Land of the blue tarps

I'm over in New Orleans today, working in a client's office while
a well is drilled offshore somewhere. I didn't go into town yet,
I stayed out here in the burb's and from this office it looks like
every third house has a blue tarp covering the roof. This area
just had normal streetflooding that results when the pumps
aren't turned on due to the workmen being evacuated, not due
to a levee breach. But it does look like a mild war swept through
the area.

All of metairie seems to be bustling, help wanted signs are
everywhere and every other vehicle seems to be full of mexican
roofers. On the other hand, tonight I can look out through the
darkness outside this office, and through one window I can see
the thin ribbon of the causeway bridge stretching out to infinity,
through the other window I can see that the center of New Orleans
is ominously dark.

I can remember christmas' from my childhood, when the soaring
towers of downtown left their lights on in the shape of christmas
trees, or a cross. Now, all I can see of downtown from here are navigation
lights at the tops of the buildings.

Talk radio here in Louisiana had some interesting information,
an interview with the loser in the last governer's election Bobby Jindal,
who I last blogged about here. Then they interviewed someone from
the recall Kathleen Blanco committee, and their website is here.

It would be worth it for me to move back to louisiana just so I could
sign the petition.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The other side of Porkbusters, the people who need pork

Here in Alaska the governor is discussing a PR campaign would attempt to tell the rest of the US that Alaska is not just a consumer of Federal money, and it would "tell Alaska's story": (from a column by Beth Bragg) The governor wants to "tell Alaska's story" to the Lower 48 so folks down there have a better idea of what it's like up here. The goal is to end the ridicule we've been so good at inspiring lately, what with our bridges to you-know-where and our desire to drill for oil in a wildlife refuge. The thinking goes like this: If we can educate the critics with pictures of a desolate ANWR and defuse the comedians with pictures of a serene and congenial Ted Stevens, then we can move on to our ultimate goal, which is building bridges to you-know-where and drilling for oil in a wildlife refuge. Or as the Governor actually said: "Alaska does not just take. We give, and we have the capacity to give much, much more -- if permitted to do so,&
Read more

Haditha slant in the press

Image
There's not much actual information out in the press about what really happened in Haditha, but most of what has come out is highly slanted against the marines. The only data point I've seen is an interview with the lance corporal who survived the initial IED explosion. Here's a summary of the interview here: (RHCP) (video here ) Again, here's a summary of the salient facts that Crossan related: 1) The Marines knew there was going to be an attack on the command outpost, which would explain the high degree of suspicion about the Iraqi's in a taxi that first refused to stop, then ran away from them. 2) There was an IED attack on his humvee, and a squad was sent in 3) Insurgents began firing on the Marines almost immediately. 4) He's not claiming to have witnessed anything. The first slant that has already been pointed out in several places (hotair), is in the times online from london, where they grabbed one quote from Corporal Crossan , “were blinded by ha
Read more

Offshore blogging again

Image
I had to zip offshore yesterday at the last minute, changing my tranquil sunday at home to a mad dash to the dock, then a four hour crew boat ride to the rig. Not too bad of a ride, I only reached the nasty salivating feeling before we arrived at the rig, it sucks when the high point of the evening is not puking. I stayed out on the back deck most of the time since I won't get sick if I can see the horizon and not smell that boat smell of lysol/oldpuke/diesel fuel that inhabits the inside of the boat. It was a pretty clear night, and the only lights were the lights of rigs and production platform as we cruised past, so I had a clear view of the big dipper and the north star and I willed those two pointer stars to move faster around and speed up time. Apparently there is a meteor shower for this part of the month, because I saw one fall, but it didn't look real, more like a reflection off of metal into my eyes. The next meteorite was more emphatic, maybe even a fireball, b
Read more