Nawlins

One can't forget about the victims and the devastation that still exists in New Orleans. I took a slow tour of the Ninth Ward which was all but wiped out by Katrina. It's absolutely disheartening to see the destruction. It was like a ghost town, with very few residents who returned to repair their property. Most of the remaining homes are simply to damaged to repair and most of the lots now sit empty with overgrowth.

I find it interesting that the government has failed to disperse the funds that were pledged immediately after Katrina to help the victims. "Allies offered $854 million in cash and in oil that was to be sold for cash. But only $40 million has been used so far for disaster victims or reconstruction, according to U.S. officials and contractors. Most of the aid went uncollected, including $400 million worth of oil. Some offers were withdrawn or redirected to private groups such as the Red Cross. The rest has been delayed by red tape and bureaucratic limits on how it can be spent." http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/04/28/AR2007042801113.html

Here is another good read on the rebuilding of New Orleans. http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1564358/20070709/id_0.jhtml