More than 1,000 people are dead and 88,000 people are reported missing in Japan due to the earthquake and the tsunami. Apply those numbers to a very populated American coastline and consider what the Republicans want to do with their slash and burn budget:
According to the House Appropriation Committee's summary of the bill, the CR funds Operations, Research and Facilities for the National Oceanic Atmospheric Association with $454.3 million less than it got in FY2010; this represents a $450.3 million cut from what the president's never-passed FY2011 budget was requesting. The National Weather Service, of course, is part of NOAA -- its funding drops by $126 million. The CR also reduces funding for FEMA management by $24.3 million off of the FY2010 budget, and reduces that appropriation by $783.3 million for FEMA state and local programs.
The Republicans (and even the White House) keep saying that we all need to sacrifice in light of the deficit. Well, not everyone. Certainly not oil companies that will retain their full subsidies, thanks to the Republicans. But everyone else. Except rich people who won't have their taxes raised. Everyone else, though. Now all we have to do is clap real hard and hope there's not another ocean-related natural disaster.