Encourages Americans to adopt a culture of disaster preparedness, drawing on examples from Hurricane Katrina to outline practical suggestions on how to prepare for and respond to catastrophic events.

The patience of the poor -- Hurricane born and hurricane bred -- Learning the Zumwalt rules -- Command, control, and occasional chaos -- Theater immersion training for war and disaster -- First army storm surge -- Running against the wind -- Sorting out the super mess at the superdome -- "You're looking at a calendar and I'm looking at my watch" -- "Get those damn weapons down!" -- "A John Wayne dude" -- Mike Brown's exit -- Avoiding the 1,200 mile screwdrivers -- Dancing with Rita -- Wilma : twisted sister number three -- The "E" in e-mail stands for evidence -- The role of the media in a national disaster -- How America can create a culture of preparedness.