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Introduction
The decision by the Bush administration not to send aid or military troops on the ground immediately after Hurricane Katrina was a fatal and catastrophe mistake. The indecision by the administration caused chaos and gave the world a clear picture that even after 9/11, the United States is still inadequately prepared for natural catastrophes of any kind let alone a terrorist attack. It also offered the world a glimpse into American society that the world had never seen or even knew existed. The disheartening images of mostly poor, mostly black evacuees waiting for food and shelter in seemingly unending lines or stranded atop rooftops awaiting military rescues exposed the world to a picture of real inner city America. The pictures broadcast to the world seemed like they were taken in a third world nation in Africa rather than a modern American city. The reason it took Fema and the Bush administration so long to respond to hurricane Katrina victims is because the overwhelming majority of the victims were of African American descent, poor and were considered a burden on society. My paper will explain that the faulty decisions made by the Bush administration and FEMA during the aftermath of hurricane Katrina can be attributed to ineffective decision-making and cognitive bias.
Summary
The Bush administration suffered from the affect heuristic during the time period leading up to hurricane Katrina. They were given an advantage of knowing what the outcome of the hurricane would be when it was upgraded to a category four.
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They also had the advantage of experts saying New Orleans could be flooded because the breach of the levees protecting New Orleans has been a serious issue for years, and was prominently discussed ...