The CNBC Katrina Program

[erpowers]

Did anyone watch the program CNBC did last night about New Orleans two years after Hurricane Katrina? I found what the program show to be interesting and sad. It was interesting to see what had happened in the two years after the hurricane. It is sad that two years after Hurricane Katrina it seems that very little has been done. I thought that after two years if I visited New Orleans the clean up would have been completed. However, it seems that a great deal of things still have to be completed. I am just surprised that so much more still has to be done. So, what are the thoughts of others?

On another issue, why is the money for the restruction of New Orleans tied up in a military appropriation bill. Can't someone just take the money from the appropriation bill and let the money for New Orleans reconstruction stand alone as a separate bill?

[Vodid]

1. The main thing that folks do not understand...

Is the sheer scope of the damage. You can drive for block after block after block, mile after mile, and EVERYTHING has been flooded and needs to be gutted or torn down. Thousands upon thousands of properties. Even if everything had gone smoothly and we'd had excellent government support, the task of rebuilding everything to some new normal would still be monumental...and as everyone knows, we've had very little in the way of governmental support. The sewers and drains underneath the streets still need to be fixed in a lot of neighborhoods...so there's a LONG way to go before things are fixed up.

Just as in Iraq, all the big money was distributed to well-connected cronies; private contractors from out of state, and very little money actually made it to anyone who lives here. Everything was and is stacked against the individual resident. The insurance companies all try to lowball or weasel out of paying the homeowners claims, which has spawned an entire sub-industry of attornies who'll argue with the insurance companies in your behalf for 30 to 40 percent of whatever settlement they achieve. None of the programs that were supposed to give the homeowner some money to fix up or tear down their homes (Road Home being the primary one) has delivered on their promise to help, although there seems to be some movement with Road Home as of late. Property isn't selling because the insurance companies no longer want to write policies down here, so real estate is getting sorta depressed, with lots of homes on the market. There are also lots of unscrupulous contractors, and good honest competent workers charge a premium price for their labor. There are volunteers whose hearts are in the right place, and they start out with a bang but I don't blame them when they get discouraged at how much work is involved to even make a small difference...it's like digging a canal with a garden trowel. And sometimes they are filled with the good spirit of freely volunteering their time, and sadly confuse their generosity to the city in general, thinking it applies specifically to every New Orleanian...case in point being a large group that comes in daily to a coffee shop in my neighborhood, and they never tip their waiters...because they are helping us, right? They don't realize that the waiters have their own lives to worry about, are being paid less than minimum wage, and depend on tips for their income. Everyone is just sorta eeking out a slim daily existence down here...it's an interesting time, and as is typical for New Orleans, even under adversity most folks seem to be able to squeeze some enjoyment and fun out of daily life.

Hope that sorta explains it. The main thing one hears from visitors after being driven around in some of the damaged areas is that they had no idea that SO MUCH was damaged. It's hard to imagine it until you've seen it firsthand.

[erpowers]

3. Not Trying To be Mean to People of New Orleans

I was not trying to be mean to the people on New Orleans. I do not blame the people of the city. I am upset that the government on all levels has not done more. It seems that the government could have done so much more.

[Vodid]

4. You weren't being mean nt

[rudy23]

2. Why was Karl Rove appointed to head a recovery effort? Why hasn't the media followed up on this?

Has anyone ever asked Rove what measures he's taken to help rebuilding in the area? Why is a political operative appointed to take on such a task without anyone even questioning it?