Once again, Ray Nagin makes news.
This time by opening an office and hiring a regional planner to direct the official recovery for New Orleans from the ravages of Hurricane Katrina.
That's good news.
But isn't 15 months AFTER the hurricane a bit late to decide to create the office and hire a guy?
To quote Ron Simmons, "Damn."
Fifteen months after the fact ... to me, that's a bit much.
But I do love the fact that Ray Nagin still gets a pass from the rest of the media despite his total failure during the hurricane and its aftermath.
What kills me is you don't see, or hear, people from Texas, Mississippi or the rest of Louisiana whining about how the government didn't protect them, or why the government hasn't built them a new house with at least a PS2 and a plasma TV in every room.
Oh, yeah, silly me. That's because most of those outside of New Orleans realize it's not the government's job to take care of them from cradle to grave.
Anyway ... apparently the good mayor of Chocolate City needed some help.
By BECKY BOHRER, Associated Press Writer
Mon Dec 4, 4:15 AM ET
NEW ORLEANS - More than 15 months after Hurricane Katrina, Mayor Ray Nagin is ready to open a city office to direct New Orleans' recovery, with a leading regional planner and disaster recovery expert in charge.
Ed Blakely, who helped coordinate recovery planning in California after two natural disasters and in New York City after Sept. 11, has been chosen to lead what is expected to be a five-person office and to serve as the leader for marshaling a recovery process that critics have derided as too slow.
City Hall planned a formal announcement Monday. Blakely's appointment was confirmed Sunday by a Nagin spokeswoman.
The mayor also has hired Becca O'Brien, a former policy director for the federal government's Gulf Coast recovery operation, as his executive counsel.
In September, Nagin marked the first 100 days of his second term by announcing the city would create a recovery office. Last month, he told the city council he had a high-profile person in mind to lead it.
Hey Becky Bohrer ... why didn't you ask the good mayor why it took him 15 months to get this rolling?
Oh, wait, that's good journalism.
Besides, he'd probably play the race card if you did.
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