Commemoration Vacation

First of all I want to thank everyone involved with organizing the Rising Tide Conference for inviting me to be on the education panel. I had a great time on the panel and at the conference as a whole. I didn’t think I was going to talk so much but I guess that came easy to me because I live this city’s experience every day. I hope I was able to bring the perspective I set out to. I wish we had more time to get into some things more because it is a very complicated problem.

It was cool to meet the bloggers I hadn’t met before and put faces with the names of the people whose words I read and sometimes inspire me to express my own thoughts. I want to especially send a shot out to Allen Boudreaux for our conversation Friday Night and Mrs. Butler from Wounded Bird. She was cool to talk to. I also want to once again thank Clancy DuBos and Kevin Allman from The Gambit for the distinction of being the first guest blogger to appear on the Blog of New Orleans. From now on when Clancy’s on election night I can tell my friends I know someone on television and it’s not a lie.

It’s not lost on me that most of these cool things that I have got to take part in as a blogger have happened because of Hurricane Katrina. I will modestly accept the fact that a portion has to do with some personal talent. I am sure people wouldn’t ask me what I thought if it sounded crazy. However since the aftermath of the storm drives every agenda around this area it can’t be ignored. That’s why this is going to be my last post for the rest of the month.

There are two events this week that stick out in my head. The first one is August 27. That’s my surviving grandmother Mildred’s 90th birthday. It’s not only significant because she’s making 90. It’s significant because her 87th birthday party was the last time my family was all together at her house in the Lower Ninth Ward. The second event is obviously August 29th the anniversary of the storm. That’s the day I lost my other grandmother Geraldine to flood waters when the levees broke. She was 72 years old at the time of the storm and going strong. Beyond just the fact of losing her forever, the sad truth is that everyone I know lost a part of themselves in some way.

The way life has been since August 30, 2005 has required even the strongest person to ignore the human aspect from time to time in order to put their lives back in order. Even people like me who lost so much had to suspend that reality for enough time to move back home or get used to another place, rebuild their homes, plan the next five years and all that other stuff that goes with a total life change. In many ways my personal success and achievement is at an all time high. Unless I have a total meltdown it can only get better. Regardless of that, sometimes I just want to go sit on the patio and drink beer with my aunts or listen to my grandmother tell me how she can refurbish some piece of furniture she found at a garage sale that she has absolutely no room for in her house.

That’s the human aspect of the whole event that we have lost because everybody now is caught up in where the money is and what neighborhood gets enough of it to come back strong or not. I can’t lie and say it doesn’t happen to me. I rant and rave about stuff like that all day because I can’t help it. This year I am not going to do that. I’m not doing anything. I’m not going on the radio. I am not writing anything for anybody. I had a really cool idea I told Kevin about Friday night. I am not doing that either (sorry Kevin). This year I am going to chill out and spend time with my friends and family like every other week. I don’t want any exposure. I don’t want to be Cliff the blogger. I just want to be Cliff from St. Claude Avenue who use to hang out with Devin and Big G. Everybody from New Orleans may not feel this way but I personally think that storm was way to traumatic too turn into a holiday I need to look forward to every year. I’m trying not to give it any more power than it already has. That’s why until September I am officially vapor. If you are looking for me I will be sitting somewhere with a drink in my hand laughing at something crazy.

I'm Rising The Tide

When I was first asked to be on the Education Panel at this year’s Rising Tide Conference I was honored. Then I remembered just how much I didn’t really like school and it was kind of funny. I would have never guessed in a million years that I would be on a panel about education. Out of all the years I ever went to any school I only enjoyed maybe one year’s worth of that. Nevertheless, I always went and did well. That was probably more of my parents doing than my own.

There will be some very informed people on this panel that know all the ins and outs of the inner workings of the school situation here. I won’t be dropping any statistics. Earlier today I started to do a little research beyond what I already know so I wouldn’t be sitting up there sounding stupid. Then I thought about it and realized that I don’t represent that part of the equation.

I am going to be representing those parents that are confused, concerned, angry, frustrated and hoping they made the right decision when it comes to where their child is going. I’m going to represent the hard working people who don’t want to have three jobs, or lie about their situation in order to be in a better situation. I’m going to represent three generations and the parent of a fourth generation of family to go to public schools in the city. That is important because there is no way anyone can reform the system and ignore the last 40 years. When it comes to local issues there is usually a divide between what is written by the experts and the media and what the people in the neighborhood think.

I’m coming to represent the neighborhood for the good and the bad.

Cliff's Olympic Blog

I’m sitting here trying to figure out why I am so into these Olympic Games. The last time I really got into the Olympics was 20 years ago. I just got through watching the women’s beach volleyball final and it was so exciting (not for the women this time). There are two things I am wondering about. What the hell is Jamaica feeding those sprinters and why do all of these Chinese teenagers look as big as my five-year old? One of the women from the beach volleyball team just sprinkled her mom’s ashes on the sand after they won. That was a tear jerking moment.

Why does NBC stick the microphone in the face of these athletes after they fail and don’t win a medal? You know they have been training their whole life to get to this point and it sucks to not win. I wish I was there and someone interviews me with the way I hate to lose. Bob Costas would turn red.

That was messed up how they interviewed the brother about two minutes after he realized he has been disqualified from his medal in the 200m race. He should have punched that guy.

Man, I wish I had the money to go to Jamaica next week for the coming home party of Usain Bolt and the rest of the track and field team. You could party at least three days from the contact high.

Thank goodness the USA Basketball team is returning some respect to hood basketball. If I have to listen to one more commentator talk about how the world is catching up I am going to scream. If they are catching up so much, why do all the foreign players choke in the NBA playoffs?

Would I be a bad American if I was pulling for a Brazil vs. Cuba Women’s Volleyball final? I don't mean to be disrespectful to all the American sisters. They are awesome too. ( I am such a pig when the volleyball is on.)

Some of these sports are kind of ridiculous. Why is walking an event? Trampoline? Badminton? Equestrian? The horse is doing all the work. They might as well put Horseshoes and Cool Can in so New Orleans can bring home some gold medals. ( I realize that most of you don’t know what cool can is. That’s a true New Orleans hood game right there.)

If I was a male Olympic walk racer, I would compete hard as I could for a medal but would never watch a tape of myself switching like that. There are just some things a brother from the Ninth Ward can't have on videotape.

It's The First Day

Well, we sent her on in there. I hope nothing happens to make me show those people why they called me the Incredible Hulk in 8th grade. I'm sure she will be fine. She had to go somewhere sooner or later. Anyway...

In honor of the first day of school I thought I would tell a funny first day of school story. It happened at my first school McDonald # 19 Elementary School. Back in the old days when you went back to school for the new school year kids would go to the previous year’s teacher until they found out whom their new teacher was. Well, I wasn’t aware of that heading to first grade. My mama walked me to school with my three year old sister and 7 month old brother in a stroller. I walked in the door of the school and was talking to my friends about how I was going to my new teacher. That’s when someone told me I had to go sit back in Ms. Ford’s class. Not knowing it was only for an hour or so, I screamed NOOOOO!!!! Ms. Ford wasn’t that bad. I was just a spoiled at five years old and didn’t want anyone to tell me anything. At five she seemed like a demon and I had enough of that.

I took off running down St. Claude St. like Jesse Owens. I made it back home so fast that my mama wasn’t at the house yet. She was just walking up to the gate when I came running behind her.

It was at that very moment when I realized my mama was down for me no matter what. She didn’t fuss or anything. She just turned around with those two babies and walked me back up the street to the school and brought me to the class. Personally, I would have whipped my ass for that.

I need some comic relief so I think I will listen to Monster teach the babies their ABC’s. Don’t laugh too hard. He means well.

My Meditation Music

Friday morning I had to speak at a meeting. I knew almost everyone in the room by first name but for some reason I felt nervous. After I sat down and tried to figure out what was wrong with me I realized I wasn’t nervous. I just didn’t feel like talking about the topic at hand. This happens to me from time to time. I hit the wall when it comes to dealing with stuff and I get tired of thinking so much. Between the job, school issues, bills, money, and problems of friends and family, Cliff needs to reboot his hard drive.

As corny as it sounds, this is when I go back to hip hop to clear my head. Say what you want about the music but it calms me. I used to be one of those kids on the bus heading to school with the Walkman radio and the backpack full of tapes and batteries. That was the last part of my life that I didn’t have anything to worry about. I didn’t care about much except for school and trying to get a date or two. It’s back during the time when I used to challenge Brian on who could make the best mixtape. That’s before all the stuff my daddy used to preach about applied to my own life situations. It also separates me from him because he hates rap music. It’s when the Ninth Ward wasn’t infamous and we just lived and hung out there. I can’t say if things were better or not but my mental burden was sure much lighter. It does for me what Motown does for older generations. I guess that’s why through all of life changes I still stay true to the music as long as the lyrics aren’t too crazy. There are future queens at the crib so I can't be listening to some of that garbage.

I think my blogging is a way of letting out the frustrated rapper in me. The only difference is bloggers don’t have groupies or money. I’m just doing what I do for the love of it. Friday morning I left for my meeting with my morale really low. When I got in my truck I had to play something to put my energy in the right direction to do what I needed to do. A Tribe Called Quest did the trick.

It's Time For Big School

Did I mention anything about my post on the Gambit's blog about the school issue?
That was more than two weeks ago. My self promotion skills suck.

On Monday morning my baby will be headed to kindergarten. It’s a big day for her and she is ready to go. I have no doubts she will do great and take to school like a fish to water. She can’t wait to get in there. She's been dying to go for months. Times have changed because I don’t remember my parents telling me I was even going to school. My mom just dropped me off with a strange mean lady and some snotty nose kids and left me there. She could have warned a brother that I wasn’t going to be watching Tom and Jerry that day.

I am nervous about her first day for several reasons. I’m wondering if she’s going to a decent school. I’m worried about environment in and around the school. I am not ashamed to admit I love my hood but there are some aspects of it that I don't want my kids exposed to. I am concerned about her being under too much pressure since everything is based on test scores and her homework package has things in it I didn’t see until the third grade. I have been beating myself up for the past two weeks because I figured I had five years to put myself in a position to send her wherever I wanted even if it meant paying tuition. That was before a company downsizing, a pay cut, and a hurricane. Now she's going to a public school I never heard of until a few months ago. I guess that's what happens when new charter schools pop up weekly. All you can go on is what they promise you.

I don’t want to be overly negative about the situation. I met the staff and reviewed all of their plans and it appears to be a good deal. This morning in the newspaper there is a big story about the plans for new schools. If everybody's actions go along with the plans then the situation should be constantly getting better. I want to believe that. I need to believe that because my lack of confidence in the ability or willingness to educate black kids in New Orleans is the first issue that has ever made me really consider leaving. Nobody should love the city enough to compromise their child's future. If I still believed in conspiracy theories I would say that this is all being done at a slow pace purposely to keep black families from moving back into the city. If you fix the schools too quick then even people who left before Katrina are coming back. I have been trying to talk myself out of thinking that way even though my own experience tells me it might be true.

Maybe that's not happening this time around. Maybe I am stuck in my old way of thinking and can’t notice the things changing around me. Maybe ten years from now we will look back and feel good about sticking with the system. Maybe she can roll through this one charter system until she graduates high school and end up prepared to handle the Ivy League. Maybe I’m just a paranoid daddy. Her grandpa told me any good parent is supposed to be paranoid. He calmed my nerves a little. After talking to my daddy about it we will go with the positive outlook.

Tomorrow morning the only thing I will be thinking about is how she looks like a big girl in her uniform and her backpack on and trying not to cry when she walks in the building. I promise not to drive around the building every 30 minutes like I planned on doing. I can't go in with her. She probably doesn't want me to anyway. When she sees those other kids she's going to forget all about me. Man, watching your daughter getting bigger is rewarding and it sucks at the same time.

Sending All Reporters To Mandeville

I hope no one thought I wasn't going to say something about the great city of Mandeville........

I will concede that Mandeville is a really nice city. Their public schools are great. There is very little crime. If I didn’t have such a problem driving across the Causeway everyday I wouldn’t mind living over there myself. The way people live across the lake isn’t a problem for me. Their horrible and judgmental attitudes are. Every time there is a story about something going on in New Orleans I have to sit and read letters in the paper and messages on comments and messages boards online about how New Orleans is a cesspool and how that’s why they left in the city years ago.

Northshore residents talk lots of trash when they are minding other people’s business. Well, apparently some of the corrupt politicians and crooks liked living across the lake too. This week has been great. It’s been fun to see them muster up the energy to react in the same spirit they give towards city issues when it’s their own tax dollars and a man they trusted. I just have a few thoughts about this whole mess.

Ralph Goyeneche, of the Metropolitan Crime Commission is an honorable and fair man across the board. I don’t know exactly where he lives but I would trust him as mayor. He’s the only one who stepped out forward and suggested Mayor Price step down. I know some of you are wondering why he has never asked for Ray Nagin to step down. That’s because Ray Nagin hasn’t stole anything like this no matter how bad everyone tries to turn him into The Godfather.

Could you imagine if Ray Nagin had spent 65K of city money for personal use and it was backed up by a state audit? Spud McConnell’s head would have exploded on the air and Stacy Head would be calling in the National Guard to seize City Hall. Lee Zurick would have gotten his own 30 minute special just to go over the credit card statement on the air. I won't even think about what would have happened if Mr. Goyeneche asked him to step down and he said no. If Warren Riley would have misspent money from the Toys for Tots fund that was funded by citizens’ donations he would have had to resign from the force and leave the state.

I challenge anyone to argue with me that the coverage locally has been even in intensity. If your point is that Mandeville only has 7000 residents compared to over 300,000 in New Orleans I will simply say that when it comes to prestige and the influence in the area the Northshore has lots of it. If the radio stations here can have a show about city government and think its ok to take calls from the suburbs all day putting the city down because we all have a vested interest in the city, then the suburbs deserve the same scrutiny when they do something wrong. If you don’t want it, then mind your own business next time Ray Nagin puts his foot in his mouth. Even one of his misspoken moments can’t add up to a trip to Mexico.

I take no pleasure in another city getting messed around by their mayor. I just want that mayor to be treated like mine gets treated for a lot less.

Monday Morning Wandering

It’s a rainy Monday morning and I am back at work after taking an extended weekend. I took an extra day because I felt myself slipping into one of those moments where I was going to be a little too honest about things around the office and get myself in trouble. There is nothing like taking things too far at work. It can’t be that bad of a job. The fact I am writing this blog from my desk should prove that. I got time to kill sense the dummies that get here before me never make the coffee. They can’t make a pot but as soon as I do they run out there with those big ass construction site mugs to fill up. One day I am going to bring the pot to my desk so I can monitor who gets a cup and how much they pour.

My name is Clifton and I am addicted to caffeine….

I was going to write something last night but I was too upset about Isaac Hayes. I had to listen to By the Time I Get to Phoenix a few times. I also was too focused on the awesome power and sexiness of the Cuban women’s volleyball team. They are always the highlight of the Summer Olympics for me. Just for the record, I was pulling for the American women to win but man those Cuban sisters are awesome. I have to think that Castro must really be as bad as everyone says he is if men are willing to make homemade rafts and float through the ocean to get out of there and leave women like that behind.

The volleyball game was a good way to end a frustrating weekend. There is nothing like getting a child ready for school to make you feel the economic pinch. Kindergarten sure has changed. All I needed for the first say of school was a fat pencil and an ABC tablet. These schools ask for so many supplies. Why do I have to buy two boxes of crayons? I’m telling everyone right now, she better come home with something in color. Why do you need glue and glue sticks? I’m 34 years old and can barely get a glue stick to work right. Between the supplies and the homework schedule, there is no fun left in Kindergarten. I guess that’s the plan to reform inner city schools, take out all the fun.

I guess I will sit here and watch this rain today and watch some Bernie Mac clips.

Oh yeah…..and do some work too. Companies should really block You Tube.

hyperbolicsyllabicsesquedalymystic

One of my favorite singers and a founding father of the Bald Head Brothers Club passed away Sunday. I would like to say rest in peace to Isaac Hayes.

Who you are just as you are is precious and totally unique. Make friends with yourself and become empowered by your own distinctiveness.

I got this in a text message from a friend of mine. I would give them credit for it but I am not sure if they stole it from someone and I don't need any plagiarizing issues.

One of my good friends stopped and dropped off a bottle of liquid relaxation as a show of appreciation. I am going sit outside in my yard, drink a glass and listen to Frankie Beverly. If it's too damn hot maybe I will sit in the den next to the window and pretend I am outside while the AC blows. Hopefully I will make it to be before 1AM.

Fooled Me Again

Please excuse me today. I am speaking as an angry black New Orleans resident who’s losing faith and feeling kind of silly about asking for patience on this NOAH story. My patience has been rewarded with a headache.

My people sure make it hard sometimes to make a point when they do silly things. I didn't know who Stacey Jackson was until all of this started but appearently she hit the jackpot. She had a non profit flying under the radar. Why wouldn't someone tell Ray Nagin about these things before he stood up there and defended this group? Don't all these people who make good money because of him at least owe him the chance to not look foolish? I still don't think he's a criminal but it does not look good for the city as a whole when the mayor stands up and defends a potential scandal. Who’s going to invest money in that city?

Why would Ms. Jackson or the contractor be bold enough to think it would be ok for anybody associated with agency contracts to live in a house owned by the agency? Why would she give contracts to people connected to her that closely? I work in the non profit world and I know that at the end of the day everything has to be accounted for. Your agency lives or dies on documentation. Why would she buy property from another agency in the city for a cheap price, not refurbish it then sell it for a profit? That's just ridiculous. Shouldn’t there be someone on the mayor’s staff who monitors these kinds of things for potential trouble so he can get rid of those people and avoid this kind of embarrassment for the city? No one benefits from this story getting bigger.

I actually had a broader view of this whole story about wondering who's going to maintain the legitimate properties on the list now that NOAH is out of business but the conflict of interests in this thing are so glaring I can't express it without sounding stupid. The next time a story comes up like this I guess I will have to just be quiet and watch no matter how mad I get from listening to the radio. Thanks NOAH and everyone involved for giving me one less thing to worry about and for further destroying the benefit of the doubt I was so willing to give. I might be late to the party on that mind set. I think most of the people have already given up on leadership. That could explain that 11% voter turnout the last election. Maybe I am just a dreamer and want everyone to have the same vision for the city that I do. It doesn't matter. Let the talk shows and news media do and say what they will while I go sit somewhere and ponder how we managed to abuse the access we fought so hard to get.

A.P. Tureaud must be rolling over in his grave as we speak.

A Small Dedication to St. Claude Avenue

I have been grinding this week. Sometimes you have to take a break from all the drama and just sit down with a nice cocktail and forget about it all. I dedicate this video clip to Clifton and Bernadine Harris, my brothers and sisters and weekend nights on St. Claude Ave. I sure miss the Lower Nine sometimes.....

Blessing Blocking

For the first time in a few weeks I went to City Park instead of Audubon Park to work out. I like City Park much better. It’s closer to the house. There are less people who trust big dogs too much and walk them right next to your leg. Plus, there are more sisters at City Park and that’s always an added bonus. Despite all of those advantages I have been avoiding going there because I have been trying not to look my former trainer in the eye.

I stopped working with the man and I didn’t have a good reason. The brother saw me out there and just wanted to help me reach my goals. That’s what he always said and nothing he never anything to prove differently. He was even working with me for free. My own pessimism made me think of every shallow reason not to let this cat help me. I even complained about the fact he’s one of those guys who always needs dap or a handshake as affirmation for everything he says (I have a one contact per meeting limit for men). I feel bad about the last time I saw him and tried to explain why I stopped showing up. Nothing makes you feel more stupid than not keeping a commitment to someone without a real reason.

I’ve become one of those people who are so guarded with their feelings and so paranoid about being disappointed that I think of any reason to run people away from me as quick as possible. I’m probably missing out on something good because instead of opening that email or returning that phone call I ignored it. When people get in that mind state it only makes life harder. It’s definitely been harder to break through this barrier and lose these last ten pounds. I could have stuck with that brother and been outside washing my truck bare chest by now. I guess the next time I see him out there I will shake his hand and give him the phrase brothers use to acknowledge wrong doing without actually having to say what they did…………“My Bad Bruh”


I need to work on that.

Check Me Out On The Blog of New Orleans

You can check me out in my guest role here.

Thank you to Kevin Allman for giving me a chance to reach a broader range of people.

I just want to say that everything I write on that site is dedicated to the Lower Ninth Ward.

Sitting On My Porch Part Twelve

I spent the weekend doing landscaping in my front yard. It was so hot that I started singing old Negro spirituals and waiting for Harriet to show me the way to the Railroad. I have to be the only fool that waits until the middle of the day to do yard work. I know that since humans are at the top of the food chain we think highly of ourselves and how we control nature but I don’t think we give nature enough respect. Three years ago after Katrina everything around my house was brown and dead from saltwater. There was no grass, leaves, or flowers. The only thing that survived was pine trees and old oaks. Now after a few years of rain and sunlight, it looks like a swamp again. We talk about harming the Earth with the way we live but the reality of it is that the Earth is going to be fine once we leave it. The only difference is that the grass doesn’t grow as fast as it used to. When I first moved around here if you didn’t cut your grass a few days after it rained you couldn’t see your house.

Apparently Senator Derrick Shepherd went swimming in the river Saturday and swallowed some of that oil infested water. How else could you explain what happened to him this weekend? Here’s the part I don’t understand. He left his ex girlfriend’s house after she called 911 and went to his own house to get a lap dance. What woman is so fine that you bring her to the crib to get a lap dance knowing the entire sheriff’s department is looking for you? Whoever she is needs to be relocated out of this area immediately. She’s a threat to all the stupid men of the metro area. I don’t want to go to any club with a dancer so fine I will be willing to publicly embarrass myself and ruin my career.

Brothers and sisters please stop calling the radio defending the brother for getting arrested. The woman didn't go to his house and pitch rocks at his house. He went to her house. All he had to do was get his double lap dance and go to sleep happy and content. I don't want to get myself in any trouble but I never had a lap dance and wanted to fight afterwards. Derrick did this one on his own.

If you work at an organization that depends on state funding, shouldn't you keep your resume updated and saved on an USB drive in your car at all times until Bobby Jindal leaves office? If you can make it through his budget cuts you truly have a valuable position because he cuts everything. Even the elderly didn't stand a chance.

Brett Favre is now taking Terrell Owens’s place as the man who refuses to go away and is hijacking my football season. We haven’t had on preseason game and I am already drained. ESPN has to cut into every program just to tell you someone talked to Brett and he still wants to play but he is still sitting at home. I hope someone makes a trade soon so we can switch to the next month of stories about him playing for someone else other than the Packers.

In a true example of what influence real fathers can have on men, I changed my ringback tone from Hold it Now by the Beastie Boys to the regular boring ring after Clifton Sr. fussed at me like I was 17 sleeping in a bunk bed on St. Claude St. I did it because his reasons were right and because I didn't want to hear about it every time he calls me. Let this be a lesson to parents. It doesn't matter if your kids do things just to shut you up. All that matters is that they do it. Man, that Beastie Boys ring was cool. I'm supposed to be grown....I am typing this really low so he can't see it.

I have talked about my neighbor some and I am concerned that I might be giving people the wrong impression about my neighborhood. I live in a great neighborhood around good people. I just have one crazy neighbor next door. Actually, I won’t call her crazy either. Before the storm she was fine. She probably just has some post Katrina issues like everybody else. I would knock on her door one more time and try to mend fences but if she yells at me for nothing one more time I might forget she has kids older than me and I might end up running for a lap dance like Derrick Shepherd.

Finally, I just want to tell all you parents out there to please check your internet adult content settings. Otherwise you may be sitting around thinking the kids are watching something on Nick Jr. only to walk in and discover they are laughing at this video below. Don't ask me how they got there.

What kind of sick freak do you have to be to turn Boots into a gangster?

I Am A Statistic

I watched Black in America last night on CNN and I have to say this morning I am a little disheartened about being a black man. I don’t think Soledad O’Brien intended on making things look as bleak as they did on the show. I can’t say any of it was not true. It needed to have a little more balance. If you go by the show we are all statistics in one way or another. I just needed them to show a profile of some of the cats I know. There are regular everyday black men that have never been addicted, went to jail, been unemployed, messed over a black woman, or abandoned their kids. It doesn’t always have to go wrong. Even the successful family on the show had a son involved in a shooting. It doesn’t have to be that way. Neither I nor any of my brothers even own a gun.

The real focus for the future was on the show and didn’t get nearly enough attention. There was a brother named Roland Fryer on the show who is a professor of economics at Harvard University. During the crack section of the show it was revealed that he grew up in one of the biggest drug houses in his hometown. My inner city experience tells me that usually if you grow up in a crack house the chances you are going to have that kind of success is rare. The chances you are going to have any kind of success outside of crack is usually impossible. After they got through showing all of the failures and bad circumstances, this brother should have been the subject of the last hour. You can’t get a bigger hurdle in life than growing up in a crack house. Whatever path this brother took out of that should be the blueprint and we should be focusing on if it can be duplicated for a few million more.

We better do something because after watching that two hour show last night I feel like I should just stand on the corner and wait for police or the child support office.

There's Something In The Water

I love the taste of good old New Orleans dirty tap water. The Kentwood Water dude has no reason to come to my house. All the particles and chemicals adds the extra flavor. I don't think one of the normal ingrediants is thousands of gallons of fuel oil. The Mississippi River is crawling with black grease after two barges collided. The oil slick is 12 miles long. Who wants to take their boo out for a walk along the levee and look at that? Now I have to go buy some water and ice cubes because the ice maker on my fridge is connected to the same water as the kitchen sink. I don't want my evening cocktail ending up with me waking up in the middle of the night to cough up a mysterious green substance with a foul odor. Maybe if the water is really contaminated I could spray some on my neighbor's car by "mistake" and take the paint off.

The Criminalization of Ray Nagin

There are two issues I need to talk about. The first is Bobby Jindal. The second one is the criminalization of Ray Nagin. I am going to hold off on talking about the first one until what I want to talk about is official. The second one has to be addressed right now.

I am not a fan of Ray Nagin’s management style. I would have liked him to be more aggressive early in the recovery. I thought he was taking a business approach when the citizens needed some inspiration. Even today I have problems with many of the decisions of his administration. You can read archives of this page and see that I have been fussing about Mayor Nagin since I started blogging. While I may not be pleased with his performance as mayor, I never try to turn this man into a crook just because I am mad. There seems to be this obsession with turning this man into a criminal mastermind. Why can’t he just be a bad mayor and nothing more?

Every day there’s a story on a blog, newspaper or on the TV news that tries to tie this man into some racket. I am not condoning using city funds for personal use but the man took his wife to lunch and you would have thought he embezzled billions. Someone is going to read this and tell me that these stories are just exposing waste and mismanagement in City Hall. I will give them the benefit of the doubt in feeling that way. What they don’t understand is that when I read or watch the news I hear the implication behind the actual words the reporter is saying. That might be only a black thing so it’s ok if you don’t get that. The story last night about the NOAH organization was implying that our mayor purposely and knowingly had something to do with money being mismanaged. Lee Zurick didn't say that directly but he didn't have to. The message was clear to me.

Note : There was a blogger on that story who has an entire blog dedicated to housing and blight around the city. She never has any propaganda on her page and I am not implying she was in on Channel 4’s plan. Ms. Gadbois if you read this I hope you don't take any of it personally.

Our grandstanding city council bought right into it and immediately held a hearing about it like they do for every suspicion. A man can’t keep letting people run his daddy’s name through the mud like that. As a black man in this city, I have enough issues with actual crooked politicians and street criminals without trying to make Mayor Nagin a suspect. I am 100% certain this man has not knowingly been involved with anything illegal. People hate this man so much that Jim Letten would have indicted him a long time ago if he had something. If I am proved wrong and Ray turns out to be like Bill Jefferson then I will admit it. I just can’t see Mayor Nagin doing anything that foolish with every investigative reporter in the city going through his trash.

It's cool with me if you don't like the brother but it doesn't have to be validated with a mugshot.


Next......The Heartlessness of Bobby Jindal

Not A Minute Too Soon

Saints training camp starts tomorrow. I have been trying my best not to be an over the top fan. When I became a dad my dad told me that stuff like football games wouldn’t matter so much. He said life would be more in perspective and I would probably not get upset about sports like I used to. I am sure he was right but he said all this before Katrina. It is true that I gave up my season tickets after the last pre Katrina season. I had decided that I was taking the outcome of those games way too personal and it wasn’t worth making myself sick over.

After everything got turned upside down, I can’t wait for football season. I want to suspend reality for a few hours on the weekend and think about why we overpaid Charles Grant or why Sean Payton isn’t using Reggie Bush correctly. I welcome the chance to take my shirt off and throw it across the room when #42 (I refuse to say or type his name.) gives up another long touchdown. I can’t wait for the first time Jeremy Shockey is wide open but doesn’t get the ball and goes crazy on the sideline so I can call my cousin and tell him I knew that guy was going to snap. I might even drive to Jackson for some practices.

This may all seem petty to the 24/7 deep and serious thinkers. Most people who can think that deep and that serious all the time probably haven’t had to do anything that required the mental energy of dealing with some of the issues down here. After the daily attacks on my tolerance, patience and sanity I can’t wait to hate the Falcons for two weeks. I need football for awhile. The season is only 16 weeks; maybe 20 if you get to the Super Bowl. That leaves at least 32 weeks of the year for me to be angry, bitter, and aggravated.

The Saints are the NFL’s version of Barak Obama. They make their suffering fans unite together in misery and disgust between all social, racial and geographic lines. If they can just get to the Super Bowl one time, I might be so happy that I forget the fact we don’t have hospital open below Canal St. for an entire hour. I am craving that long mental bliss.

To Protect, Serve and Bust a Cap

Ninety five percent of the New Orleans Police Department are really good people. They have a rough job and take a great risk to protect this city. The problem with the NOPD is that they can’t get out of their own way. While ninety five percent of the force are good people, the other five percent do some of the craziest shit in police history.

The police force has came so far since the days of Len Davis and the vice squad shaking down Asian massage parlors. I have to admit that this foolishness is getting a little annoying. The bad vibe started when a 35 year veteran got suspended for wearing an old shirt his last day on the job to honor his falling fellow officers. That bought the department about a week of bad press. Next, this fool on the Crescent City Connection just ignored the bridge police and damn near got himself shot. Today, this crazy ass off duty police woman gets out of her car outside of Treme Community Center filled with kids and parents and pulls out her pistol on a lady picking up five kids from day camp. Other officers arrived after someone dialed 911 and didn’t do anything when they found out the crazy woman was a fellow officer. Officer Ashley Terry has been suspended and the officers who responded are under investigation.

Here is the part that bugs me. You have this crime problem in certain areas of the city. Everyone keeps saying that the problem would be easier to solve if the citizens would cooperate more with the police department. If that’s a big priority in the city, shouldn’t an officer crazy enough to pull out a pistol on a parent who’s driving a truck full of school children be fired immediately? If she ever had to respond to something in that neighborhood no one is going to speak to her. When you live in that kind of neighborhood, no one speaks to the crazy officer because you never know if he or she is in on the hustle.

Just to keep it real………If she would have done this uptown on St. Charles or in Lakeview she would have been fired AND arrested today! What regular citizen could pull a gun on a mom and five children? What does a mama and her kids have to look like for those officers to feel comfortable letting their comrade go after brandishing a firearm? And some folks think brothers and sisters be angry for old shit. If that gun would have went off for some reason and hit one of those babies, relations between the black community and the police department would have been set back 20 years.