Thursday, January 03, 2008

There's never a WSJ reporter aound when you need one

My earlier post about the demolitions asked questions that suggested the possibility of corruption causing the problems with the city's house smashing program. I'll try to come up with some less inflammatory questions tomorrow. But, it seems to me that everybody who comments on politics and life in New Orleans -- every op-ed columnist, every radio talk show host, every blogger, every drunk barroom pontificator -- should be asking, should be demanding to know, how this occurred a full five months after this. Think the WSJ will notice this time?

Comments:
The city's demolition "process" is nothing more than an ad-hoc, poorly documented, non-sensical and possibly illegal series of actions by various city employees. What's going on doesn't meet any reasonable standard of accountability or transparency. And as a result, the city is losing precious housing stock, eroding neighborhoods' chances for revitalization, creating new forms of blight, destroying the tax base, and, in the case of property owners whose houses have been demo'd without notice, exposing the city to serious legal and financial repercussions.
 
All that Civic Avenger said and one more thing.

The heartbreak of loss, again.

And for all those of you who live near a severely blighted property if it was Pre Katrina blight FEMA will not fund the demolition. So don't think that this demolition effort will rid the City of blight and create a Paradise on Earth.
 
I think we have all learned (if we did not know it before) NOT to rely on the government. 2+ years later and we are still getting the shaft on the local, state and federal levels.
 
Actually, Loki, I wasn't calling for the federal government to help, but the national press. I was being facetious about that part, but the WSJ did report on the wanton, reckless* destruction before the T/P last Summer. Now that we learn that, despite the assurances to the contrary, the city is still destroying sound houses, I was wondering whether we had to wait for a national paper to help us out again. Then again, most local bloggers seem to more interested in Iowa and New Hampshire, so maybe the local press is using the local blogosphere to gauge local interest (yes, I'm joking).

*On second thought, it may be reckless, or they be quite a bit of reckoning going on.
 
Oh I know, sorry. Should have been clearer on that. I was actually replyig to civic avenger's comment.
 
Sorry, I just figured it was hurried reading on your part. Trying to read as many local blogs as possible myself, it's almost to not occasionally read something too quickly and get a point slightly wrong. At least, that's the case with me.
 
We may not "rely" on the Government but they hold all the cards so we better find ways to make them more accountable.

I, personally, am getting sick of the don't rely on government argument.

Why shouldn't we? We pay taxes, we elect people, we should lean on them harder, not give them a free pass cause they are fuck ups.
 
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