NG armory was built circa 1988...without a generator. You'd THINK a place like a NG armory would automatically be designated an emergency shelter and be properly outfitted with stuff like gennies. Nope. No local facilities get built with gennies. My agency had one installed because of the jail, but no local PDs have one.

I blame the hippys

HOW DARE YOU QUESTION YOUR BETTERS!!!!!!!



BIG FED offered up her teat at the trough and America has been suckling for 70 years...


besides, how does a city Mayor get a bullet proof Caddy and 4 escort cars to go to McDonalds?


or his scty get a new BMW every 2 years

As always with these clowns, the focus is on government. They will never get that government is most of the problem.

Thats easy.  She's the suckretary.

Fuck FEMA.
Most of us are better off without them.

I saw an interview of the FEMA director on the Propaganda Broadcast System last night. He was in the FEMA "command center".
I hope no one's counting on them. The "command center" had at least 20 work stations. One person was at a station. Five or six others were at the back of the room talking. The rest of the room was empty.

Our county has the Emergency Management Agency (EMA) which I volunteer for.  We have generators that can power critical infrastructure like the hospital, water, and waste treatment plant.  We also have a few tents, cots, and heaters that we could use in case of emergency.  Food and water, no go, but we have a relationship with the Red Cross.

just another way for the feds to piss away a ton of money...