Saturday, April 15, 2006
Quote of the Day
The aim of those topping the heap is to avoid alienating anyone, he said, and "the only way to ensure that is to be bland and noncontroversial."
Expert (I found the link oddly amusing for some reason) Ed Renwick on top political analysts. Oh, he was talking about the top mayoral candidates. OOPS, my bad. Just another example of the professor's brilliant insight.
Context of the quote from today's T/P article on land use:
I seem to remember Boulet specifically stating that services could (and should) be restored to the The Holy Cross neighborhood almost immediately, which would make the above a bit misleading if not technically inaccurate.
Article's actual headline:
Land use is pivotal issue in mayor's race
My preferred headline:
Forman has SECRET PLAN for repopulating New Orleans
At least it sounds that way to me:
To be fair, Landrieu has been equally vague, but he doesn't have a secret plan. Ninety per cent of my objections to Nagin have stemmed from the fact that he's been governing in Campaign mode at least since his return from his (post-Katrina) Jamaica vacation and/or from his administration's "we'll tell you what you need to know, when you need to know it" attitude. Forman doesn't sound like much of an improvement on that score.
Expert (I found the link oddly amusing for some reason) Ed Renwick on top political analysts. Oh, he was talking about the top mayoral candidates. OOPS, my bad. Just another example of the professor's brilliant insight.
Context of the quote from today's T/P article on land use:
Meanwhile, two candidates nipping at the front-runners' heels, lawyers Rob Couhig and Virginia Boulet, have offered bolder courses. They favor explicit rebuilding plans that include city-driven financing proposals, and even take the politically precarious step of calling for a pause in construction or cessation of city services in the hard-hit neighborhoods east of the Industrial Canal.
It is not surprising that the candidates most likely to win a runoff berth, according to recent polls, would tread lightly around the race's most sensitive issue, said Ed Renwick, director of Loyola University's Institute of Politics. The aim of those topping the heap is to avoid alienating anyone, he said, and "the only way to ensure that is to be bland and noncontroversial."
I seem to remember Boulet specifically stating that services could (and should) be restored to the The Holy Cross neighborhood almost immediately, which would make the above a bit misleading if not technically inaccurate.
Article's actual headline:
Land use is pivotal issue in mayor's race
My preferred headline:
Forman has SECRET PLAN for repopulating New Orleans
At least it sounds that way to me:
Though he would not stop issuing building permits, Forman said he would warn against building in certain areas, which he would name once elected.(my emphasis)
To be fair, Landrieu has been equally vague, but he doesn't have a secret plan. Ninety per cent of my objections to Nagin have stemmed from the fact that he's been governing in Campaign mode at least since his return from his (post-Katrina) Jamaica vacation and/or from his administration's "we'll tell you what you need to know, when you need to know it" attitude. Forman doesn't sound like much of an improvement on that score.
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Secret plans? Yeah, that's what I want to vote on.
Anyone who thinks that areas north of City Park Avenue/DeSaix/Gentilly Boulevard (as I would roughly draw the line) or east of the Industrial Canal are going to have normal police, fire, sanitation, etc. is, well, delusional. Or perhaps their plan for recovery includes printing up $20 bills in the city hall basement.
I know those people. I had a lot of friends in Lakeview. It's not an easy thing to say. But it's true.
Anyone who thinks that areas north of City Park Avenue/DeSaix/Gentilly Boulevard (as I would roughly draw the line) or east of the Industrial Canal are going to have normal police, fire, sanitation, etc. is, well, delusional. Or perhaps their plan for recovery includes printing up $20 bills in the city hall basement.
I know those people. I had a lot of friends in Lakeview. It's not an easy thing to say. But it's true.
There are certainly going to be tough choices to make. In the interest of fairness, I checked to see if Forman said that final recommendations depended on conversations with the ACoE or even the chief of police. Didn't seem to be a legitimate case of not being able to be specific, but a case of saying just trust me.
All the politicians involved seemed to be happy to blur the distinction between where resettlement might need to delayed over concern over levees and flood protection and where it might need to be delayed for budget reasons. That's one reason why I'm disappointed that only Wilson has complained that it takes an information request through the city attorney's office to see the budget.
There is a second very thin sliver north of the line you describe, but it doesn't even extend as far as Robert E. Lee Blvd. Do you abandon it and the area around UNO?
I'm not being nit-picky, don't see how you provide services there, but not nearby areas, unless you leave police protection to the levee board police for the time being.
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All the politicians involved seemed to be happy to blur the distinction between where resettlement might need to delayed over concern over levees and flood protection and where it might need to be delayed for budget reasons. That's one reason why I'm disappointed that only Wilson has complained that it takes an information request through the city attorney's office to see the budget.
There is a second very thin sliver north of the line you describe, but it doesn't even extend as far as Robert E. Lee Blvd. Do you abandon it and the area around UNO?
I'm not being nit-picky, don't see how you provide services there, but not nearby areas, unless you leave police protection to the levee board police for the time being.
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