Nero fiddling?

Good evening to all,

I came across a picture a little while ago, and thought it worthy of mention, please note the date and time (from AP) in the upper right hand corner of the linked page..

In all fairness, I looked up the news for that day to see if the general perceptions of that particular day (that now seems so long ago), might have lead to someone not being overly concerned about the storm's aftermath, but the news did reveal the beginnings of all we came to see this past week. I'm trying to believe that he made the appearance because he had made a promise to be there, though I still can't help but feel that being sworn in is also a sort of promise to be there when the people most need him. I'm torn between my attempt to accept the mechanics of appearances and how they factor into politics, and the pain I feel in my heart now that I know what was taking place in New Orleans and the surrounding area at the time.