Why does God hate the Republicans?

That's the question John McCain must be asking when he gets down on his knees and prays before his beddy-bye time. How else can he explain that a dangerous Category 4 hurricane is bearing down on the Gulf Coast, with it's arrival timed to hit exactly in the middle of the Republican national convention?

New Orleans is bracing for the worst. And when I say "worst", I'm talking about the worst that FEMA and Homeland Security's response might be. Has Sen. Joe Lieberman, the chairman of the Homeland Security Committee, made any progress in disaster preparedness since he took the post early last year? I know one of his first actions was to break his promise to investigate the Katrina disaster response. He blew a golden opportunity to learn valuable details about the mistakes and poor decisions that were made in the immediate wake of Katrina. Lieberman said he wanted to "look ahead", rather than dwell in the past.

Well, we're likely to see just how well our junior senator has "looked ahead" if the storm does hit the Louisiana coast near New Orleans. I sincerely hope that Gustav finds a patch of cooler water and weakens, or it veers elsewhere to a much less populated area. But fate has a bitter sense of irony, and I fear the worst may happen.

Reports are describing how they don't have a refuge of last resort like the Super Dome anymore. If people can't evacuate before the storm hits, they'll have nowhere to go. I can't believe that this is good plan. There are absolutely going to be people who can't or won't evacuate, and for the disaster plan to omit the "last resort" option may endanger countless lives.

I fervently hope that New Orleans and the Gulf coast are spared a repeat of Katrina. They've suffered plenty over the last three years. Hopefully they'll catch a break.