"I am with Troglodyte. I don't think we need to experience firsthand, what Jeff McCann says, "the NOPD...scattered instances of individuals "freelancing" under color of authority."

It doesn't take a disaster to experience this sort of thing; it happens every day, all over America. By the same token, a disaster won't stop it from continuing to occur anyway. But that doesn't mean there's a secret plan to "enslave" you, or at least not one involving disaster relief operations in the normal course of events.

"Police officers and members of military are trained to obey orders, even if the person (criminal) directing them is a little off the rocker."

Cops and soldiers don't run disaster relief, they are, however, key participants, just as in most emergencies. Civilian authorities run the show, including local and state authorities who retain their powers and responsibilities, with the cooperation of federal authorities. Disasters normally don't get "federalized," with the USGOV taking over and overriding the locals; they just get federal assistance to states and localities, AFTER being requested.

As for the NOPD specifically, I'd suggest that they may have been, ahem, somewhat sub-par compared to other police departments and law-enforcement agencies. Yet, note that they still were not interfered with by the Feds during that time.

Now, if you are talking "Martial Law," that's an entirely different matter. But has Martial Law ever been declared in the US since WWII, when it was imposed in the Hawaiian islands, during any sort of disaster?

Jeff