Hurricane Katrina was an interesting tragedy to me.

On one hand, the loss of life was staggering. It was one of the most unexpected natural disasters of our time, and it left thousands upon thousands of people dead, injured, or homeless. But on the other, there were people who didn’t leave – knowing that a Category Four storm was headed their way, to a city below sea level, and thought that they could just ride it out. The local government did nothing to plan for the emergency that was sure to come, leaving low-income residents stranded when they could have used the hundreds and hundreds of buses that were left in bus barns to get those people out. Mayor Nagin did nothing to prepare for the inevitable. And on top of that, the best idea they could come up with for what to do with the surviving residents was to throw them all into the Metro Dome and wait.

And then the insanity really began.

There were conflicting reports from inside the stadium, which itself was badly damaged from Katrina, of rapes and murders and robbery. Journalists said it happened; police investigators concluded there was no evidence of any of this. The levees broke and things got worse. There was looting not seen since the Los Angeles riots in the early 90s. FEMA descended, along with the Army Corps of Engineers, upon New Orleans to start rebuilding. Often they were greeted with violence and threats. And somehow, all of this was of course George Bush’s fault – his attempt to “wipe out” all the underprivileged black people in New Orleans.

Mayor Ray Nagin, who is most to blame for the bungling of Katrina but has not had to deal with any negative criticism whatsoever (with the exception of his ridiculous “chocolate city” comment), was reelected somehow, despite his governing method of going FUBAR, and then blaming everyone else.

New Orleans citizens affected by Katrina were given FEMA cards to help them get back on their feet. Hollywood celebrities and taxpayers alike poured millions upon millions of dollars into Katrina relief. Starlets, leading men, relief workers, and every day people like you and me swarmed into the city to help recover bodies, retrieve victims, and help rebuild. Katrina victims were asked to do nothing in return.

ThinkProgress reported that this week, Rep. Jeb Hensarling, a Republican from Texas who is chairman of the Republican Study Committee, introduced the Gulf Coast Hurricane Housing Recovery Act of 2007 which would require anyone who receives financial aid for housing to spend 20 hours a week on pre-approved work activities. The liberal reaction was immediate and predictable:

This amendment is cruel, it is cold, it is calculating, and it is pandering to the schizophrenic dichotomy that has plagued this nation since they first brought Africans on these shores from Africa. And that is the issue of race and poverty. Let me tell you something, gentleman. Where were you, where was your amendment when the Twin Towers were hit and the people in New york suffered that catastrophe? There was no cry before we gave them help. 'They got to go get a job.' Everybody was there and poured in help, as they should, the American way. Where was your amendment down in Florida when the hurricanes hit down there? Nobody said, 'Make ‘em work before we help them,' '' Rep. David Scott, a Democrat from Georgia, intoned.

So, let me get this straight: Katrina victims have received millions and millions of dollars to help with getting them back on their feet and have been asked for nothing in return. Now, a year and a half later, we’re asking them to work less hours than the average full-time American works in a week, and this is unfair, cruel, cold, and calculating? I guess because these people are black, underprivileged, and were screwed by their local government they get to receive free handouts the rest of their lives without ever having to work again?

If that’s the case, well then, dang. Maybe I need to get hit by a hurricane if it means I never have to work again!

Now, let me clarify my feelings on this: I understand it was liberals in Congress who were outraged over this proposal, and I have no idea how actual Katrina victims feel about this. They may have no problem whatsoever with having to work twenty hours a week, who knows. Actually, I’m sure a good majority of them already are working and recovering. And I know that many of these people have shown incredible resilience and strength in picking themselves back up and moving on with their lives. But it is an indisputable truth that many of them have also been content with playing the victim card, sitting back and doing nothing but take, take, take relief that is funded by our taxpayer dollars without doing anything to give back to the country.

And the government’s approach to this debacle has been astounding. Why was Katrina the natural disaster that was so important? Why did these victims deserve front page news coverage for months on end and so much more federal relief and aid than other victims of natural disasters? In the past year alone there have been at least three communities devastated by natural disasters – in Colorado, there was a blizzard of historic proportions, and then right here in Florida, we had the tornados which wiped out several small communities. The same thing happened recently in Alabama, which resulted in the deaths of children still in high school. Granted, the injuries and deaths were nowhere near the scale of Katrina – but these communities also didn’t have Mayor Nagin and the rest of the governing body of Louisiana there to screw things up for them. That doesn’t change the work these people will have to commit to in order to move on with their lives.

Where was the front page news coverage for them? Where were the Hollywood starlets and leading men, sifting through rubble to help find victims and donating hundreds of thousands of dollars at a time? Why were these people somehow less deserving? And why, a year and a half later, are Katrina victims still not back on their feet?

The problem, Mr. David Scott from Georgia, with not requiring Katrina victims to work for their federal aid, is that they have no incentive to get back on their feet. If they can receive a free handout without having to do anything to deserve it, then why should they pick themselves up and move on? And it fits nicely into the liberal plan of keeping minorities in a position of being a “victim” if they somehow “can’t work” (a year and a half later) and “need” our help still. See, now liberals get to put themselves into the position of “compassionate champion of the oppressed” yet again!

Citizens of Colorado affected by the blizzard, the likes of which has not been seen in years, barely received a blip on the national radar. And did they complain? No. They didn’t ask for handouts and they didn’t ask anyone to come rescue them. They stood up together as a community and helped each other work through the disaster. It was the same in Florida – the disaster was on the news for a few days and then disappeared from the radar. And those citizens reacted the same. People drove in from around the state to help with rebuilding efforts. No one asked for handouts. No one asked the government to bail them out.

It’s been a year and a half. It’s time to start giving them the tough love approach. Katrina victims have been coddled long enough. If they haven’t already started taking the steps to recovery, they never will if the government keeps giving them a free handout – just like people on welfare will never get off of it if they are never asked to show some progress. It also isn’t fair or right to pick and choose who is more deserving of federal aid than others. New Orleans is not the first nor the last community to be devastated by a natural disaster. Thanks to the inept leadership of the Louisiana government (NOT the federal government!), it was on a larger scale than most that we see here in the United States. That doesn’t mean that all Katrina victims everywhere should never have to take responsibility for anything ever again, or that George Bush committed genocide. It means that Ray Nagin wasn’t doing his job. Neighboring states which also were affected by Katrina, like Missouri, also barely registered a blip on the media radar and haven’t been privy to the millions of dollars worth of handouts New Orleans victims received.

It’s time to move on, for all of us – the victims of the disaster; local, state, and federal government; media; and citizens like you and me. They have received more than enough to move on with their lives, and frankly, after a year and a half has elapsed it shouldn’t be the taxpayers’ problem anymore. That doesn’t mean people should stop being generous with their time and money to help, but it is no longer our responsibility to carry them – 20 hour work week or not.

As always, I welcome your thoughts.