corrente

Maybe it's because they're actually connected to the land they live on, more than people in cities are. That's why I've always felt that the "red" states aren't irrevocably so. (RDF is magnificent proof of this)

I've mentioned David Rossie, who writes in that area which those who live in NYCity often refer to as "upstate New York," which generally means anywhere in NY not in the city.

Courtesy of a Buzzflash link, we found this eye-poping piece by V.B. Price, a columnist for the Albuquerque Tribune. He had me at the headline, which caused an immediate rise in the number of my heartbeats per minute.

Depths of cruelty
How uncaring and brutally incompetent can right wing get?

And it only gets better from there:

The Bush administration couldn't get emergency relief to New Orleans for days after the endlessly predicted, catastrophic hurricane and flooding two weeks ago.

But close to 24 hours after the death of U.S. Chief Justice William Rehnquist, the White House, swamped in criticism over New Orleans, named John Roberts as its choice to fill Rehnquist's shoes.

In one case, planning was nonexistent, because the ruling party saw no political advantage to it. In the other, planning was meticulously precise, the political advantage being obvious to everyone.

Roberts is apparently one of those every-man-for-himself, women-and-children-last kind of Republican, the perfect judicial scissor-man to continue snipping away at the social safety net and its weakening strands of equality and freedom.

What happened in New Orleans is an unspeakable calamity of governmental carelessness, the most disgraceful consequence of decades of government-hating that anyone could have imagined.

And who's left to pick up the pieces? Certainly not the federal establishment, which is criminally useless and downright nauseating.

Who's left? Localities already heavily burdened with the sheer complexity of their back-breaking, federally dumped "unfunded mandates" covering most aspects of social life.

Who's left? Places like Albuquerque and New Mexico, which by the end of next week will be giving comfort and succor to as many as 500 Katrina refugees.

Amid the horror and fathomless disgust, New Mexico makes us all feel proud to be human beings and Americans again.

What a contrast! New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson and Albuquerque Mayor Martin Chavez met the first contingent of refugees arriving in Albuquerque, welcomed them and acknowledged the unprecedented enormity of their tragedy.

There's more, including an arrow that takes you to other V.P. Price columns.

Might be a thought to write to the paper, either by e or slow mail, to express your appreciation.

UPDATE: Alert reader, JayinABQ tells us in comments of a connection of interet in regards to Mr. Price.