The Tragedy of New Orleans (ingrained culture of political corruption in New Orleans)

WSJ/Opinion Journal ^ | Tuesday, August 29, 2006

[sergeantdave]

Maybe we can send Detroit's mayor down to NO to give Nagin a few tips how to run a city.

Calculating demographic shifts away from Detroit and number of housing units lost in the past 30 years, Detroit will be completely vacant by 2060.

[ClaireSolt]

It's the only flood I ever saw where people fled instead of sandbagging the levees. On c-span last night the chairman of the coastal restorationm has only one idea. The feds should pay for it. A journalist sarcastically mentioned Iraq funding. I thought his comparing an American city to a third world country was ironic and sad. They showed a yound mother full of disgust that FEMA didn't take care of her better. 2.9% unemployment in NO, now, an she can't figure out how to get a bus ticket to Atlanta to see her boyfriend. The whole culture is one of sullen dependancy.

[cvq3842]

Yup.

[macmedic892]

"It's the only flood I ever saw where people fled instead of sandbagging the levees."

America had never seen a flood like this. Which of the dozens of levee breaks in New Orleans alone should have been filled first? Not to mention the dozens of breaches in neighboring St. Bernard and Plaquemines parishes?

Oh, by the way, since the areas were we normally get sand were flooded, where do we get the sand from? Since the bridges were washed out, how do we get the sand to where it is needed? The people to operate the equipment to prepare, move, and place the sandbags--almost all of whom evacuated? And don't forget that the water is moving at 3000 cubic feet per second!

Remember, many people still have no place to live and no reliable transportation. Thousands of FEMA trailers still have not been delivered. Many that have been delivered can not be occupied due to lack of electricity or sufficient water pressure.

You gripe about the young mother . . . who is going to watch her kids while she works? I absolutely agree that she should work if at all possible--but there is no child care available, she probably doesn't have any way to get to work, and there may not be any place for her to work. The Lower 9th Ward didn't have much pre-K; now there is nothing but devastation. There are no gas stations, no day care, no restaurants, no health care. N O T H I N G ! ! !

IT IS AWFULLY DAMN EASY TO JUDGE FROM A FAR. HAVE YOU SEEN IT FOR YOURSELF? WHY DON'T YOU COME DOWN HERE AND TAKE A LOOK AT THE UTTER DEVASTATION THAT HAPPENED BEFORE YOU JUST TELL PEOPLE TO GET OFF THEIR @$$E$ AND GET TO WORK!

[WatchOutForSnakes]

Sandbagging, HAHAHAHAHAHAHA, good one. You guys must really be running out of bashing material if this is the best you can do. Are you really aware of what you are saying when you complain that they didn't sandbag miles of levees? Oh my.......

[ClaireSolt]

Obviously you have no clue how you look, because you keep making complete fools of yourselves on TV.

[ClaireSolt]

I think you have forgotten how citizens take responsibiity for their own communities.

[WatchOutForSnakes]

Nope, I just know what being realistic is and to realistically expect to sandbag a levee system or as many breaks as there were during Katrina is not being honest.

[mongrel]

My biggest critique of the citizens of NO is that they keep electing incompetant and corrupt politicians.

I know it was a devastating flood. But everybody down there seems to be trying to blame the federal government and is not looking at the mess you have with your incestuous local and state politicians.

[wjcsux]

DemocRATS are to corruption as fish are to water.

[electricallady]

Not everyone down here is blaming the federal government.
That is just what the msm wants you to think. The majority of the people down here are working hard and are
taking responsibility for their lives. You just never hear about them because they are to busy to hang around where the reporters are and the reporters don't want to hear about successful stories anyway.

[ClaireSolt]

Going away and leaving it untended was irresponsible. Your post shows you have no idea what's expected. I made the same comment to Dutch friends and they could not believe it either.

[WatchOutForSnakes]

And your post shows you have no idea how massive the levee system is and how many huge breaks there were. Nothing could have been done to sandbag those levees. If it's that easy let's forget rebuilding them at a cost of billions of dollars and just throw up some sandbags. That should do the trick.

Oh, and I'm not a levee expert but I did spend the night at a Holiday Inn Express last night.

[Phsstpok]

here's a bizarre take on this topic

Corruption is what makes New Orleans attractive!

The "screw the rules" pirates and privateers (think Jean Lafitte) that made that town are quintesentially American. Think Newt Gingrich's comments about speed limits being a "benchmark of opprotunity." We are a "slightly out there" society who don't completely abide by the rules. N.O. is the epitome of that idea. And they have celebrated it for centuries. This isn't a recent phenomonon.

And I, for one, don't want to crush that spirit. I do, however, want to channel it. there's graft aplenty to be found if they choose to turn the 9th ward and St. Bernards parish into a modern and well planned Venice. But Ray Naggin doesn't want to hear that particular notion, as they are too much in line with free market notions.

So, lets encourage the corrupt Louisiana politicians to discover the graft opportunities in a correctly planned New Orleans!

[LisaMalia]

"New Orleans has suffered from the trauma of three crises,"

Yeah...let me name them:
-incompetent local government, namely the "fair" mayor of their city
-millions of charity dollars going into the pockets of crooked politicians (see above)
-locals not picking themselves up by the bootstraps, and banding together to get their city back in business.

I guantantee you, if this catasrophe would have happened in a city in the Mid-West, and we had those mega millions in resources to work with, life for it's citizens would be virtually back to normal by now.

[RobbyS]

Most of it is money down the drain. Most federal spending has consisted of handing money to people who have no sense of its value.

[WatchOutForSnakes]

"I guantantee you, if this catasrophe would have happened in a city in the Mid-West, and we had those mega millions in resources to work with, life for it's citizens would be virtually back to normal by now."

80% of a major Midwestern city under 10 to 15 feet of water for over 2 weeks and it would be back to normal now with mega millions? Okkkkaaaayyyyy

There is such a huge lack of knowledge out there about how much destruction there is on the gulf coast.

[RobbyS]

No way, Mary Babe, unless we turn it over to Walmart.

[LisaMalia]

There is such a huge lack of knowledge out there about how much destruction there is on the gulf coast.

I know how much destruction there is. But after one year, and millions upon millions of dollars to repair levies, and rebuild, etc....well you tell me, where is the money going?

The midwest is not immune to disasters. The city of Zenia, Ohio was virtually wiped out by a tornado in the 70s. And believe me, they had neither the resources, or the charity dollars to rebuild, yet they did.

[sanjacjake]

Scew New Orleans and their Mayor, Govenor, Congressmen,
including Wm.Jefferson..and Senators...they have
sqandered $122 billion so far....a record 10 times any
other disaster..including 9/11. Where is the
accountability...Maybe Jesse and Al took their cut
and didn't leave much???? Jake