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New Orleans is narrowly retaining a black majority after Hurricane Katrina, according to a study released Wednesday by The Brookings Institution. ADVERTISEMENT The study determined that while blacks left the city at a much faster rate than whites, New Orleans was still 58 percent black during 2006. Before Katrina, which hit Aug. 29, 2005, the city was 67 percent black, according to the U.S. census. "It's certainly still a predominantly African-American city," said William Frey, a demographer and senior fellow at Washington, D.C.-based Brookings. "Speculation that there was not going to be a black majority in the city is not...

A church is more than a building, and Faith Temple Ministries illustrates the point. This non-denominational congregation holds services in a large white tent behind the frame of its new structure, which is under construction. Two years ago Hurricane Katrina destroyed the old one. Buras, a community of about 3,500, is in lower Plaquemines Parish, the southeastern corner of Louisiana. This is where Katrina first hit, and the hurricane's effects are very much in evidence on the 90-minute drive from New Orleans along the Mississippi River's west bank. Partly completed new buildings stand alongside wrecked ones. Trailers sit on the...

When the timing is right, the two parades meet on North Rampart Street, one showcasing men in skimpy skirts and bouffant wigs, the other with high-steppers waving handmade umbrellas and beaded fans. Both parades -- one hosted by Southern Decadence, the other by Black Men of Labor -- strolled through the streets Sunday within several blocks of each other in downtown New Orleans. This year, Decadence, a three-day gay festival, lured nearly 125,000 visitors to the city, while the Black Men of Labor parade attracted thousands of local and displaced New Orleanians. Behind each parade's glitz and glamour, participants said,...

Today, on the second anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, President and Mrs. Bush visited Louisiana and Mississippi and met with officials and citizens as they continue to recover from the devastation caused by the storm. This was the president’s fifteenth visit to the Gulf Coast in two years. President Bush: “This is the second anniversary of an event that changed a lot of people's lives ... And Laura and I are honored to be with some of those who endured the storm and have dedicated their lives to rebuilding this part of the world. The first couple arrived in Louisiana...

At least part of the city has been destroyed. And it should never be rebuilt, again. You know who is calling for it to be rebuilt at any cost? The same idiots who didn't lift a finger to evacuate the city – people like Mayor Ray Nagin, whose legacy will always be that photograph of an armada of school buses submerged in the big muddy. Joining him are Sen. Barack Obama, former Sen. John Edwards and Sen. Hillary Clinton – all of whom don't see any reason to limit the spending on rebuilding the underwater city. Good thing these folks...

On the second anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, anger over the stalled rebuilding was palpable throughout a city where the mourning for the dead and feeling of loss for flooded homes, schools, snow cone stands, old-time hairstylists and hardware stores doesn't seem to subside. Hurricane Katrina made landfall south of New Orleans at 6:10 a.m. Aug. 29, 2005, as a strong Category 3 hurricane that flooded 80 percent of the city and killed more than 1,600 people in Louisiana and Mississippi. It was the worst natural disaster in the history of the United States. President Bush commemorated Hurricane Katrina's devastating blow...

The Katrina and Rita “Hope and Recovery Summit” in New Orleans hosted by US Senator Mary Landrieu on Monday had an almost surreal texture to it. Aside from the mixture of University Presidents, law enforcement agents, housing advocates, business leaders, President Bush’s Gulf Coast Coordinator, Don Powell, participating in the all-day event, it included an element of political show business—rock star Presidential candidates running for the top position in the land, and yes, talking about Katrina. The Presidential discussion was peppered with questions by Soledad O’Brien of CNN. Without doubt, the Presidential forum was not the sole substance of the...

Former Sen. John Edwards said at a Hurricane Katrina conference he would propose what he called "Brownie's Law" requiring that qualified people, not political hacks, lead key federal agencies. Edwards, who is seeking the Democratic presidential nomination, drew laughter when he spoke on Monday of the proposal at the "Hope and Recovery Summit" ahead of the two-year anniversary of the storm on Wednesday. "It's an absolute travesty to have people who are essentially political hacks in a very responsible position," he told the audience at the University of New Orleans. "Brownie" refers to Michael Brown, who was head of the...

Two killed in New Orleans home invasion NEW ORLEANS, Aug. 26 (UPI) -- The slaying of two members of a family and wounding of another five is the latest in a spike in home invasion attacks in New Orleans. Seven relatives had been meeting at a home in the city's Village de l'Est neighborhood Friday when gunmen forced their way inside, robbed them and then opened fire without warning, The (New Orleans) Times-Picayune reported Sunday. A man in his late 20s and a woman in her late 30s sustained fatal wounds, making the incident the second double-homicide in the area...

Mayor Ray Nagin said he worries that slayings in the city make it seem dangerous, but news of such crimes "keeps the New Orleans brand out there." In a city where the tourism industry is the lifeblood of a fragile economy, the wave of violence threatens to derail efforts to bring visitors -- and former residents -- back. Yet Nagin, at a bricklaying ceremony Thursday, told reporters it's a "two-edged sword." "It's not good for us, but it also keeps the New Orleans brand out there, and it keeps people thinking about our needs and what we need to bring...

It is just after Christmas in 2003 and John Edwards is running hard for president of the United States. He is in Iowa, with the caucuses about three weeks away. Pundits, guided by a massive disinformation campaign, have decided that Howard Dean is going to win Iowa. Edwards remains undiscouraged. A highly effective stump speaker, Edwards always gets a laugh by saying, "Objects in the mirror may be closer than they appear." Edwards is a product of the American middle class. His father worked in a textile mill, and his mother ran an antique refinishing business and then became a...

New Orleans, LA (LifeNews.com) -- Two nurses accused of euthanizing patients in the wake of Hurricane Katrina have seen the charges against them dropped by the district attorney in the case. Nurses Lori Budo and Cheri Landry were arrested along with physician Anna Pou on charges that they killed four patients. All three worked at New Orleans' Memorial Medical Center at the time of the hurricane. The three were accused of killing as many as nine patients so they could relinquish their responsibility for patients and flee the hospital as conditions there deteriorated. John DiGiulio, Landry's attorney, said he was...

New Haven, CT - The Knights of Columbus announced today that it set new records for charitable giving and volunteer service hours in 2006. The results of the Order's Annual Survey of Fraternal Activity for the year ending December 31, 2006 show that total contributions to charity at all levels reached $143,816,004 - exceeding the previous year's total by more than $4 million. The figure includes $35,133,393 donated by the Supreme Council, and $108,682,611 in charitable donations from state and local councils, Fourth Degree assemblies, and squire circles. The survey also shows that the reported number of volunteer hours by...

“He saw getting reelected mayor of New Orleans as a kind of vindication — it was like saying, ‘It wasn’t your fault, Ray,’” a political science professor at the University of Louisiana-Lafayette, Pearson Cross, said. “He would immediately, I think, be the favorite for that seat.”

Police said a man was shot to death by his wife Monday evening in the Central City neighborhood, the fourth killing in New Orleans in three days and the second Monday, police said. The Orleans Parish coroner's office identified the dead man as George Hammond, 45, of New Orleans. Police said his wife, Janet Hammond, was a suspect. Police responded to a call about gunshots in the 1800 block of Second Street shortly before 7:30 p.m. and found George Hammond inside a blue shotgun double, police spokeswoman Sabrina Richardson said. Hammond was pronounced dead at the scene. He had been...

<p>Sources tell CBS NEWS that Congressman William Jefferson (D-LA) will be indicted this afternoon on more than a dozen counts involving public corruption. Jefferson has been the subject of a ongoing probe in which FBI agents allegedly found more than 90-thousand dollars in cash in his freezer. The Justice Department is expected to unveil the charges later today... Developing...</p>

New Orleans (AP) -- Mayor Ray Nagin, in his first State of the City address since Hurricane Katrina, said Wednesday that New Orleans is a city on the mend, despite broken promises from the state and federal governments. "New Orleans is coming back, whether you like it or not," Nagin said to applause from the crowd of city workers and community members gathered at the National World War II Museum. "And you might as well deal with it." Nagin called on President Bush and Gov. Kathleen Blanco to do more to help speed the city's recovery from the August 2005...

I've been hearing rumors for a couple of weeks now that New Orleans Mayor C. Ray Nagin is considering running for Governor. I finally found a news outlet that confirms this rumor, thanks to freelance journalist Jason Berry, who appeared on Informed Sources last night to predict that Nagin will run for Governor. Hat tip to Library Chronicles. As an aside, is this Jason Berry the author of Amazing Grace, an account of Charles Evers' run for Governor in Mississippi back in 1972? But back to the issue at hand - Ray Nagin running for Governor of Louisiana. This makes...

When I boarded the flight to New Orleans this month, I was ready. Ready to be angry and heartbroken all over again. Nearly two years after Hurricane Katrina drowned New Orleans, the images of people clinging to their rooftops and waving for help that came too late won't soon leave me. Nor will the haunting chants of "help!" from evacuees at the Superdome. Nor will the photos of dead bodies. And then I got my feet on the ground in New Orleans. The anger I was ready to embrace never materialized, because the people I met were moving beyond it.

a few questions: Is anyone on FR a resident of New Orleans, live nearby, work in New Orleans or commute there often? Is there a New Orleans ping list? Who on FR lives in Louisiana in general and is there a Louisiana ping list?

Nagin Sang Different Tune During Recent Visit To City PHILADELPHIA -- New Orleans mayor Ray Nagin criticized the cleanliness of Philadelphia after a visit to the city last week. "Let me tell you something. You ought to go to Philly and you will appreciate how clean New Orleans is," Nagin said Saturday to a crowd of New Orleans residents concerned about the city's recovery from Hurricane Katrina. "Just go and walk around Philly a little bit and you will appreciate," Nagin said. " ... We still have some work to do but we definitely beat them by a long shot."...

A New Orleans city Councilwoman was busted going over 100mph down I-10 in New Orleans. Her response was the classic, "Do you know who I am?" God, I hate self-important politicians. Link to relevent reports- http://blog.nola.com/graphics/2007/04/pdfs_morrell_driving_reports.html

New Orleans, La. -- Today, after learning that New Orleans plans to poison rats living in the city as part of its "Rat Busters" program, PETA fired off a letter to Mayor Ray Nagin urging him to work with PETA to develop a humane, effective program to permanently reduce the rat population instead. PETA points out that poisoning rats is not only cruel but also ineffective. Rats from surrounding areas will simply move in to fill the void left by those who were killed, and as long as habitats such as abandoned buildings and food sources such as garbage are...

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Four new murders on Monday, added to four over the weekend pushed the city's murder count this year to 55 people — so far. "This is the worst we've had in a while," said police spokesman Sgt. Joseph Narcisse. Included in the eight deaths is a victim who was shot over the weekend, but died on Monday. Many of the shootings appeared linked to drugs, Narcisse said. On Sunday, he said, a 20-year-old New Orleans man was fatally shot in a FEMA-issued trailer after what appeared to be a drug deal gone bad. Drugs and cash...

New Orleans residents arming themselves...

America’s most inept mayor is at it again. Seems like it’s taking him too long to turn NOLA into the Chocolate City of his dreams but he knows why. New Orleans Mayor C. Ray Nagin has suggested that the slow recovery and rebuilding of New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina — which has prevented many black former residents from returning — is part of a plan to change the racial makeup and political leadership of his and other cities. “They are studying this model of natural disasters, dispersing the community and changing the electoral process in that community.” That’s right, boys...

Our family fortress under a hostile sun As a white child in Rhodesia, Peter Godwin lived in an African paradise. Fast-forward to Mugabe's Zimbabwe in 1998, and his beloved country was descending into chaos. In a compelling extract from his new book, he tells of the ravages of Aids, spiralling violence, the desecration of his sister's grave and the hounding of his ageing parents

When the Bring Back New Orleans Commission met in November 2005 to discuss its far-off plans to gradually rebuild and repopulate the flooded city, the Rev. Luke Nguyen rose to talk about the thousands of Vietnamese who had fled his neighborhood in August. To the panel’s surprise, he announced, “We are already back.” Nguyen, known as Father Luke, is one of the pastors at Mary Queen of Vietnam Catholic Church, the focal point of a small East New Orleans area called Village de L’Est. In what the Los Angeles Times has called “a model of self-help and recovery,” the Katrina-ravaged...

Jefferson Parish Sheriff Harry Lee said his controversial methods of cutting crime are working so far this year with three murders recorded in 2007. Using a high-powered gun as a prop, Harry Lee defended his methods of combatting crime in predominately black neighborhoods. Lee said that would extrapolate to an average year in Jefferson Parish following an unusually high number of murders in 2006. He credits his use of more officers and armored vehicles in high-crime areas and he believes his plan to target, videotape and even stop people in those areas has paid off. “I’m not targeting blacks. I’m...

WASHINGTON -- Regions plagued by rising violent crime could share in a $200 million grant next year with a new Justice Department grant targeting gangs, illicit drugs and gun offenses. The Justice Department will ask for the funding for state, local and tribal authorities as part of its 2008 budget request to Congress next week. It comes in the wake of a 2.2 percent rise nationwide in rapes, murder, robbery, aggravated assault and other violent crimes in 2006 -- the first increase since 2001. Communities that team up with other cities and regions, partnering with at least one federal law...

Catholic schools played a "vital role" in the Gulf Coast's path to recovery after hurricanes Katrina and Rita, first lady Laura Bush said on a visit to St. Rosalie Catholic School in Harvey. After her midmorning visit to St. Rosalie, Bush had lunch at Cafe Reconcile in New Orleans, a program of the New Orleans archdiocesan Catholic Charities. Meeting students, teachers and parish and archdiocesan personnel at St. Rosalie Jan. 9, Bush said the school "reminds us of the vital role Catholic schools have played in helping children whose lives were devastated by the hurricanes. Catholic schools worked as quickly...

Michael Brown, the former director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, is shooting off his mouth again. Last week in New York City, he claimed that Mississippi and Louisiana were treated differently after Hurricane Katrina because of their politics. Unfortunately, Louisiana's Democratic governor, Kathleen Blanco, jumped on the suggestion, claiming that Brown had "broken the code of silence about the political conspiracy to hurt the people of Louisiana." Fortunately, Mississippi's Republican governor, Haley Barbour, took the time to consider the source of this conspiracy theory and said Brown's "credibility has been worn pretty thin over the last couple of years...

Updated: Jan. 25, 2007, 1:11 PM ET Athlete who fled Katrina jailed for making bomb threat Associated Press DENTON, Texas -- A high school basketball star is accused of calling in a bomb threat to the school the night of a game he was missing because of a suspension for fighting. Howard Stirgus, an 18-year-old who came to Denton in 2005 after fleeing New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina, was jailed on suspicion of making a false alarm and abusing the 911 system. Authorities said he called Denton High School on Tuesday night, claiming there was a bomb in the building...

SAF, NRA File Motion To Find New Orleans Mayor And Police Superintendent In Contempt Of Court Bellevue, Washington - Frustrated by repeated failures to meet court-appointed deadlines, and a pattern of disregard by the City of New Orleans, the Second Amendment Foundation has filed a motion to hold Mayor Ray Nagin and Police Superintendent Warren Riley in contempt of federal court. A hearing on the motion is scheduled for Jan. 31 in federal district court in New Orleans. The Second Amendment Foundation is suing Nagin and Riley over the confiscation of firearms from law-abiding citizens in the aftermath of Hurricane...

The state will temporarily deploy additional state troopers in the New Orleans area for the Carnival season but will not increase the 360 police and National Guard troops that have been on duty in the city since a murderous crime wave began last summer, Gov. Kathleen Blanco said Tuesday. Blanco told reporters at an informal news conference after addressing the annual meeting of the Louisiana Association of Business and Industry, the state's largest business lobbying organization, that despite a rash of killings in the city in recent weeks, she will not order a long-term increase in the 60 troopers and...

Congressman William Jefferson has been re-elected to Congress, according to WWL-TV election analyst Greg Rigamer. With two-thirds of the vote counted, Jefferson had a 6,000-vote lead over challenger Karen Carter. "I'm a little worried about what this is going to say to the nation," said City Councilwoman Cynthia Hedge-Morrell, a Carter supporter. Jefferson was forced into the runoff against a fellow Democrat when he failed to win 50 percent of the vote in a crowded open multiparty primary. His opponent, state Rep. Karen Carter, is seeking to become the first black woman from Louisiana elected to Congress. Jefferson, 59, has...

HOUMA -- A well-liked local Catholic priest landed in jail Thanksgiving night after he fired a shot in the air with a hunting rifle and resisted arrest, kicking a deputy in the groin, authorities said. The Rev. Joseph Tu Tran, 51, from St. Charles Borromeo Catholic Church in Pointe-aux-Chenes, was "highly intoxicated" when he went into Roland’s Mini-Mart in Bourg around 8 p.m. carrying a 12-gauge shotgun and later threatened a store clerk with a .270-caliber rifle, Sheriff Jerry J. Larpenter said. No one was hurt in the incident. According to Larpenter, a deputy was near the store on Bourg-Larose...

NEW ORLEANS (AP) - Many initial estimates by the Federal Emergency Management Agency of the cost of repairing thousands of water-logged buildings, cracked pipes and crumbling streets in hurricane-staggered Louisiana were way too low - and some reconstruction projects are being held up because of it. Some local governments say they cannot legally or financially hire contractors and get on with the work, because they fear they will be saddled with repair costs that won't be reimbursed by Washington. The FEMA estimates were made as part of a federal program under which local governments make repairs at their own expense,...

A radio commercial for a local gun shop advises Houstonians to arm themselves against "Katricians," adding to the growing tension between Houstonians and the Katrina evacuees who have been blamed for a rising crime rate. Gun shop owner and radio talk-show host Jim Pruett said Thursday he started running the ad a few weeks ago after hearing a local television interview with a Katrina evacuee living in Houston who implied he would have to turn to crime if his government assistance ran out. "There are many evacuees here who are working," said Pruett, who has owned Jim Pruett's Guns &...

NEW ORLEANS--To friends and listeners, radio talk show host Vince Marinello was "Vinnie"-a racetrack regular straight out of "Guys and Dolls," a New Orleans native with an almost Broolynesque accent, a guy who like to imply he had mob ties.Now, Marinello stands accused of donning a disguise and shooting his estranged wife to death gangland-style in a suburban parking lot.

The one-year anniversary of Hurricane Katrina's devastation may help to define the Bush administration in history as incompetent and callous. Hurricane Katrina provided the world with a case study of the administration's attitude toward the poor, people of color in general and African-Americans in particular. Hurricane Katrina was the largest natural disaster in American history. Katrina ravaged the Gulf Coast of Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama, displacing some 770,000 residents and destroying more than 300,000 homes. More than 1,500 people were killed in New Orleans alone, according to reports on Democracy Now (www.democracynow.org). New Orleans has been home to a form...

President and Mrs. Bush are spending Labor Day weekend at their ranch in Crawford, Texas.* *This is based only on the information I could find. I could be wrong. On Tuesday, September 5, the president will resume his series of speeches which remind us all of the true nature of our enemy (the Islamic fascists), while criticizing the critics of the WOT (the leftist appeasers). With no other news available, today’s Dose will recap the best photos of the week. Enjoy your Saturday visit to Sanity Island

NEW ORLEANS, Louisiana, AUG. 30, 2006 (Zenit.org).- Speaking on the one-year anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, President George Bush highlighted how Catholic Charities is helping rebuild the lives of hurricane victims who have returned home. During an address given in New Orleans today, the president recounted the story of Samantha George and how Catholic Charities walked with her on the road to recovery. George, a 28-year old mother of four, lost everything to Katrina's flood, and as a last resort she approached Catholic Charities. "She found help and love" in Catholic Charities, Bush said. Over the past year, Catholic Charities has...

NEW ORLEANS, Aug. 31 -- For Robert Perrillo, M.D., it could have been worse. When the levees broke here in the face of Katrina's surge, his house was inundated by waters that were only waist high. Nevertheless, after the Ochsner Clinic hepatologist and his wife spent many months sleeping on an air mattress in his office, they decided they'd had enough of a city that no longer functioned like one. They managed to get their house repaired with the help of a contractor, who was one of Dr. Perrillo's patients, and in June they sold out and moved to Texas,...

Two young adults, one male, one female, walked into the Wal-Mart on Highway 6, to use a credit card owned by Jeannette Gonzalez, 23, who died Monday as the result of a suspected carjacking. She was carjacked in the parking lot of the Hong Kong Market Sunday and a short while later she was either pushed out or jumped out of her car on Westheimer near Kirkwood. She died from severe head injuries the next day.

Today In New Orleans, President Bush Discussed The Lessons Our Nation Has Learned Since Katrina, The Work That Has Been Done, And The Many Challenges That Still Lie Ahead. One year ago today, Southeast Louisiana was struck by a cruel hurricane and flooding on a massive scale. The President has returned to New Orleans to reiterate his commitment and to report what the Federal government is doing to make good on its promises. However, the one-year anniversary is not the finish line, and many challenges still remain. Source: WhiteHouse.gov Enjoy your Tuesday visit to Sanity Island

There was a lot of talk during Katrina about the cops that went missing, but wasn't there an issue that some cops were on payroll that didn't actually exist. On the one year anniversary, I'm just wondering whatever happened to that story.

One year ago, George Bush belatedly left his extended vacation to come, finally, to devastated New Orleans to address the nation about the catastrophe. His administration had already failed in the rescue of the survivors and was in the process of failing in the resettlement of the displaced. But in a White House-orchestrated stage setting, the president dramatically promised not only to do whatever it took to rebuild New Orleans, but to ''confront . . . with bold action'' the ''deep persistent poverty'' that had been revealed. Now, one year later, the results are in. Half of New Orleans' population...

(AP) NEW ORLEANS -- The head of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers conceded Saturday that despite aggressive efforts to repair the levee system in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina, it was unclear whether the it could hold up to a sizable hurricane this year. Lt. General Carl Strock, the commander of the Corps, said the agency was carefully tracking Tropical Storm Ernesto, which was spinning in the Caribbean and projected to reach hurricane strength by Tuesday. He was confident the Corps had done all it could to repair and reinforce 220 miles of levee walls, but he conceded he...

America : How Much is a Billion? A Billion!!!!! Here's some thought provoking information - The next time you hear a politician use the word "billion" in a casual manner, think about whether you want the "politicians" spending your tax money . A billion is a difficult number to comprehend, but one advertising agency did a good job of putting that figure into some perspective in one of its releases . . . A billion seconds ago it was 1959... A billion minutes ago Jesus was alive... A billion days ago no-one walked on the earth on two feet... A...