New Orleans as the canary

Schroeder: The winner is a Republican.. just look at his ads.

Haney: Is it just me or does this feel a lot like when Bush won?

Oyster:

Also, Nagin campaigns like Katrina was his 9/11. While he doesn't stress it relentlessly like Bush, he does remind people that he stayed in the city during the storm, did everything he could, and New Orleanians would be crazy to change leadership with another hurricane season approaching... etc. Now, don't run wild with this Nagin/Bush parallel, there are obviously many, many differences between the two. While both claimed to unite while using subtle tactics to divide, Nagin has (basically) divided the extremes against the middle whereas Bush divided left against right.

Harry Shearer:

Landrieu's debate stance was, as a New Orleans friend wrote in an essay to his email list, courteous, in line with New Orleans traditions. But if there was ever a time to put the courtesy aside, this was it. Landrieu's approach reminded me, sitting here in D.C. for the weekend, of nothing so much as Kerry's in 2004: assuming that voters will fill in the blanks, not daring to express the anger that animated his base lest he offend those at the margins.

Here's me about a month ago:

Landrieu has sold himself as a racial healer. In this runoff he will face the enormous challenge of asking working class voters to see through a racial smokescreen and vote against their real oppressors. Democrats have been failing at this for decades. I can't imagine that could possibly change now.

I think I see a pattern... and it's a very tired and predictable one and something I'm beyond sick of watching unfold. I'll get to that in a bit... but first indulge me this poorly constructed analogy.

New Orleans after Katrina, like the country after 9/11 experienced a moment of great terror... but was also faced with a great opportunity to change things for the better. I remember thinking after 9/11 that now that this terrible thing has happened and, for a moment, cut through all the bullshit and brought the country together... maybe we have an opportunity to reexamine our national priorities and really make some positive changes in the way we treat each other, the image we project to the rest of the world, the kinds of plans we make for the future. Now, granted, I was less than optimistic about any of this happening.. but I do remember seeing the opportunity. What actually happened was... the worst thing that can happen in such a situation. Thieves and murderers took advantage of the terror, played to and stirred up the latent fear and mistrust, and enriched themselves on the unholy fruits of the destruction they wrought.

In New Orleans, Katrina provided us with an opportunity to rethink the way we deal with race and poverty, with social services, with education, to rebuild a city having learned the lessons of what happens to urban centers that are left to rot. It showed all of us just how much we love it here and how broken we would be if we allowed this place to sink away into oblivion. But there are cynical thieves here too. There are those who will use our fear and mistrust against us in order to enrich themselves on the unholy fruits of this disaster.. leaving the disenfranchised to languish in the unfriendly hellscapes of Houston or Atlanta and other places far worse than damnation itself.

In 2004, having missed the golden opportunity nationally, we at least had a chance to stop the bleeding.. but succumbed once again to fear and ignorance and failed to free ourselves from uncaring, ineffective, and massively corrupt government. This year, having been left for dead in New Orleans, voters had a chance to start over.. but once again succumbed to fear and ignorance and failed to free themselves from uncaring ineffective and, yes, corrupt government.

The one common thread: Criminal lack of vision and leadership on the part of the Democratic party. Like Kerry in 2004, Mitch failed because he failed to lead.. to be about something positive rather than limply against something sinister. The Democratic party has been adrift for decades now... unwilling to risk offending the mushy middle constituency or their corporate donors. This stopped being forgivable ten years ago. If you can't stand and fight when the devil is at your door, when can you?

One more thing about Louisiana politics. It tends to be (strangely) ahead of the curve... predicting rather than following national trends. If this is any indication, it means that the Democrats are still not ready for the mid-term elections this year. Find real leaders, America, or prepare to be disappointed again.