New Orleans, LA

I am a news junkie. One of the topics that I spend a lot of time on is New Orleans news from places outside New Orleans. I like to see how other people see New Orleans. I especially like news about New Orleans from outside the US. The point of views can be fascinating. You can see the type of stuff I like on my other blog where I comment on an interesting New Orleans news headlines. I try to post at least one headline per day.

Along those lines, I found an article in The Hindu. The Hindu bills itself as Online edition of India’s National Newspaper. This particular article, After the floods, is written by Anjali Kamat and was posted on September 23, 2007.

I don’t want top say that the author got it wrong as much as I want to say he is misinformed. For one thing, he starts off with a picture labeled, “Now a Wasteland.” Excuse me, New Orleans is not a wasteland. True, there are plenty of areas that need work. Some areas haven’t even started work. Calling it a wasteland damages your credibility though.

With all of the half-truths and misinformation in this article, there is one comment that really stands out as being just plain ignorant.

Visiting the post-Katrina landscape of New Orleans is a bit like time travel. It’s a crash course in the long and shameful history of American poverty, injustice, slavery, and racial segregation. But it’s also a window into the future of what other cities in the United States and perhaps across the world could soon look like. That privatised, gentrified, and militarised future is unmistakeably bleak and terrifying.

After a statement like that, you would think the author would provide some information to back up the statement but not in this case. It’s a drive-by insulting aimed at New Orleans and all of the US.

But, as I said above, there are some very true statements in the article:

Two years after the flood, little has changed at the Lower Ninth Ward. The scene is eerily reminiscent of images from days after the hurricane.

Or this:

After two years of wrangling with the bureaucracy, owners who had finally received federal money to rebuild their homes returned only to find their houses demolished and their property seized by the city. Meanwhile rent prices had skyrocketed by almost 200 per cent.

The insane cost of living that is currently biting New Orleans is particularly vexing. Until there is additional housing, rent will remain high. With insurance and taxes out of control, I don’t see it getting better any time soon.

This following paragraph is a prime example of, almost paranoid, misinformation.

The city’s elite called Katrina a godsend that “cleaned up” the crime-ridden projects. But all Stephanie could talk about was how much she misses the sense of community at the projects. She now lives in Survivors Village, a rat-infested “tent city,” erected in protest by former public housing residents like herself, right across the street from her old home.

Who, in New Orleans, called Katrina a “godsend”? I think they got that from the K-Ville pilot episode.

Even though this article is mostly wrong or warped, I still like reading what people in other places are thinking. The downside to reading this is that I have to ask myself, “Is this the image New Orleans is broadcasting to the world?”

new orleans, katrina, news, india, hindu, image

Seeing as how K-Ville will be on tonight (episode 2!), I wanted to link over to my K-Ville blog and share an open letter I wrote about K-Ville, An Open Letter on K-Ville and My Personal Observations. Unlike Chris Rose’s open letter to the producers, I am not looking for a job. Well, if they want to hire me to consult, I wouldn’t say no.

This open letter is to the people in New Orleans and the surrounding area who are offended by bad accents, car chases, gumbo, voodoo shops, etc.

Thanks,

LewisC

letter, kville, k-ville, tv

This is a completely irreverent, completely hilarious parody of MTV cribs. Join the world’s greatest MC, mav-rick jae robokopp, in his crib in St Bernard. You can only get humor like this from the parish!

With sound bits like, “I’ve been living here for 45 years and I’m only 35 years old. What does that tell you?” The scene with the tasty bits in the fridge is guaranteed to amuse and disgust.

This is the height of bad taste and sick humor. Excuse, I’m going to go now and watch some more goatworthy videos.

Click on the video images at the bottom right to see more New Orleans videos. I’ll be changing them on a semi-regular basis. If you know of some good ones that you would like me to link to, leave me a note and I will.

Take care,

LewisC

new orleans, humor, video

The New Orleans Mint is reopening in October. The New Orleans mint was the mint that imprinted an O on coins. The mint shut down in 1909 but has been turned into a museum. It took some major damage by Katrina but has been renovated and is reopening for business.

For those collectors passing through New Orleans, the restored Mint Museum is well worth a visit. The former exhibit on the history of the New Orleans Mint has been totally revamped and expanded. It also now includes a section on the archeology of the Mint. The building served as both a U.S. and Confederate mint, but lack of bullion shut it down quickly under Confederate administration. Minting operations ceased once and for all in 1909 and in 1966 the landmark was transferred to the state. It opened to the public in 1981 as a state museum.

According to web sources, the old mint was built in 1835 and is the only mint in the US to server as both a US and Confederate mint.

View Larger Map

new orleans, us mint, o mint, tourism, history, museum, history, historical, numismatic

Specifically, 10 Headlines From New Orleans’ Past. From the newly opened, NY Times archive, I present 10 headlines from 1851-1980. Anything before 1922 is freely available. Anything between 1922 and 1980 will cost you to read more than a brief abstract.

I love this stuff. If you like this kind of thing, drop me a note and I’ll do some more. If you include a topic list (like Mardi Gras, Shrimp, Flood, etc), I will do a list of old headlines with about that topic.

October 7, 1851, Wednesday

LATEST INTELLIGENCE; Arrival of the Georgia at New-Orleans from Havana–Release of Capt. Ellis, one of the American Prisoners.

The steamship Georgia has arrived at this port in forty-seven hours from Havana. Her news is of no importance, further than the fact that Captain Ellis, one of the recent invaders, has been released from prison. The U. S. steamer Saranan, and ships Albany and Decatur, were at Havana. She brings a large number of passengers and the California mails of September 6th.

October 10, 1851, Wednesday

FATAL AFFRAY IN NEW ORLEANS.–Quite an excitement has been produced in New Orleans, by the death of Alderman William Laughlin, on Sunday evening last, In a rencontre with Ex-Alderman William Silk. Both of the gentlemen were highly respectable. It appears that they met at. Kathman’s Coffee-House, at the corner of Bienville and Marais-streets, and got into an altercation, when harsh words were exchanged.

July 4, 1853, Wednesday

The Wreck of the Ship William and Mary–A Passenger’s Statement.; From the New-Orleans Picayune

May 15, 1927, Sunday

THE LONG BATTLE TO SAVE NEW ORLEANS; Herculean Labors and Costly Strategy Used to Check the Mississippi

LAST to receive the impact of the crest of the heaviest flood that ever swept down the Mississippi will be the levees that half encircle New Orleans. Will they hold? The eyes of a nation are focused on these man-made embankments that hold the fate of the gay and lovely metropolis of the South, our chief foreign trade port after New York.

September 20, 1947, Saturday

NEW ORLEANS HIT, HURRICANE HOWLS ON TO ARKANSAS; 90-Mile Winds Batter the City as Tidal Waves Flood Bayou Area — Fury Is Dropping SIX DEAD AND 400 HURT Gulf port Destruction Is Heavy — Thousands Are Homeless Along Stricken Coast HURRICANE HOWLS ON TO ARKANSAS DESTRUCTION LEFT IN WAKE OF HURRICANE AT NEW ORLEANS

A devastating hurricane was centered in mid-Louisiana early today moving in a northwesterly direction toward Arkansas. Six persons were reported dead along the Gulf Coast and some 400 injured in its wake

April 10, 1955, Sunday

NEW ORLEANS RELIVES ITS CREOLE DAYS; Author of “Bayous of Louisiana,” “Queen of New Orleans” and “Plantation Parade.”

Today, Easter Sunday, marks the traditional opening of New Orleans’ “rival to the Mardi Gras” in its appeal to thousands of travelers–the annual Spring Fiesta. For ten days, through April 20, Orleanians and visitors will join in commemorating the Creole-American civilization which saw its golden days in and about the river city a hundred years or so ago.

September 11, 1965, Saturday

New Orleans Loss In Storm Heavy; 23 Dead in 3 States; STORM LOSS HIGH IN NEW ORLEANS Floodwaters Swirl in Southern Cities After Pounding by Hurricane

Hurricane Betsy dashed itself against lower Louisiana and Mississippi early today and ended a destructive journey that began 15 days ago in the Atlantic Ocean.

November 14, 1960, Monday

U. S. COURT BARS LOUISIANA’S MOVE TO SEIZE SCHOOLS; Enjoins Legislature After It Votes to Call Troopers to Prevent Integration SHOWDOWN DUE TODAY New Orleans Board Plans to Defy State and Admit 5 Negroes to White Classes — U.S. COURT BARS LOUISIANA MOVE

A special legislative session approved steps tonight to forcibly prevent desegregation of the New Orleans public schools.

April 9, 1971, Friday

Plan for Domed Stadium Stirs New Orleans Resistance

Louisiana officials are going ahead with plans to build a $150 - million air - conditioned sports arena in downtown New Orleans amid allegations of “boondoggle,” “swindle” and “kickbacks.”

August 9, 1957, Friday

New Orleans Laymen Asks Pope Bar Integration in Archdiocese; POPE GETS APPEAL FOR SEGREGATION

The Association of Catholic Laymen of New Orleans, bypassing its Archbishop, today asked Pope Pius XII to stop racial integration in the church.

new orleans, history, new york times, archive, headline, headlines, news, newspaper, story

Queen New Orleans, City By The River, was written by Harnett T Kane. Mr Kane was a lover of Louisiana and New Orleans. He wrote several books about the region, include Queen New Orleans, The Bayous of Louisiana and The Romantic South. Mr Kane died on September 4, 2007.

In honor of his memory, and to celebrate his writing, I thought I would share a short excerpt from Queen New Orleans. I have to say that I am quite proud to own a first edition; printed by Morrow in 1949. If you can get a copy, I recommend it. You can find them on ebay at times.

I enjoy this book from two perspectives. As a native New Orleanian, I can see Kane’s love for New Orleans. It’s in every word. As a writer I can see his love for words. When you read this excerpt, I don’t think you’ll be able to do anything but agree.

From Queen New Orleans, Introduction - New Orleans is a Lady.

New Orleans is a lady - part American, part Spanish, more French than either in her essential viewpoint. She is intriguing in her swift changes of mood, grande dame one moment, gamine the next. She enjoys laughter, appreciates a show, relishes a quiet hour of happiness. By the unco guid she is considered a little shady, if not worse she would be the first to admit she is no anemic Puritan. For she has seen a good deal in her day, and she doesn’t shock easily.

It is generally admitted, however, that she has taste and judgment and poise is unmistakable. To her have come glory and heartbreak, triumph and defeat, and she has profited from them all. She can look fate in the face and make the best of whatever befalls her. And above everything else she has her Gallic joie de vivre, her Latin appreciation of the generous intention, the gallant gesture.

Throughout her story New Orleans has remained faithful to herself, and to the river with which destiny has joined her. In fat years and thin, she has stayed his Queen, now a consort in ornate halls, now a tiresome helpmate eating red beans and rice in her kitchen. With the Mississippi she will live to the end; and meanwhile she will go on as always, savoring, appreciating what the days bring.

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Set your DVR on Thursday, September 20 at 7PM to WYES for Reshaping New Orleans. It will repeat at 9pm on Friday.

Reshaping New Orleans is a discussion amongst several knowledgeable and involved people. They will be discussing the Unified New Orleans Plan (UNOP). The Unified New Orleans Plan (UNOP) addresses specific actions necessary to facilitate the recovery and rebuilding of New Orleans. The objective of this multi-level planning process is to successfully integrate community input and a set of deliverables from the district-level and neighborhood planning processes into a Unified Recovery and Rebuilding Plan that will be submitted to the City Planning Commission, City Council, Mayors Office and State of Louisiana. The plan culminates with a city-wide plan that encompasses all districts and neighborhoods.

Is the Citywide Strategic Recovery and Redevelopment Plan more than just thoughts and words on paper? Can it really serve as a practical, workable blueprint to rebuild the city into the community that all residents and neighborhoods want?

The discussion is being led by John Snell (WVUE) and includes:

Stephen D. Villavaso, local planner who worked on Unified New Orleans Plan (UNOP); David Dixon FAIA, a Boston, MA planner who worked on the UNOP; LaToya Cantrell, President of the Broadmoor Improvement Association; David Voelker, board member on the Louisiana Recovery Authority (LRA) and a Federal Representative; Dr. Edward J. Blakely, Executive Director of the Office of Recovery Management for New Orleans and Donald E. Powell, Federal Coordinator of Gulf Coast Rebuilding. Prior to his new appointment, Mr. Powell served as the 18th Chairman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC).

Tune your radio to AM 690 WIST Thursday, September 20 at 8pm after RESHAPING NEW ORLEANS with local hosts Eric Asher and Shane Warner as they discuss the program and take calls from locals. Watch on AM 690 WIST Inside New Orleans with Eric Asher weekdays from 12-3pm and don’t miss The Shane Warner Show weekdays from 3-5pm.

new orleans, planning, katrina, rebuilding, wyes, wvue, wist, reshaping new orleans

Sunday is Photo Of The Week Day.

French Quarter Band, April 2005
Photographer: Mikrash

To submit a photo, send me an e-mail at lewis.cunningham@451press.net with the subject line of New Orleans Photo. In the e-mail attach your photo. Include your name, date of the photo (just month and year is necessary), website you want me to link to, and a description of the photo.

By emailing me the photo, you are explicitly declaring that you are the copyright holder of the photo and that you are giving me permission to post the photo.

I can hot link to your site, or upload the image and link from this site. Tell me your preference.

Thanks,

LewisC

new orleans, photo, image

The NYT had a good write up about K-Ville, Cop Show Comes Calling in Battered New Orleans. I don’t particularly like NYT because, for many articles, you have to log in. This headline caught my eye though.

K-Ville starts next monday. Sept 17. I will be watching. I watched the preview and liked it. I have two hopes for the show.

1) I hope it doesn’t get too cheesy. They could easily get maudlin or they could go the other way and just get stupid with the violence and stereo types. I’m hoping for more.

2) I hope, keeping #1 in mind, that the series is very successful. I don’t know if you remember Frank’s Place but I hope K-Ville is much more successful. I think having a series every week that keeps New Orleans in people’s minds could be very beneficial.

The article says that some people are bothered that in New Orleans, people don’t refer to the city as K-Ville. That’s true but I have read it quite a bit. I read it from people natives and non-natives. I think the title is a non-issue. I mean it’s a TV show for christ’s sake. It beats reality TV and Dr Phil.

Best Quote: Employment and other economic benefits are at the heart of that welcome. Ms. Day said that 80 percent of the crew on the show is local. “It takes eight days to film an episode,” she said. “Over that eight days a little more than a million dollars is pumped into the local economy.”

Wikipedia has a write up about K-Ville. Short but good. I’m sure info will be added to it over time.

new orleans, k-ville, cole hauser, anthony anderson, tv, series, fox, katrina, jobs, tourism

Get’em while they’re hot. The party in park. Voodoo Fest tickets are $40/per day. If you aren’t sure which day you want to attend, check out the Voodoo Fest Schedule. For a single day, Saturday looks like a winner.

If you’re really in the mood for some voodoo festing, check out the “How Would You Do Voodoo?“ contest.

• Grand Prize: One winner, chosen by StarCostumes.com from the top 50 entries, wins 2 three day passes, $1000 for travel & lodging, $100 to StarCostumes.com and a feature on their site.
• 2nd Place: One winner, chosen by highest score, will win a $100 credit at StarCostumes.com.
• Most Viral: One winner, who gets the most attention across the internet, will win a $100 credit at StarCostumes.com. About Most Viral.
• Sweepstakes: One registered member of Brickfish that participates in the campaign by entering, voting or reviewing will have a chance to win a $100 credit at StarCostumes.com. See rules for details.

Sweet!

new orleans, voodoo, fest, festival, costume, music, city park

From KATC, Acadiana’s News Channel, Anne Rice’s New Orleans house for sale. Anne’s massive, 9000 square foot mansion in the Garden District is up for sale. The house is going for a very reasonable, $4.5 million.

Best Quote: According to the mortgage calculator on a real estate web site, if you put $500,000 down on the house and got a 30-year mortgage at 6.63 percent, your monthly payment _ principle and interest only _ would be $25,940.21.

Sweet!

Below is an unrelated but fairly amusing interview from her pre-Christian days. Skip to 19:00 into the video to see Anne.

new orleans, anne rice, vampire, house for sale, real estate

Ok, let me clarify. It’s not a comic book, it a graphic novel. An anthology, actually. From what I have seen of it, it looks pretty sharp. The book, Hope: New Orleans, is from Ronin Studios and says “100 comics creators joined forces to create an anthology to benefit the victims of the hurricane and subsequent flooding of New Orleans”.

The proceeds from the sale of this book will go toward the Southeast Louisiana Chapter of the Red Cross and its continued effort to help the victims of Hurricane Katrina.

The front and back cover are painted by David Mack, creator of Kabuki. The pinups by Lark, Shinn/Barkmann, Stahnke, Villegas and Wachter are placed throughout the book, rounding it off perfectly.

Some of the stories in the anthology:

Persistent City
An ode to New Orleans by writer Alex Wilson and artist Mario Boon, this story was created for HOPE: New Orleans and first printed in The Florida Review, Fall 2006

Goth Ninja in New Orleans
Stepping off the pages from her Silent Devil book, the Goth Ninja takes on an enemy in the streets of New Orleans.

Brotherhood
A father tells his son about the power of music in a seemingly hopeless situation.

Epsilon Realm: A Reason to Believe
An international group of superheroes goes to help the victims of Katrina.

Lightning Squirrel: Terror in the Ruins
Lightning Squirrel and his friends help New Orleanseans in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and the flooding of the city.

Sweet Marie
The last story in the anthology is a tale of the indomitable spirit of New Orleans, symbolized by the Voodoo Queen, Marie Laveau.

You can get more info from this discussion about the book. I haven’t been able to find it on sale yet. Doesn’t amazon carry things like this?

new orleans, katrina, comic, book, graphic, ronin studios, hope: new orleans

Stephen Sabludowsky of the BayouBuzz got a very honest and heartfelt interview with Soledad O’Brien. I’m not sure what I expected in the interview but it was very honest and sort of moving. She made a couple of comments that would not have expected from a journalist.

You can view the videos at the bayoubuzz, Interview With Soledad O’Brien. I get the daily email from the Bayoubuzz. While I don’t always agree with the editorial viewpoint, I do like the site.

I’ve got this interview bookmarked. I’ve always liked Soledad and she makes a few comments that should be mailed to all of the politicians at all levels. “It’s about justice and fairness” should be the Rebuild New Orleans tag line.

new orleans, katrina, soledad obrien, interview, bayou buzz

This is an odd twist to good news. This Old House is coming to New Orleans. From the Times-Picayune, PBS series ‘This Old House’ heads to New Orleans. I haven’t watched the show in a long time but I used to watch it religiously. Norm and Kevin O’Connor will be in New Orleans on tuesday.

Quote: The mini-season will tell “a multi-faceted story about the recovery and rebuilding efforts following Hurricane Katrina,” according to a “The This Old House Hour” news release. “The show will track several personal stories, yet will primarily focus on a historic renovation in the neighborhood of Holy Cross in the Lower 9th Ward.”

new orleans, good news, this old house

Back in the beginning of August, I wrote an article about a Time Magazine article called Time: The Threatening Storm. After I wrote that, I got a comment from a reader named Corps Of Engineers Employee. Corps had this to day:

# Corps of Engineers Employee Says:
August 14th, 2007 at 9:45 am e

TIME magazine’s article, “The Threatening Storm,” undermines the real science and risk information citizens need to make informed decisions about rebuilding with its reckless disregard for the truth.

The Corps provided TIME magazine with engineering, scientific and risk information derived from the Interagency Performance Evaluation Task Force’s (IPET) study done in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. The IPET study has been independently peer reviewed by the American Society of Civil Engineers and the National Academies. TIME chose to base their article on upon technical quotes that are not supported by science-based facts or the analysis done by IPET, ASCE or the National Academies.

For more info, visit:
http://www.usace.army.mil/response.htm

I promised that I would take a look at the link and report back. I have read the information and am now reporting back.

First off, I have to admit, I am not an engineer. I’m a computer neebish, though. Anyway, I mentioned (complained?) in my original post that I would like to see where Time got their info. This page from the Corps has links to that data. This page was basically released like a press release and if you are interested, I would recommend that you read it and the links provided. I will post some, what I consider significant, information from the release here.

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