Contributing Writer

This is not a typical article.�It's not funny.�It's not about the kids from the neighborhood. And it's not about The Wife or The Boy. Funny article will return next week.�Serious article is here this week.

It has been nearly three weeks since Katrina rained down her devastation and misery upon the Gulf region, but her effects will be long-lasting.�Evacuees are being welcomed into the schools of our county and our homes with only one question asked of them, "How can we help?" But not all are trying to be of assistance.�There's a small part of our society capitalizing on the misery and death of others.�Looters.

The pictures flash across television screens, and the other-worldliness of the landscape washes into the comfort of our dry living rooms. We are stunned.�The talking heads on the radio debate about who didn't do what fast enough. And we are outraged. So we should be. But slow-acting politicians posturing isn't what has yours truly outraged.�There's another group which cares about nothing but themselves that has me fighting mad.�Looters.

As the sadness of the events engulfs our nation, and rescue efforts have now turned to retrieval, two things have become crystal clear:�

The first is that mankind has the ability to rise above any adversity including any devastation brought on by nature or humankind itself. We can accomplish great things while working for the common good of all. We follow a common set of rules and beliefs which enable us to do this.�They bring order to the disorder.

The rules and beliefs transcend everything:�color, age, nationality, religious belief, and any level of education.�Most of us hold these rules high and would do anything to help our neighbors in need. But a few don't.�They have no regard for rules; they exhibit no beliefs. What we hold sacred and valuable, they disregard and consider worthless. They are the looters; looters of not only goods but sometimes of life itself.

The second thing that has occurred to me is there is a growing number of people who seem to fall into the looters category - people with no moral center, people who either haven't been taught right from wrong or who just don't care. We saw the looters stealing anything that wasn't nailed down, taking advantage of others' misery, and even shooting at the rescuers as they struggled to bring relief to the beleaguered. In a cocky voice, one looter stated as he held up his wrist supporting five Rolexes: "Well, if it was against the law, the police would stop us."

No, you idiot, the police officers have just witnessed everything they hold dear, including their town, and possibly their families, being washed away. They are standing in stunned silence and disbelief while you loot what doesn't belong to you. Have we regressed to the point that members of our society don't actually know that taking something which doesn't belong to them is wrong? Worse yet, we have individuals among us willing to defend their actions.

Taking food, water, medicine, and medical supplies for the injured - though still stealing - is simply a matter of survival.�Don't think any court in the land would convict anybody of wrongdoing who's just trying to stay alive or keep their family alive.�Wading down the flooded streets of New Orleans with trashcans filled with stolen guns, drugs, and jewelry is something altogether different.

If you ask me, looters don't get a second chance. But that's only my opinion, and you may disagree.�That is, until such a disaster happens here, and one of those looters knocks down your door to steal the stuff you worked so hard for. Or maybe does something even worse.