I have a memory that lasts longer than the past week.

And I can recall that Hurricane Katrina had scarcely passed the tip of Florida and made her turn to the north before the New Orleans mayor ORDERED everyone out of New Orleans.

Now, I admit to being a little less than thrilled with the concept of "mandatory evacuations", but that's the point for another article, not this one. The fact is, the residents of New Orleans had ample warning to get their heinies out of the city.

Some may have been unable to make the move. The city set up shelter at the Superdome for many of those individuals, yet many STILL chose to stay in their homes.

And yet, every night, I see helicopters flying from rooftop to rooftop of homes in which residents have been trapped in the attic or have climbed out on the rooftop and thus imperiled themselves further as they are fully at the mercy of the elements. The resources of helicopters, which could well be used to distribute aid to shelters desperately in need of supplies, are being appropriated for single person rescues because of the value we as a society place on human life. While such value is noble, it seems it would be in our best interests to consider the needs of the many over the needs of the few (damn, I hate quoting Spock in an article!).

The fact is, far too many of these people that we are spending valuable time anbd resources in saving are there because of their own stupidity. Maybe it's my naivete, but I'd figure anyone able bodied enough to climb up into their attic and onto their rooftop is able bodied enough to get their butt down to emergency shelter or, better yet, out of town. The TRUE tragic losses, those of the handicapped and elderly, won't even begin to be discovered until the flooding is brought under control.

I can't say what the answer is, but I have a lot of disgust for those selfish individuals who thought only of themselves and are consuming a disproportionate share of our time and/or resources because of their own foolishness. They should be eternally grateful that our government doesn't base its decisions on who to help on the intelligence of one's actions.