Aftermath of Sandy: People Reaching Out To The Government, But Not Each Other?

After the tornado of April 10, 1979, residents in Wichita Falls, Vernon, Lawton and other communities in the area reached out to each other.  Yes, there was help from the state and federal government (FEMA was literally just days old when the tornado outbreak occurred) and trailers and supplies were shipped in, but people here reached out to one another.  There are countless tales of people who's homes had been completely obliterated joining the search for survivors, helping neighbors, etc..,.  I've heard story after story of total strangers taking people into their homes, churches opening their doors, neighbors sharing food, water and anything else they could.

Why do I not hear such stories coming out of New York or New Jersey?  I'm sure there are people reaching out to their neighbors, but I fear that scenario is a rare exception.  In this video, a resident describes what has happened to her and her children in the aftermath of Sandy.  You hear cries for help from FEMA, from NYC officials, but there seems to be a distinct lack of any help neighbor towards neighbor.  There seems to be a real sense of helplessness here.  I attribute part of it to being trapped in a massive, metropolitan area that is so restricted by virtue of it's size and location that there is no easy way out.  And part of it I attribute to the dependence so many American's have developed, not for one another, but for big government.  And big government has proven, time and again, that it cannot manage nor be managed.  When will we learn?  If we'd do more for each other in times like these, we wouldn't need the government's intervention.