If We Can Pursue Truth in Baseball, How about Truth Post-Katrina?

Over the last year, many, including myself, have called for an 8/29 Commission to get to the bottom of what truly happened with the New Orleans levee-breaches and resultant floods. No one has spear-headed this call like New Orleans-based grassroots organization, Levees.org.

Recently, in collaboration with a class of local high-school students, Levees.org founder Sandy Rosenthal made and posted on YouTube a satirical video criticizing the American Society of Civil Engineers' (ASCE) relationship with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers -- an issue, for the ASCE peer reviewed the Corps' investigation of the levee failures. The ASCE sent Rosenthal a cease-and-desist letter (and carbon copied the school's principle, too). Because Levees.org is truly grassroots, with no big-time funders filling their pockets, they pulled the video immediately. This past week, two law firms agreed to represent them in the case they do face legal action. Watch the video and you yourself can judge whether or not they're going over the line.

My question to America is this: If we can endeavor to get to the bottom of the doping controversy in professional baseball, can we not endeavor to get to the bottom of what really went wrong in New Orleans?

I'm curious -- who, other than Joe Lieberman, doesn't understand that uncovering truth helps us all? People we entrust with our public safety need to be held accountable. Levee safety isn't just a New Orleans issue, it's an American issue. Without a trusted investigation, distrust builds and festers. Disinformation spreads. We send the message that no one really cares if mistakes are made -- no matter the death toll.

Sen. Mitchell, your timing is perfect: once you wrap up the baseball stuff, would you consider moving on to New Orleans?

I am of the opinion that New Orleans could use outside observers known for their sterling judgment and integrity to come down and help out with truth-seeking, and dare I say, reconciliation. There are often yawning chasms between the way New Orleanians of different backgrounds understand what happened to themselves and to their city post-Katrina. Worse, there's even larger chasms between the way New Orleanians and the rest of the country understands the aftermath as well. I'd venture that for every person who understands how the levee breaches were responsible for the NOLA floods, there is another person who believes, or who is at least open to the idea that the breaches were caused by bombs -- bombs maliciously placed by whites protecting their parts of the city. Given the facts, a ridiculous idea -- but given the history, understandable as to how it could be believed. As George Mitchell knows, given his work in Ireland, this sort of distrust was not born on August 29, 2005. People who have struggled with and against each other for generations often need outside mediators to get to the bottom of contested truths.

The fact is, two years after the disaster, our shared understanding of the Katrina crises continues to be limited. I am friends with a secret service agent who has been extremely busy for the past two years protecting the never-ending procession of visitors to New Orleans, especially politicos. The politicos come down for what we've come to call a truncated "stations of the cross": a levee-break, a school, and the Lower Ninth Ward. Basically, all the suffering reduced down to three photo ops. What's left out is immense. Yes, the Lower Ninth suffered tremendously, but those residents weren't alone. Look at this map and you will see in a dramatic way that people died and suffered all over the region. Ignoring this fact only compounds the resentment and distrust among neighbors (and those in the diaspora), making reconciliation that much more difficult. Yet, the residents of the Lower Ninth (and activists who have taken up their cause) have every right to call for as much attention as possible to their tragedies, and to their continued plight, given the fact that they only seem to get meaningful help from benevolent outsiders.

So, here's to Pelosi having a chapter in her memoir devoted to how she helped Waxman pull off a proper 8/29 Investigation, and that together, we can come to greater shared understanding of what really went wrong -- instead of just perpetuating competing, contradictory stories we keep and share among our separate communities, while those in power keep their power, with little care for justice.

Comments

[lanola]

I am astonished by many of the comments regarding New Orleans and the federal flood following Katrina. The misinformation and "myth" perpetuated by ill-informed individuals demonstrates the absolute need for a 8/29 Commission. The truth has to be put out there - not just for us New Orleanians, but for every American who lives within the range of "protection" of an USACE flood wall, levee or dam.

No one in New Orleans or who supports a 8/29 Commission believes that Mother Nature can be stopped or changed. We are not asking for that. We are asking for transparency and accountability.

The Corps was arrogant enough to believe they could control Mother Nature when they took charge of the levees along the Mississippi River. The Corps, at Congress' mandate and through their own mismanagement, arrogance and organizational dysfunction created this disaster.

When the Ford Pintos exploded in accidents because of a design flaw the Pinto owners were not blamed for the design flaw. They were not told "you shouldn't have been driving in the first place," or "why don't you take responsibility for buying a car." Ford Motor Company bore the burden of their design flaw, not the individual car owners. Why is it so difficult for people to expect the same level of accountability and responsibility from the US Government and its agents when they provide the public with a service or a product as they would a private company?

What happened in New Orleans will happen again somewhere in the US. About 120 other levees throughout the US are in danger of failure. I would expect every taxpayer to demand an investigation because the aftermath of a disaster is so much more expensive. Had the levees held I would not see people living in tents in front of City Hall today, almost 30 months later.

[emcee]

Thank you and please keep on writing and pushing to get a commission for 8/29! What happened to New Orleans will happen again - to middle America next time, perhaps. Only then maybe people won't just blame it on the victims. Our government should be held accountable for the failings of the Corp of Engineers!

[willymack]

In the case of Katrina, one fact stands out with crystal clarity: The bush "administration" cares as little for the mostly black, mostly dirt-poor people of New Orleans as it does for so much road kill. In the case of 911, the situation is more opaque. One thing that the 911 commission "report" shows quite clearly, though, is that SOMETHING was covered up, and is continuing to be covered up. Starting with the fraudulent "elections" of 2000 & 2004, then 911, then the Iraq tragedy, then the transparent efforts to destroy Social Security, then Katrina, then so many other atrocities, the bushies are far from our best advocates; they're our worst nightmare.

[Donald Wolberg]

Has anyone considered that New Orleans has long been a geological and ecological disaster in the making? Dewatering of the sediments, leading to steady subcidence, and changing the directions and volumes of sediment feed determined the fate of of the city and it can never be as it was. The ineffectiveness of flood control engineering, impossible to make "eternal, " the dismal performance of federal disaster relief and the corrupt inefficiences of city officials were a recipe for the end of the city as it once was. When Pompei and Heraculeum were destroyed by Vesuvius, Roman simply saw the wise course to move away from the volcano. Realizing the limitations of the best engineering willnot deter a sinking city from sinking, or the next major storms. Somewhere in the equation, reality must enter and be accepted.

[WildDog]

Because baseball is more important than Katrina.

[Sciguy]

Hmmm... maybe there IS a connection here. The only black folks that are important are the rich ones in baseball!

Good video, by the way. But think about it - of course the ASCE stands by its members! That's what members pay dues for!

As an aside - normally, peer review is a good idea. For example, papers that use bad science don't end up in peer-reviewed journals; only good papers are published in there. I really don't know if the ASCE did a good peer review, since I haven't read it and examined the data. Perhaps a totally independent group of engineers should review the problems. If one sticks to non-engineers, they will probably misinterpret the data. If one sticks to engineers, they will have to be civil engineers - or they'll misinterpret the data. So, what to do? Outsource data collection and evaluation to Canadian civil engineers?

Just a thought.

[ChowChowKathi]

Just an added note...apparently the company who makes Tide is listening to all those who keep Katrina on the front page. I saw a commercial the other day about how they are providing free laundry service to the victims of the So Cal fires. And the end, there was an addition of "also the victims of Katrina". Again, in my opinion, too little too late. Unless I missed the fact that they did this also when Katrina occurred.

[ChowChowKathi]

This is so much bigger than either baseball or Katrina. And it's not just the federal government but ALL government. There are people who suffer the abuses of government in every county, every state. But an earlier poster said it similiar to this. This is not the "land of the free"; it's the land of "if you have enough money to pay an attorney to protect your freedoms you get them". The Utube is a perfect example. Americans have the rights, the government has the money and power. And the federal government, big poppa to us all, has provided for protection of our freedom against abuse from Government. Again, that protection is only provided if someone can afford an attorney to enforce it, while the abusers have unlimited access to legal protection to defend them against charges of abuse. So who has the answer?

[wrabbitt]

Katrina was a natural disaster that had been waiting to happen,its not about failures of governmental agencies its a failure of common sense. Houses shouldn't have been built behind levies in a below sea level area. It was a disaster waiting to happen thirty years ago, and, because they managed to dodge the bullet a few times,still points a finger at failure to have common sense. All these people lost everything, i agree but, someone over the last thirty years or so had to look up and see a ship go by. That should have been an awakening! Its not anyones job to protect,or replace homes "in harms way" blame it on fema, or the Corp. of engineers but, it still comes down to our own failings. There was a worse case scenario done a year or so before Katrina, Did anyone think to pay attention? Its like running across the freeway with your eyes closed. sooner or later you will get hit. but, because you eyes and mind are closed you won't see it coming. and you can blame it on somebody else.

[Aliisa]

This is an excellent article - I agree wholeheartedly that, if we can spend so much time and money seeking truth in baseball, why can't we devote some of the money to seeking truth in devastation? Katrina was not a natural disaster; it was a disaster that was the result of shoddy work by a federal corps. Here in NY people like to criticize New Orleanians for living in a place so vulnerable to threat - but as I look out of my office window onto the ruins of 9/11, I don't think NYers have any reason to be haughty. Everyone is vulnerable to threat; everyone needs protection; everyone needs to know the truth about what happened in New Orleans.

[j.gold]

Our government does not want the truth, it only makes them look bad. It is much easier to condemn drug addict baseball players and divert the attention away from any real news or problems. Who cares about drugs and baseball, what's next will they investigate Keith Richards and kick him out of the rock n roll hall of fame for heroin enhancing his song writing ability when he wrote Jumping Jack Flash? For humans sake, baseball is only entertainment so the masses will be happy.
As for New Orleans, I believe the rest of America does not want to know what happened, it is easier for them to blame us, the victims. If I hear one more time that I shouldn't live here I will send an earthquake to California, a tornado to the Mid West, a snow storm to. . . (sorry but I have no sympathy for someone who lost power for a few measly days after what I have been through)
I saw New Orleans after Katrina but before the flood and I know what the flood did and the federal government had both the technology and the money to PREVENT THE FLOOD and didn't. It was their responsibility. This is the real crime not that a hurricane hit us. The failure of government to protect and help us, could happen to you or your mom, or your children, or the little baby you just smiled at. America is in denial and they like it that way.

[cloudy]

This column seems to suggest that we need to have a Commission to study the roots of the failure of the levees, when in fact we need a commission, as some of the comments suggest, to study NOT ONLY the roots of 8/29/05 but the aftermath: in particular, all the vultures that are exploiting the crisis to reshape the Big Easy along more 'bleached' lines. No, it's not "genocide" -- but does it have to be in order to be a horror we should be looking into, on national TV rather than something swept to the political margins.

What Brad Pitt and Harry Shearer are doing is admirable, but in both the realm of the media, and in the realm of political activism, much more national and SYSTEMATIC focus on what is going on there (what is going on SYSTEMATICALLY) is needed.

Again, it appears that both full and regular communication on the issue, including in the mainstream blogosphere, and organizing nationally and broadly, are blocked by the kind of 'glass walls' (analogous to glass ceilings and often closely connected to them) "invisible" repression and discretion.

[kenya]

We NEED an 8/29 investigation. This is the worst federal disaster in history - we need to learn from governmental mistakes so that we can hopefully avoid them in the future. There is soooooo much misunderstanding about Katrina - it was a federal flood not a natural disaster. We, as Americans, need to understand it and learn from it.

[CSConrad]

New Orleans has long been the center of Black culture in America. Yet private charities have been far more effective in preserving this cultural hotbed than all levels of government combined.

My meager solution has been to do as much holiday shopping as possible through New Orleans etailers. The Louisiana Music Factory deserves my dollars far more than Amazon or Barnes and Noble does. I hope that by directing my dollars to keeping small businesses in New Orleans open, that they will to some extent aid in the recovery of that great city.

The Army Corps, since the Civil War, has mismanaged Mississippi River flood management, and has never cared about preserving the wetlands that protect the Gulf Coast. It is a military, not an engineering, organization and is more concerned with imposing its will than in doing things right. Read "Rising Tide," by John M. Barry, a history of the Army Corps mismanagement of New Orleans' levees, dating back to the 1860's.

Yes, an 8/29 commission is necessary, as is civilian oversight of the Army Corps. We cannot trust the Government to handle complex engineering tasks; we certainly cannot trust the Army Corps of Engineers to investigate itself. An open, transparent investigation is necessary if this important task is ever to be done right.

[kcking]

I certainly agree with all of your reasons to have an comprehensive 8/29 commission but, let's face it, accountability is a noble concept that has no traction in our system and culture. Unlike the UK, nobody resigns our of shame - they just get a lawyer. To top it off, thousands were killed, 10s of billions of assets disappeared and hundreds of billions in taxpayer money was spent. We are not a vengeful people except when it comes to the poor and illegal immigrants but if we are going to fire anybody or dock them a day's wages for their incompetence in protecting or recovering New Orleans tax payers should certainly demand some real lessons learned and acted upon for their money.

Between tunnels, bridges and levees, the civil engineering profession that designs, builds and maintains and the community that authorizes, funds and manages life-critical infrastructure, has, or should have lost the confidence of the American people. Only by a fully comprehensive and transparent study of what when wrong and why and the subsequent corrective action, can we feel secure.

Getting nationally useable lessons and that satisfaction of someone getting publicly censured or fired, are the only ways taxpayers will benefit from the billions spent. That's what an 8/29 is all about