trouble in mind
Can’t help but think of the Gulf coast people who are under threat today. It looks like things are much better prepared and people, both government and citizens, are taking what precautions they can. But I’m putting this video here in the superstitious hope of keeping images like this in the past:
categories: thought
tags: hurricane Gustav, hurricane Katrina
posted by boolz at 05:15 pm
This summer, my husband and I drove 7500 miles through the US. The impetus for taking this trip was to go to New Orleans (we live in CA) to see John Boutte live, but even more so to see for ourselves how New Orleans is faring. The cable cars are running again, the French Quarter is fine (always was),people are trying to put their lives back together. However, when we took a drive through the Upper and Lower Ninth, it still looked like a bomb hit the place. Schools are still closed, many people are still living in trailers, and by the way, the government has told them they needed to find some other places to stay since they had not yet manage to rebuild!!! Yes, some reconstruction has taken place, the people there are incredibly resilient, but for the poorest residents there… well, “they’re trying to wash us away” is a good line.
The government was prepared this time. One would hope they would be, would have learned something from Katrina! But what about the next time, and the next, as this “good planet (that) is hard to find” warms up, and these events become more common?
One thing was so clear to us during this trip. This country is amazing, so diverse in both its landscape and its people. I am proud to be part of it. It’s really worth saving, so I hope we get our shit together and do right by it.
I was in New Orleans last year in May. They were
still reconstructing some of the French Quaters.
It was evident to me that those with money had
already had their homes rebuilt. Those that owned
homes but didn’t have a lot of money were still living
in the trailers on their Driveways of their homes.
Those that rented were still in trailer parks.
Every where you looked.
Some people from the 9th Parrish I talked to three months ago said it was still a disaster in the 9th Parrish.
If they get hit again you can tell New Orleans and
surrounding areas good bye.