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FEMA Demands Use of IE To File Online Katrina Claims
WebHostingGuy writes "As reported by MSNBC, if you survived the hurricane and are a Mac, Linux or Firefox user you cannot file a claim online. Further, you must have javascript enabled or face rejection. From the site: 'We are sorry for not being able to proceed your requests because you have failed our tests.' Opera and Netscape don't work either." Also reported at InformationWeek. From that story: "To file a claim online at FEMA's Individual Assistance Center, where citizens can apply for government help, the browser must be IE 6.0 or later with JavaScript enabled. That cuts out everyone running Linux or the Mac operating systems, as well as Windows users running alternate browsers such as Firefox or Opera. When TechWeb tested the site using Windows XP and Firefox 1.0.6, the message 'In order to use this site, you must have JavaScript Enabled and Internet Explorer version 6. Download it from Microsoft or call 1-800-621-FEMA (3362) to register' popped up on the screen." Update: 09/08 13:48 GMT by Z : Added word 'Online' to title to clarify story.
Imagine a bewoulf cluster fuck of chertoff
I know it's pretty much useless to ask, but could you please stop throwing around these unfounded accusations?
And now any email I send to daddypants@slashdot.org to point out errors somehow is routed to him and bounces back with a very annoying message
Have I been singled out or is this more general?You must assume...
Interesting how you took a fairly innocuous joke (based on the stereotype of the hippie flower-power mac user) and managed to make all sorts of assumptions about the writer's politics, and then insult him based on those incorrect assumptions.
Who is the stupid, narrow-minded one again?
Recursive: Adj. See Recursive.
I find it fascinating from a psychological point of view that he gave you the option of being called rich or stupid, and he even opined that you were rich, but you chose to believe anyways that you were being called stupid.
I hope that some day you can work through this issue you have with your self-image.
Recursive: Adj. See Recursive.
Yeah, but the "correct" answer of course would be to say up front that you were neither, that it was a false choice.
But you didn't do that, you just went with stupid and argued against that, even though he specifically suggested you were NOT stupid.
It just stood out to me, because it's the same thing you did earlier in the thread -- latched on to the word "stupid" and got defensive about it in particular, not even noticing that the context was clearly NOT accusing you of being stupid.
I mean, seriously, what would you think if you had a friend who was constantly saying things like "I DON'T have a small penis!" even though nobody had suggested that was the case?
Recursive: Adj. See Recursive.
What is ridiculous is blaming everything on the war or the federal government by stupid politicizing haters.
http://www.casinosoflouisiana.com/louisiana.htm
Louisiana generated over $2.5 billion in tax revenues in the past decade or so.
In one fiscal year alone, two years ago and in enough time to direct funds to construction and rehabilitation projects, they generated over $400 million.
Five additional points--
Louisiana legalized gambling in the 1990s--this is new and additional revenue, not revenue that old and earmarked.
This is tax revenue (not taxable revenue) numbers, so it's actual money generated and available to the state.
The vast majority of the tax revenue went to the state general fund, allowing the state assembly full and open access to budget it as they please. Such budgets also include the availability of such funds to New Orleans and other local areas, which was in additional to whatever funds are available from federal bonds. iow, if the ELECTED ASSEMBLY of Louisiana as voted by the PEOPLE of Louisiana (including New Orleans) had been concerned, they could have funded this easily themselves.
The whole point of money is the exchange and flow of it is only detailed insomuch as the budget details. If you focus on a single point, you miss the entire picture. This is why such posts as the parent are just plain self-serving "I was right, nah nah nah nah nah" political crap. You need to question ALL possible funding. In this case, the point that the Army Core of Engineers should have been funded is correct but part of the picture. But it is also correct that the government of Louisiana, with their tax revenue and income flow, failed. As such, all levels of government get blame, such that if you singularly decide to blame Bush, you might as well as blame big central/federal government loving liberals; such government is usually unresponsive, overbeauracratic, and isolated from local and state issues. Frankly, the whole mess occurred, and anyone can find any reason to point fingers; you hate Bush, you point at Bush, you think everything is rascist, you pull a West, if you think God is punishing the US, you think God sent the hurricane, and on and on.
Finally, anyone who misses the point that this was a natural disaster that has a human element both in the disaster and the (lack of) planning and then decides to politicize it is FUCKED UP and does not understand the nature of the world. People over request funds all the time. Nuclear reactors aren't built but we dump tons of coal with radioactive elements into the air. Cancer research is likely underfunded. Health insurance should cover more Americans. More funding could go to social programs for the poor. The world is a fluid state where we make the decisions that we believe in; when a disaster like this occurs, people forget that it's easy to say "we told you so." If a terrorist attack had occurred, conservatives could probably point out how underfunded homeland security is. etc. etc.