The Bishop and the Butterfly: Murder, Politics, and the End of the Jazz Age
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    The City They Left to Drown

    By DF on Sat, 03/07/2009 - 2:20pm | Politics

    No, not New Orleans.

    Topics: 
    Politics

    Comments

    A solid read. Thanks for the link. You and Deadman have sure brightened up my mood this weekend.


    by acanuck on Sat, 03/07/2009 - 3:46pm

    On another bright note, I just heard a piece on NPR about gang wars in Vancouver.  Know anything about this?  There's speculation that it's related to restriction of the drug supply due to the wider gang conflicts along the Mexican border.  Are we ready for the least bad option?


    by DF on Sat, 03/07/2009 - 4:00pm

    Canada's current Conservative government opposes even harm-reduction efforts like needle exchanges and safe-injection sites, so decriminalization -- much less legalization -- is just not on their radar. Obama can't spare the political capital just now to put it on his agenda, either.

    British Columbia's gang problem has been simmering for a few years, with newer, more assertive East Asian and South Asian gangs bumping up against the established criminal elite. What I read is that drug-supply problems to the south have boosted markups, sparking more violent turf wars. Result: Vancouver ranks among both the most desirable cities in Canada to live and the most violent.

    Still, no abandoned houses; Vancouver real estate remains very, very pricey. 


    by acanuck on Sat, 03/07/2009 - 6:15pm

    A misleading title, I think."The City They Left to Drown" suggests that like New Orleans, the city is a helpless victim, overwhelmed by forces beyond its control. But Detroit is more like a tragic hero, knocked to the ground from its once great pedestal by its own flaws. From the racist flight of its former to citizens, to the decades long mismanagement of the auto industry, to the inflexibility of the unions, to the corruption and shortsightedness of its elected leaders, to the negligence of the remaining property owners and citizens, the city has literally and figuratively burned itself to the ground.

    I don't mean that Detroit deserves its fate or that the Federal government should turn its back on the city, only that there is a fundamental difference between a flooded city and a city that has reached such a state that arson has become a cultural tradition. Detroit does not need to be rebuilt; it needs to be reborn. The Federal may serve as midwife to such rebirth, but the people of Detroit must carry the baby to term.


    by Michael Wolraich on Sat, 03/07/2009 - 4:20pm

    My purpose with the title is obviously to draw a comparison between New Orleans and Detroit, but I think you might not be recognizing how similar they really are.  Katrina was a natural disaster, but the stage was set long before that particular storm showed up.  New Orleans had incredibly similar problems with flagging infrastructure, racism and political corruption that all contributed to the scenario.  For New Orleans, Katrina was the breaking point.  For Detroit, it was economic collapse.  In both cases, the Bush administration sat by and watched it all happen.  Just as we ask how things might have been different in New Orleans if known problems with the levies had been addressed, we can ask how things might have been different for Detroit if similar structural problems with nation's health-care system had been taken seriously.  Imagine taking health-care off the list of things to negotiate between the UAW and the big three auto makers.  That could have made a difference years ago.  Now, it's too late.  The storm came, in this case an economic storm, and forced a feeble system to its knees.

    To further my point, you said:

    The Federal may serve as midwife to such rebirth, but the people of Detroit must carry the baby to term.

    But how is this any less true?

    The Federal may serve as midwife to such rebirth, but the people of New Orleans must carry the baby to term.


    by DF on Sat, 03/07/2009 - 4:31pm

    I agree with the economic similarities but think the comparison should be reversed. New Orleans' institutional, political, and social challenges mean that simply constructing new buildings will not be sufficient revitalize the city.

    But I don't think that the disagree on the substance: Detroit is in distress, an extreme version of what is happening everywhere, and the country should do what it can to help.


    by Michael Wolraich on Sun, 03/08/2009 - 1:32pm

    "Reborn" - perfect. But will it happen? Would you bet on it? Not me.

    by Jock Maccrea (not verified) on Sun, 04/12/2009 - 1:52pm