Litmus test

Last week on Bill Moyers' Journal, Princeton professor, Melissa Harris-Lacewell offered the following statement in regard to expectations for the nascent Obama Administration.

...I have a couple things I think are the most important. I think the recovery of New Orleans continues to be the central democratic litmus test of our time, that what does and does not happen in the context of recovery for the Gulf Coast tells us whether or not we value community, what we're going to do about environmental injustice, whether or not we're going to provide affordable, quality housing, and whether or not we truly believe that we are a racial democracy, one in which people of all races get to contribute.

Today, the test begins.

WASHINGTON - Newly appointed Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano today issued an "active directive" to "require specific department offices and components to work with state and local partners to review and assess current plans to respond to significant medical emergencies and address Hurricane Katrina's lingering impacts."

The statement says: "More than three years have passed since Hurricane Katrina devastated the Gulf Coast. Many individuals and communities have moved forward to recover and rebuild. However, there are still individuals, neighborhoods, and institutions, where the recovery process is stalled because of disagreements about damages and indecision about next steps. We now have the opportunity to take a fresh look at rebuilding the communities impacted by Katrina so they will be safer and more economically and socially resistant to future disasters."

I am resisting the temptation to call it "Day Zero" but if that makes you happy....

Update: One more thing from that article about Napolitano's request

An oral report is due Feb. 10, with a final report due Feb. 24.

Feb 24 is Fat Tuesday