Here in the mittle of Canada, things look very odd way South. I’ve seen and read the news to the point of almost nausea about N.O. and it continues to be the saddest story of the year, in part because it could have been prevented, in part. But here are a few weird news-worthy tidbits I’ve seen and read, none of which are confirmable, and all of which add up to a stranger story. Radio silence from the official U.S. Government caters to these oddities:

• There are between 5,000 and 10,000 dead in N.O.
• Cuba is publicly offering 1,500 doctors to be immediately sent to the region
• Despite Bush’s grin when he said “Send Cash” a few days ago, that’s actually what non-profits and others need
• Texas has put a limit on either 250,000, or 350,000, or more, “refugees” from coming to Texas
• Residents now homeless are not only “refugees,” but they are “victims,” “civilians,” and “Mississippians”
• Other states like Pennsylvania, Minnesota, Indiana and West Virginia are taking smaller numbers of residents into their statewide arms but the secret among U.S. state governors is essentially, “We don’t want them.”
• AIGA, an advocacy organization for designers, posted this on their site Hurricane Katrina has brought unexpected devastation to the design community in the Gulf Coast region. This is bizarre.
• Some say that the entire city will need to be leveled.

If it’s true that the first casualty of war is truth, it’s also true today that the first casualty of disaster is truth.