Ain't that America

I like to pretend that I’m past the anger. I like to think I have an endless wellspring of patience when it comes to listening to people speculate on "the issue” which is the current state of my city. Last night I lost that patience.

I was having dinner in L.A. with some folks I knew, and some folks I didn’t. I ended up sitting next to a guy I didn’t know. He was a young guy, about to get an undergraduate degree in business and then go to law school. He was quick to inform everyone that he was a diehard republican and wanted to eventually become a judge. He was neatly groomed, a little too neat for a guy….you know the type. He was the kind of guy that has the world keenly compartmentalized in his mind…with an obsessive need to get the people he meets into those cerebral compartments. Kind of like the way Obi Wan described the Sith – “One who speaks in absolutes”….you know the type.

Initially, I thought I might get through the night without “the issue” coming up…no such luck.

“So you’re from New Orleans….how’s it going down there?”

“Unwell.”

I like the semantic impact of unwell…it usually just hangs in the air and people don’t really know what to do with it. I’ve successfully cut off conversations about “the issue” a number of times with unwell. But not tonight…I was sitting next to Mr. Neat and unwell didn’t quite fit into his compartments.

He started to dig.

“Why is it so bad down there? I don’t understand why you guys can’t get anything done.”

“Well, we don’t have the financial resources or political leadership to do it.”

“How can that be true? Haven’t we been sending you all that money?”

I assume by "we" he meant America...or maybe he had a mouse in his pocket and donated to the Red Cross.

“I’ve heard there's money coming…but I haven’t seen it. Look, it’s important to understand the breadth of destruction in the city…80% of the city was flooded.”

“If it’s that bad, why rebuild it?”

I was still ok…really….I was cool.

“Well, aside from the fact that many of us who live there really love our city, it’s a very important city and area to sustaining the country’s economic infrastructure. ..over 30% of the country’s energy supply runs through the southern end of our state. Our port is one of the busiest in the world. We have petro-chemical plants lined along the Mississippi between New Orleans and Baton Rouge which are absolutely vital to our food supply…we do a lot for this country quite often at the expense of our own health.”

“I don’t get it, why can’t we just move all that stuff to another state?”

“Aside from the fact that it’s geographically and financially impossible….no other states want these type of factories in their backyard. Refineries and Petro-Chem plants…they’re very nasty creatures. They create a lot of poor health conditions for the people in the surrounding areas. They call the area between New Orleans and Baton Rouge ‘Cancer Alley’”

“Why the hell would people live around them or work in them? Why don’t they just leave…are they just to stupid to realize what they’re living in?”

For some reason…that’s what set me off. It doesn’t even bother me that much now that I read it, but when he spoke the words, it very much chapped my ass.

“Because some people have to work for a living. Someone has to make plastic so you can eat fresh Pop-Tarts before you go to your business ethics class. Some people don't have as many options as you do.”

He rambled on about it being a free country and regurgitated a wave of asinine platitudes he pulled off the conservative bookshelf. I was waiting for him to ask why we couldn't get Mexicans to work in those plants...that's the kind of crap that was flowing out of his mouth.

Luckily the food showed up pretty quickly and his hunger took precedence over his need to rationalize “the issue”.

I let it get to me. It was really eating at me driving back to my hotel room. I just kept wondering how many morons there are in this country who really think like this. This guy wants to be a judge…that’s pretty scary.

Later on I got a call from one of my friends from Kentucky who works in a very nasty plant…uranium enrichment…very nasty.

“Hey man…I was just watching that Spike Lee documentary on HBO last night…Jesus Christ, man…I had no idea how bad the shit is down there, man! We oughtta string Bush up by his balls…this shit just ain’t right, man! I just can’t believe this is America…it just ain’t right, man!”

I choked back a tear…or two.

“I know man….it’s not right at all.”

“What can we do about it, man? I’m ready to drive to Washington and start kickin’ somebody’s ass!”

I went from tears to laughter in a millisecond…because I knew if given the opportunity, he would kick somebody in Washington's ass.

“You know bro…just calling me and telling me you care is enough for me right now, I don’t particularly feel the need to kick anyone’s ass anymore.”

We yabbed for a while about the woes of the world…and at the end of the night, I felt a lot better.

The Supreme Repudiater Rises to New Heights

"I'm 50 years old. For me, things have kind of set in," Nagin said Tuesday. "I'm learning every day. I get smarter. But I believe in truth and I believe in answering the question very directly. Some people may not like the words, but if they step back and really study the context of what I'm saying, I think they'll understand.

He believes in the truth...that's rich.

“Very little money has actually hit the local level yet. Local people are being left out and it’s just not right. It’s not American. We deserve much better than this and pretty soon, we’re going to put everyone on notice. Once we finish grieving, we will hold everyone accountable who’s holding up our money. I don’t want to hear any more about flood elevation maps! I don’t want to hear about ‘we don’t have a plan’!”

Unbelievable....I don't even know how to respond to this one. He doesn't want to hear it? It's your fucking job, dipshit. He doesn't have a plan...he doesn't have anything tangible. He was the CEO of a multi-million dollar business...he is supposedly a business man...show me any VC firm or investor that would turn over a dime to any venture that didn't have a business plan. We're talking billions here...and he has produced nothing to explain how these billions will be spent.

He's going to put everyone on notice....WTF does that mean? Who is everyone? He has some imaginary enemy in his mind that's hindering this recovery. Well here's the truth since you believe in it Ray....you're the one hindering this recovery, bro...you're the enemy.

He went on to say, “We’ve been planning for 11 months now!”

And what has he produced? A whole bunch of nothing. Once again this man is pathologically incapable of accepting responsibilty for anything.

How long must this go on? I mean seriously...short of another hurricane walloping us, this was our last big moment in the media spotlight to plead our case. While Spike Lee's film was amazing and educated a lot of Americans to our reality, Nagin had the opportunity to plead our case to the country on the heels of this film and the media attention we had yesterday.

How about, "We are hurting, America, and we desperately need your help." Instead we got, "We're going to hold everyone accountable...we're going to put everyone on notice."

We're so screwed....we're just screwed.

obligatory reckoning

I don't really have a lot of sentiment about today's anniversary. I'm not much on reflection but my conscious feels obliged to, so I'll just tell you where m'at.

I am still paying a mortgage on a house I can't live in, I can't tear down, I can't sell, and I can't fix. I am suing my insurance company. I can't get Road Home money to fix my house because I had insurance, but the insurance company has screwed me, so I am essentially penalized for having had insurance. I'm still in the same hole I've been in for the whole year.

My 5 year old son still asks about New Orleans. He still misses it and still considers it his home. Sometimes he cries when he thinks about his friends, namely Thomas, his best friend. He wonders about his house and his room a lot, too.

I have been away from him, my wife and my daughter (she's about to turn two) a lot over the past year. That's my biggest regret and hardship since Katrina did her thing. It's been tough...and still is, but I'm trying to see the bigger picture and tell myself this is temporary and it will end. I hope that's true, and I hope it's sooner than later.

I've traveled a lot this year. I'm in L.A. as I write this. The traveling has been interesting, but at a cost. It's a tough traveling so much knowing that you don't really have a "home" to come back to. Sometimes I feel like a ghost just wandering around. I'll catch myself standing in an airport or at a coffee shop in some strange town staring off into space and I just forget where I am or even who I am...kind of like when you get piss drunk and wake up someplace and don't know how you got there, but with no hangover.

I have a lot of bouts of compulsion....and guilt. I feel guilty all the time, mostly about not having a home for my family.

That's about it.

happy anniversary fellow New Orleanians.

Nagin has to go...OT must rise

Moldy City suggests a Nagin recall and an OT promotion. Even though I think OT was drinking the Kool-Aid when he said Nagin was our "Politcal Father". If that's the case I'm calling child services, we're all being abused.

On second thought....maybe Ray should crawl back in his hole

I begged him to do something, anything. Of course I didn't realize he would shoot off his stupid frikkin' mouth and insult perhaps the only city who has shown solidarity with us.

New York...I apologize, please ignore our dumbass mayor.

This is pathological. This man cannot accept responsibility. He has no sense of it. I was leary of this last winter, when he made the comment more than once, "I didn't sign on for this." You don't accept responsbility as the mayor of a city and say "I didn't sign on for this."

Then quit you frikkin' pussy! (you may chastize me for exclamation point there, Adrostos, but I really meant that one)

I give you a story I heard from Clancy DuBos.

A day after the levees broke, Lt. Gov. Landrieu made his way downtown after realizing there was a complete failure of communications within the city. He went to the Hilton where he found Nagin sitting on the floor by himself typing on a laptop. He asked Nagin what he needed and what he could do for him. Nagin nonchalantly replied "We have it under control, we're just trying to establish a command center." Landrieu replied, "You are the command center...the command center is right here." Nagin ignored him. Landrieu then went on to pull people out of the water for the next several days.

Recall this idiot now before he cuts off what's left of the life support this city is running on.

I can't believe Fox isn't leading with this...

A very pissed off Pluto is threatening to bite off this child's head unless his planet status is retained.


















After being demoted to mortal status, Pluto, the former deity, has threatened to put hell hounds on astronomer's trail.










Eddie Murphy has threatened to shelf Pluto Nash II, upon news of Pluto's downgrade from planet status.

Grape Fantana is fukin' hot...

a masterpiece

I think Spike Lee has touched his muse. "When The Levees Broke" is an opus. I had a predilection against it, I must admit. I've never been a fan of Lee's films, so I didn't expect much out of this film.

Damn....was I suprised.

This film is good, good, good, good, good.

Kudos to Spike, and a great big thank you.

Ashe'

The world isn't flat, but Thom Friedman's mind may be

I spent two weeks in Dehi, India in May, then traveled to Dubai, UAE for about 5 days.

Before leaving, I made it a point to read Thomas Friedman's book, "The World is Flat". I've read a lot of Friedman and find that I agree with the bulk of his theories, which mostly revolve around Globalization and the great promise of a "Global Free Market".

I also read it because it seemed to be the most oft cited piece of literature by the New Orleans Mayoral candidates from Rob Couhig to Mitch Landrieu.

The book was good, especially considering I am a living example of what TF refers to as "roundsourcing". He makes some incredible observations about the cultural background of India and their inclination towards mathematics and engineering. The book paints the picture that in the new "knowledge based economy", Indian's penchant for mathematics combined with the sheer force of population will prove a highly formidable economic engine in the emerging global economy.

I agree

He then goes on to juxtapose "India Rising" with "America Declining" based on our lack of standards towards education, in particular mathematics and science...the elements which are powering the economy of Globalization.

I somewhat agree.

Essentially, Friedman believes that a global free market is a potential panacea for world peace and prosperity.

I strongly disagree.

It's inevitable...but i don't believe it will be a panacea.

Friedman ends "The World is Flat" with a rather curious observation about the internet. He first praises the internet as a catalyst for this emerging world economy, which in a previous book, "The Lexus and the Olive Tree", he credited with birthing what he called "The Electronic Herd".

The Electronic Herd is a marketplace, per internet, which moves without borders or a sense of time. It invests in international markets and cares not about national boundaries or market hype....it is an efficient, logical force which equalizes markets only on the basis of the viablility of economic gain thereby forcing countries to be honest, capitalistic, democracies. This concept fits nicely into his vision of a single, global economy. This world economy, according to Friedman, will in turn bring us closer to world peace and stability.

In "The World is Flat", he has a more sinister view of the net....he warns that while it holds great promise, it also poses great risk. Of course he mentions the power of the net to connect terrorist plots and wreak havoc on the civilzed world.

However it occured to me that perhaps TF's anxiety of the net is brought on by another factor. What happens if the people of the planet start communicating with each other outside the normal government and corporate regulated channels of communication? What if they start to draw the conclusion that capitalism and a global free market aren't actually beneficial to them? What if they start to realize they don't have to live in debt their whole life? What if they realize America's strategy since WWII has been to sucker "undeveloped" countries into taking massive loans to pay "Anglo-Corp" to build "infrastructure" in their country in order to bring them into the global free market.

At what cost?

The cost is putting them into such an enormous debt that they will never be able to pull themselves out of it, hence making them privy to American demands.

That is exactly what Enron did to India, before they disintegrated. Funny how TF never mentioned that in his praise for India's acceptance of the free market doctrine. India signed a 3 billion dollar contract with Enron in 1992 for a natural gas power plant in Dahbol to produce badly needed electricity for the country. It's 2006 and guess how many megawatts of electricity the plant is generating? 0000.0000 and the country defaulted on the 30 + million dollar/month loan payments in 2000.

In a previous book, Friedman proposed what he called the "Golden Arches Theory". Basically it stated that any country which moves into the free market/capitalist doctrine, ends up moving away from warfaring methods of conflict resolution and moves towards peaceful, diplomatic methods to resolve potential conflict.

How to tell if the country is a part of the free market? Look for McDonalds...the Golden Arches. According to TF, when people get the basic luxuries of a capitalist culture, such as a trans-fat soaked Big Mac or Filet o' Fish, they stop wanting to fight and would rather make more money so they can eat more McDonalds.

I'm not shitting, this is the theory.



An elderly, beggar woman in New Delhi takes a load off next to a compassionate clown



This is the bone I have to pick with Friedman. I think he makes some incredible observations about globalization and it's effect on human beings and their culture. But rarely does he flip the equation....what about human beings and culture's effect on globalization...what if people decide they don't like McDonald's...maybe they decide their way of life was better before they got a McDonalds. In other words, what happens if the rest of the planet doesn't buy that the "world is better off in a capitalist environment".

That may be happening as we speak. In fact, it may be happening in the Western Hemisphere via Hugo Chavez.

Shortly after reading TWIF, I picked up a copy of John Perkin's "Confessions of an Economic Hitman". What a great antitheses to Friedman's perception of the world.

At what cost Capitalism? At what cost Globalization?

Perkin's book is a first person account of his role in manipulating "underdeveloped" countries for American profit and control of their natural resources. While a I got a little tired of Perkin's overwhelming sense of guilt, the book really spells out the horrible acts America has perpetrated on other countries in order to maintain our ever increasing pursuit of capital.

It's scary stuff...really. We have most likely assissinated at least 3 Latin American presidents in the past 4 decades, including Panama's Omar Torrijos and Ecaudor's Jaime Roldas, in order to replace them with puppet leaders who are sympathetic to American interests...men such as the brutal despot, Augusto Pinochet, in Chile and other despots in the Middle East from Iran's tyrannical Shah, Mohammad Reza Pahlav to Saddam Hussein in Iraq. As long as they were helping to lubricate the wheels of American capitalism, we conveniently ignored these dictators' human rights violations.

So the point of the post is that I would highly recommend reading these two books back to back. Read Friedman first, then read Perkins.

Globalization is not a new phenomenon, it's been evolving since Mawg of the Bear Clan traded furs for flints with Onk of the Mountain Clan. Mawg's new flints undoubtedly ended up between the ribs of an "underdeveloped" neighboring tribe member.

The rosy picture Friedman paints of Globablization in "The World is Flat" becomes somewhat of a fairy tale after reading Perkins, or at least it did for me. Would love to hear anyone else's take on the books.

too many rules.....right

A quote from Nagin at the annual meeting of the National Association of Black Journalists:

Nagin suggested that Louisiana and federal officials would prefer the city remain smaller.

He said the city is struggling to deliver services and rebuild with a quarter of its former municipal budget. The federal and state aid the city has received is inadequate and comes with too many rules, he said.

"We are being strangled, and they're using the money to set local policies to try to take control of the city to do things that they had in mind all along, and that's to shrink the footprint, get a bunch of developers in the city, and try to do things in a different way," Nagin said.

"We're not going to let that happen. They're going to give us our money, and we're going to rebuild this city."

Who is "they" Ray? Who is this band of conspirators punking you out of your cash?

They're gonna give you money so you can spend it on a traveling Ray Nagin photographic roadshow? They're gonna give you money so you can siphon it out of the system with bullshit contracts and kickbacks?

You arrogant bastard...get your ass back to this city...cut out the corruption and do something besides bitch. Do anything....anything....just show up man...just show up. That would be a start.

Or better yet, do us all a favor....resign and go somewhere else.

a Retraction

I want to quantify the last post on the SSL certificate. The data on the city's website is most likely secure...BUT, it is possible to exploit the site in lieu of the expired certificate...not likely, but possible.

The post was overdone....I apologize.

However, the fact that it was allowed to lapse is a concern. I'll leave it at that...

A Train Wreck on the Horizon

Not only has Nagin failed miserably in his promise to keep our city safe from crime in the corporeal realm....he's now opened up the city website to a potential cyber attack.

The SSL certificate on the city website has expired. That means that anyone going on the site to pay a parking ticket by entering their credit card number will be entering their financial information on an unsecure system. Cyber theives could be acquiring CC numbers entered on the site en masse, as I write this.

I can see the class action lawsuit unfolding already....just what the city needs at a period when we can't even get our streetlights fixed.

This is just gross incompetence...pure and simple. In his first 100 days he's done nothing but travel around the country selling himself out for speaking engagements at 5k per pop. This is just pathetic.

mmmm.....

I said,"Boo....are you scared now?"

now we're terrorists? amazing.

Shake, Shake, Shake Senor Meffert.....shake the contractor down

This post comes to AZ from another Anon....but I can tell by the syntax, this guy has to be in IT industry because he starts the sentence off with "...some more data". I love that...just the facts sir. So check this out:

Well here is some more data on "imaginary software" and Mark St Pierre. When the work for the City first came up, it was done under contract through a gov-gov partnership the the now famous Navy Information Technology Center and UNO. Mark St. Pierre was an employee of SAIC at entergy and moonlighting with Meffert on City work. Meffert directed SEA to bring several of the "imaginary software" boys on board to kick start the company. St Pierre and company wanted very high rates, but the contract through the ITC limited what could be charged. Then when SEA would not succumb to blackmail and hand "imaginary software" free work on other contracts, SEA was cut from the program. An RFP was let and several companies bid on it, only to have it canceled by the city and the GSA buy through Ciber be the replacement. Mark Kurt actually tried to leverge the threat of this RFP to gain additional work from SEA at the time, and was ultimately successful in blackmailing Ciber to allow the GSA buy. Find out how many Ciber folks are working at City hall. BTW, This procurement approach was only possible because Nagin signed an emergence procurement release to allow it after the RFP was canceled and a work stoppage was close at hand.


This verifies much of what I've heard from other sources...what's important to me about this info. is that Nagin signed the "emergency" procurement to cancel the RFP and allow the Ciber contract to go through. That's pretty clear evidence that Nagin was fully aware of what was going on and actively assisted in the tactics.

I've seen this tactic used many times with the School Board....Contracts are killed or rushed though (particularly insurance) under the threat of impending deadlines, or emergency situtations, which inevitably leads to someone siphoning money out of the system.

How many Ciber employees are at City Hall? Can anyone provide the number?