People in NO whose buildings were destroyed by water should not be allowed to rebuild on the same site. I don't see any good purpose in the taxpayers paying for storm costs just to have it happen all over again later. People living below sea level that close to the ocean should have a their heads examined.

Yeah, -but Harry Truman lived and died at his Beloved Home! It sometimes does come down to the What, Where, and How of your Living, -not merely Surviveing. (Sammy Davis speaks well of this in one of his songs).

I'm not an Orleansian, -but if I were, -chances are at least even, -that I would *not* want to go back, -in such circumstances as are / can yet again be.

Heck, -I reasonably think that I may have to someday do a Dunkirk type BOB out of my Beloved USA! And that implies nothing against this Land or my Love for it! Or what it can, should, and often is all about. This only concerns the actual, all round Survival Aspects, on it.

Balancing the two considerations, -I *may* well enuff stay at a Truman type Spirit Lake, -but not in the floodplain of the Big Easy! [color:"black"] [/color] [email]Susan[/email]

The only way the levees could be built to withstand the surge from a cat 5 storm would require making the bases 3-5 times wider than they are now, which would destroy much of the city. IMHO, what needs to be done is that the the levees need to be rebuilt to their original design specifications (not what was built) and that a storm surge control structure, capable of withstanding a 40+ foot surge be built at the mouth of Lake Ponchatrain. Such protective structures are relatively common across Europe (Holland in particular). But (and there's always a but) dealing with the enviros will be a big problem. The enviros (and yes, poor planning) stopped a Lake Ponchatrain surge gate in the 1970's.

JimJr - Only 200 miles north New Orleans

Enough postulating.

I am a native New Orleanian. So is my wife. We grew up in, and our parents still lived in, the Lakeview neighborhood. My parents house is half a mile from the break in the 17th Street Canal; my In-laws were about a half a mile east of that. My parents had 8 feet of water over the slab; my In-laws had 10.5 feet. From our home in Baton Rouge, we are down there at least once a week to clean up and tear out at our parents houses.

Let me respond as one who has been dealing with this for seven months.

1. New Orleans WILL survive. Why? Because it is New Orleans. The city has a hold on it’s citizens that subsumes those who live there – that is a strength, and one of its greatest problems. New Orleans calls you – and, if you’re taken, you will return. Floods, tornados, hurricanes, crime, poverty – to a New Orleanian, that is the price we are willing to pay to, well, be there. There is nothing logical or rational about it. It just is. Is anyone suggesting New Yorkers stop building high-rises? Didn’t think so.

2. Should the levees be reinforced? Um….yep. Will it happen anytime soon? No. Wider levees are necessary, and should be looked at. At the 17th Street Canal, they should perhaps look at expropriating all of the houses on the west side of Bellaire Drive to widen the levee.

3. New Orleans is NOT a bowl all below sea level. Remember, the French Quarter, and most of the city along the Mississippi River, did NOT flood. That is natural high ground, as is the Metairie Ridge and Gentilly Ridge. In some areas, the variation in elevation is more then 13 feet.

4. The charges of incompetence and indecision of the state and local governments, and with FEMA, are well founded and true. If there is anything hindering rebuilding, it is that no one really knows. Worse, no one wants to make a decision. Can we rebuild? If we do, will the city services be restored in our area? Will our area be condemned? Will our property be expropriated? In short, when can people go home? No one has an answer. There are LOTS of plans floating out there (I didn’t know there were so many architects and urban planners out there with an opinion), but pretty master plans, visions of light rail systems, and “community charettes” are doing nothing to get my parents home. Clean, safe streets and working utilities will.

More on this later, if you want. I have had seven months to think about this.

…..CLIFF