New Orleans

The biggest disaster in America wasn’t Pearl Harbour or September the 11th. It isn’t a terrorist boarding your next flight! Hurricane Katrina killed hundreds, displaced thousands. It was a failure, not of the earth but of America. Local, State, and Federal Governments were to blame for ignoring global warming, environmental issues, hurricane preparedness, and social issues. People that had little money, no transportation were left by the thousands to fend in disaster that would compare for days to Nazi Germany. Socialist solutions were ignored in a competition society, the poor ignored. It wasn’t an attack on our America that produced our worst disaster, it was a complete failure of our Government!

Last weekend, I visited New Orleans with my partner. Here is my story over a year on. As you drive into the city, you are awed by total destruction. There are miles upon miles of empty houses, apartments, and buildings. Windows are broken, roofs are gone, and streets are empty. The suburbs of New Orleans are a ghost town. As you enter New Orleans, you notice continue complete destruction in the downtown area, though elements of life are returning and the French Quarter & Canal Street seems alive amid the destruction. Hotels are reopening, businesses are repairing and a small amount of hope is there. Canal Street is busy with cars and people, but less than last time I was there.

We parked near Harrah’s, a casino, which has reopened. We enter a mall nearby and find that about 50% of the stores are open, though continue work is being done and we were walking on new tiles. Nearby on Peters Street, French Connection & Tower Records are open, though both have huge sales. I found the sales irresistible, and my purchases would help business in the city. Tower Records had a rare 1989 Kylie DVD, “On The Go: Live in Japan”, which was in Portuguese. There was a great collection of Kylie and Dannii singles from which I purchased a few. They seemed to have more singles than most other artists. It was great to see rare singles that I don’t find and are imports. DJ Sammy and Sophie Ellis-Bextor were among other singles I found.

After a quick salad, we entered Bourbon Street which is the main bar street in the French Quarter. It was completely open, and slightly busy. The Bourbon Pub, a gay bar, was completely packed for their Drag Show, and in fact was the busiest bar on the street. Across the street was OZ, another gay establishment, that played Dannii’s “I Begin To Wonder” and later Kylie’s “Can’t Get You Out of My Head” to me delight!

Overall, though parts of the trip were depressing it was nice to see people rebuilding and people coming out and supporting New Orleans. It was nice to see the Gay Community out in support, and knowing together we can rebuild New Orleans. However the Local, State, and Federal governments must now take into account the poor in America, as well as Environmental Issues. We cannot allow this to happen again.