Got this in my email tonite:
Dear Judy,
My class (1st. grade) is collecting books to send to an elementary school that was damaged by Hurricane Katrina. We would like to contact a school that is really in need of books for their library or simply classroom teachers that lost their materials.
I am unfamiliar with the area, so I am not sure of the names of the local schools. I keep tring to search the web, but I am not very lucky. I have e-mailed a couple of principals and receive little or no response.
It is very important that we donate to a school that is in real need. My students have worked very hard. They have collected their bonus points all year from our book orders and have purchased the entire set of Junie B. Jones books.
Our project is called Operation Storybook. They even have a motto: Storybooks across the miles. Storybooks for every child. If this goes well I hope to make it a yearly project.
Thank you for your quick response. I hope that you will be able to help us.
Barbara Sovereign
1st. Grade
Barnard Elementary School
Tecumseh, Okla.
Tuesday, March 13, 2007
Fresh Scuzzbuckets of the Week
No shortage of scumbags lately, is there?
From today's TP:
Three St. Pat's float riders are arrested
They're accused of hurling beads, insult at black man at parade
Tuesday, March 13, 2007
By Michelle Hunter
Three white riders in the Metairie St. Patrick's Day parade were pulled from a float and arrested Sunday after they were accused of hurling packs of beads and a racial slur at an African-American in the crowd, hitting him and others -- including a baby -- in the head, according to a Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office arrest report.
Brandon Burke, 19, and Thomas Doussan, 18, both of Metairie, and Colby Painter, 19, of Kenner, were each booked with three counts of aggravated battery, according to Col. John Fortunato, spokesman for the Sheriff's Office.
Injured were a 27-year-old black man who had swelling around the middle of his face, an 11-year-old white boy whose face was visibly reddened, a 25-year-old white woman who had bruising and swelling around her left eye, and an infant whose injuries were not available Monday, according to Fortunato.
Allegedly, the 27 year old threw a beer can into the float when he didn't get a stuffed animal for his daughter.
What a bunch of idiots.
From today's TP:
Three St. Pat's float riders are arrested
They're accused of hurling beads, insult at black man at parade
Tuesday, March 13, 2007
By Michelle Hunter
Three white riders in the Metairie St. Patrick's Day parade were pulled from a float and arrested Sunday after they were accused of hurling packs of beads and a racial slur at an African-American in the crowd, hitting him and others -- including a baby -- in the head, according to a Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office arrest report.
Brandon Burke, 19, and Thomas Doussan, 18, both of Metairie, and Colby Painter, 19, of Kenner, were each booked with three counts of aggravated battery, according to Col. John Fortunato, spokesman for the Sheriff's Office.
Injured were a 27-year-old black man who had swelling around the middle of his face, an 11-year-old white boy whose face was visibly reddened, a 25-year-old white woman who had bruising and swelling around her left eye, and an infant whose injuries were not available Monday, according to Fortunato.
Allegedly, the 27 year old threw a beer can into the float when he didn't get a stuffed animal for his daughter.
What a bunch of idiots.
Katrina Pictoral Essay
Photographic Realities dot com put together a pictoral essay in September 2005 from the 9th Ward, Irish Bayou, Waveland, Biloxi & Gulport.
Worth the visit.
Monday, March 12, 2007
Power Access Culture
Dambala ponders How realistic is the notion of secession?........ I can envision hundreds of shrimp boats forming an armada in the Mississippi to block all traffic up and down stream. Although we couldn't really stage a Boston Tea Party....dumping oil and coal into the Mississippi probably isn't a good idea. The blockade is possible though....call it "The Pirogue Armada".....we could run steel cables across the river and back it up with shrimp boats and pirogues.
It's a great read.
Katrina Pictures
An excellent series of full panoramic photos of the Katrina disaster made by photographer Edward Fink shortly after Katrina from a helicopter 700 feet in the air. This site now includes photography showing the recovery in the Gulf Coast area.
The series was first seen on the Washington Post website and his website bigeyeinthesky.com, which has the whole series, is linked here. The photos were shot several weeks after Katrina before any debris was removed.
Scuzzbuckets of the week
State farm CEO gets 82% raise after posting "a record profit" in 2006.
Greedy Bastards.
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Ed Rust Jr. earned $11.66 million in 2006, including a base salary of $1.77 million and results-based bonus of $9.89 million, spokesman Dick Luedke said Friday. Rust made $6.4 million in 2005 and $5.5 million in 2004.
Call me what you want, but after seeing what insurance companies like State Farm have done to residents of the Gulf Coast after these people had experienced loss of everything makes me feel like spitting at them.
These bastards try every trick in the book to avoid paying claims after gladly taking premiums for decades. They decide to completely
stop offering coverage to whole swaths of land because of post-Katrina claims.
And they've been doing it for years.
Road home for Ray
Brad, Angie say they'll take Ray:
New Orleanians breathed a collective sigh of relief last week, as celebrity super-couple Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie confirmed they are in late-stage negotiations to adopt New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin.
The couple had been frustrated in their recent attempts to adopt a Vietnamese child, due to international legal restrictions preventing unmarried parents from adopting. No such restriction applies to Nagin, according to Ann S. Williamson, Secretary of the Louisiana Department of Social Services.
Married, unmarried, gay, straight, space aliens, hell. They can have him, Williamson said at a joint news conference with Jolie, Pitt, and a scowling, towel-swaddled Nagin.
Although it is hoped that simply removing Nagin - or "Baby Ray," as Jolie has nicknamed him from City Hall and remanding him to a nursery in the couple's renovated French Quarter mansion will dramatically accelerate the city's recovery, residents have not given up hope that the couple will also adopt District Attorney Eddie Jordan and New Orleans Police Superintendent Warren Riley.
Well, you know, those two do tend to fight a lot, and they're sneaky, Jolie said. "Let's see if we can get this one to play nice first."
Gov. Kathleen Blanco announced that citizens can apply for adoption by Pitt and Jolie through the governor's new "Road to Someone Else's Home Plan." Delays began immediately, and the program is expected to make its first awards no later than 2013.
New Orleanians breathed a collective sigh of relief last week, as celebrity super-couple Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie confirmed they are in late-stage negotiations to adopt New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin.
The couple had been frustrated in their recent attempts to adopt a Vietnamese child, due to international legal restrictions preventing unmarried parents from adopting. No such restriction applies to Nagin, according to Ann S. Williamson, Secretary of the Louisiana Department of Social Services.
Married, unmarried, gay, straight, space aliens, hell. They can have him, Williamson said at a joint news conference with Jolie, Pitt, and a scowling, towel-swaddled Nagin.
Although it is hoped that simply removing Nagin - or "Baby Ray," as Jolie has nicknamed him from City Hall and remanding him to a nursery in the couple's renovated French Quarter mansion will dramatically accelerate the city's recovery, residents have not given up hope that the couple will also adopt District Attorney Eddie Jordan and New Orleans Police Superintendent Warren Riley.
Well, you know, those two do tend to fight a lot, and they're sneaky, Jolie said. "Let's see if we can get this one to play nice first."
Gov. Kathleen Blanco announced that citizens can apply for adoption by Pitt and Jolie through the governor's new "Road to Someone Else's Home Plan." Delays began immediately, and the program is expected to make its first awards no later than 2013.
Friday, March 09, 2007
2007 JAZZ FEST LINEUP
"ReBirth" Philip Frazier by Terrance Osborne
day-by-day lineup of performers at this year's jazz fest.
I can hardly wait!
Thursday, March 08, 2007
Don't Run, Kathleen!
Scott Jordan of the Independent writes an open letter to Kathleen Blanco
Don't Run
Some excerpts
In the face of the tragedy and hardship that came out of Katrina and Rita, Louisiana residents and voters have become involved in the political process like never before. We are tired of Louisiana’s recovery languishing in bureaucratic red tape and ineffective policies. What was once a wink-and-a-nudge Louisiana tradition — laughing and groaning at colorful or corrupt politicians — is no longer funny, and never will be again. .....Before your poll numbers started dropping precipitously, you realized you had one chance — a possible golden ticket, even — to re-election.....The Road Home Program.....You staked out your turf in dramatic fashion, making it unequivocally clear that the program’s failure or success didn’t depend on New Orleans legislators or the federal government. This was your Road Home program, your solution....... Let’s not mince words: The Road Home has been a disaster......Time is of the essence. The longer you stay in the race, the longer it will take for other candidates to declare their candidacy and present their platform to the public..... That’s why I’m asking you not to run for re-election.
I hope she takes his advice.
Don't Run
Some excerpts
In the face of the tragedy and hardship that came out of Katrina and Rita, Louisiana residents and voters have become involved in the political process like never before. We are tired of Louisiana’s recovery languishing in bureaucratic red tape and ineffective policies. What was once a wink-and-a-nudge Louisiana tradition — laughing and groaning at colorful or corrupt politicians — is no longer funny, and never will be again. .....Before your poll numbers started dropping precipitously, you realized you had one chance — a possible golden ticket, even — to re-election.....The Road Home Program.....You staked out your turf in dramatic fashion, making it unequivocally clear that the program’s failure or success didn’t depend on New Orleans legislators or the federal government. This was your Road Home program, your solution....... Let’s not mince words: The Road Home has been a disaster......Time is of the essence. The longer you stay in the race, the longer it will take for other candidates to declare their candidacy and present their platform to the public..... That’s why I’m asking you not to run for re-election.
I hope she takes his advice.
Wednesday, March 07, 2007
Saving Louisiana
Click here for a short audio slideshow about Louisiana's quickly disappearing coastline
click on photo for full-size version
Experts agree we have 10 years or less to act before the loss becomes irreversible.
There is hope. State officials expect to get a jump-start on building restoration projects as early as this August, thanks to $523 million in offshore revenues provided under the federal Coastal Impact Assistance Program.
A permanent dedication of offshore revenue to the state will kick in only $20 million a year until 2017, after which the state should be collecting a minimum of $670 million a year, Coffee said. But the state can borrow against that revenue stream immediately.
And that almost certainly will be required, because by 2017 the coastal erosion problem likely will have become irreversible. By issuing bonds backed by future offshore revenue, the state will gain the flexibility not only to speed up construction but to launch projects not authorized by Congress.
The Chicory has some images from google showing Louisiana's land loss here
Kudo's to the Times Picayune for this special series on coastal restoration.
click on photo for full-size version
Experts agree we have 10 years or less to act before the loss becomes irreversible.
There is hope. State officials expect to get a jump-start on building restoration projects as early as this August, thanks to $523 million in offshore revenues provided under the federal Coastal Impact Assistance Program.
A permanent dedication of offshore revenue to the state will kick in only $20 million a year until 2017, after which the state should be collecting a minimum of $670 million a year, Coffee said. But the state can borrow against that revenue stream immediately.
And that almost certainly will be required, because by 2017 the coastal erosion problem likely will have become irreversible. By issuing bonds backed by future offshore revenue, the state will gain the flexibility not only to speed up construction but to launch projects not authorized by Congress.
The Chicory has some images from google showing Louisiana's land loss here
Kudo's to the Times Picayune for this special series on coastal restoration.
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