You're right. I live in this pathetic banana republic though not for much longer.
The circle's just about closed here on what amounts to a political oligarchy. Moon Landrieu's daughter is the senior US senator, Moon Landrieu's son is the Lt. Governor(and will soon be Governor) and Moon Landrieu's hand picked crony Sheriff of Orleans parish, Charles Foti, is now the state Attorney General controlling what does and what does not get investigated. Each one of these corrupt politicians' elections was guaranteed by a 80%+ vote out of Orleans Parish and a 90%+ vote out of the Ninth Ward.
Many will say, yes, but the politics have changed with many of the 9th ward residents not returning. Not true in my opinion. There will be an effort, successful probably, to allow all former NOLA residents to vote in the next local and statewide elections from wherever they are. The fix is in folkes, unfortunately. Oh, and there's this. A move is afoot in the state legislature to extend, using Katrina as an excuse, all of the elected state officials' terms by one year from 2007 to 2008.
I can't stand it any longer. I'm done. I refuse to pay taxes any longer in a state that is beyond political redemption. Many of us in other parts of the state have fought the good fight for an end to corruption and politics as usual--me for 20 years. That fight's not worth fighting anymore. When the corrupt/inept politicians have 150,000-200,000 votes ready to be bought or bribed in one location(New Orleans)reform minded politicians like Bobby Jindal and others don't have a snowball's chance.
So, I'm outa here. It'll take me a little while to get my house sold and myself situated somewhere else but by January 2006 I intend to refer to myself happily as a former Louisiana resident.
To those of you lucky souls who don't live here. Please, please stay on your congressman and senators to insist that any federal funds sent here get the UTMOST and tightest scutiny possible. Because if they don't the money will end up lining the pockets of the scumbags in this state who've run it into the ground over the last 100 years.
Good Luck on your move. Be careful where you decide to go! The house should sell quick, if its in decent shape.
...A Washington Post investigation revealed $2 billion worth of government contracts given out, but only 3.8 percent are done by companies in Alabama, 2.8 percent in Louisiana and just 1.8 in Mississippi...
... Kent Adams thinks that's just fishy.
Adams Home Center in Yazoo City thought it had two sub-contracts to supply 450 portable classrooms to the Gulf Coast but an Alaskan Management Company pulled the rug out from under them.
"We were ready and capable of doing this project and it was taken away from us," said Adams.
Adams said the Akima Corporation, which has no experience supplying classrooms, was going to do a $24 million deal with Kent Adams' Yazoo City business to buy and set up the portables.
But Akima, out of Alaska, cut him out of the deal but took the contracts to his suppliers in Georgia and California.
"With us not only being from Mississippi and Yazoo county, you take somebody from thousands of miles away and they end up with the money," said Adams. "We could have created numerous jobs with this."..
The problems are just as bad in DC. (Isn't the chairman of the Senate Apropriations committee from Alaska? hmmmmmm)