Haliburton....opps I mean the federal government HAS been involved in this disaster. President Bush suspended the Davis-Bacon Act for reconstruction of this area. The Davis-Bacon Act requires contractors on government construction projects to pay "prevailing wages" -- defined as union wages in the area. This allows contractors to the federal government ...such as Haliburton to pay less than prevailing wage.....and voila! underbid union contractors.

I just finished reading "Rising Tide -- The Great Mississippi Flood of 1927 and How it Changed America" by John M. Barry. Fascinating. An incredible event I had never heard of before. But things don't change very much.....