Comments on: Notes From New Orleans http://www.radioopensource.org/notes-from-new-orleans/ Christopher Lydon in conversation on arts, ideas and politics Thu, 18 Mar 2010 00:23:24 -0400 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: January O'Neil http://www.radioopensource.org/notes-from-new-orleans/comment-page-1/#comment-60520 January O'Neil Tue, 12 Jun 2007 13:00:57 +0000 http://www.radioopensource.org/?p=1091#comment-60520 I'm just catching up with your podcasts but I wanted you to know how much this story tocuhed me. My husband and I met in New Orleans so watching the city struggle is unbearable. Hope stories like this remind the government that the residents need more than financial aid. Excellent! I’m just catching up with your podcasts but I wanted you to know how much this story tocuhed me. My husband and I met in New Orleans so watching the city struggle is unbearable. Hope stories like this remind the government that the residents need more than financial aid.

Excellent!

]]> By: maitri http://www.radioopensource.org/notes-from-new-orleans/comment-page-1/#comment-59181 maitri Fri, 01 Jun 2007 05:07:33 +0000 http://www.radioopensource.org/?p=1091#comment-59181 erin: You can most definitely buy icecream and gelato in New Orleans (pretty close to City Park) and the bathrooms work now. Yes, there are small and LARGE things here that irritate often, but where else in the States can you find such cultural uniqueness? What other city boasts so much in this nation? Wait until your new city rebuilds and you will find that icecream and public restrooms are way down on the priority list. hurley: Harry Shearer is a regular blogger at Huffington Post and spends most of his writing and advocacy time there. Here's the <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/harry-shearer" rel="nofollow">link</a>. loki above not to be confused with local blogger Loki. erin: You can most definitely buy icecream and gelato in New Orleans (pretty close to City Park) and the bathrooms work now. Yes, there are small and LARGE things here that irritate often, but where else in the States can you find such cultural uniqueness? What other city boasts so much in this nation? Wait until your new city rebuilds and you will find that icecream and public restrooms are way down on the priority list.

hurley: Harry Shearer is a regular blogger at Huffington Post and spends most of his writing and advocacy time there. Here’s the link.

loki above not to be confused with local blogger Loki.

]]> By: Beau Ross http://www.radioopensource.org/notes-from-new-orleans/comment-page-1/#comment-58885 Beau Ross Mon, 28 May 2007 23:45:13 +0000 http://www.radioopensource.org/?p=1091#comment-58885 Dan Baum is a really cool cat, he was very accessible and put on no airs. He made a lot of friends here in Nawlins and he will be missed. And that pink hat of his was the shit! reminded me of Tom Wolfes white suit and I hope it becomes a trademark of his wherever he goes. I'm looking forward to his book. Please gang at open source, do more shows on my city, there are so many stories to tell. How about a show about people who have moved to New Orleans Post-katrina and still have fallen in love with the city--like Dan Baum. Dan Baum is a really cool cat, he was very accessible and put on no airs. He made a lot of friends here in Nawlins and he will be missed. And that pink hat of his was the shit! reminded me of Tom Wolfes white suit and I hope it becomes a trademark of his wherever he goes. I’m looking forward to his book. Please gang at open source, do more shows on my city, there are so many stories to tell. How about a show about people who have moved to New Orleans Post-katrina and still have fallen in love with the city–like Dan Baum.

]]> By: mr. closets http://www.radioopensource.org/notes-from-new-orleans/comment-page-1/#comment-58818 mr. closets Sun, 27 May 2007 16:08:59 +0000 http://www.radioopensource.org/?p=1091#comment-58818 New Orleans is the poorest per capita of America's large cities, in one of the poorest regions in the nation. This despite a thriving tourism industry and a major port facility. I suspect the real problem with New Orleans is in it's culture of poverty and a corrupt local political machine. No amount of reconstruction is going to make those problems go away. New Orleans is the poorest per capita of America’s large cities, in one of the poorest regions in the nation. This despite a thriving tourism industry and a major port facility. I suspect the real problem with New Orleans is in it’s culture of poverty and a corrupt local political machine. No amount of reconstruction is going to make those problems go away.

]]> By: Ghost Rider http://www.radioopensource.org/notes-from-new-orleans/comment-page-1/#comment-58692 Ghost Rider Fri, 25 May 2007 20:50:43 +0000 http://www.radioopensource.org/?p=1091#comment-58692 A friend from Rhode Island sent me the link to this site and it looks very interesting. I look forward to reading more about Mr. Baum and his book. I live in New Orleans and have stong ties to the city. I was born and raised here so I've got deep roots in this city. You may have heard the story about a Katrina survivor named "Rockey" who towed his FEMA trailer to the White House and invited President Bush to dinner so he could deliver his message of "Thanks, but the job is not done." I am the guy behind the story and I made a feature length documentary film about Rockey and his misson to the White House. The film is called "Forgotten on the Bayou: Rockey's Mission to the White House" and it's represented for distribution by David Garber of Lantern Lane Entertainment out of Los Angeles. This film will make a positive impact on the world and particularly New Orleans because this is a story about the little guy getting his message to the big guy. It's a story about hope and it's the only story that has anything to do with Katrina that will make you laugh. It's what we truly need in New Orleans right now...a little bit of HOPE. Check out the website www.forgottenonthebayou.com for more info about the film. Sincerely, Steven Scaffidi Producer/Director www.ghostriderpictures.com A friend from Rhode Island sent me the link to this site and it looks very interesting. I look forward to reading more about Mr. Baum and his book. I live in New Orleans and have stong ties to the city. I was born and raised here so I’ve got deep roots in this city. You may have heard the story about a Katrina survivor named “Rockey” who towed his FEMA trailer to the White House and invited President Bush to dinner so he could deliver his message of “Thanks, but the job is not done.” I am the guy behind the story and I made a feature length documentary film about Rockey and his misson to the White House. The film is called “Forgotten on the Bayou: Rockey’s Mission to the White House” and it’s represented for distribution by David Garber of Lantern Lane Entertainment out of Los Angeles. This film will make a positive impact on the world and particularly New Orleans because this is a story about the little guy getting his message to the big guy. It’s a story about hope and it’s the only story that has anything to do with Katrina that will make you laugh. It’s what we truly need in New Orleans right now…a little bit of HOPE. Check out the website http://www.forgottenonthebayou.com for more info about the film.
Sincerely,
Steven Scaffidi
Producer/Director
http://www.ghostriderpictures.com

]]> By: Potter http://www.radioopensource.org/notes-from-new-orleans/comment-page-1/#comment-58628 Potter Thu, 24 May 2007 23:42:03 +0000 http://www.radioopensource.org/?p=1091#comment-58628 This is a great listen. This is a great listen.

]]> By: plnelson http://www.radioopensource.org/notes-from-new-orleans/comment-page-1/#comment-58624 plnelson Thu, 24 May 2007 21:04:58 +0000 http://www.radioopensource.org/?p=1091#comment-58624 Here's another vote for Shearer. (Public radio listeners in the Boston area have no idea who he is unless they use the Internet . . . ) <i>Should we focus on the progress the city has made? Or on the escalating violence?</i> This is off-topic but I have long advocated that ROS do a show about violence. You've touched on it in many shows but I'd like a show with serious scientists who can explain WHY humans are that way. If you're poor and in distress and (being poor in a broken city or country) have limited access to healthcare, then violence would seem to be a particularly irrational response to poverty and social distress. And yet from New Orleans to Iraq to Palestine to Boston to Africa to plenty of other places, violence is the response. Given all the different <b>possible</b> ways one MIGHT respond to poverty and distress - political organizing, social activism, self-education, getting together with other poor unemployed people to build or repair something, etc, why is violence such a popular option? Here’s another vote for Shearer. (Public radio listeners in the Boston area have no idea who he is unless they use the Internet . . . )

Should we focus on the progress the city has made? Or on the escalating violence?

This is off-topic but I have long advocated that ROS do a show about violence. You’ve touched on it in many shows but I’d like a show with serious scientists who can explain WHY humans are that way.

If you’re poor and in distress and (being poor in a broken city or country) have limited access to healthcare, then violence would seem to be a particularly irrational response to poverty and social distress. And yet from New Orleans to Iraq to Palestine to Boston to Africa to plenty of other places, violence is the response. Given all the different possible ways one MIGHT respond to poverty and distress – political organizing, social activism, self-education, getting together with other poor unemployed people to build or repair something, etc, why is violence such a popular option?

]]> By: RobertPeel http://www.radioopensource.org/notes-from-new-orleans/comment-page-1/#comment-58617 RobertPeel Thu, 24 May 2007 19:52:53 +0000 http://www.radioopensource.org/?p=1091#comment-58617 Another Great Lousiana write is James Lee Burke. He evokes New Iberia. But I can feel New Orleans on a steamy, humid, summer day. I speant a week at Dillard University. Great Literature has been written there Walker Percy, John Kennedy O'Toule even Ann Rice-and ah the music! Another Great Lousiana write is James Lee Burke. He evokes New Iberia. But I can feel New Orleans on a steamy, humid, summer day. I speant a week at Dillard University.
Great Literature has been written there Walker Percy, John Kennedy O’Toule even Ann Rice-and ah the music!

]]> By: Chelsea http://www.radioopensource.org/notes-from-new-orleans/comment-page-1/#comment-58616 Chelsea Thu, 24 May 2007 19:37:00 +0000 http://www.radioopensource.org/?p=1091#comment-58616 Hurley, Harry Shearer is a great idea. We're going to give this entire hour over to Baum but Part II with Shearer would be a memorable show. Hurley,

Harry Shearer is a great idea. We’re going to give this entire hour over to Baum but Part II with Shearer would be a memorable show.

]]> By: hurley http://www.radioopensource.org/notes-from-new-orleans/comment-page-1/#comment-58607 hurley Thu, 24 May 2007 18:22:58 +0000 http://www.radioopensource.org/?p=1091#comment-58607 ...the apple the pedlar gave me, stolen by my step-mother to spike with cloves and season my father's underwear, sweeping up the remnants from the corn-barges on the Mississippi to feed to the chickens, the restaurant down by the levee where the divers gathered, eating cheap spaghetti and washing it down with what was it?, etc. You open a nice vein of memory on a stricken place. I look forward to the show. …the apple the pedlar gave me, stolen by my step-mother to spike with cloves and season my father’s underwear, sweeping up the remnants from the corn-barges on the Mississippi to feed to the chickens, the restaurant down by the levee where the divers gathered, eating cheap spaghetti and washing it down with what was it?, etc. You open a nice vein of memory on a stricken place. I look forward to the show.

]]> By: hurley http://www.radioopensource.org/notes-from-new-orleans/comment-page-1/#comment-58594 hurley Thu, 24 May 2007 16:29:53 +0000 http://www.radioopensource.org/?p=1091#comment-58594 Harry Schearer's site difficult to navigate, but some of his post-Katrina commentary and interviews (Interview with Dr. Bob Bea...) can be found here: http://www.harryshearer.com/index_2.html He's on it, been on it, stays on it. Harry Schearer’s site difficult to navigate, but some of his post-Katrina commentary and interviews (Interview with Dr. Bob Bea…) can be found here:
http://www.harryshearer.com/index_2.html
He’s on it, been on it, stays on it.

]]> By: nother http://www.radioopensource.org/notes-from-new-orleans/comment-page-1/#comment-58593 nother Thu, 24 May 2007 15:55:36 +0000 http://www.radioopensource.org/?p=1091#comment-58593 The Kaiser Family Foundation just finished a <a href="http://www.kff.org/kaiserpolls/pomr051007nr.cfm" rel="nofollow">house to house survey</a> in New Orleans. Among other statistics: “Twice as many African Americans as whites in Orleans (59% vs. 29%) reported that their lives are still "very" or "somewhat" disrupted.” “In addition, seven in 10 African Americans in Orleans Parish (72%) reported a problem accessing health care, more than twice the rate reported by whites in the parish (32%).” “Despite all the challenges they face today, area residents also exhibited real hope for the future: Most (69%) are optimistic about the future of the city, with only a modest 11% saying they plan to leave or are seriously considering leaving New Orleans.” The Kaiser Family Foundation just finished a house to house survey in New Orleans.

Among other statistics:

“Twice as many African Americans as whites in Orleans (59% vs. 29%) reported that their lives are still “very” or “somewhat” disrupted.”

“In addition, seven in 10 African Americans in Orleans Parish (72%) reported a problem accessing health care, more than twice the rate reported by whites in the parish (32%).”

“Despite all the challenges they face today, area residents also exhibited real hope for the future: Most (69%) are optimistic about the future of the city, with only a modest 11% saying they plan to leave or are seriously considering leaving New Orleans.”

]]> By: erin http://www.radioopensource.org/notes-from-new-orleans/comment-page-1/#comment-58588 erin Thu, 24 May 2007 15:20:05 +0000 http://www.radioopensource.org/?p=1091#comment-58588 I was born in New Orleans and as a small child loved playing in City Park. My parents took my niece there last year and said that not only was there no longer a place to buy a child an ice cream but that bathroom facilities no longer existed. I'm interested in the little things that were lost that make a city worth living in. If you can't take your kid to the bathroom in the park, the trip is going to be a short one if it happens at all. Beyond the appalling lack of educational and health infrastructure, what are the little things that are missing that cause people to decide that the city is unliveable? I was born in New Orleans and as a small child loved playing in City Park. My parents took my niece there last year and said that not only was there no longer a place to buy a child an ice cream but that bathroom facilities no longer existed. I’m interested in the little things that were lost that make a city worth living in. If you can’t take your kid to the bathroom in the park, the trip is going to be a short one if it happens at all. Beyond the appalling lack of educational and health infrastructure, what are the little things that are missing that cause people to decide that the city is unliveable?

]]> By: hurley http://www.radioopensource.org/notes-from-new-orleans/comment-page-1/#comment-58586 hurley Thu, 24 May 2007 14:59:16 +0000 http://www.radioopensource.org/?p=1091#comment-58586 Ioki says: “Do you know what it is to miss New Orleans” I lived in New Orleans for a spell as a small child in the 60s, and oh do I miss it. The zoo! The library! The horseshit in Jefferson Square! The trees along the Esplanade, the elephant leaves in the courtyards, the French Quarter mysteries just beyond comprehension, but spinning inexorably toward you nevertheless. Mardi Gras then seemed not just a local, but almost a private affair, people on the floats guiding the beads into your hands, etc. I haven't been there for 20 years and, after Katrina, don't know that I'll ever return. But then again I just might, and for the very same reason. Another guest you might consider is Robert Stone, whose novel Hall of Mirrors evoked New Orleans of the period very well. Also James Sallis, who has written a series of superb mysteries set in the Big Easy. Ioki says:
“Do you know what it is to miss New Orleans” I lived in New Orleans for a spell as a small child in the 60s, and oh do I miss it. The zoo! The library! The horseshit in Jefferson Square! The trees along the Esplanade, the elephant leaves in the courtyards, the French Quarter mysteries just beyond comprehension, but spinning inexorably toward you nevertheless. Mardi Gras then seemed not just a local, but almost a private affair, people on the floats guiding the beads into your hands, etc. I haven’t been there for 20 years and, after Katrina, don’t know that I’ll ever return. But then again I just might, and for the very same reason.
Another guest you might consider is Robert Stone, whose novel Hall of Mirrors evoked New Orleans of the period very well. Also James Sallis, who has written a series of superb mysteries set in the Big Easy.

]]> By: loki http://www.radioopensource.org/notes-from-new-orleans/comment-page-1/#comment-58584 loki Thu, 24 May 2007 14:12:36 +0000 http://www.radioopensource.org/?p=1091#comment-58584 "Do you know what it is to miss New Orleans" A great song sung by Billie Holiday and Louis Armstrong would great background music to the show. Jason Berry would be a good addition to the show: he covered the melton in the Catholic Church and lived through Huricane Katrina as a companion to Fats Domino! “Do you know what it is to miss New Orleans” A great song sung by Billie Holiday and Louis Armstrong would great background music to the show. Jason Berry would be a good addition to the show: he covered the melton in the Catholic Church and lived through Huricane Katrina as a companion to Fats Domino!

]]> By: hurley http://www.radioopensource.org/notes-from-new-orleans/comment-page-1/#comment-58572 hurley Thu, 24 May 2007 08:41:20 +0000 http://www.radioopensource.org/?p=1091#comment-58572 Quick, Call Harry Shearer. He lives part-time in New Orleans, and has been a serious and impassioned witness to what has happened there. He would doubtless make a great guest -- and maybe even throw in an imitation of Chris while he's at it. Quick, Call Harry Shearer. He lives part-time in New Orleans, and has been a serious and impassioned witness to what has happened there. He would doubtless make a great guest — and maybe even throw in an imitation of Chris while he’s at it.

]]> By: bumpyjonas http://www.radioopensource.org/notes-from-new-orleans/comment-page-1/#comment-58541 bumpyjonas Thu, 24 May 2007 00:31:48 +0000 http://www.radioopensource.org/?p=1091#comment-58541 I just spent some time in New Orleans at Jazz Fest, and a legal conference, and it is, in many ways, the same city; however, it is still a city on the ropes. The tough talk is good; the city needs to be tough but what the city really needs is an influx of jobs, permanent economies (small and large), and the return to community. Don't view the city's from the standpoint of the "lower nine" as they call it; we know the poor got reamed by the storm and the government. Check out East New Orleans, middle class, African-American, and for the most part, wiped out. They are coming back but that more than any other section reveals the class issues in the city that are troublesome. I also took a trip out to Baton Rouge and that is another interesting story. I just spent some time in New Orleans at Jazz Fest, and a legal conference, and it is, in many ways, the same city; however, it is still a city on the ropes. The tough talk is good; the city needs to be tough but what the city really needs is an influx of jobs, permanent economies (small and large), and the return to community. Don’t view the city’s from the standpoint of the “lower nine” as they call it; we know the poor got reamed by the storm and the government. Check out East New Orleans, middle class, African-American, and for the most part, wiped out. They are coming back but that more than any other section reveals the class issues in the city that are troublesome.

I also took a trip out to Baton Rouge and that is another interesting story.

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