The Real Heroes of Katrina---The Private Sector

The U.S. military and nonprofits such as the Salvation Army and Red Cross have done a great job, but the private sector somehow eludes LWM praise:

As residents of New Orleans and the rest of the gulf coast begin to pick themselves up from a devastating natural disaster, they're finding lots of hands reaching out to help. Ordinary Americans and companies large and small from across the country are reaching out by the thousands to offer flood victims their time, talents, and financial resources. It will take a long time for some communities to recover from Hurricane Katrina, but we are once again witnessing that the most effective compassion comes from the private sector.

While Americans are reaching out, the media are pointing fingers. The media always seem to point first at the federal government's response in times of national tragedy -- demanding that federal agencies do more, spend more, and send more.

An example is a September 2 ABC News/Washington Post poll. The pollsters were so blinded by their bias that all they could see was the federal government's response in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Their questions focused on placing blame on President Bush and asked people whether the government's response left them "angry; proud; ashamed; hopeful; or shocked."

A hallmark of our free market economic system is that when individuals work on pursuing their dreams, in this case rebuilding cities and states, the positive effects ripple throughout the economy. Together, those dreams lift a society. It's been widely reported that Home Depot's stock value rose with the floodwaters. But the story behind that is exactly what USA Today reported on September 1: the company's massive effort to stock stores in the devastated region and to prepare for a speedy response. As USA Today's Julie Schmit wrote, "Plywood makers are cranking up production. Contractors and laborers are lining up to enter the area. Retailers are redirecting products from as far as Wisconsin to the gulf region."

Without a free economic market, the companies that can help the most wouldn't have the incentive to hurry to the scene. They know their products and services will be needed -- so they're doing all they can to assist those who want to begin the rebuilding process.