spasticrobot

Nagin is Considering Reinstating Citywide Curfew

I'm not kidding, NayNay mentioned it in a press briefing yesterday.

"We're going to continue to pound the public safety issue," he said. "I'm not necessarily against going back to a city-wide curfew, shutting the city down for a few hours" a day. Nagin said early talk of a more stringent curfew for all residents, regardless of age, has met resistance from French Quarter merchants and the city's university community, who fear the move would send a message to the parents of college-age students that the city is not safe. Many local colleges and universities have struggled to attract freshman for the fall semester, Nagin said.

If this happens it's going to be very hard for me to stay here. I can't lose the right to leave my home due to the behavior of a bunch of thugs and because of the inability of City Hall and the NOPD to curtail their behavior.

Again, thanks to those that voted for Nagin. He's doing a stellar job.

Surprise! Global Warming is real!

From CNN today:

The National Academy of Sciences, reaching that conclusion in a broad review of scientific work requested by Congress, reported Thursday that the "recent warmth is unprecedented for at least the last 400 years and potentially the last several millennia."

A panel of top climate scientists told lawmakers that the Earth is running a fever and that "human activities are responsible for much of the recent warming." Their 155-page report said average global surface temperatures in the Northern Hemisphere rose about 1 degree during the 20th century.

The report was requested in November by the chairman of the House Science Committee, Rep. Sherwood Boehlert, R-New York, to address naysayers who question whether global warming is a major threat.

Surprise! I can't wait to see what kind of Lysenkoist nonsense the Bush administration will counter with. Maybe they can run on a pro-Global Warming as well as a pro war platform for the mid term elections.

Sen. Vitter Responds!

A robot from Senator Vitter's office sent me this response to my angry letter, in which I criticized him for supporting a Federal Marriage Amendment at such a dire hour for the citizens of his state:

Dear Mr. Langenbeck, Thank you for contacting me in support of a Federal Marriage Amendment. I share your concern on this issue, and I agree with you 100 percent. You may be pleased to know that I am an original cosponsor of a Senate resolution proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States relating to marriage. The amendment prohibits the Constitution or any state constitution from being construed to require that marital status or its legal incidents be conferred upon any union other than that of a man and a woman. During my tenure in the U.S. House of Representatives I cosponsored and voted for a proposed constitutional amendment to define marriage as a union between a man and woman. Sadly the bill did not get the two-thirds votes needed for passage. I am now working in the Senate to protect the institution of marriage. Like you I feel this is essential to the future of our country, and I recognize the importance marriage plays in the lives of our children. I believe marriage to be a union between a man and a woman. This definition should be held not to enforce discriminatory acts, but to uphold the sanctity of marriage. The Federal Marriage Amendment removes the debate regarding the definition of marriage from the hands of the courts and returns this decision to the American people, where it belongs. In fact, no state legislature and no popular referendum has passed in any state allowing any other definition of marriage except as between a man and a woman. In addition over 38 states have passed legislation protecting traditional marriage. In Louisiana , our statewide referendum passed with nearly 80 percent of the vote. Thank you again for contacting me in support of traditional families and in defense of marriage. Rest assured I will continue to fight to protect our shared Louisiana values. Once again, thank you for contacting me to share your thoughts on this issue. Please feel free to contact me in the future about issues important to you and your family. Sincerely, Senator David Vitter United States Senator

Here's my response:

Senator Vitter,

It’s almost funny that you are writing to thank me for supporting a Federal Marriage Amendment when in fact I was writing to castigate you for so vocally supporting it at a time when so many other, more urgent matters need addressing. Is this some sort of a weak attempt at a joke?

Again I urge you to stop spouting off about foolish wedge issues and get to the real work at hand. We need schools and hospitals here now, sir. Maybe you should work to ensure that they are constructed and all of the broken infrastructure is fixed AND all citizens have been properly recompensed before you start barking about this nonsense again.

Get to work,

Jonah P. Langenbeck

More Partisan Obstructionism

Yesterday I wrote an angry letter to Senator David Vitter asking him to please stop the partisan wedge games. Today in an article with otherwise great news that an agreement has nearly been reached that would grant Louisiana the rest of the recovery money it needs, I read this nugget:

The bill includes $550 million to replace the hurricane-damaged Veterans Administration Medical Center in New Orleans. But the House-Senate conference panel refused Landrieu's request to include authorization for the project, a step needed before construction can begin. House Appropriations Committee Chairman Jerry Lewis, R-Calif., said that should be done under a different process.

His position prompted an angry exchange late Tuesday between Landrieu and some Republicans. As she pushed for authorization to be approved as part of the bill, she talked about veterans who spent four years in a foxhole defending the United States and now are forced to live in a trailer because "they can't get health care." That line drew some moans by Republicans on the panel.

"You can moan all you want, it's the truth," she said.

So you're teelling me that a bunch of Republicans, who vote yes on every military issue including outrageous spending propostions and permission to march our perpetual war machine wherever the President wants, are going to moan about providing healthcare for veterans that fought in their wars? What the hell is wrong with these people? Are they sick, as Blake proposes, or are they just, in Ashley's words, a bunch of fucking fuckmooks?

I'm sick and tired of these partisan games. They are destroying our nation. The tide is rising, it's time for a change. It's time for all of us to start calling these bastards out, each and every time they pull some dumb shit like this. Write a letter, call them on the phone, let them know that this kind of behavior will not stand.

A letter to Sen. David Vitter

Sen. Vitter,

Your vehement endorsement of the constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage at this present moment is totally off base. Why don't you instead focus on the fact that our state still has not received the proper funding that it deserves as a result of the failure of the federally constructed and "maintained" levee system?

These partisan wedge issues are destroying our nation because they sideline dialogue and action from the real issues that need to be dealt with immediately. The looming oil crisis, hurricane recovery, lack of comprehensive infrastructure spending & planning, our failing education system and the mismanagement of the war are all issues that demand IMMEDIATE attention. These are problems that if not dealt with immediately will cause grievous consequences. And yet you and your partisan ilk, on both sides of the aisle, continue to bicker over these wedge issues like abortion and gay marriage.

These arguments are petty and are meant to rouse extremists on the right and left. They help you and the president to boost your approval ratings. Frankly it makes me sick. If we don't come to a middle ground in order to focus on the very real and very dangerous threats to our nation, we are doomed.

The tide is rising every day, both in a metaphorical and very real sense. Please get off of your moral high horse, roll up your sleeves and get things moving up there.

Jonah P. Langenbeck
Very Concerned Citizen

Thanks New Orleans!

For reelecting the incompetent obstructionist of our dreams. As one of our friends put it when we woke up to the news this morning in Barcelona, "New Orleans loves to sit in it's own shit."

I can't wait to come home now.

Primary Election Roundup

The big news out of the primary is that Nagin got 38% of the vote. I find that astonishing. It's important to note that Landrieu's votes still outnumbered Couhig's and Forman's combined. A fact that is even more impressive when you consider that he will probably garner nearly all of those votes in the runoff.

I think Nagin's chances for victory are slim but he's still freaking me out. This map gives me the heebie-jeebies.

I'm deeply disappointed with the outcome in the assessor's races as well. The good news is that one I.Q. candidate won outright and two others are in runoffs, the bad news is that the rest are out. I can't understand why more people didn't vote for these candidates. The I.Q. platform is so right-on in our current situation. Sacrificing personal gain from politics for the greater good is what the new New Orleans should be all about. These people are visionary and exemplary citizens. It pains me that their coup did not succeed.

One of the only bright spots in the election is that Oliver Thomas, a man that I deeply respect, won his seat outright. The other candidates that I voted for, Arnie Fielkow and Shelley Stephenson Midura, are also in runoff races against incumbents Jackie Clarkson and Jay Batt, repectively. I hope that my fellow citizens will come out and support change versus more of the same.

Overall I'm dissapointed with many of the election results but I'm still optimistic for the ultimate outcome. If Mitch wins and my City Council folks win we'll still have a great chance for change in this city. If they lose, we're in for it.

I'm Voting for Mitch!

Last night a showdown of all seven of the major candidates running for Mayor of New Orleans was nationally televised via MSNBC. Chris Matthews and our own Norman Robinson co-moderated the panel. It was probably the most composed and well run debate so far in the election. There were only a few instances of the embarrasing outbursts and crazy talk that has filled some of the other debates.

I've watched most of these debates, usually with stomach pains and clenched jaw. I've heard all the various kooks, lunatics and smooth operators lay out their plans for the city. Some of the ideas are good and sound, some are ridiculous and some are downright crazy, like Peggy Wilson's Tax Free City!! idea.

Out of all the candidates, through all of these debates, only Mitch Landrieu has consistently stood out to me as the clear choice to lead our troubled city. He is, in my opinion, the only one that stands a chance of getting the recovery process moving in the right direction. I based this decision on several factors:

1. Leadership through Coordination. Mitch has been a New Orleans City Councilman, a State Legislator and the Louisiana Lt. Governer. He knows his way around the dark waters of Louisiana politics. Some argue that this is exactly why you shouldn't vote for him. I disagree. Right now we need a leader who knows how to govern, not another businessman who will have to go through an adjustment period before changes are made. We need a decisive leader who can coordinate Governance in City Hall to the State House and up to Capital Hill. Mitch is that leader.

2. Economic Development. Mitch has the experience to actually make economic development work. His plan to 1) leverage and increase our cultural economy, 2) save and increase our bio-medical institutions and 3) fund higher education is the most sound of any of the candidates'. Furthermore he is the only one of the candiates besides Nagin who has any real experience in these matters. (and no, I don't count building a Zoo or bringing a Minor League baseball team as governmental economic development projects)

3. City and Governmental Reform. Landrieu has the best plan to reconfigure City Hall and to compress and modernize our bloated city government. It's a sound plan that will consolidate many key positions in the city government which will hopefully reduce instances of redundant and uneccessary work and perhaps eliminate some of the corruption and cronyism that has plagued us for so long. I also believe that Mitch can get our city services back up and running more quickly than the other candidates through the coordination that I mentioned earlier.

4. Levees and Wetlands Preservation. The Landrieu family have been staunch supporters of this issue for the past twenty years. Mitch Landrieu fully understands the complexity of the issue and what needs to happen to resolve it. I believe that he will work closely with the State House and our Legislative representatives to ensure that our levees are built to required levels, that our wetlands are preserved and restored, and that we have a sustainable way to fund these projects.

These are the most important issues to me in this election. It is imperative that they are all met with success. Mitch Landrieu, in my opinion, is the man for the job. You can read more about the plans he will put in place immediately after he takes office here.

I'm voting for Mitch and you should too!

First Post-K Mayoral Debates

Last night's debate was hillarious and terrible at the same time. I have little faith in most of these candidates. Even the ones that I'm probably going to have to decide between hold little appeal. Poppy Z. Brite puts it much more hillariously than I ever could in her blog entry from last night. What a sorry state of affairs.

Chaos Floats

One of the coolest throws I received last night were these kickass cards from the Krewe of Chaos depicting all of their floats.

I may or may not post until Ash Wednesday so if I don't see you before then, HAPPY MARDI GRAS!

"May the moon be turned to green cream cheese, if ever I cease to love"