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Wednesday, August 31, 2005

Canal Street Gondolas?

I can't make fun of the Gulf Coast situation, that is some nasty shit. Yesterday, most of what I was hearing was that it was bad, but I didn't have a notion of what 'bad' meant.

I've bitched about the stupid fucks who issued building permits for the five houses on my street (including mine) that have below grade basement garages and no place for the water to go but into the garage. But to build a city of half a million people below sea level on the coast?

Here's what I think they should do. Take these historic buildings in the Quarter and whatnot, and jack them up to above sea level. Fill in below with footings and set it up like Venice. Hurricanes will still be a bitch, but then they always have been.

As far as barrier islands go, seems like it'd be possible to do something manmade that would help buffer a city. Or maybe it makes more sense to just move it, come further in and rebuild. Above sea level and in a situation where you're not trying to fight the Mississippi's Westward tendencies...

1 comment:

j_ay said...

Well, the problem wouldn’t be half of what it is now is the 2 (that I know of) levees that eventually broke were fortified *BEFORE* their collapse.
Simple military maneuvers could have done this.

Another thing, all the people that are now “looting”…it’s not too late to “abort” them. I’ve never been a big fan of the term “scum of the Earth”, but it seems applicable here…