One of the unfortunate stories I am frequently asked to tell is related to what I saw during the operations to reach the displaced communities in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. It is somewhat a lengthy story. But it might be useful to offer it in one single place to be on the record, clarify expectations, avoid misunderstandings, and most important of all to advocate for a responsible and meaningful use of resources, disaster initiatives, and public-private partnerships. I have often backed the analysis of researchers and journalist such as Naomi Klein, condemning a misappropriation of public services into deceptive dynamics, lacking accountability, and further derailing recovery and relief efforts. Her work around "disaster capitalism" asserts a critique of those procedures that under a glossy rhetoric of free markets, actually derail democratic and participatory efforts. While her thesis is well worth paying attention to, and debate in length some other time, this account supports in a variety of ways the range of interested mismanagement she denounces so effectively.

In the midst of the financial crisis and the shock to use it to enable counter productive policies, the continued crisis of public resources in the United States for disaster response remains largely untapped. If enough attention is not raised about its very real circumstances and the consequences it implies, this crisis will be carried over in very similar terms by the next administration.

Almost immediately after FEMA released one year late its draft housing strategy, fingers blamed the agency of crafting an inconclusive strategy that delivers an incomplete approach for such a critical issue. From what I have been able to read so far, I agree with most critics that this is a half baked, uncommitted report. But that is precisely the whole point: not until the Federal network takes responsibility, clarifies FEMA's mission, and related excuses, will these reports add much significant substance to the issue. It is not only in the organization recent history that the downfalls of this system are exposed, but in particular as it relates to disaster housing. FEMA both enjoys and suffers the grey zone of its congressional mandate. In order to clarify responsibilities, and future actions, the Stafford Act that legitimizes FEMA is critically what needs to change to start a different process.