After Katrina: The failure to rebuild New Orleans

Over at Think Progress, one of our favourite blogs, Amanda provides a helpful, link-filled post on "the real state of New Orleans" one year after Katrina. Despite Bush's initial promises to get things done, it's pretty dismal, with garbage yet to be picked up, houses still without electricity, little public transportation, hospitals still closed, rents soaring, and suicides at an alarming rate.

Check out the post and click on the links.

And also check out John Edwards's piece on "Remembering Katrina's Victims" at the One America Committee (where I'm honoured to be a featured blogger). Here's how he describes the New Orleans of today:

Despite all the official promises about "doing what it takes" to get New Orleans back on its feet, much of the city still looks as if the hurricane hit yesterday. Thousands upon thousands of homes remain deserted, windowless and covered with flood grime in desolate neighborhoods. The water and sewer systems are still in terrible shape. Fewer than half of the city’s hospitals have reopened, and there are not nearly enough health clinics to adequately serve all the low-income families who need care. Vast areas are still littered with mangled cars and piles of debris.

Promises have been broken and a city, once a glorious city, still lies in ruins, much of it left to rot. That's the reality of New Orleans one year after Katrina.