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Vignettes: Bush to be on talk show on WWL today

President Bush will be a guest on WWL talk radio today.

The station, 870 AM, was made world famous last year during Hurricane Katrina when New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin cursed and yelled for help from the government, saying it was not here. The station is also the official emergency information station for the city.

Talk show host Garland Robinette told New Orleans Councilman Arnie Fielkow on Monday that the White House had arranged the interview, which will be taped for later airing.

Blanco, Nagin meet but exit before hoax

Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Blanco and New Orleans Mayor C. Ray Nagin crossed paths briefly Monday morning when both arrived to speak at a housing recovery and reconstruction conference at Pontchartrain Convention Center in Kenner. They shook hands cordially, but not warmly.

Blanco arrived early to tour displays of new building materials, such as steel roofs and collapsible modular housing. Nagin sat outside in his vehicle talking on the phone.

The alternative building techniques are important, Blanco said, because "there are hurricanes lurking out there."

"We are entering the greatest construction booms the world has ever seen," Blanco said.

Checks went out last week to the first 42 homeowners under Blanco's "The Road Home" program of grants to homeowners and to develop low-income housing. "We expect this number to grow into the thousands very shortly, as those 42 went though our pilot program."

Contractors have been meeting with homeowners at housing centers that began opening in early August.

Blanco promptly left following her speech and Nagin began talking about the city's recovery. "I'm very direct, and I like telling it like it is," he said. "That disturbs some people."

Nagin answered critics who have said he has spent too much time traveling to Chicago, Houston, Atlanta and other cities. "In reality, I am going out to talk to our residents."

After Blanco and Nagin left the conference, two people posing as U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development officials got on the podium to announce that all public housing in New Orleans would be remodeled and reopened. That represents a reversal of policy, which is to develop new mixed-income housing throughout the city.

A man posing as a HUD deputy special assistant named Rene Oswin spoke for 15 minutes. The two were members of The Yes Men, a group of environmental and corporate ethics activists.

Post-traumatic stress from the top down

New Orleanians are reliving some bad memories from one year ago. Even the mayor.

Mayor Ray Nagin said Monday that he spent the weekend watching some of the Katrina anniversary shows on the Discovery Channel. "That brought back a lot of feelings and a lot of what we felt in those dark days."

-- From Staff Reports



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