New Orleans: Let It Go!

New Orleans. The Big Easy. Mardi Gras. Bourbon Street. Let the Gulf take it all.

House Speaker: Rebuilding N.O. doesn't make sense...

In December 2001, The Houston Chronicle printed "KEEPING ITS HEAD ABOVE WATER: New Orleans faces doomsday scenario." In the article, author Eric Berger wrote:

"New Orleans is sinking. And its main buffer from a hurricane, the protective Mississippi River delta, is quickly eroding away, leaving the historic city perilously close to disaster. So vulnerable, in fact, that earlier this year the Federal Emergency Management Agency ranked the potential damage to New Orleans as among the three likeliest, most castastrophic disasters facing this country. The other two? A massive earthquake in San Francisco, and, almost prophetically, a terrorist attack on New York City. The New Orleans hurricane scenario may be the deadliest of all. In the face of an approaching storm, scientists say, the city's less-than-adequate evacuation routes would strand 250,000 people or more, and probably kill one of 10 left behind as the city drowned under 20 feet of water. Thousands of refugees could land in Houston. Economically, the toll would be shattering. Southern Louisiana produces one-third of the country's seafood, one-fifth of its oil and one-quarter of its natural gas. The city's tourism, lifeblood of the French Quarter, would cease to exist. The Big Easy might never recover. And, given New Orleans' precarious perch, some academics wonder if it should be rebuilt at all. "

So, they KNEW. They KNEW this would happen someday, they were just hoping it wouldn't happen during THEIR lifetimes.


Donate to the Hurricane Katrina relief effort.

God Bless Michelle Malkin for her attention to the disaster (HERE)

Here's a blog entry by someone who once lived in New Orleans:
With the destruction of New Orleans by Katrina, it’ll never be the same, even if they rebuild. It’s like one of my best friends’ have died and the grief…it’s overwhelming. It’s that kind of world-ending grief where you can’t understand how the world can go on around you with it’s day to day things as if nothing has changed. It’s that grief that leaves you lonely in a crowded room and angry at the person laughing at some trivial funny thing that was said. It’s that grief that leaves you feeling helpless and wondering if life really can go on.

And, yes, I realize that I’m among the lucky. My parents no longer live there; I no longer live there. I have not lost my home and my belongs or my life because of Katrina. I still have a place to go to work. And I do know it’s not “all about me”, but that doesn’t change how I feel or my right to feel it.
MORE...


7:11 P.M. - (AP): The Internal Revenue Service is weighing in on the impact of Hurricane Katrina on both donors and victims. It's reminding people who'd like to contribute cash to the relief effort to make sure the charities qualify for tax-exempt status. If so, then donors can deduct the contribution from their federal income taxes. The IRS is also setting up a hotline for hurricane victims, offering information on tax relief programs, tax return information and disaster tax loss kits.

REMEMBER: THE WORLD IS WATCHING!
QuickTrackback Technorati Tag(s): Katrina, Hurricane Katrina, New Orleans