Customer Service MSY-ery Style

Today I left town again. Because of my flight time and her schedule She dropped me off at the Airport earlier than necessary.

I decided to have breakfast. That turned out to be a mistake. I was on the B Concourse so there is only one establishment there that serves actual breakfast food. Another place does serve a bacon and egg po-boy.

I got in line and decided to order the $8.50 breakfast special which includes pre-scrabbled eggs, bacon or sausage and grits or hash browns off the steam table. Not a real good price, but whatever. I got into line and said "I'll have the #1 Special Breakfast with bacon and grits" the response was "We're out of grits". I later found out they were also out of bacon.

Now my first question is how do you run out of grits? They are cheap you could make enough to feed an army for a couple of dollars. Surely at the prices they are charging they could make extra. Even instant grits are better than no grits at all. I decided to pass, not mostly because they were out of grits (I like hash brows just fine) but mostly because the person serving seemed completely uncaring about me the customer standing right there. The announcement that they were out of grits was not prefaced with even a perfunctory "I'm sorry" or any other indication of interest.

I suppose no one in the tourist industry cares because no one stops to eat at the airport on their way into town. By the time they get to airport food the tourist industry has already separated the tourist from as much money as they could manage and don't see a need to be nice any longer.

That is a shame for two reasons.

First is that most places in New Orleans do a pretty good job of Customer Service maintaining a fairly good balance between hospitality and respecting guests privacy. There is very little of the TGI Friday's institutionalized perkiness "Hi! I'm Heather and in addition to bringing you your food I'm you new best friend!" and the sort of haughty service some pseudo-star restaurants affect announcing "The Chef prefers to serve you food his way, so sit there and like it remember to leave a big tip."

The second is it damages the name of a fairly well known Soul Food Resturant, The Praline Connection. I don't blame them. I understand that they and a few other places ( Acme Oyster House) licensed the food service vendor at the airport to use their name. While they may get some royalties they have no control over the operation. I just hope it doesn't hurt them too much.

Enhancing Security through Preferential Treatment

TSA is at it again. They are enhancing Security by reducing privacy and providing preferential treatment to some people.

WASHINGTON – The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) today announced that it began testing a limited, voluntary passenger pre-screening initiative with a small known traveler population at four U.S. airports. The TSA PreCheck initiative implements a key component of the agency’s intelligence-driven, risk-based approach to security. This pilot program will help assess measures designed to enhance security by placing more focus on pre-screening individuals who volunteer information about themselves prior to flying in order to potentially expedite the travel experience.

This is apparently an effort to salvage the failed program where travelers paid a fee for expedited clearance.

One of the Airports is Atlanta and one of the Airlines is Delta. I frequently fly to and from Atlanta and just after this pilot program started I flew through the Atlanta airport.

Part 1 -Assured Success

I usually park my car in the Airport Park and Ride and use the South Security Screening Area as it is closer to the first bus stop at the terminal. Delta and TSA have selected this area for im0limenting the pilot program. It should work out well, you see they have dedicated one of the 3 ID check lines for the PreCheck program, and judging by the traffic those traveler should be very expedited, you see there was only about one passenger ever 15 or 20 seconds in that line, meaning the the TSA agent sat there frequently with nothing to do. Of course diverting one third of the passengers using that Check Point into the other lines delayed everyone else.

Part 2 - It Gets Better
I am an Airtran A+ Elite and our company has an A2B Corporate Account.

On Wednesday October 12, 2011 I arrived at the Atlanta airport early for my flight to New Orleans, about 4:15 PM. I parked in the Airport Park and Ride. Since I had my boarding pass and no luggage to check I went to the South Security Screening Area as it was closer to the shuttle bus drop off.

This is the area Delta and TSA are running their pilot PreCheck program in. This is the second time I had been through this check point since the program started and I expected that one line would be dedicated to that program (although very few people seemed to be using it the previous time). I was surprised to see several uniformed Delta Employees pre-checking boarding passes and directing each passenger into one of the three available ID checking lines. I paid little attention at the time, however once I was in line it became apparent that the Delta employees were not merely directing people to the appropriate line but screening passengers and reserving two lines for their preferred passengers. As I result it took me 15 minutes to clear security while two uniformed TSA agents sat in plain sight with virtually no passengers going through their lines. Of course those passengers were "expedited". Of course diverting two thirds (or more) of the passengers using that Check Point into the other lines delayed everyone else.

As a Corporate customer and as an A+ Elite passenger I am supposed to be eligible for "dedicated check-in lines and security entrances at select airports". In the past I have always been able to access the Preferred check-in lines for airline frequent flyers.

I don't expect any airline to be able to block anyone from using government services we all pay for.

Does anyone beleive this SHIT?

The latest dysfunctional Government fight over FEMA was resolved because;

FEMA spokeswoman Rachel Racusen, said the agency had $114 million left in its disaster relief fund, enough to last until Thursday or Friday, the final business day of the current budget year. She said the exact timing would depend on the number of emergency victims who apply for aid, and whether any new disasters occur.

I think FEMA loses or denies more applications in a week than $114,000,000 and if they could write a check for anything between now and Friday I'd drop dead from surprise.

I applied for aid once it took the six months to deny me.

It couldn't happen to a nicer guy.

She was reading an old CityBusiness this afternoon. She ran across this story in a side bar.

On March 2 New Single Assessor Errol Williams got stuck in the elevators at city hall. There were two numbers posted in the elevator car, along with an explicit notice not to call the Fire Department. He called both emergency numbers posted in the car, they were the engineer's office and the security guard. Guess what? Of course neither number answered. He then called a friend in the Civil Sheriff's office who called, guess who? The Fire Department, of course. When the Fire Department got him out, guess what they told him? "Don't pay any attention to what the City posted."

Seems like there ought to be a metaphor or a moral in that story somewhere. Possibly about the mighty being unable to overcome the institutional idiocy that infects everything in City Government.

I'm sure most readers have experienced similar dysfunction in public systems in New Orleans. The feeling sure seems familiar on any number of levels.

I wish Mitch a lot of luck, he's going to need it.

I'd rather be in a FEMA trailer in New Orleans than in a penthouse anywhere else

I found the title quote by Gralen Banks;

"I'd rather be in a FEMA trailer in New Orleans than in a penthouse anywhere else,"

in this NPR story I hadn't seen before (or forgot about) reading another NPR Story about Treme.

Echoes of Lafcadio Hearn;

"Times are not good here. The city is crumbling into ashes. It has been buried under taxes and frauds and maladministraions so that it has become a study for archaeologists...but it is better to live here in sackcloth and ashes than to own the whole state of Ohio."

Odd that we now have a couple of from NOLA Blogger expats in Ohio.

The Trailer Two Step

Here we go again. There are still 350 trailers in New Orleans. I am not surprised you can see them scattered in neighborhoods all over the city. A few months ago I was in an unusual (for me) part of town and was surprised to see one. A shortly after that The Times-Picayune ran a story on the few trailers left in Jefferson.

I started this blog to chronicle my life in a FEMA trailer and as self therapy for the dislocation after the flood. I had one of the first trailers. I was lucky because I had power and water at my house, many people didn't. I lived in it for over 2 years.

I had monthly inspections I had to take off from work to meet the FEMA inspector. The trailer gnomes came and did stuff when you weren't around (mostly adding new warning stickers).

I sat through a formaldehyde test, which turned out not to be that bad, although I never was actually warned about formaldehyde. It took months of calling to get the report and I never did actually get the full report, only a summary letter.

There was a tremendous trailer industry. There were installation contracts, electrical contracts, maintenance contracts, inspection contracts. Virtually none of the people involved in these activities was local. I don't think that in the entire time I was in the trailer a single person who came out was local. The same person never came twice. It was a revolving door of government employees and contractors.

In all that time no one ever offered to help me get out of the trailer (except into the rental assistance program). No one offered to help with the road home applications. No one offered to help create a housing plan. No one offered any rebuilding assistance. No one offered help finding contractors. No one offered to coordinate volunteers. No one offered to help me find government programs I was qualified for. No one even left me a brochure in government speak of options I could pursue.

I live in a mostly white, affluent neighborhood, so I may have been profiled or they may have decided I was a low probability to accept help. But my neighborhood is also a neighborhood with lots of elderly residents who could have used help.

If we want to get people out of trailers and into houses, perhaps we need to spend less on contractors and enforcement and a little more on counseling and helping people manage their renovations. Perhaps we should move some of the CDBG money out of making millionaires out of DBEs and into helping actual people.

Institutionalizing Reform

New Orleans needs to Institutionalize reforms to prevent a relapse. Simply electing good people to a bad system is not enough. It might actually appear that the system is working.

Mexico has an Institutional Revolutionary Party originally formed to preserve and extend the ideals of the Mexican Revolution. It hasn't worked out that well. Eventually the party became fat, happy, arrogant and corrupt. Eventually they lost.

The NOPD is much in the news. The Chief is under fire and he may have pulled off an amazing feat of public relations. He may actually be less popular than the Mayor.

C. Ray Nagin and Chief Riley

People are looking back on Chief Pennington as some kind of golden age. Under Pennington, one-third of the corrupt or under-performing NOPD was replaced, firing people who can't pass truly independent investigations of complaints, random integrity checks, and professional standards.

But before firing everybody "who can't pass truly independent investigations of complaints, random integrity checks, and professional standards" You have to have a chain of command committed to those standards and the ability to conduct truly independent investigations of complaints, credible integrity checks and well communicated professional standards.

It seems to me you can't fire the entire police force all at once unless the Governor is willing to mobilize the National Guard for several years until a new force can be built. Maybe Obama could invade New Orleans and start over like Bush did in Iraq. Short of that you are necessarily going to rebuild the force with some of the same people. Progressive improvement and attrition will eventually replace all of the current officers. Pennington made a lot of improvements, had his successors built on that instead of dismantling what he did we would be much better off today. The long term key is a long term effort.

Mitch has started a national search for a new ploice chief as the first step. We need to Institutionalize these reforms so that the next Ray Nagin can't undo them. Every Police Chief needs to be selected with the same kind of process we routinely use for Superintendent of Schools, Aviation Director and Inspector General. It's too important to be left to the Mayor's crony. There is much more to do but it is an imperative first step to permanently solve the problem long term. The NOPD made a lot of progress under Pennington, but he didn't finish the job and quickly reverted as soon as he left town.

One way to help stop the reversion would be more effective power sharing between the City Council and the Mayor. As we have watched Nagin push the limits of Mayoral power and arrogance there was no effective counter weigh in city government. Often the Council was literally powerless to do anything. Pushing the decision out in the public (like the Inspector General selection for example) would insure at least some public scrutiny and a public record. While University Presidents may not be the ideal group, the prescribed process forces it to be more public. Adding some of this to the Charter would help. There is always danger that some faction will gain enough control to subvert the process.

I worry very much that Mitch will do a good job as Mayor but won't make the structural changes needed to prevent a recurrence of the problems we face.

I am concerned that he won't embrace radical change, but not because he wants to use the existing power. I just don't think he is an innovator. I think he will be competent but not bold.
I'm not sure Mitch was running for power as much as validation or personal and family legacy.

However if he is concerned about his legacy then he might want embrace historic change, like his father did by embracing integration.

I have a theory

I have a theory that for every possible disaster there is a frustrated mid level bureaucrat somewhere secretly hoping that his (or her) doomsday scenario will happen so they can pull that old memo out of the bottom drawer of the desk and say "See I told you this would happen".

Since the number of frustrated mid level bureaucrats is effectively infinite and many may harbor more that one scenario, it is a virtual certainly that after every disaster someone will come forward claiming to have been a voice in the wilderness.

Imagine;
Maximum Mary Schiavo, former Inspector General of DOT where in spite of her success she seemed determined to provoke controversy.

Or Linda Trippwho ratted Bill Clinton.

Then there's Russ Tice,


who was one of the sources used by the New York Times in reporting on the NSA wiretapping controversy. He had earlier been known for reporting suspicions that a DIA colleague of his might be a Chinese spy. A serial whistle blower.

or;

Elia Kazan, a former member of the communist party who testified before the House Un-American Activities Committee and "named names".

Moderation and Caution at the Polls

During all of the Who Dat and Carnival celebrations there was an election. To hear many people you would think it was some kind of massive reform vote. But I think the truth is much different. Very few new comers were elected. The vote was largely a cautious vote for safety and competence. One fact which I haven't seen anywhere (but I've been out of town a lot) , no incumbent was defeated. In the one race with two incumbents, both made it to a run off. In most other races well known politicians won easily.

State Senator -- 5th Senatorial District 91 of 91 Precincts Reporting
Karen Carter Peterson (D)	13,509	78.34%
Irma Muse Dixon (D)	3,734	21.66%

Karen Carter Peterson has been a rising star on the local political scene for a while. She was considered to be a strong candidate for Mayor, but chose not to run. She was mentioned as a challenger to Joseph Cao, but chose the State Senate.

Judge -- Civil District Court, Division J 366 of 366 Precincts Reporting
Paula Brown (D)	48,010	60.55%
Stephen Chesnut (R)	14,837	18.71%
Morris Reed (D)	16,442	20.74%

Paula Brown was a former temporary judge who won easy election in a minor race.

Judge -- Juvenile Court, Section E 366 of 366 Precincts Reporting
Richard Exnicios (D)	20,065	26.07%
Tracey Flemings-Davillier (D)	38,786	50.39%
Marie Williams (D)	18,121	23.54%

Don't know much about Tracey Flemings-Davillier, another minor race.

Sheriff 366 of 366 Precincts Reporting
Marlin N. Gusman (D - I)	69,289	82.89%
Pat M. Peyton (D)	14,301	17.11%

Marlin Gusman ran an impressive race against a minor challenger. Easy incumbent victory

Clerk -- Criminal District Court 366 of 366 Precincts Reporting
Arthur A. Morrell (D - I)	63,821	81.99%
Harold E. Weiser (N)	14,020	18.01%

Another Incumbent victory against a minor challenger.

Assessor 366 of 366 Precincts Reporting
Andrew Gressett (R)	5,269	6.30%
Janis Lemle (D)	19,750	23.61%
Claude Mauberret (D - I)	20,919	25.01%
Erroll G. Williams (D - I)	37,697	45.07%

In a hotly contested race for the new combined Assessor, two incumbents edged out a full fledged reformer/new comer. This election more that any other illustrates the moderate mood of the electorate.

Coroner 366 of 366 Precincts Reporting
Dwight McKenna (D)	32,435	39.59%
Frank Minyard (D - I)	49,483	60.41%

Another impressive win for incumbency, the long time heavily criticized 80 year old white Minyard against the well connected black McKenna. Neither exactly a reformer or an outsider.

Mayor -- City of New Orleans 366 of 366 Precincts Reporting
Jonah Bascle (N)	160	0.18%
"Manny" Chevrolet-Bruno (O)	139	0.16%
Robert "Rob" Couhig (R)	4,874	5.48%
John Georges (D)	8,189	9.21%
Troy Henry (D)	12,275	13.80%
"Jerry" Jacobs (N)	106	0.12%
Thomas A. Lambert (R)	239	0.27%
Mitchell "Mitch" Landrieu (D)	58,276	65.52%
James Perry (D)	2,702	3.04%
Nadine Ramsey (D)	1,894	2.13%
Norbert P. Rome (N)	84	0.09%

Mitch's win is stunning. I was sure that there would be a divisive run off. No one I know of predicted the margin. In retrospect it seems voters were retreating to safety and familiarity. Mitch had run twice before, the community had a largely positive view of his sister and father. I think it would be a mistake to view this as an endorsement for reform, that was simply not a part of Mitch's campaign. He ran as the safe "not Nagin". Mitch's legacy could well be a "good" but it's hard to see a radical reformer in his history or his personality.

Councilmember(s) at Large 366 of 366 Precincts Reporting
Jacquelyn Brechtel Clarkson (D - I)	38,904	26.57%
"Arnie" D. Fielkow (D -I)	51,310	35.05%
William "Poppa" Gant (N)	1,370	0.94%
Nolan Marshall (D)	13,411	9.16%
Gregory "Chef" Sonnier (R)	3,014	2.06%
"Lance" W. von Uhde III (R)	1,031	0.70%
Cynthia Willard-Lewis (D)	37,362	25.52%

The two incumbents won easily, the only serious challenger was the other incumbent Cynthia Willard-Lewis.

Councilmember -- District A 89 of 89 Precincts Reporting
John "Jay" Batt (R)	9,046	39.32%
Virginia Blanque (R)	3,324	14.45%
Susan G. Guidry (D)	10,173	44.22%
"Fred" Robertson (N)	461	2.00%

District A's incumbent reformer elected not to run and endorsed Susan Guidry. The former incumbent Jay Batt decided to run again. Guidry is a new face running as a reformer against a polarizing former incumbent but was unable to close the deal. Again familiarity blunted reform.

Councilmember -- District B 81 of 81 Precincts Reporting
Stacy Head (D - I)	10,132	66.86%
Corey Watson (D)	5,021	33.14%

Possibly the most interesting race where the reform and incumbent streams merged in the landslide re-election of a controversial reformer over a new face. The association of the new face with the old guard may well have affected his appeal.

Councilmember -- District C 76 of 76 Precincts Reporting
"Tom" Arnold (R)	5,217	31.82%
Kristin Gisleson Palmer (D)	10,508	64.10%
Nathaniel Jones (N)	668	4.07%

I know very little about this race. It seems the only clear instance of the rejection of an incumbent (Tom Arnold) for a new comer (Kristin Palmer) with little government experience. She was endorsed by the incumbent James Carter. Her opponents "eccentricities" didn't hurt either.

Councilmember -- District D 63 of 63 Precincts Reporting
Cynthia Hedge-Morrell (D -I)	11,612	76.53%
Denise Holden (D)	3,562	23.47%

Another clear win for the Incumbent Party.

Councilmember -- District E 57 of 57 Precincts Reporting
Austin Badon (D)	5,078	38.85%
Jerrelda Drummer-Sanders (D)	805	6.16%
Jon Johnson (D)	3,912	29.93%
Leonard Lucas, Jr. (D)	434	3.32%
Cyndi Nguyen (D)	1,776	13.59%
Alicia Plummer (D)	1,065	8.15%

With no incumbent this race resulted in a run off between politicians looking to move up. An incumbent State Rep and a former legislator, score tie for the Incumbent Party.

The remaining ballot matters generally reflect a distrust of City Government to deliver services. All of them passed overwhelmingly. Crime prevention districts generally reflect a view that the NOPD cannot be trusted to deliver services to generally affluent areas. The idea that the services provided by these districts enhance the service in certain areas is highly suspect. The NOPD could be expected to redeploy its resources out of area covered by these special assessments. These districts do guarantee a minimum level of service.

Lake Terrace Crime Prevention Dist. -- Parcel Fee - CC - 8 Yrs. 2 of 2 Precincts Reporting
Yes	365	86.70%
No	56	13.30%

Spring Lake Subdiv. Imp. Dist. -- $200 Annual Fee - CC - 8 Yrs. 1 of 1 Precincts Reporting
Yes	100	73.53%
No	36	26.47%

Garden District Security District -- 19 Mills - CC - 8 Yrs. 12 of 12 Precincts Reporting
Yes	1,136	90.30%
No	122	9.70%

Touro Bouligny Security District -- 16 2/10 Mills - CC - 8 Yrs. 10 of 10 Precincts Reporting
Yes	617	81.29%
No	142	18.71%

Those expecting some kind of massive reform are likely mistaken. Interpreting this election, however relieved we were to be rid of Rey Ray Nagin, as an endorsement of reform is probably going to disappoint the reformers. None of the candidates ran on a strong reform platform. There was remarkable unanimity on a number of small reforms. Mostly they simply promised to do a better job than the current bunch.

Nothing in the results suggests to me that many of the officials elected are willing to make the kinds of structural reforms needed to prevent the recurrence of a Nagin like mayor. This is somewhat similar to the pronouncements following Obama's election that the American People had changed their stripes and now were born again New Deal Progressive Democrats. What was really at work was much simpler and more mundane. George W Bush was the most unpopular President in recent memory. Nagin is even more unpopular than George W. Bush was.

There seems to me a common flailing in the progressive culture. There is a wide spread belief that if we could only elect the smartest, most eloquent Philosopher King things will fall into place. In fact as the framers of the Constitution demonstrated, the underlying structure matters far more to successful government than the people operating it. Any defect in structure will be exploited for the benefit of special interests or personal gain. The vesting of so much power in the person of the Mayor is a severe defect in the New Orleans City government.

A random act of competance!

The TP reported on February 12 that the city had replaced some IT contractors and renegotiated some contracts.

The new contracts represent a huge cost savings. Combined, the three deals will cost no more than $4.3 million this year, while Ciber and VisionIT averaged a combined $23 million a year since mid-2007. That's a savings of 81 percent.

This is a significant accomplishment.

The report was lost in the hysteria of the Saints win and carnival. It deserves wider coverage and support.

If other city departments (notably the Sanitation Department) would take similar action, the cities budget problems might be manageable.

Character Matters

I'm something of a dilettante when it come to American history. I've read some and thought some and developed a few of my own theories. One is that at pivotal times history often depends on a few people of extraordinary character. Not perfect people but people with extraordinary moral strength.
George Washington was many things, but the one thing everyone agreed on was his extraordinary character. His steadfast devotion to the cause likely was the critical factor in the success of our revolution. He was the unanimous choice of his peers to preside over the Constitutional Convention which produced the most remarkable document in political history, yet by all accounts he seldom participated actively, instead demonstrating his resolve and commitment. As first President of the United States he established many of the customs we adhere to to this day.


Robert E. Lee was in the tradition of Washington. He commanded the respect of everyone who knew of him. He was called the best officer in the United States Army before the Civil War. At the end of the Civil War when he called on the South to accept defeat, his moral force was enough to override the president of the Confederacy.


George C. Marshall was the only military man in the US who could promote Colonel Eisenhower over dozens of more senior officers. He was the only person who by strength of will could resist Churchill and the British General Staff. “The noblest Roman of them all" was how Winston Churchill once described him. FDR said he couldn't sleep if Marshall was not in Washington. After winning the war, he was given the Nobel Peace prize for winning the peace.


Martin Luther King Jr. was thrust to greatness. He was a young little known preacher when he was "nominated" to lead the Montgomery Bus Boycott. His strong conviction in the rightness of his cause, without recrimination and with universal reason strengthened his supporters and undermined his opponents. The moral force of his calm righteousness showed the country the way.

If only our local leaders could be just a little more like them. A little more concerned with good and a little less concerned with get.

The soft corruption of incompetence.

Anyone who has had any contract with the government of the City of New Orleans knows (or should know) that every office is dysfunctional, every process broken.

This dysfunction leads to monumental structural incompetence, which often shields favoritism, cronyism, discrimination and corruption. George W. Bush famously used the phrase "the soft bigotry of low expectations" the soft corruption of incompetence is no less pernicious.

There is useless red tape, and an expectation that citizens will pay the taxes, then provide any services for themselves. There is a punitive approach to government. Civil "Servants" view themselves as preventing citizens from taking advantage of government, while dispensing favorable treatment to their friends, relatives and others in the political caste.

As an example I have for months been trying to get a refund of overpaid property tax. The City basically refuses to share their records. The Finance Department web site shows taxes due, but not taxes overpaid. I got documentation of the overpayment by my mortgage company which the City refused to accept, even though they agree the tax was overpaid, because they require both sides of the canceled check, except in this case it was an Electronic Transfer, there is No Check!

In a similar situation the Finance Department has asserted that since the Assessor lost paperwork they are entitled to charge a taxpayer any tax they arbitrarily decide.

It has long been that way, fortunately in the past it was easy to bypass or simply ignore city government most of the time. Since the flood it has been impossible to ignore the city has reached it influence into every aspect of life.

The racial transformation of city government that took place beginning in 1970 with Moon Landrieu's term and was completed by the time Marc Morial became mayor in 1994 didn't really change anything. The processes have remained the same, only the players changed. The new boss is the same as the old boss.

The political caste today is made up of a tight knit sub culture, largely made up of creoles of color as they used to be known, now simply creoles. There has developed a power and social structure similar to and parallel to the old line white structure. Its striking to note how much of the current power structure is related by blood or marriage.

The city can no longer afford these insular, inefficient, divisive and corrupt practices. Everyone in the city belives that game is fixed and tha unless they participate in it, they have no chance.

A number of Mayoral candidates have spoken of Charter Reform. I agree with that, one thing that needs to change is the relationship of the Council and Mayor.

New Orleans has long had an extreme from of the "Strong Mayor" government. In fact the Mayor is close to a King, needing only occasional approval of the Council usually on his terms. Rey Ray I has proven how dangerous that can be. He has "Gone Rogue" almost as if he is trying to destroy the city that is ungrateful to him for "busting his butt" on our behalf. Through his petulant feckless disregard for anything or anyone but himself he has presented us with a generational opportunity to fix City Government.

My priority for Charter Reform would be to involve the Council more in the policy making aspects of government, to make them a legislative partner of the Mayor. It seems beyond obvious to me that that diverse city needs a diverse decision making body which represents all of the people and operates in public.Under previous Mayors the Council often retreated into making zoning variances their primary business.

The current City Council has shown considerable independence and has made some very positive initiatives. To some extent the tension between the Mayor and the Council is a positive development for the citizens, exposing the government to the people.

I suggest this Charter Amendment

(b) Contracts for professional services administered by the offices, departments, boards, and other agencies of the Executive Branch shall be awarded on the basis of a competitive selection process which shall be established by executive order of the Mayor.

(c) Contracts for professional services administered or by the Council, pursuant to its Charter functions, legislative authority and responsibilities, and regulatory authority and responsibilities, shall be awarded on the basis of a competitive selection process which shall be established by ordinance. rule of the Council. Such contracts shall be signed by the Council president upon authorization by Motion adopted by a majority of the entire membership of the Council, except that pursuant to Section 4-403(2), contracts to employ special counsel shall require a two-thirds vote of the Council's entire membership. The Council rule may except contracts executed solely to assist the office of an individual councilmember.

I'm not sure else what should be included but stronger budget requirements, confirmation of the Council on all contracts (something many cities including Atlanta do), requiring the Mayor to preside over Council Meetings as ex officio member of the Council or designating Council Member as a full time job with adequate compensation (75% of the Mayor's salary?) all seem like something that could be worthwhile.

I sure some will consider this a part of the vast white wing conspiracy to exclude blacks from government. If however in the next administration there is a white mayor it would seem that power sharing should be welcomed.

The Song Remains the Same.

Recently race has been much in the news locally and nationally. Harry Ried apparently put his foot in it. Cliff, as usual said everything that needs to be said.

Locally, WBOK has had several controversial interviews with Da Mayor and Da Chief. The Mayor as usual was smoother but dipped into his own negro dialect by constantly calling the African American Candidates "brothers" (wink wink) and urging "the community" to get behind one candidate.

Da Chief went much further, claiming Stacy Head called him an n-word in an email he later admitted he had never seen and that she insists doesn't exist. That is offensive to me and to many other people for the Chief of Police, the highest ranking law enforcement officer to make such a charge without proof, and it was Da Chief who made the charge, offering the comment to a caller who referred to an alleged email Head had sent.

I'm sure that many of the police officers who work under him have been subjected to unfounded accusations of all sorts by criminals trying to find a way out of their situation. I'm also sure he has disciplined officers for using the language he claimed Stacy had used. Da Chief should know better.

I'm now pretty sure such an email does not exist. Stacy Head has enough enemies of all colors that it certainly would have leaked by now. Cliff challenged some of us who were criticizing the Chief to call for her resignation if the email could be verified. I will, no one should be using that kind of language or claiming falsely that someone else has. I think Da Chief should resign or be fired for making such an allegation, but that's not likely.

Stacy has gotten criticism for being rude and disrespectful, but somehow no one ever seems to call out the people who are rude and disrespectful to her or other public officials by making random unfounded charges of all sorts of things. I wish some prominent leaders of the African American community would publicly take Da Chief to task for his offensive accusations.

I wrote the rest of this a while ago and let it lie, waiting to edit some things and to see how things developed. It got stale but in light of recent local and national events I decided to publish it now.

Jimmy Carter recently said;

"I think an overwhelming portion of the intensely demonstrated animosity toward President Barack Obama is based on the fact that he is a black man, that he's African American,"

I think that comment is overblown and reckless. It has certainly set back the racial progress we have made by renewing suspicion on both sides. The media reaction was varied, some on the left have used it to paint anyone opposing Obama's policies as racist. But that's not new. That sentiment has been bubbling through the "progressive" ether for a while.

President Obama was, well, Presidential, and I think mostly right, if somewhat understated in his reaction. I watched as he gave well prepared interviews for almost all of the Sunday morning political programs. Sometimes his answers were so similar, as were the questions, that he used almost the same language. The clearest statement about race I could find was this one;

I'm not saying that race — never matters in— in any of these— public debates that we have. What I'm saying is this debate that's taking place is not about race, it's about people being worried about— how our government should operate.

I think he has it exactly right.

One other thing he did which may have helped race relations more that any of these interviews is calling out Kanye West for his boorish and rude behavior at the MTV awards.

"I thought that was really inappropriate, What are you butting in (for)? ... The young lady seems like a perfectly nice person. She's getting her award. What's he doing up there?"

A questioner chimes in, "Why would he do it?"

"He's a jackass, ... Come on guys, cut the president some slack. I've got a lot of other stuff on my plate."

That was the feeling in many quarters

Maybe if some leaders in the local black community would speak up forthrightly when our own local Jackass brays away in his juvenile, petulant and divisive manner we could move forward.

As our slow motion Mayors race continues to develop at a snails pace now would be a good time for someone to actually put forward a reform agenda, contrasting it with the current state of affairs.

Coming back to the recent events Da Mayor, Da Chief most prominently, but other "leaders" in the African American community are seeking refuge in conspiracy theories, but I think a lot of the malaise in the African America community can be traced to leaders who have have betrayed it, including Da Mayor, Da Chief, The Jefferson Crime Family and others. For a long time and even still today some voices in the African American community say that the corruption prosecutions are racially motivated. That seems to me to have now to have been proven false with the indictment of white officials in St. Bernard, St. Tammany and the very public probe of Jefferson Parish, leading to the resignation of the Parish President.

New Orleans has many problems, it is time to stop adding to them by tolerating corruption in the name of racial politics. If the local African American leadership is disappointed in the current mayors race, perhaps they should reflect on tolerating corruption in their midst and squandering the confidence of "the Communiy". Clearly political insiders were in the best position to know what was happening and take action to eliminate it. Just a Jefferson Parish politicians were in the best position to counter the corruption in their midst.

Catch 22

In contrast with previous precident here I'm quoting this article extensively since it's an old one, to allow public comment and to point out the absurdity of the Kafkaesque rules regarding "Help" FEMA offers and the compassion local governments extend. I decided to resurrect this from the crypt because the other evening I was driving down Vendome Place uptown for the first time in a probably two years and I was surprised to see there is still a FEMA trailer (or a good approximation of one) still in someone's driveway. There are a few others spotted around town.

FEMA trailer symbol of post-Katrina Catch-22 in Harvey

by Mark Waller, The Times-Picayune

Saturday September 05, 2009, 10:58 PM

Jefferson Parish wants to tear down his house, but a FEMA trailer is in the way. He wants to fix his house, but the parish's demolition order is in the way.

Susan Poag / The Times-Picayune

Charles Ayala of Harvey is one of the last FEMA trailer dwellers in Jefferson Parish. The parish has a demolition order against his Second Avenue home for blight, but Ayala says he wants to repair his home.

Charles Ayala's recovery from Hurricane Katrina has descended into one of the most confounding predicaments out of the thousands of people in Jefferson Parish who relied on FEMA trailers.

He is one of the last few residents lingering in a trailer long after Jefferson Parish began suing people, including him, to part with their units. He is fighting a court order to demolish his house because of blight. But the parish is blocked from tearing down the house -- because the federally issued trailer stands in the path of the bulldozers.

"Every beat of misfortune has not missed me since Aug. 29, 2005," Ayala said last week outside his house at 504 Second Avenue in Harvey, where a tree limb punched a hole in the roof during the hurricane and let rain inside. He said he also endured a bout with stomach cancer that forced him to stop working as a convenience-store manager, so he cannot afford to rent an apartment.

Ayala, who turns 49 on Monday, is caught in the waning days of Jefferson Parish's campaign to rid neighborhood streets of trailers, one of the most aggressive such efforts in the New Orleans area. About 10 units remain in unincorporated parts of the parish. More than 18,000 of them dotted Jefferson three years ago.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency itself has ended the trailer program. The cases that remain demonstrate some of the most tangled, intractable problems storm victims have faced.

Ayala said he believes the $67,000 in rebuilding money he received from the state's Road Home program is enough to fix his house. The demolition order, however, prevents him from securing building permits.

'It's not abandoned'

Jefferson Parish Attorney Tom Wilkinson said parish officials do not agree that Ayala's house is salvageable.

"The siding on the building is in disrepair and, in a number of places, the siding is missing, rotted and deteriorated, " says a 2008 petition against Ayala the parish filed in 24th Judicial District Court in Gretna. "There are parts of the structure which are missing the soffit and fascia. Parts of the roof are missing shingles. There are also holes in the roof causing the roof to be open to the weather. The exterior paint is chipping and peeling. The windows are not weather tight. The building also has termite damage and the floor joist is rotten."

Parish attorneys argue Ayala's house is a dangerous nuisance. Judge Steve Windhorst sided with the parish and issued a demolition order. The parish has a separate court order telling Ayala to remove the trailer, in accordance with parish codes against using travel trailers as dwellings in residential neighborhoods.

Ayala said he recently installed a new roof on the house, showing that he is trying make progress on repairing the house and leaving the trailer, which he says gives him nosebleeds because of the formaldehyde used in its construction.

His house last week still had a faded and peeling exterior. The front and rear yards were thick with vegetation, another code violation according to parish officials, but Ayala argued the plants are ornamental.

Susan Poag / The Times-PicayuneAyala says his home now has a new roof on it, but he says he cannot get a permit for more repairs because of the parish's demolition order.

"It's not abandoned, " Ayala said. "It's not neglected. You've got an owner here who cares about his home. You don't go put a brand new roof on your home if you don't care about it."

Matthew Friedman, an assistant parish attorney handling FEMA trailer cases, said Ayala's situation has the parish at a standstill.

"He probably couldn't fix the house with the trailer there, anyway," Friedman said.

Asked whether the parish might sue FEMA to remove its property, he said, "All legal avenues are open."

Legal tangle

A spokeswoman for FEMA referred questions about moving the last trailer residents to the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development, which now manages disaster housing cases. Neill Coleman, a HUD spokesman, said residents can apply for Section 8 housing vouchers to help them secure new accommodations.

Ayala said he previously spoke with FEMA officials about the rental assistance program that has since ended, but he felt he couldn't afford the portion of the rent he would have had to pay.

And, of course, they'll tear down his house if he leaves the trailer.

Alice Riener, an attorney with Southeast Louisiana Legal Services, is helping Ayala try to extract himself from this puzzle, primarily by petitioning the court to remove the demolition order so Ayala can get permits to renovate the house.

Riener argued the parish is placing Ayala in a difficult situation by declaring his house more than 50 percent damaged, requiring him to rebuild under higher codes with greater costs, such as elevating the structure. Noting that the house didn't suffer any flooding, Riener said it is not damaged to such an extent.

"It's a very serious thing to have a house demolished, " she said. "If it gets demolished, he won't have the money to rebuild."

Wilkinson said the parish continues to explore all options for resolving the impasse, but he said: "Our hands are basically tied."

Ayala said stress from the ordeal has caused him to suffer depression and lose weight.

"If all the parish did was get off my back, I could turn my life around, " using the Road Home money, Ayala said.

"They will ruin my life savings; they will ruin my financial future, " he said. "If they succeed, I will be converted into an indigent, homeless pauper."

Why I'm a Committed Independant.

The Orleans Parish Democratic Executive Committee endorsed the following candidates.

Troy Henry for Mayor
Arnie Fielkow and Cynthia Willard-Lewis for Council at-large
Susan Guidry for Council District A
Corey Watson for Council District B
Kristin Giselson Palmer for Council District C
Cynthia Hedge-Morrell for Council District D
Austin Badon for Council District E
Dwight McKenna for Coroner
Karen Carter Peterson for State Senate District 5

I am underwhelmed by their choices. With a few possible exceptions the candidates represent the status quo.

Troy Henry is a question mark, I have no idea what his real views are. He seems to me much in the mold of Nagin, an "executive" who's most critical function is to make deals with governments. That turned out well. I have heard he has a sort of "family legacy" due to his father's union positions. The recent eruption by Nagin and Da Chief seem directed at creating some buzz around him. The Mayor seemed to sort of endorse some of his positions and criticize his main African American opponent.

Susan Guidry is a potential new face who is running in a previously Republican district. She was endorsed by the current council member Shelley Midura. I have a great deal of respect for Midura. SInce I am in her district I would have voted to re-elect Midura.

I don't know about Kristin Giselson Palmer, it is mildly surprising she would be endorsed to replace a black council member. I don't know the inside story and it's not my district.

All of the rest are either long term politicians or members of long time political families, even though I will vote for some of them. It's not an auspicious reform slate.

I thought that one of the functions of a party Executive Committee was to recruit candidates to help the party win elections and govern. That doesn't seem to be happening.

If I Had a Hammer

The old Pete Seeger song about changing society is one of his best known songs. It is about breaking with the past for freedom and justice.



New Orleans needs a BFH to break with the past. The entrenched interests have long held the citizens hostage, stealing the future from them with false promises of opportunity and prosperity, illusions of participation while jealously guarding their own position. Anyone who speaks out, if there is any possibility of someone listening, is viciously attacked and attention diverted.


On the Other hand Maslow's Law of the instrument, says "If the only tool you have is a hammer, you tend to see every problem as a nail." Every campaign seems to be under the impression if we simply do more of what we've already done perhaps it will get better.

Ed Murry wants to establish an Office of Education in the Mayor's office, as a solution to the Balkanized Education system in the city. That interesting because the mayor has no direct involvement in Public Education.

A Group of Social Advocacy group wants to establish an Office of Formerly Incarcerated Affairs in Mayor's Office. I imagine that they should be given additional contracts to work the the formerly incarcerated.

Every single candidate wants to conduct a national search for a new Police Chief, since that seems to have worked out fairly well once upon a time.

We got more candidates talking about transparency that 3M has Scotch Tape.

We're going to have to pick one of these guys to be our Mayor. So far I'm not impressed, although Manny Chevrolet and a couple of the other "minor candidates" are amusing. Maybe they have a chance.

"The nail that stands out will be hammered down." is a Japanese proverb ardently adhered to by our "elites" aka "The Usual Suspects". No one seems willing to be radical to offer truly new insights. I have long wondered at the remarkable timidity of our "reformers". They seem almost completely unwilling to really call anyone out. Perhaps it rooted in our colonial history or our culture that values relationships. Perhaps we are so ingrown and so insular that no one can think of anything truly new.

Candidate WebSite Roundup

As part of my research into the candidates who qualified for the upcoming election I decided to try to see what I could find out on the Internet. I copied the list of qualified candidate form the Louisana Secretary of State's Web Site and Googled each name. I was surprised at the number of candidates whose sites I couldn't find. I was also surprised by the lack of information on some of them. I may go into that later. James Perry has been accused of running an internet campaign, but some of thes candidates seem stuck in the nineteenth century.

There may be a number of reason for that including;

• Operator Error (mine)
• Lack of time to get a Site on line.
• New Sites that were ranked very low by Google

It's highly probable that I missed a bunch of them, my search wasn't that extensive. If anyone is aware of any I did miss please let me know.

Judge Civil District Court, Division J 1 to be Elected

Name/Address/Phone Filed Date Party/Race/Gender

Paula Brown 12/09/2009 Democrat 3724 Clermont Dr., New Orleans LA 70122 Black 504-473-4366 Female

Stephen Chesnut 12/11/2009 Republican 1413 Chartres St., New Orleans LA 70116 White 504-945-9000 Male

Morris Reed 12/11/2009 Democrat 4 Grand Teton Ct., New Orleans LA 70131 Black 504-392-7949 Male

Judge Juvenile Court, Section E 1 to be Elected

Name/Address/Phone Filed Date Party/Race/Gender

Richard Exnicios 12/09/2009 Democrat 7916 Nelson St., New Orleans LA 70125 White 504-314-9888 Male

Tracey Flemings-Davillier 12/09/2009 Democrat P.O. Box 740487, New Orleans LA 70174 Black 504-270-5258 Female

Marie Williams 12/10/2009 Democrat P. O. Box 741904 , New Orleans LA 70131 Black 504-415-3647 Female

Sheriff 1 to be Elected

Name/Address/Phone Filed Date Party/Race/Gender

Marlin N. Gusman 12/09/2009 Democrat 4478 Venus St., New Orleans LA 70122 Black 504-826-7034 Male

Pat M. Peyton 12/11/2009 Democrat 116 Egret St., New Orleans LA 70124 White 504-430-0182 Male

Clerk Civil District Court 1 to be Elected

Name/Address/Phone Filed Date Party/Race/Gender

Dale Atkins 12/09/2009 Democrat 2411 Oriole St., New Orleans LA 70122 Black 504-286-0229 Unopposed Female

Clerk Criminal District Court 1 to be Elected

Name/Address/Phone Filed Date Party/Race/Gender

Arthur A. Morrell 12/09/2009 Democrat 4925 Moore Drive, New Orleans LA 70122 Black 504-282-7812 Male

David G. Nowak 12/11/2009 Democrat 2210 Nashville Ave., New Orleans LA 70115 Other 504-861-7649 Male

Harold E. Weiser 12/11/2009 No Party 6051 Pratt Dr., New Orleans LA 70122 White 504-373-5203 Male

Assessor 1 to be Elected

Name/Address/Phone Filed Date Party/Race/Gender

Andrew Gressett 12/09/2009 Republican 5225 Chestnut St. , New Orleans LA 70115 White 504-858-2200 Male

Janis Lemle 12/09/2009 Democrat 42 Yellowstone Dr., New Orleans LA 70131 Black 504-391-3594 Female

Claude Mauberret 12/09/2009 Democrat 441 Jewel St., New Orleans LA 70124 White 504-508-8644 Male

Erroll G. Williams 12/09/2009 Democrat 4741 Gen. Early Dr., New Orleans LA 70126 Black 504-283-9689 Male

Coroner 1 to be Elected

Name/Address/Phone Filed Date Party/Race/Gender

Dwight McKenna 12/11/2009 Democrat 7136 Thornley Dr., New Orleans LA 70126 Black 504-943-1923 Male

Frank Minyard 12/09/2009 Democrat 1111 S. Peters St. #221, New Orleans LA 70130 White 504-658-9660 Male

Mayor City of New Orleans 1 to be Elected

Name/Address/Phone Filed Date Party/Race/Gender

Jonah Bascle 12/10/2009 No Party 2406 Joseph St., New Orleans LA 70115 White 504-908-4360 Male

"Manny" Chevrolet-Bruno 12/09/2009 Other 1123 N. White St., New Orleans LA 70119 Other 504-482-1845 Male

Robert "Rob" Couhig 12/09/2009 Republican 6333 Prytania St., New Orleans LA 70118 White 504-588-1288 Male

John Georges 12/09/2009 Democrat 23 Audubon Pl., New Orleans LA 70118 White 504-865-0033 Male

Troy Henry 12/09/2009 Democrat 281 Oakmont Dr., New Orleans LA 70128 Black 504-248-4289 Male

"Jerry" Jacobs 12/09/2009 No Party 1205 N. Lopez St., New Orleans LA 70119 White 504-237-8710 Male

Leslie Jacobs 12/09/2009 Democrat 6038 St. Charles Ave., New Orleans LA 70118 White 504-895-2619 Female

Thomas A. Lambert 12/11/2009 Republican 12501 Willow Rd., New Orleans LA 70131 White 000-000-0000 Male

Mitchell "Mitch" Landrieu 12/09/2009 Democrat 2336 Octavia St., New Orleans LA 70115 White 000-000-0000 Male

Edwin R. "ED" Murray 12/09/2009 Democrat 4716 Paris Ave., New Orleans LA 70122 Black 504-286-8220 Male

James Perry 12/09/2009 Democrat 1507 N. Miro St., New Orleans LA 70119 Black 504-343-5009 Male

Nadine Ramsey 12/09/2009 Democrat 41 Grand Canyon Dr., New Orleans LA 70131 Black 504-858-7155 Female

Norbert P. Rome 12/11/2009 No Party 4338 Paris Ave., New Orleans LA 70122 Black 504-259-1855 Male

Councilmember(s) at Large 2 to be Elected

Name/Address/Phone Filed Date Party/Race/Gender

Jacquelyn Brechtel Clarkson 12/09/2009 Democrat 2657 Danbury Dr., New Orleans LA 70131 White 504-392-2092 Female

"Arnie" D. Fielkow 12/11/2009 Democrat 2220 Palmer Ave., New Orleans LA 70118 White 504-905-9025 Male

William "Poppa" Gant 12/09/2009 No Party 1231 N. Villere, New Orleans LA 70116 Black 504-481-5194 Male

Nolan Marshall 12/09/2009 Democrat 121 N. Murat St., New Orleans LA 70119 Black 504-338-3823 Male

Darren Mire 12/11/2009 Democrat 1750 St. Charles Ave. Unit 337, New Orleans LA 70130 Black 504-522-0561 Male

Eddie L. Sapir 12/11/2009 Democrat 6315 Laurel St., New Orleans LA 70118 White 504-821-1010 Male

Gregory "Chef" Sonnier 12/11/2009 Republican 307 Henry Clay Ave., New Orleans LA 70118 White 504-899-6500 Male

"Lance" W. von Uhde III 12/11/2009 Republican 4030 Vendome Pl. , New Orleans LA 70125 White 000-000-0000 Male

Cynthia Willard-Lewis 12/09/2009 Democrat 10911 Willowbrae Dr., New Orleans LA 70127 Black 504-415-5886 Female

Councilmember District A 1 to be Elected

Name/Address/Phone Filed Date Party/Race/Gender

John "Jay" Batt 12/09/2009 Republican 411 Fairway Dr., New Orleans LA 70124 White 504-915-2807 Male

Virginia Blanque 12/11/2009 Republican 210 S. Pierce St., New Orleans LA 70119 White 504-488-6431 Female

Susan G. Guidry 12/09/2009 Democrat 963 Wilson Dr., New Orleans LA 70119 White 504-486-0440 Female

"Fred" Robertson 12/11/2009 No Party 7702 Plum St., New Orleans LA 70118 White 504-866-4140 Male

Councilmember District B 1 to be Elected

Name/Address/Phone Filed Date Party/Race/Gender

Stacy Head 12/09/2009 Democrat 1675 Soniat St., New Orleans LA 70115 White 504-891-6957 Female

Corey Watson 12/11/2009 Democrat 3811 Napoleon Ave., New Orleans LA 70125 Black 504-309-9418 Male

Councilmember District C 1 to be Elected

Name/Address/Phone Filed Date Party/Race/Gender

"Tom" Arnold 12/09/2009 Republican P.O. Box 741971, New Orleans LA 70174 White 504-782-9570 Male

Kristin Gisleson Palmer 12/09/2009 Democrat 119 Vallette Street, New Orleans LA 70114 White 504-361-4978 Female

Nathaniel Jones 12/09/2009 No Party 3726 Dauphine St., New Orleans LA 70117 Black 504-919-5367 Male

Carlos James Williams Jr. 12/11/2009 Democrat 3610 Lang St., New Orleans LA 70131 Black 504-392-5008 Male

Councilmember District D 1 to be Elected

Name/Address/Phone Filed Date Party/Race/Gender

Cynthia Hedge-Morrell 12/09/2009 Democrat 4925 Moore Dr., New Orleans LA 70122 Black 504-282-7812 Female

Denise Holden 12/11/2009 Democrat 2600 New Orleans St. , New Orleans LA 70119 Black 504-874-6865 Female

Councilmember District E 1 to be Elected

Name/Address/Phone Filed Date Party/Race/Gender

Austin Badon 12/09/2009 Democrat P. O. Box 870936, New Orleans LA 70187 Black 504-241-5101 Male

Jerrelda Drummer-Sanders 12/09/2009 Democrat 7328 Beaconfield Dr., New Orleans LA 70128 Black 504-245-5844 Female

Jon Johnson 12/11/2009 Democrat 6001 Eastover Dr., New Orleans LA 70128 Black 504-231-5419 Male

Leonard Lucas Jr. 12/11/2009 Democrat 436 Flood St., New Orleans LA 70117 Black 504-908-0833 Male

Cyndi Nguyen 12/09/2009 Democrat 5401 Provincal Pl., New Orleans LA 70129 Asian 504-997-1057 Female

Alicia Plummer 12/11/2009 Democrat 11409 N. St. Andrews Cir., New Orleans LA 70128 Black 000-000-0000 Female