Florida slammed by twisters

Yesterday was further proof that I'm happy I never moved to Florida, like I so desperately wanted to do in the 1990s. The way the past 3-4 years have been, that state is like a trip through the Book of Revelations.

Yesterday so some wicked tornadic activity, devastating the central part of the state, leaving thousands homeless. So far, the death toll is 20, but likely to rise.

It goes without saying that we should give these people all the help they need, and fast. I guess now we get to see how much the federal government and the Bush Administration has learned from Hurricane Katrina. I'm not holding my breath for a big turnaround. But, then again, the president's brother is governor of Florida, so I wonder if that will bring quicker relief, if for no other reason than political gain.

Quite frankly, I find it amazing that Bush didn't utter one word about Hurricane Katrina in his State of the Union speech. Not one! It's an American tragedy that will be unfolding for years to come. I'd love to be wrong about it, but I doubt it. There are still tens of thousands of homeless people in New Orleans, and our government continues to do... nothing for many of them.

I saw a headline yesterday that many of the levees are in danger of failing. Anyone surprised?

The only questions I have now about Florida are these:

Will Florida citizens get quick relief - quicker than that of the many Katrina victims who continue to struggle and eke out an existence in a shell of a former city? If Floridians are helped quickly, that will be a double-edged sword: it will demonstrate that our government has learned the hard lessons of Katrina, yes, but it will also enrage people all along the gulf coast, who continue to wait for help from the government and penny-pinching insurance companies.

And, lastly, how long will it take for the Bush flyover to survey the damage? (At left, a concerned president flies over the damage wrought by Katrina from the comfy confines of Air Force One.)

I've got 20 bucks that says we won't have any sham press conferences that will give us a "Heckuva job, Brownie!" lines to chew on.

Below is some footage from one of the tornadoes forming over Florida yesterday. It's not great, but it's all I could find. I laughed when I read a comment underneath the video on YouTube from some genius that read, "I wonder why there isn't more coverage from the tornadoes yesterday in Florida." Probably because people who were lucky enough to capture the footage and escape with their lives don't have power.