Author: Dick

What has been taking place in New Orleans over the past week in the wake of Hurricane Katrina and the busted levees no doubt is high drama. New Orleans is also a large American city, currently ranked 34th in population nationally if I am not mistaken. But New Orleans is also a unique and distinctive place among American cities. It’s a true American melting pot of cultures — French, Italian, Irish, African, Spanish, you name it. It is the jazz spot and the party spot of the United States. So no one should really question why so much news coverage has focused on the unfolding tragedy that has been New Orleans.

But across the state line to the east, Katrina has just blown an entire state’s coastline all to hell. If I didn’t recognize the Mississippi Gulf Coast because of all its casinos and growth over the past decade, I would surely not recognize it now because the hurricane blew so much of the area away. So I hope that the news media does not let such a compelling story as the saga of New Orleans obscure that disaster has struck with a vengeance on the Mississippi Gulf Coast.

Although it is no megapolis at 70,000 people, Gulfport is Mississippi’s second largest city. Along with Biloxi and outlying areas Harrison County has almost 200,000 people. Biloxi and Gulfport have become quite the tourist Mecca in recent years because of the casino industry. But it’s always been a nice place for a tourist to stop and enjoy the man-made beaches on Mississippi Sound and see tranquil sights like the oak tree in the picture above.

A real tragedy is going on in Mississippi where Katrina struck, especially on the coast. We need to keep that in mind. It led Stan Tiner, editor of the Knight-Ridder paper in Biloxi, the “Sun Herald” to make a plea for his area’s needs:

“Medical needs, food, water, gasoline — are all needed and now. Some say our plight coupled with the unbelievable state of degradation in New Orleans represents the greatest humanitarian crisis in American history. This has led us to profoundly understand our dependence on others. In this moment of need, we wonder who will help us? We are even so bold as to send a message from the lost cities of the Mississippi Coast: Will you help us?”

Ugh! First searing heat, now this! I looked outside my truck window and saw the first pair of lovebugs of the season. Then I saw the first two pair of lovebugs of the season. It’s only a matter of time that my pile of quarters for laundry will be depleted for the car wash.

What are lovebugs you say? They are a.k.a. Plecia nearctica Hardy. Hardy discovered them in Galveston in 1940. Here is what Texas A & M University says about them:

“Large numbers of adults emerge primarily in the spring (May) and fall (September). Males and females fly and couple in open areas along roadways, appearing to swarm in weak flight. Although females live for only a week or so, adult flight activity lasts for a period of about 4 weeks. Eggs are deposited in swampy areas and ditches. Larvae develop through several stages (instars), becoming about 3/8 inch long and slate-gray with dark heads. Thereafter, they pupate in the soil and emerge as adults in about 8 days.”

Be that as it may, these pests swarm ferociously in these parts (Southeast Texas). They are found in all the Gulf Coast states and even a little way up the Atlantic seaboard, last I heard. The only method of successfully killing them is with automobiles. They stick to car hoods and grills and headlights and windshields like flypaper. Old joke: What’s the last thing going through a lovebug’s mind? Its ass.

Of course, as high as gasoline has become (up 33 cents overnight at some area stations to $2.99), I doubt I’ll be doing a whole lot of driving.

Apparently some good news from NOLA.

(CNN) — Rock ‘n’ roll pioneer Fats Domino was among the thousands of New Orleans residents plucked from rising floodwaters, his daughter said Thursday.
Karen Domino White, who lives in New Jersey, identified her father in a picture taken Monday night by a New Orleans Times-Picayune photographer.

A lot more visitors have clicked on to eight feet deep than normal because of Hurricane Katrina. For those seven or eight people who regularly read this blog (oh, well, yes I guess I am flattering myself, sorry), I think they know why I am in serious type mode for so long. That is because the people of the Gulf Coast, especially the Mississippi Gulf Coast, mean a lot to me. Also, as chaotic and rambunctious and downright dangerous that New Orleans normally is, it still has a special place in my heart.

I don’t know if I am doing any good for those who are seeking any kind of news they can find about what’s going on post-Katrina. But I hope their visit isn’t a total loss.

I did talk to my friend who lives in New Orleans last night. She was at her mom’s near Houston. She and her husband are fine. Their apartment and all their belongings are in the deep. But those are just things.

Unfortunately, I found I had lost the cell number for my longtime friends Dave and Betti Martin who reside in the 2300 block of 30th Street in Gulfport, Mississippi. Hopefully, they are staying in their “tipi” up the country from there. I know they aren’t “Internet” people, but if by some strange chance anyone who knows them sees this and can shine a light on things, send me an e-mail at the address just above the Saline Soldier.

The Atlanta Falcons Warrick Dunn tries to take out Osama bin Laden during an April 2005 visit to Afghanistan

Just to reinforce that all is not bad in the world, even with professional athletes, we get word that Atlanta Falcons running back Warrick Dunn has challenged his fellow NFL players to each donate $5,000 to relief for Hurricane Katrina victims. He asked that each player from each NFL team do that, except for those from the New Orleans Saints.

“I’m challenging guys on every NFL team, except the Saints, to donate at least $5,000 to help people come back from this catastrophe,” Dunn told SI.com. “If we get players to do that, that would amount to $260,000 per team. I have heard from so many players both on my team and around the league who just want to do something. Well, this is the best thing that we can do and it’s something we should do.”

If, and it’s a big if, Baton Rouge native Dunn shames his fellow NFL players into ponying up, the players could raise some $8.2 million. I say big if, not really so much because of the players themselves but because of agents and everyone else who have their hooks into them. Dunn told the Sports Illustrated online site that he still does not know if his grandfather, who lived in New Orleans, “is dead, alive, at the Superdome, or on a bus somewhere.” I don’t know the details, so I will not judge.

On a side note, I worked as a newspaper reporter for almost 20 years and will likely be doing so occasionally on a freelance basis for some time to come. A reporter who is really into what it is they do craves the big story. It’s just part of their being. It’s not trying to sell more papers. It’s not trying to promote a political or personal agenda. Most could give a rat’s ass about such matters. Going after a big story is a thrill to behold. Plus you can get pretty caught up in what is black and white, you know, what is right? And it’s not a bad thing. With that said, I’ve seen a lot in my years and covered some pretty interesting stories. I can honestly say that I am glad I don’t have to witness what’s happening down in NOLA and the Mississippi Gulf Coast first hand right now. I’ve seen more bad stuff than many and probably not as much as some others. Like James Taylor said: “I’ve seen fire and I’ve seen rain.” But I’ve never seen the likes of what’s happening down there in the Katrina aftermath and neither do I want to. It’s going to be hard enough for me doing freelance work associated with this tragedy from the fringes.