Death of an American City

sad situation... however, a rebuild will not happen. bush isnt the type of person to rebuild a home where most of its residents were lower middle income or poorer...

 

what a shame. all that culture, all that history, and our government won't step up and protect the city or its inhabitants.

 

Appalling. Sickening. As always, Bush says one thing for the cameras and does another. (Notice what's happening on the Mexican border problem? He promised a tightened-security border and a guest worker program. Now the guest worker part has, apparently, already been dropped.)

The new hurricane season starts in about 9 months.

I won't be a hypocrite. I don't think it's worth rebuilding the Ninth Ward as a residential area. Maybe mostly "light industry" and a greenbelt buffer. And the levee must be replaced, regardless. Whatever new housing is built should be scattered in other, higher areas.

But...whatever. DECIDE something. TELL people. Then Do it.

 

Unfortunately, the rebuilding of the levee system will never be done right. We don't have that kind of committment. Look at The Netherlands; that's committment!

There is another unfortunate and unavoidable truth. When you build on a flood plain; you will, eventually, suffer a flood! Somehow, we keep forgeting that!

US Corp of Engineers vs. Mother Nature. Bet on Mother Nature.

 

Well it's nice to see people so critical about the rebuilding efforts. What I want to know is haven't you stopped to think about how long it actually takes to build stuff? Our house took around 8 months to build, and it's just one house. Things don't pop up overnight.

Yes, the levees need to be fixed. Badly. But answer this, how long does it take to rebuild a levee system like the one in New Orleans? Well, according to the experts, it'll take years at best. And that's the estimate without worrying about funding. It takes time people. Yes, the next hurricane season is only nine months away. It is physically impossible to have the levees rebuilt by then. Simply impossible. It's going to take time.

Here in Florida, there are still some places where you can see hurricane damage. I'm not talking about the storms of 2005 either, but 2004. Charlie, Ivan, and gang. It takes time.

Yes, Bush is an nice person. He doesn't care about the poor of New Orleans, or the poor of any city, or the poor of Mexico even. Think what you will. DId you expect the President to go down there and rebuild New Orleans on his own? Get real. They could dump money into New ORleans coffers and nothing would be different. For one, there simply aren't enough people to build. The supply of construction labor is limited.

Wake up people. Rebuilding from a disaster takes time. A long time.

 

It'll be done about the time that the Gulf swallows New Orleans. The wetlands have been steadily disappearing because of the massive engineering effort to control the Mississippi River. That has had a very negative impact on the delta. Don't expect it to go away though. Keeping the Mississippi navigable is of Prime importance to many cities upstream.

 

No matter how strong and high they rebuild the levees, I don't think anyone will ever be able to afford home/buisness insurance. The insurance companies are already getting sued to cover the last 2 hurricanes. When and if they insure another home in Louisiana, you can bet the premiums will be tripple or more what they should be, with a rider stating they will not cover rain/flood damage. You will have to be well off financially to even build there, but even more to insure, then you still risk looseing everything again. No win deal, sad to say.

 

A) The PEOPLE NEEDED to hear "We will rebuild" BUT, the President is not in control of that. CONGRESS authorizes spending....get educated.

B) WHY does the gov't have to rebuild ALONE.....The city, the state, and the CITIZENS need to do their part....ALL I hear is "Why doesn't the Fed gov't do EVERYTHING".

C) Maybe it IS a bad idea to rebuild N.O. the way it was....is that too evil a thought to consider?

D) It would be pathetic to rebuild the city only to find that the occupants have put down new roots somewhere else....then what?

This occurence was UNPRECEDENTED and using "old" ideas is wrong....we need some thinking outside the box. My first thought...a PLANNED city, not just put it back the way it was.

Why not build the new N.O. somewhere where the levees are not needed....

Stop the BUSH bashing...it is doing NO ONE any good.

 

Hallelujah., Smika is the only one in this thread to catch on. The people and the politicians of Louisiana, (the pols are notoriously crooked) are going to have to do their part. We live just next door, don't think a feel good quick fix is going to do it. It is estimated that it would take 30 YEARS., folks to rebuild the leevies to stand up to CAT 5's., and that is IF the pols do their HONEST part and apportion part of the land needed to get to that point to begin with. Ms Blanco, her family has had vested interests in land in the NO area and stopped a lot of land acquisition needed by the Army Corp to complete a CAT 3 system, and the leevy itself let go in its best newest and strongest points. The real problem in Louisiana is LOUSIANA., remember they already tried to get 250 Billion from Congress..now down to 32 Billion ?? Should this country just flush that money down there and not fix the disease ? What about Alabama, Mississippi and Texas and Rita..think nothing happened there?? This big city major (New Orleans) knowing he had about 950,000 low income citizens, and that over 400,000 would REQUIRE evacuation had just one plan...The SuperDome (capacity about 35,000). He knew this and did nothing BEFORE (way before not at the last minute, after blaming Bush on TV). So have at it with the FEDS..but hit the State, that is where the problem really lies.

 

Any city planners out in Prius Chat land?

--Have any large cities been allowed to "die" or severely retract its borders, services, and population, in modern times?

--What are the necessary ingredients to rebuild a large city like New Orleans? Can everthing be lined up so there's a possibility of rebuilding?

--Is there a point at which a population should just give up and "walk away" from a site?

 

Rebuild the parts that make sense and/or have historic value.
Condemn and restore the rest to its natural role of wetlands.
Most planners I've read agree that N.O. is located in about the stupidest place to build a city.

N.O. folks have been dispersed by the hurricane and many have started new lives in new locations.
The government should be encouraging them to resettle.
Our obligation to the people of N.O. is to get them back on their feet, not to restore their wealth, property, or favored living arrangements.

I don't think it would be fair to deny him what he has so clearly earned. <_<

 

Agree w/ all but last sentence. Surprised...NOT!!! :lol:

 

WHY does the gov't have to rebuild ALONE.....The city, the state, and the CITIZENS need to do their part....ALL I hear is "Why doesn't the Fed gov't do EVERYTHING".


All you hear? Stop watching CNN & FOX NEWS if you want to hear more. Actually, I am getting my infor from PC...I rarely watch any news.


C) Maybe it IS a bad idea to rebuild N.O. the way it was....is that too evil a thought to consider?


You think? The problem is, it's cheaper to rebuild NOLA the way it was. Says WHO!!!!!


D) It would be pathetic to rebuild the city only to find that the occupants have put down new roots somewhere else....then what?


From what I've seen a good number of its occupants are already back. A good number...how many out of the hundreds of thousands. You are dreaming here.


This occurence was UNPRECEDENTED and using "old" ideas is wrong....we need some thinking outside the box. My first thought...a PLANNED city, not just put it back the way it was.


Agreed. Thank you for that much!


Why not build the new N.O. somewhere where the levees are not needed....


Any suggestions? Ohio, maybe? :lol: :lol: I own 13 acres I would sell (for a reasonable profit :lol: )


Stop the BUSH bashing...it is doing NO ONE any good.


Bush is a screwup, but so are Blanco and Nagin. I agree, however, that the bashing is futile. Admit it, in your mind he would be a screwup if he did everything right.

Thanks for weighing in though. Opinions are like a**holes....we all have them and they all stink! :lol: :lol: :lol: