President Bush suggested that the military be the first responders to all large-scale natural disasters, such as large hurricanes, tornadoes, floods, etc.

That presumes two things: that the military be ready, and that it is available before a diaster hits. The latter one presumes that we haven’t sent most of our troops (including the National Guard and the reserves), so that leaves the former one: is the military ready?

According to Adm. Timothy Keating, who is in charge of domestic defense forces, the answer is a resounding “no.”