The safest place in America

Why A stayed in New Orleans

A (name changed to protect his identity) and his wife stayed in New Orleans. Craig Morris spoke with him Monday evening New Orleans time about his first week in the evacuated town - and what his plans are. A had a telephone connection, but no power or water.

Why did you stay?

A: We stayed because we did not have a way to evacuate. We don't own a car. We only have bicycles. We own our own home. There were many different factors. We are on the high ground, about four feet above sea level. We weren't really worried about the flooding so much. And we have a lot of cats. That's the primary reason we stayed.

You were expecting a hurricane, but now you have a flood. Did you make the right decision?

A: We knew it was coming, but nobody thought it would be as bad as this, not even the officials. New Orleans flooded just as it always does down in the 9th Ward. But by the time the 17th Street Canal broke the levy 12 hours after the storm, everyone thought the worst was over.

What has life been like there in the first week without power and water? How are you feeding yourself?

Oh, we're not cooking. It's all canned and a lot of dried goods

A: We had stocked up on food, but we actually had a lot of stuff already on stock from previous storms that had just passed with a whimper. There was some looting, and we took part in that, and that was okayed by the authorities on the spot.

Why did you do that?

A: To get more supplies. We probably had two weeks worth, but we have more now - maybe enough for a month if not longer.

How do you cook it?

A: Oh, we're not cooking. It's all canned and a lot of dried goods.

So you are not thinking of leaving town even now?

A: No, this is my wife's hometown, and she is very adamant. She does not want to leave.

How safe is it?

A: Right now, I'd say it's very safe - probably the safest place in America. There are so many troops and so many police. But the early days - the response was feeble at best. Too slow and too little. You're gonna hear stories about the FBI and the DEA having people here on the day of the storm, that they had people out patrolling. That is a boldfaced lie. There was nobody here.

The New Orleans Police Department was operating in the dark after losing communications. A police sergeant lives across the street, so I have very good information. If they came across people, they had to act on their own. If they came across criminals, they had to act on their own. They were outmanned and outgunned. They did their best to keep this city from falling apart and destroying itself.

Who were the people causing the violence? People who couldn't get to their drugs anymore? Crazies?

A: I don't mean to sound racist, but the majority were young, black men with a pimp, gangster, thug mentality that is so prevalent among the disenfranchised young of America. For a lot of them, it was a lark at first. They stole limousines from Limousine Livery and drove around pretending to be bigshots and shooting at people from the limos. The police could at least combat them because there's not a lot of things more conspicuous than a limousine. Most of these hoodlums have been contained. But there has not been a lot of violence in my neighborhood anyway.

What are your neighbors saying? Are they already gone or planning to leave?

A: It's getting quiet. The National Guard came today and took and elderly lady who lived across the street because they were worried about her health.

Are they going to let you stay?

A: We haven't been able to discern that. The Director of Homeland Security says that the federal government is in control of New Orleans and that they have control. Under martial law, they can come to your house and drag you out. But every police officer and National Guardsman we have met has said, yes, we do have that authority, but we are not doing that yet.

The Mayor said at a press conference this morning that he wanted everybody to leave, but there are probably 10-20,000 people in this city who do not want to leave.

I feel as a New Orleanian that everybody saw this coming. The great legend is that the city will go under one day. But we have showed the world now that we have allowed a section of our society to live without hope. You were talking about the pimp attitude that a lot of these guys have. Is this embarrassing to you?

A: Not really. You'll find the same thing in any major American city. It's a cultural thing. I'm an almost 40-year-old white man. I can't say that I understand that attitude. They feel like you owe them something. I certainly don't owe them a damn thing.

There was no contingency plan in place

You don't feel that they have been disenfranchised as you said above. Couldn't the city have done something for them?

A: Every single one of them was offered education at a school here. No one was turned away. They made the conscious decision not to finish school and get a job. The fault lies with them.

We are talking about the gangsters. What about all of the poor people who got stuck at the Superdome because they could not get out of town?

A: That is not just an embarrassment; that is a travesty. There was no contingency plan in place. The mayor told everyone to go to the Superdome as a shelter of last resort. There was no plan for what to do with them. So we had rapes, suicides, and murders there. They then had to close the Superdome because it was full, and they were putting people on the Expressway, the overpass just to keep them out of the water. Those people were up there for days without food or water. No help. No Red Cross, no FEMA.

The President of Jefferson Parish, Aaron Broussard (here an interview with him on Meet the Press - a must-see), basically succeeded from the Union on Thursday night at 6 pm. He declared martial law for his parish so he could took take his parish back with Sheriff Lee. He has done and outstanding job. That guy is my new hero. He's the first local official to take charge and say, you guys aren't helping us, we'll help ourselves.

Mayor Nagin is very popular these days for cussing out Bush. Is he getting a free ride? Did he fail New Orleans, too?

A: That's the Million Dollar Question. This is a city in the continental United States. It took people four days to even get here. The Red Cross is still not here - because of the violence, they say. Don't they go to war zones? I'm really disgusted.

Your home is safe. What about your job?

A: The restaurant was under water earlier this week.

How are you going to get by? You may be out of work for months. Businesses will be closed.

A: We don't know. Our folks are asking us to come stay with them out of town, but my wife wants to stay.

Are people in New Orleans talking about giving the city up?

A: Not the people who stayed behind.

Q. Good luck, A. I wish I were there with you.

A: Thanks, man.