Everything's Smaller in New Orleans »
As on-again, off-again Ernesto bears down on Florida, we're reminded that it was one year ago today that Hurricane Katrina was battering New Orleans, and this produced an entirely new paradigm. As people in Texas like to say that everything there is bigger, when you speak of New Orleans, everything there is smaller. Before you go and get upset, bear with me. I'm not trying to insult anyone.
Let's start with the fact that some four hundred thousand resdents are still missing. I don't mean that they are absent and need to be found, I simply mean that the population of the city is that much smaller than it was at this time last year. Well, at this time a week ago last year. You know what I mean. That's the first indication that things are smaller. While some are undoubtedly trickling back in, it will be quite some time before this city is anywhere near its prior size - if it ever is that size again. And this isn't the only thing that has become smaller.
