Well, I'm coming from the view that any riots at Reliant Park can be contained and somewhat controlled. I'm worried about the crime rate going up in the surrounding areas from desperate people doing desperate things. Then again, how far can hungry and tired people travel on foot? Still, I'd like to know how Houston is protecting it's own citizens while extending a helping hand to our neighbors.
i don't know yet. something. we can do hand-wringing and consider what we CAN'T do. or we can just do. just try. Houstonians haven't had a hard time finding jobs. We're not talking about finding professional jobs here. We're not talking about finding jobs for college professors and dentists.
We have refugees down here in Victoria as well, there is a risk for those people to get despertate and do dumb things but where else do they have to go? What would we do? I would think we would expect people to do the same for us.
I just saw on kprc, channel 2's website, saying that all refugees will be accepted into the Astrodome, not just the ones who were originally from the Superdome. What the capacity of the dome? Like 50,000? So you can have potentially 50,000 refugees holed up in the dome for 3 months. I am all for helping people but this could put a serious burden on Houston's public services. This can really be a disaster waiting to happen.
I agree, this very positive gesture by our city has the potential to turn bad. Lets just hope it doesn't. I hope people don't view those thoughts as insensitive, I really do think it's great we're helping these people. The possible problems that could come out of this worries me though.
Living 3 blocks away, I'm right with you. I know the vast majority of people are going to be cool, but you put it perfectly: desparate people at their most trying time. It's not the popular thing to say right now, but I do hope that thought is also being put towards the surrounding community. Word out of NO is that the Superdome got ravaged and that there were a few sexual assaults. And now we know that jail inmates are part of the evacuation - but they lost track of who's who among them. Seating capacity doesn't really equate to housing capacity. Astrodome should not house many over 20k. The Superdome refugees were already going to stretch things. I'm very encouraged to hear that Dallas, and maybe Beaumont (Ford Center) are going to try and help ease the burden on the Houston shelters. Evan
Another thing to keep in mind, a large number of the people at the Superdome were already living on the streets of NO, or lived in extreme poverty. Don't bet on everyone heading home when the time comes. Evan
i don't condone shooting and killing but if it means we have to to restore order, go for it! if killing 100 ppl means rescuing 20,000, go for it! i'm also thinking that this makes NO look so bad. how are ppl around the world going to want to donate knowing that so much of their money will be sent to "babysit" these people?? I know that in desperate times, people do things but this is ridiculous. I wonder what the folks in Thailand did afterwards the tsunami. I'm pretty sure i never heard about looting and killing. it's a slap in the face to all those organizing relief and rescue efforts when these people are hindering and suspending the process. they are so selfish. reminds me of the people that cut in the front of a lane when the roads merge. if you just waited in line like everyone else, we can do this safely, quickly and rather effortlessly.
As far as jobs... They will need someone to unload the trucks carrying supplies. Someone to make meals. Someone to cleanup. Someone to clean the bathrooms, kitchens, etc. Someone to take out the garbage. Who's got the signup sheet? It would be nice if Astroworld would let them in for free.
Exactly what I was thinking. Many of the refugees will end up slowly blending in to Houston's society and become permanent residents.
what's the unemployment rate here locally? not sure it matters, really. we're not talking about building careers for these people at this point. we're still being told that eventually they'll be allowed to go back to new orleans. frankly, i think that's false hope, because there's nothing to return to. no economy left. people will look for jobs here. if they can't find them here, they'll move on. houston, alone, isn't bearing the burden. we just have the heaviest load. that's ok. we'll find a way.
Funny you said that. When I was driving to work this morning, a guy passed me on the entry ramp to the freeway, and rode down the shoulder several cars before merging. And the traffic wasn't even too bad. I said to myself, "Potential future looter."
That is EXACTLY what me and all my other med-center dwelling friends are afraid of. Desperate, homeless people wandering the streets of the medical center at night.. I wouldn't be surprised if there was a huge crime spike.
I don't think anyone said to blow it away because it was an eyesore - I believe most people said to blow it away to build something that's used more than the Dome would be. Maybe hotels for conventions.
