Quote of the day: The rules and FEMA

"Rules are made for people who aren't willing to make up their own." - Chuck Yeager

Why this quote today? Two reasons. First, it is Chuck Yeager's birthday (born in 1923). Second, it seems appropriate with the news stories of people losing their FEMA-paid hotel rooms.

Hurricane Katrina was last August. Most of these people have been in hotels since September. What have these people done since September to get their lives back? I hear their complaints of "FEMA promised this...FEMA promised that...". These people have handed their lives over to the U.S. government. This means they are now subject to the rules of the U.S. government. If those rules dictate they have to leave their hotel rooms, whose fault is that?

If these people had taken action during these past 5 months, instead of expecting the federal government to take care of them forever, they would be in a better situation now. Instead, they are forced to scramble to find living quarters.

The lesson in this is: Don't be a sheep. Our country is great NOT because of how it takes care of people, but because of how people take care of themselves. Chuck Yeager is the embodiment of this principle.