New Orleans Needs a Better
Way to Do Mardi Gras
Atlantic,
by
Anne Gisleson
Original Article
Posted By: MissMolly,
2/21/2020 5:02:03 AM
NEW ORLEANS—Standing in line at the hardware store on the edge of the French Quarter one December Monday, I overheard the cashier talking to a regular customer about manhole covers that had exploded just before dawn that morning a couple of blocks away. The metal discs had burst into buildings and crashed into the underside of a car, which in turn caught fire. Power outages and evacuations had ensued. This was just the latest addition to a cluster of troubling events. In the previous few days, a turbine powering the low-lying city’s storm-drainage system had also exploded, unrelated water-main ruptures had flooded neighborhoods on opposite sides of town,
Reply 1 - Posted by:
privateer 2/21/2020 6:06:15 AM (No. 324947)
Here's where I bailed out, FTA: '...issues shared by many American cities: neglected infrastructure, a deepening housing crisis, widening inequality, profound racial injustice, and a deadly threat from climate change.' The first step in recovery is realizing you have a problem. But blaming it on straw-men charges (of racial injustice and climate change) is why NOLA will never recover. Like a fish doesn't realize it's in water, they cannot see the miseries brought on by all-Dem government.
66 people like this.
Anne... You hush, child.
19 people like this.
Reply 3 - Posted by:
worried 2/21/2020 6:56:37 AM (No. 324978)
It must be the fault of those people running "Chocolate City". #1, by racial injustice do they mean the white folks aren't doing the black folks who run the place job? Don't want to bother reading the article.
18 people like this.
Reply 4 - Posted by:
janjan 2/21/2020 7:11:24 AM (No. 324994)
New Orleans used to be fabulous. Colorful, brimming with history and great food. Now it’s a craphole destroyed by Democrats and too dangerous to walk through unarmed. This is what liberal ideology and policy creates. Then they all cry about it like it’s someone else’s fault. It’s not. It’s them. But keep voting for them.
45 people like this.
Reply 5 - Posted by:
F15 Gork 2/21/2020 7:48:41 AM (No. 325026)
Show me a democrat run city and I’ll show you a crap hole. Drove through there a few years ago and kept on going - it just didn’t feel right.
36 people like this.
Reply 6 - Posted by:
mobyclik 2/21/2020 7:50:45 AM (No. 325031)
That's EXACTLY where I bailed #1. I'm surprised she didn't add President Trump in there, or did that pop up later in this nonsense?
20 people like this.
Reply 7 - Posted by:
Bur Oak 2/21/2020 7:54:35 AM (No. 325035)
New Orleans has a huge problem. It is called corruption.
35 people like this.
Reply 8 - Posted by:
seamusm 2/21/2020 7:58:38 AM (No. 325039)
Paywall. You guys actually pay to read The Atlantic?
7 people like this.
Reply 9 - Posted by:
zephyrgirl 2/21/2020 8:02:39 AM (No. 325044)
I left New Orleans a few decades back, and never looked back. Of all the places I've lived, it was the worst by far. If the heat and humidity weren't enough, the crime and corruption just added to the mess. It was like living in the third world. In fact, when people asked where I was going, I said, "Back to the United States."
26 people like this.
Reply 10 - Posted by:
Jethro bo 2/21/2020 8:19:52 AM (No. 325062)
But Anne, our all Democrat mostly quota city goobernment has extracted four horrid confederate monuments at the price of millions of dollars and man-hours. It is a very rogressive city with forward thinking goobernment. Regulating plastic beads, just like regulating the size of soda pop cups isn't the answer. Maybe citizens should vote for competent goobernment officials and not based on how loud the major can delcare the desire of NOLA is to be a 'Chocolate City' Just across a cannel and levy is Metairie. It has huge Mardi Gras parades, functioning water mains, silent manhole covers and lower taxes, better schools and less crime. Oh, and it doesn't proclaim to be trying to be a 'Chocolate City', And it has Rebublicans in goobernment. Voters get what voters want. Tearing down monuments, being overtly racist towards whites, and ignoring how a city should function is a proven failure. But then, Democrats always think more of the same will equate to a different outcome.
27 people like this.
Reply 11 - Posted by:
hisself 2/21/2020 8:22:53 AM (No. 325067)
I am better than Number 1: I continued past the climate change garbage, and made it all the way to 'toxic Mardi Gras beads'. What is toxic about plastic beads??
16 people like this.
Reply 12 - Posted by:
walcb 2/21/2020 8:24:59 AM (No. 325071)
Dimocrat mayor since 1872, chain unbroken since the carpetbaggers pulled out. It is a charming city overwhelmed with corruption and deplorables that is additionally overrun by visiting deplorables once a year. On top of that you can add that it is a geographically ridiculous place to locate a large city.
14 people like this.
Reply 13 - Posted by:
MissMolly 2/21/2020 8:26:22 AM (No. 325074)
There is no paywall, #8. There is a generous free article limit. You have apparently reached it, so you can read the article here: https://outline.com/k4edM7
9 people like this.
Reply 14 - Posted by:
Strike3 2/21/2020 8:53:55 AM (No. 325101)
New Orleans is a place that you visit a maximum of one time, unless you like stepping around drunks on your early morning jog and don't mind streets smelling like sewers all of the time. Once you get past the charm of the old architecture the place is just disgusting.
16 people like this.
Reply 15 - Posted by:
bad-hair 2/21/2020 9:10:54 AM (No. 325136)
Couldn't make it very far either. My wife is from Cajun country near Lafayette so 2 suggestions.
1. Mardi Gras doesn't just happen in NOLA. Baton Rouge, Lafayette and all the small towns around them have the parades and parties in much more pleasant and friendly surroundings. Screw the French Quarter.
2. If you want NOLA try Jazz Fest around the end of April. Hundreds of bands of all kinds held at the fair grounds. Major headliners and believe it or not Good Food. Less $100 for parking and an all day pass. Traffic on the leaving part can be painful so as soon as the headliner finishes haul your butt to the shuttle busses and be patient.
14 people like this.
Reply 16 - Posted by:
Kate318 2/21/2020 9:33:50 AM (No. 325167)
Thanks to above posters. I thought maybe I wasn’t woke enough to follow the author’s line of reasoning. A red flag went up at the first mention of the already-fragile environment. It’s a silly, hand-wringing article says the sky is falling so maybe we shouldn’t do Mardi Gras.
8 people like this.
Reply 17 - Posted by:
Dodge Boy 2/21/2020 9:42:07 AM (No. 325176)
Been to NO and spent much time at the quarter. It was hot and muggy. While going to dinner in the quarter, a stench in the air took away my appetite. Dont get me wrong, some great chow and people down there, but, you need to know where to go ahead of time.
8 people like this.
Reply 18 - Posted by:
TulsaTowner 2/21/2020 9:47:53 AM (No. 325187)
All true enough about NOLA, but #15 is right about the music. I was a child there in the early fifties and the music stuck in my head. Life-long jazz fan of all kinds, but my favorite remains traditional New Orleans jazz. I'm an addicted "Tuba Skinny" fan on youtube and hope some day to get back down there to see them live. Listening to them has been described as "it's like the last 100 years never happened". Great stuff - pure joy!
11 people like this.
Reply 19 - Posted by:
starboard 2/21/2020 10:07:24 AM (No. 325205)
Been to Norlins a few times over the years. It's a seedy, grungy place reminiscent of a French Caribbean Island. it definitely has character and that's what keeps people going there. Last time I was there was in '12 for a trade show ... well after Katrina. I wanted to see how the city cleaned up after that devastating storm. The one thing that stood out to me was how the NO airport was the direst airport I've ever been to in continental United States....especially the restrooms. Hey, It's the big easy!
7 people like this.
Reply 20 - Posted by:
felixcat 2/21/2020 10:30:53 AM (No. 325245)
So the eight years of Obama didn't fix any of the problems facing NO? Really? I'm shocked. I thought Obama solved all of our problems.
11 people like this.
Reply 21 - Posted by:
mc squared 2/21/2020 10:38:37 AM (No. 325256)
Thanks to the many posters who tried to read the article from The Atlantic. It kept me from giving them a click.
2 people like this.
Reply 22 - Posted by:
JimBob 2/21/2020 10:55:32 AM (No. 325282)
"The City that Care Forgot" is one of the mottoes for New Orleans.
Partying comes first, the rest..... well, maybe.... a little bit.
Regarding the airport, they did (paid for by the Federal Government) build a new terminal.
I live about an hour away on the Mississippi coast.... I go to New Orleans every now and then, not very often.
It is what it is.
3 people like this.
Reply 23 - Posted by:
Texas544 2/21/2020 10:56:54 AM (No. 325285)
I went to New Orleans once. It smelled so bad, I never went back. Yuck. If it were not in the US, it might be understandable, but come on, we do have products like Lysol and Mr Clean in every Walmart. Pe-Yuu.
6 people like this.
Reply 24 - Posted by:
StormCnter 2/21/2020 11:04:02 AM (No. 325294)
I've been to New Orleans three times, the first time in 1962 and it was still a magical city then. We loved it. We returned in 1975 and things were seriously deteriorating, but there was still charm to be found. By 2002, the city was a complete mess and we have never gone back. Well, not a complete mess, because the music existed in several joints in the Quarter and was worth paying attention and enjoying.
3 people like this.
Reply 25 - Posted by:
HisHandmaiden 2/21/2020 11:25:56 AM (No. 325314)
If all y’all haven’t seen President Trump in Bakersfield CA yesterday signing the bill to remove the water restrictions for the farmers in CA, I’ll look for the link, as 4 farmers, one or two still in their flannel shirts, thank him so eloquently ...
All to say, N’awlins where we lived for 7 wonderful years, needs the attention of our President to Make N’awlins Better again!
Pray for the churches there, we worshiped at First Baptist on St Charles, opening our doors for coffee, lemonade, a place to rest and meet... I will always be celebrating Fat Tuesday as the first person I ever had the privilege of sharing the Gospel with was a lady from Australia, as she cried in gratitude and prayer.
Whole Foods’ bakeries here in Monterey have King Cakes, get one for Tuesday, hide the baby in it so whoever gets it, will get the King Cake next year, and pray President Trump can turn around LA as he is working with Kevin and Devin to do in CA!
KAG
8 people like this.
Reply 26 - Posted by:
lana720 2/21/2020 11:39:33 AM (No. 325336)
Hubby worked Katrina as a National Guardsman and had to interact with the mayor, Nagin who was a real piece of work. It was a cesspool, and that was just the goob’mint!
The flood waters cleaned absolutely nothing, except some of the officials who are in jail or died.
We now live in Louisiana, but several hours away. We have no intention of going, even for their much touted cuisine. It’s not safe, it was built below sea level and the authorities are still corrupt.
4 people like this.
Reply 27 - Posted by:
cor-vet 2/21/2020 11:41:58 AM (No. 325337)
We moved out of NO in 1981, and visit the city less and less each year. We have everything on the North shore that we want or need. We don't have the restaurants with the expensive names, but we have still have the great food. The best thing in NO, is the WW2 museum, it's well worth the visit. See the museum, enjoy a great meal and get out of town. The Jazz Fest the last weekend in April to the 1st weekend in May is also worth a visit. Haven't been to a parade in the city since the early 80's and haven't missed them, we usually leave the State for a nice 4 or 5 day road trip.
4 people like this.
Reply 28 - Posted by:
walcb 2/21/2020 11:52:35 AM (No. 325351)
I was told by the media that Bush destroyed the city when he directed a hurricane to go there and then just let the black people suffer.
5 people like this.
Reply 29 - Posted by:
HisHandmaiden 2/21/2020 12:08:52 PM (No. 325363)
Great thread, yes, so many fond memories of seeing Harry Connick Jr in concert at the Quarter, then at Jazz Fest, having beignets as a lone saxophone began at noon playing Amazing Grace in front of Café du Monde, both Daughters modeled for Laura Ashley on Sunday afternoons at the Court of Two Sisters, Brennan’s or the Westin Lobby, 11 floors up, overlooking the awesome Mississippi, visiting dear friends in Baton Rouge or the North Shore, the Easter Bonnet Parade at Antoine’s...
Here is President Trump doing for CA what N’awlins needs... sound management principles, after removing corruption.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=tweR60u_dMg
Make N’awlins Great Again
KAG
5 people like this.
Reply 30 - Posted by:
Smart11344 2/21/2020 12:25:57 PM (No. 325385)
Never have been to N.O, Never will.
1 person likes this.
Reply 31 - Posted by:
Smart11344 2/21/2020 12:28:02 PM (No. 325388)
Fats Domino was the best thing that came out of New Orleans. Jimmy Clanton, too.
0 people like this.
Reply 32 - Posted by:
Chuzzles 2/21/2020 12:48:13 PM (No. 325428)
What they need is a thorough house cleaning of the entire state government from the governorship on down to city hall. Corruption is so endemic in LA, that band aid approach will no longer work. Several states are the same way. Blue for as long as most of us can remember, and now they are paying the price for their fecklessness. Clean out the corruption of NOLA and you might stand a chance of a decent Marti Gras again.
1 person likes this.
Reply 33 - Posted by:
Lagniappe 2/21/2020 12:57:53 PM (No. 325439)
I am a native New Orleanian. My career had me traveling nationwide for 25 years, so I know what "Elsewhere" is like. I have relatives and friends that I visit regularly from New York City to San Diego.
New Orleans is unique. It has problems, but I could not live anywhere else. I've tried, but always move back.
"Elsewhere" is boring!
We are now in Mardi Gras season (It's a 2 week season - not one day).
No other city could handle what New Orleans accomplishes during Mardi Gras.
Ask Seattle, they tried but failed miserably. Mobile does have a "mini Mardi Gras".
Got to go! Need to get our spot on the Parade Route - 4 parades today.
In "Elsewhere" it's just Friday!
4 people like this.
Reply 34 - Posted by:
JHHolliday 2/21/2020 1:26:12 PM (No. 325471)
NO was called the 'Crescent City' because it was built on a crescent of high ground. As it grew it expanded to low lying land exposed to the flooding that Katrina brought. Follow the growth with corrupt Democrat mayors ruling the 'Chocolate City'. It's now a dangerous, seedy town. My son spent his honeymoon there some twenty years ago and they took one of the ghost tours. Some cemeteries couldn't be visited because they were too close to dangerous (black) neighborhoods. I have no plans to ever visit NO and my son has never been back. The author brings up the usual lefty talking points which have no relation to the city's real problems.
5 people like this.
Reply 35 - Posted by:
rabblerouser 2/21/2020 2:21:31 PM (No. 325511)
Glad I got to see the pre-Katrina NOLA Labor Day week 1991. It was pretty awesome. Well, what I remember anyway. When I wasn't drunk. Hey, I was young & dumb.
2 people like this.
Reply 36 - Posted by:
Lawsy0 2/21/2020 5:10:57 PM (No. 325622)
The most delicious Mardi Gras I ever went to was in 1991 in delightful Lake Charles on the Calcasieu River. Even the little school children have parades, complete with Kings and Crews. Lovely heritage and none of the filth, bawdiness or corruption.
1 person likes this.
The writer is concerned about debris and climate change. My concern for New Orleans and Mardi Gras is spiritual. What supposedly started as a party to prepare for a "religious denial of self", is in reality, pagan debauchery on display. It continues to get more twisted as our society gets more broken and more evil.
If Katrina didn't get their attention, I'm not sure what God might allow next. An excrement bomb below the surface of the streets in the French Quarter is a red flag for sure.
1 person likes this.