I agree that politicizing a tragedy in the midst of it is repugnant. And I agree that no matter what preparations are made, they will never be sufficient for a horror of this magnitude. But when the dust clears, someone's going to have to ask the politically charged question of whether the response was slowed down by the fact that such a large percentage of America's National Guard has been shipped overseas.

Our resources are seversely taxed right now! No matter how you feel about the way in which they're being used or how to best alievate the strain, that fact is impossible to deny.