Elite Engineering Group Does PR Show to Protect Corps of Engineers' Reputation

Mere months after the federal levees failed in New Orleans after Katrina, the Corps of Engineers awarded the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) a grant to conduct what was seemed to be a PR show to repair the Corps' damaged reputation. The grant steered money to the ASCE to present powerpoints apparently designed to mislead the American public on what caused the August 2005 flooding. These taxpayer-funded presentations explained how the damage occurred, but neglected to explain who was responsible. (Levees.org discovered the details about the multi million grant in a request under FOIA on December 28, 2007.)

It's bad enough that the presentations contained lies and spin designed to shift blame for the flooding away from the Corps and onto the people of New Orleans. The American taxpayers also paid for it. The information in this video is not new, but most of the footage is new. Not to be accused of taking anything 'out of context', we have uploaded a 15-minute segment -- the longest that YouTube allows - of the full 80-minute presentation and you can see even more of the travesty for yourself.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=prKJcog20-Y&feature=youtu.be

Category:

Nonprofits & Activism

Tags:

• Corps of Engineers
• ASCE
• New Orleans
• Katrina
• federal levees

[ascii3fhex]

Excellent. Simply excellent. It's courage, dedication, and the overwhelming stamina of people like you, Sandy, and Mr. Bosworth, that inspire the rest of us to keep speaking the truth. It's a stretch in this case to say the "cover up was worse than the crime," but it sure comes close. The crime, in this case, being the deaths of thousands due to negligence and ineptitude. The cover up is an outrageous demonstration of the need for an 8/29 investigation.

[LeveesOrg]

@ascii3fhex We agree this is yet another reason why America needs the 8/29 investigation.

[jayezzo]

The  US Corps of Engineers is just another corrupt government department

[lapnola]

@sactowntodd You missed the point. Congress charged the USACE to build the levees. Congress gave the Corps taxpayers' money to design and to construct the levees. Many levees, like the one in the video, failed due to design flaws. As Ms. Rosenthal points out, the presenter blames the designers. Who were the designers? - the Corps! They botched the job, used more taxpayer dollars to cover it up, and maligned those who called them on their eggregious behaviour. Will the same happen elsewhere?

[oslin1]

Thanks for keeping us informed, Sandy.



[turtletorun]

They should be given a PHD in how to Pass the Buck and shuck accountability. Shame on them all to still be sending this bunck out. Thanks for sharing this, Dorian Bennett

[rickyalenart]

Sandy, sure glad we have you keeping up with all this information about the levees. I see other states are having similiar problems now, with the floodings.

[shamgar56]

Awesome, Sandy. When has any governmental agency ever admitted culpability and/or responsibility? Whatever "they" do it right, whatever "we" do is wrong; which is why "we" NEED them. One day, I hope, the body politic will wake up and clean house.

[chrisdier]

Great work, Sandy. Keep up the good fight!