I think a pig just flew by my window. The Post has actually written an editorial I agree with 100 percent.

It’s one thing to maintain a critical seaport for transoceanic shipping and river barge traffic. It’s quite another to waste billions of dollars rebuilding below sea level living areas that will be wiped out again in he next severe hurricane. Most of the former residents are gone forever.

Can’t blame the current administration either. This political football would have been shoved right down the President’s throat by his foes if anything less had been done.

I’m waiting for the formaldehyde class action suits that are sure to be brought by 50 percent “contingency suit” lawyers, for those who lived free in mobile homes bought with your tax dollars and mine. Those who lived free on cruise ships will be jealous because they can’t collect too.

It’s very easy to trash another person’s home when you live hundreds of miles away and all you do is read AP articles.

There *should* be a class action lawsuit against the people who provided trailers full of formaldehyde. The complete disrespect for the lives of New Orleans citizens by the Bush administration has been amazing, and the only rebuilding they are spending time on is the tourist areas and big-money businesses.

“FEMA and the CDC have now admitted that levels of formaldehyde in FEMA trailers are so high that residents should be moved out quickly. CDC testing revealed unacceptably high formaldehyde levels in all brands of RVs, mobile homes, and park homes. To read which trailers brands tested the highest, go to the Website http://cdc.gov/nceh/ehhe/trailerstudy/. The problem is not confined to RVs and mobile homes, but also can be a significant health threat in regular homes, offices and portable classrooms. (ToxicTrailers.com)

Neither the Bush administration nor FEMA invented or specified urea-formaldehyde insulation. FEMA accepted, in an emergency, what was standardly provided by all manufacturers.

For decades, manufacturers have been hit with class action lawsuits by anyone who could spell “asbestos”, even though it was found long ago that most lung damage was really caused by cigarette smoke. Case in point: The firm of Baldwin-Ehret-Hill had ceased fabricating asbestos steam-pipe insulation TO U.S. NAVY SPECIFICATIONS long before Bairnco Corporation acquired them. Bairnco, a conglomerate of totally unrelated businesses, immediately divested BEH on discovering the risk. Even so, they paid out over $100 MILLION dollars to settle highly questionable nuisance lawsuits, and were nearly driven out of business.

I totally agree with Mr. Gallagher. I thought the same thing right after Katrina hit and Mayor Nagel said NOLA would be back, rebuilt, better than ever. Uhm, why would anyone sink good money after bad? The city was destroyed. If you still want to reside in the area, pick a place that is at the very least situated ABOVE sea level. I strongly object to my tax dollars being spent on such stupidity.

It’s not that I don’t have compassion for the people who lost everything, we should indeed help them find safer ground to live on, and help them rebuild. Let NOLA go back to being marsh land as it should be.

Let us be consistent and not rebuild after California earthquakes, Midwest tornados or east coast hurricanes. They are only going to happen again. Smart money says we will have a major shake in California in the next thirty years. Shouldn’t we be proactive and evacuate now? St Louis has had three devastating tornados in slightly more then a century, 1896, 1927 and 1959. We are about ten years overdue. Shouldn’t we move it? And what about everything else in Tornado Alley?
There are not many places immune to recurring major natural disasters. The question becomes, What is it about New Orleans that would suggest to people that we not rebuild as opposed to California or anywhere else along the Gulf and East coasts?
The technologies needed to preserve New Orleans aren’t a mystery. They are in use in many places around the world.

Indeed the technologies to preserve New Orleans are not a mystery, but they are extremely expensive. There is a limit to what Congress can and will approve, regardless of what political party is in power.

The United States has an advantage over Venice and the Netherlands. It’s call LAND MASS. We can simply abandon flooded “bare subsistence” dwellings on land that is sinking into the sea. Most of the poorer citizens of New Orleans were smart enough to realize that they couldn’t rebuild on their own, and they wouldn’t be leaving much behind anyway. They weren’t concerned about how much Uncle Sam spends to rebuild New Orleans, because they typically paid little or nothing in taxes.

California earthquakes and midwestern tornadoes are a lot different. Indiviual homes and other buildings, and even highways, bridges and other infrastructure can be made relatively immune to earthquakes and tornadoes. It takes money but not as much as holding back the sea. Much of this work is currently required and performed under the BOCA, NFPA and other codes and is not even noticed by people other than engineers and tradesmen.

As a New Orleanian, I want to let Mr. Gallager know how he and people of his ilk have destroyed my faith in my country. Never in my life would I ever expect Americans to turn their backs on their own. Well, I wss wrong. Everyone in the Gulf South has lost much due to Katrina. One of the hardest to take is the loss in the faith that we are a good country. I was a fool to ever believe that we were.

The three St. Louis area tornadoes noted by Mr. Burnham occurred in 1896, 1927 and 1959, over 31 years apart.

In 1959 a friend’s home in Dellwood was blown off the foundation. Why? The builder had placed bolts in the concrete to hold the sill plate, but failed to put nuts and washers on the bolts. I had installed them on my own home across the street. and had no damage to the house, only a broken tree.

Homeowners should look for this flaw in their own residences.

Gallagher: Who asked you? Your suggestion is way too late. Instead of adequate flood protection, are you suggesting we be bought out and relocated? Do you propose we be deported? What is your plan?

The federal levee failures put seven feet of salt water in my house in Lakeview in New Orleans. It is the only property I own. No one offered to relocate my family - not that we’re interested in living anywhere else.

We needed a place to live

We rebuilt our home so that the living space is above the Katrina flood line and well above sea level. Our new home is 25% smaller than Pre-k, but that is the best we could do. The next time government engineering negligence floods my city, my family should have a much easier time recovering and getting home.

My family has been here since 1785. We are US citizens. Where in the US have US citizens been barred from living and had their property taken away? If you don’t want South Louisiana inhabited, invite our succession.

doctorj2u-
Please don’t think that all of us agree with this editorial or the responses. The way the US has treated the NOLA survivors is deplorable. I share your disappointment with our country.

Excuse me you Mid-Westerners… New Orleans has been the home of my families for almost 300 years. This is is where we were born, raised, lived and are buried.

We existed before St.Louis ever saw the light of day. We are the reason that places such as your burg exist (I spent 6 years in that part of the country… St. Louis is a cesspool.). We ARE the port. We have given up so much, especially our wetlands, to make life good for you corn-fed and SUV fools, and ya’s wanna dump us at the first instance of trouble?

Remember babies, you are almost on top of the New Madrid fault. That’s going to be an adventure for the “Homeland”.

And yes, my mother would say the same things, but she wouldn’t pull her punches like I did.

The AP article mentioned is grossly misinformed journalism of the yellowist kind… Fact is, there were numereous “blind” rivers that carried excess water from the river toward the lake and southern marshes during periods of high water in the river. Mostly dry for part of the year, hence the term “Blind” Drainage canals now built over those ancient bayous cross what were the natural paths of drainage. The earth in these spots seeps… it has for years at both parts of the river levees as well as the river levees… As long as the seepage carries no sediment, nothing will erode… certainly not 60ft of sheet pilings. Personally, I believe the intended control of the Mississippi river in the 19th century by building levees was a big mistake… cities built in a natural flood plain all along the river are living on borrowed time… fact is, we all are… wherever. Heard of the New Madrid Fault lately, read about those lost in yesterday’s tornado…

To take a comment from an un-researched blurb of an article. Post with a title of “Don’t Rebuild New Orleans” is nothing more than stirring the pot of merde gumbo… almost as cheap a shot as Spike Lee giving the old blow up the levees theory some credibility…

Rob… if it was just your home that was destroyed and not a whole community… would anyone help you rebuild, or would you just move to houston and forget it…

Well oops… I mean’t Jim..not “Rob”

It says here not to say anything you would not say in front of your mother… so here goes.

Hey Ma, This Jim Gallagher guy says “Don’t Rebuild New Orleans” I wonder how he would feel if he had ever lived here… an article with just opinion and no facts… sorta like all buns and no burger… journalism at it’s (sadly) best… Pathetic

New Orleans is not just a city, it is a way of life and a state of mind that must continue. If St. Louis, Minneapolis, Memphis or Kansas City were washed away in a flood, the country would suffer no significant loss. These cities are insignificant to the cultural make up of the nation. New Orleans is different and unique and it must be saved!
We don’t need to save the snail darter or the spotted owl but my beloved New Orleans MUST be saved.

So, based on most of the so-called “logic” posted here, areas destroyed by natural disasters or lack of quality work on the part of the federal government, for which we ALL pay taxes, shouldn’t be rebuilt? OK, so when your home is blown away by a tornado because you “chose” to live in “Tornado Alley” or when your house burns to the ground or slides down a mountain because you “chose” to live on a mountainside–fire and torrential rains be damned, or your home is buried in a blizzard, or crumbles during an earthquake because you “chose” to live up north or on a fault line, or your home is flooded in the Midwest because the levees aren’t holding back the raging waters there either, those people just shouldn’t rebuild?! I have never seen more callous, idiotic and inhumane statements in my life! Wait till it’s YOUR home that’s destroyed and we’ll see if your arguments still “hold water!”

“The St. Louis area is the epicenter of floodplain encroachment nationwide,” said Nicholas M. Pinter, a geologist from Southern Illinois University Carbondale, whose article on the subject appears in this week’s issue of the journal Science.

Apparently, some of St. Louis DIDN’T learn much in 1993.

People lived here hundreds of years before man-made levees were built, oil companies destroyed wetlands and the needs of the country grew New Orleans into a vital national asset.

The idea that the extremely small amount of federal money which has gone into New Orleans rebuilding (even counting federal cleanup money and money paid to well-connected contractors) is somehow felt in your wallet compared to the same amount spent in a matter of DAYS in Iraq makes me nearly laugh off my chair.

It’s barely billions - because it’s a few more than one - you use that word like it’s a lot of money.

“Here’s a city that sat largely below sea level, between a big lake and a mighty river, not far from the ocean and in the middle of Hurricane Alley.”

False, about 50% below and 50% above sea level - as far from the ocean as Houston, and Louisiana has had fewer hurricane hits than either Florida or Texas.

“It’s a miracle that it survived as long as it did. Its destruction was inevitable. To rebuild the low-lying portions would be worse than foolish. It would set the residents up for another tragedy and more loss of life.”

False, the whole country of the Netherlands has survived for longer in a harsher environment and they don’t treat their destruction as inevitable. Rebuilding without some attempt to mitigatr the incompetence of the ACOE is foolish, too be sure.

“The Federal Government could better spend our billions helping former New Orleans residents get on with their lives — somewhere on high ground.”

At a far greater cost compared to the pittance spent in New Orleans on either re-building, cleanup or flood protection.

“Levees and flood walls are not reliable protection when mother nature is on a rampage. We learned that in St. Louis in 1993.”

But you still live there.

“Levees and flood walls are not reliable protection when mother nature is on a rampage. We learned that in St. Louis in 1993.”

And yet you are still there, as are large numbers of St Louisans. Why is that?

To turn one’s back on New Orleans is not simply turning away from a mere city - it is a complete pass on an opportunity to confront the problems that plague this whole nation and have not been addressed in the nearly eight years in which the Executive Branch of our government has elected to send people to die overseas. The ruin of our environment that we as a nation are largely responsible for. The crumbling of our man-made infrastructure. The abdication of responsibility our so-called leaders at all levels are putting into practice as fast as they can, resulting in attitudes such as yours. This was once the greatest nation in the world in terms of its engineering prowess and its gung-ho problem-solving - where did that go? We’ve become a big nation with a hollow heart in that regard. and if we don’t get that back, ALL of us will be in trouble, including you, sir.

I hate to think of what will happen to the middle of this country if the New Madrid fault decides to bust a move, or if an F5 tornado makes its way through St Louis, but I do know that after such an event, I would do my best to help in any way I could, and I would not put the blame on you for choosing to stay in your home…because it is your HOME.

What has happened to New Orleans can affect anyone anywhere at any time. How responsive will disaster relief be in YOUR area? What will your local and state governments do to remedy the situation? How can they be held accountable for what they were responsible for in the first place? We are struggling with this every day. Your views add huge insult to the injuries already sustained by the people who call New Orleans home and who want it to still be their home.

Purely for consistency’s sake, may we presume you are also not a Zionist? Because, you know, Israel is constantly threatened with annihiliation. Seems silly the US pours so much money into that area; perhaps, like per your suggestion regarding New Orleans, we should just let it go. Capital gains are all that matter these days, not people or ideas, right?

My New Orleans friends have made quite a few excellent points. Let me make one more. If the levees had been designed and built like they should have. We would not be having this conversation. The fact is that New Orleans could have been and should have been protected if the Corps of Engineers had done their job. We survived Katrina, we just didn’t survive (and probably won’t again) the Corps incompetence.

If your levees fail. I will pray for you and hope that your city will recover. Too bad I can’t expect the same from you.

Hello from New Orleans,

I must say that even though I currently live in New Orleans, I must agree with Mr. Gallagher. I am not originally from New Orleans and feel fortunate for that. I came to the Crescent City shortly after the hurricanes to help, as so many others have. In watching the progress (or lack-there-of) of the rebuilding effort here, I have found myself disgusted. The problems slowing the rebuilding effort in New Orleans reach further than just the city’s location. EXTREMELY corrupt public officials and police officers, crime issues that rival that of a third world country, a general culture of apathy, and not to mention the fact the the streets of New Orleans flood every time it rains, are all signs that this place is in serious trouble should another hurricane glance this area.

“Levees and flood walls are not reliable protection when mother nature is on a rampage. We learned that in St. Louis in 1993.”

And it appears you may learn it again in 2008, as your neighbors to the north so recently experienced.

None of us can escape mother nature. But, like St. Louis, New Orleans is situated where she is for a reason. In terms of tonnage, the port is one of the busiest in the United States. Without New Orleans, the grain grown in your Midwest would have a difficult time finding its way to the sea. New Orleans was worth building, and it is certainly worth saving.