Why is Iowa being treated different than other areas?

Has anyone else experienced pictures of the flooding devastation in Iowa? Not the news glimpses where corn field are rotting in a foot of water, but rather the shots where a dozen two-story homes are piled up against bridges in river currents, and downtown skyscrapers whose bottom three levels are submerged. Comparing this disaster to a similar one, say Katrina or Rita, it raises a few questions.

Why aren’t Hollywood celebrities holding telethons asking for help in restoring Iowa and helping the folks affected by the floods? Where’s the media asking the tough questions about why the federal government hasn’t solved the problem, and where the FEMA trucks (and trailers) are? Why isn’t the federal government relocating Iowans to free hotels in neighboring cities? Where are the free $2,000 credit cards?

Where are all the looters stealing high-end tennis shoes and big screen TVs? When will we hear Gov. Chet Culver say he wants to rebuild a “vanilla” Iowa because that’s the way God wants it? Where is the historical 24/7 media coverage? Where are the people declaring that George Bush hates white rural people? How come you don’t hear about the Iowa flooding anymore?

There’s a big difference in character, morals and values between the folks of Iowa and those of Louisiana, a fact that no one in the media wants to acknowledge or comment on. I am a firm believer in equality regardless of race, but this seems to be just a bit lopsided. Is it just me or has Iowa been shortchanged?

LAURIE WADKINS

Priest River