Oops! Missed the Train

Inexplicably tired last night, I had a glass of wine after dinner and by 9 p.m. was already half asleep. Not being one to argue with my own biorhythm, I went with it, unfortunately forgetting to set the alarm clock on the way. The next things I saw were the bright red numbers 6:15 on my bedside clock. Oops. The levee ride train had already left the station for the Tuesday long ride, so I took my time and headed out for an hour's ride and got back before the long ride returned. I saw a few people heading the other way as I was heading out, so I guess that either the pace was fast enough to drop people, or the group was really small (or both). Oh well.

At any rate, the weather here today is marvelous as I sit here looking out from the third floor of Gibson Hall though an open window at the entrance to Audubon Park. There's a light wind blowing through the sycamore tree outside the window and I can see the sunlight sparkling off the ripples in the lagoon. The only thing missing is the sound of the streetcars rumbling down St. Charles Avenue. Could be worse.

If you happened to see the incredibly, and intentionally, one-sided 60-minutes report on TV entitled "New Orleans is Sinking," then in the interest of the responsible journalism so sadly lacking at CBS, you need to read the article from the front page of the Times-Picayune this morning entitled "Not so Fast, 60 Minutes." So CBS does an article, intended to be controversial, implying that New Orleans is doomed and that there is not point in putting any more money into it, and they somehow couldn't seem to find anyone in the whole country better qualified that this plate tectonics geologist with absolutely no qualifications even remotely applicable to coastal erosion. There are, of course, lots of qualified scientists in Louisiana who are readily available and who, in fact, let CBS know in no uncertain terms prior to the report being aired. Go figure.

Predatory journalism at its best.

So I sat in on a meeting between Tulane and FEMA representatives today that was interesting. One thing I was happy to hear was one of the FEMA people complimenting Tulane on the way it is handling the whole situation and how much better it is than the way the state (i.e. LSU) is handling it.