Disgusted and Distraught

I have been so sad the past couple of days. I'm sure I'm not the only one who assumed that control of the situation down south would be quickly and easily accomplished. We are a nation full of resources. Transportation, food, water, medicine, diapers, and plain old comfort seem to be so readily available that surely people would not suffer. In the physical sense anyways. The cynic in me has been far outdone this time though. We do not provide for these people under normal circumststances, how could it be any different in an emergency.
FEMA has been so adament about volunteers not dispatching themselves to the area, but it is so devastating to watch as seemingly nothing is being done for those most in need. The sick and old are dying for lack of basic necessaties. It seems that if not enough is being done on an "official" level, individuals would be right to ignore the officials and do what they can without a leader. All the money in the world is of no use if it's not being used immediately and where it is needed. You cannot eat or drink a donation. You can't catch a ride on a credit card pledge or float away from danger on a promise.
I have been crying all day out of frustration and helplessness because I know that I can't rent a truck and play rescue heroes. It is soooo not like me to be this affected by tragedy on tv. And I know, of course, that the media is never totally accurate. There may not be corpses floating through the city (though I'm sure there are at least a few), but even a handful of people dead due to a lack of mobilization and organization are way too many. But as I said, with all that we have, and all the money that has been spent on "homeland security" and disaster plans, why is it so hard to get help to where it is needed? That is the disaster in my opinion.