New Orleans: Come for the food, stay for the murder

I love the tabloid tone of the Guardian on this story. Since when is Compton a city?

 

Experts offer various explanations. Some cite the inexperience of Orleans Parish district attorney Eddie Jordan, who took office without ever trying a case in criminal court. Others cite inadequate case processing on the part of the New Orleans police department. In one quadruple murder, for example, a police report was a total of three pages.

Is that short, or long?

 

Depends if they're talking about the report they give to the press or the case file. I've received police reports one sentence long - with all the juicy details in an affidavit the police claim is part of an investigation and therefore exempt from FOIA.

 

First of all, nice British spelling. Lousiana? :

Second, you've got to love the fact that they've spent an entire article detailing the city's long descent into anarchy, but the pentultimate graf shows what's really going to fuck things up ... a new Republican governor. Because, you know, having the same party run the town since reconstruction has worked out so peachy.

 

Ah, the British media, where all pretense of objectivity is whisked out the door. That is a pretty remarkable graf. I imagine even a lot of Democrats are eager to give Jindal a chance, just because the status quo has failed.

 

Since 1888.

 

No they don't. They're helpless poor people at the mercy of an oppressive government that only wants to look out for the rich and screw the poor. When one of them kills another, it's just like Bush pulled the trigger.

Bush's fault. Everything is Bush's fault. Hurricanes=Bush's fault. Wildfires started by 10 year olds playing with matches=Bush's fault. Darfur=Bush's fault. Terrorism=Bush's fault.

Nothing was anyone's fault before Jan. 21, 2001. Nothing will be anyone's fault after Jan. 21, 2009.

Don't you people know this?

 

Is the Orleans Parish District Attorney an elected position? If so, did the media somehow hide the fact that Mr. Jordan was unqualified for the position from the electorate? If not, maybe the good citizens of Orleans Parish want incompetent prosecutors, ineffective police and judges that release murderers after 60 days.
In a democracy, the people get what they deserve, which may not be what they want, but C'est la vie. Mr. Jordan and Mayor Nagin are elected officials of the city and by the people.
Fuck You, good people of New Orleans, did you think electing a fool and a boob would solve your problems?

 

Don't know about the rest of you, but it seems to be there's an awful lot of blame and culpability to go around here: FEMA, the Shrub, Nagin, the governor, the police department, the people of New Orleans themselves, federal oversight, etc., ad nauseum.

For once, let's not make this a political powerplay, although I know it's what some of you (on both sides of the aisle) live for. This isn't about politics. For once....

 

Well said.

 

On its merits, the re-election of Nagin is one of the great mysteries of modern times. But local demographics made that event more'n likely. So it goes.

It is not to the broad city population base's credit that that town is run the way it is..
I wish all the best of luck trying to get a true reform mayor nominated and elected in that town.

Most of the rest of those named "reasons" are distressingly familiar to most of us. The fingerprints of the individuals and organizations involved remain, and appear in numerous other trouble spots, as well. It's not a coincidence.