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New Orleans to Deploy Free Wi-Fi City Wide
Lawrence_Bird writes "The Washington Post is reporting that New Orleans will deploy a city wide wi-fi network with free public access. Much of the equipment has been donated, but New Orleans will own and operate the network. Interestingly, they are only able to do this while a state of emergency remains in place as technically their planned 512Kbps service violates state law prohibiting municipalities from offering access at speeds in excess of 144Kbps, a restriction the city plans on fighting even though they will eventually outsource the whole operation."
Or with cops:
"Muggers want to kill and rob you? Sure, we'll be on our way, just as soon as you pay up on your overdue bill."
or:
"Yes, there were gun toting maniacs in the streets shooting people, and yes some of those people were our customers. But since there were over 50 people in the vacinity, that technically makes it a riot, and they didn't have coverage for riots. Now if they'd signed up for our Premium Protection Plan, on the other hand...."
This nice summary of privitization run amock was from a Punisher 2099 comic, of all things. So yes, Libertarians, taxes and public services can be a good thing.
Get a new Mayor and Gov.
I second that idea. Local officials that are competent and actually WANT to serve the people will do a lot more good than hoping the feds decide to do more. Besides, it wasn't Bush's job to create an evacuation plan for New Orleans, it was ultimately the mayor's job and he failed miserably. Of course, getting new officials may require a temporary willingness to vote Republican until the local Democratic party gets cleaned up.
(Regardless of party) I remember seeing a mayor of one town|city who was notified his house was a pancake. He got a ride there, looked at it, then went back to work. He said his personal interests were secondary to the job he'd been hired to perform and he'd return to deal with his house & possessions when everyone else was taken care of.
I really don't care which party chooses to assign those qualities to their members, having someone like that taking care of their constituents is enough to make everyone wait in line to vote for hours if there's a single voting machine just to make sure they remain in office.
Aside from a few exceptions and having connections with people who have been elevated to the federal level, most party affiliations have little to do with one's abilities and outlook, let alone what kind of job they do until they get to at least the state level (Governor or State Legislature, regardless of which House).
What I do have concerns about is paying for people who live in Hurricane Alley and want someone [else] to pay to rebuild, pay to rebuild, pay to rebuild, pay to rebuild, pay to rebuild...pivot! pivot! pivot! (Friends) the news keeps referring to insurance companies or the Federal Gov't. Either way, it's everyone else paying. Individuals pay the insurance premiums which are used to cover other people and the Federal Gov't is funded by individuals paying taxes. I live in an area which is a reasonably large magnet for tornadoes. If my house is flattened more than once, I think I'm going to get the hint it's time to reexamine my living situation. The attitude of, "This is where I want to live and if it's interrupted for any reason, someone's going to pay to restore it so I'm happy." is a bit more than I can stomach and I don't know that the family-sized bottle of Pepto is going to alleviate that. I also live in an area where prior to purchasing a house, you are required to check to see if you live in a flood plane and you're made aware of where you stand financially (insurance-wise) as a result. I've got news for the people of the South: you live in a flood plane. If your insurance premiums were made to properly reflect this, kwitcherbitchin'. It's the price you pay for living in a warm place year 'round. I live in a place which has four seasons each year. And there's a price to be paid for that and I pay it.
Last night, the NBC National News said some of the larger insurance companies are dropping people who live in areas affected by certain types of weather - I believe they were referring to locations where make sure you've got hip waders handy four or five times each year. The only problem with that is the gov't is then expected to bail them out. Either way, someone else pays for their lifestyle.
As far as the poor who are suffering, a lot of people have been presented with opportunities to live in other locations with a decent period (multiple months) of rent or mortgage amnesty to permit them to set their lives up with the donations of goods and permit them to find a job.
This may be apocryphal, but it's been said one guy was shown a trailer for temporary housing and when he asked where the tv was, he was told there wasn't one, so he refused the housing. That sounds a little too fishy to be true, but if it is [true], then someone (him) needs to wait in line for an attitude adjustment with a 2x4.
Required skills for job applicants are are getting stiffer
And all those old, historic locations get the big kiss goodbye. NHR is a taxpayer parasite.
As the rest of the US mutters "duh..."
Wow, I'm pissed off that they are spending any money to repopulate NO. Its untenable with the gov't crappy, laizze-faire "plan" with the clown school FEMA in charge. Then again, they've also cut housing funding to the NO refugees. Now you guys in the red states are stuck with all those poverty stricken, future criminal, Democrat voting, (non-european) refugees. Serves the Repugs right.
That was back when the US was on top economically, and didn't incur ridiculous federal deficits.
Most of the billions are sent to Israel to subsidize its military. (And now a wall...) Gov't spending to foreign gov't is a pittance. You must be lumping in private donations.
Nope. It has to go to paying the Iraq Invasion 2003 (and the Iraq Occupation in 2004, 2005, 2006...). Of course, some money could be recovered by putting on a windfall profits tax on oil companies and harrassing Halliburton & Co into providing construction services to NO in lieu of their war profiteering in Iraq, where they took the money and reneged on delivery. Oh wait, somebody voted GWB for president; the warmongering, oil industry, Halliburton & Co. friend. You really think GWB is going to help New Orleans recover?
NO should be rebuilt, but not so that taxpayers pay billions to make it the first underwater city. You guys have to abandon most of where you're located and move out of the basin.
There is no America. There is no democracy. There is only IBM and AT&T and DuPont, Dow, General Electric, and Exxon
Will this be the first case of never-ending SOE similar to the never-ending Beta?
A more apt comparison would be the never-ending "war on terror" or the never-ending "war on drugs". Silly Americans.
-b
myselfmusic