Another Day

Well, what do you know! It was one year and one day ago that I began this blog. I have to say, I wasn't sure that my posting would last this long. As I mentioned back when I started this thing, I've never been very good about keeping diaries, but this has been fun so far, so I'll try to keep it going.

I haven't been posting much lately, though, because the new semester has kept me busy. I also have started another blog for the class I teach, and I do most of my blog posting there. I still want to keep this blog as my "personal" blog, though.

In other news, I've been tuning in to the trio of new "Lost"-inspired TV shows: "Threshold," "Surface," and "Invasion." I call them "Lost"-inspired because they are trying to copycat "Lost's" success last year (and its Emmy success this year. But since all three shows have to do with alien invasions of planet Earth--unlike "Lost"--I'm not sure if the comparisons are justified. All three shows range from mediocre to horrible ("Surface") and I wouldn't be at all surprised to see all three shows cancelled by May. "Invasion" probably as the best chance of success, though, simply because it is airing immediately after "Lost", and should be able to retain at least part of the former show's huge audience. I've already given up on "Surface" after its premiere episode, but I'm still willing to give the other two shows a try, for now.

The Bleeding Heart Show

The death of New Orleans has been must-see TV for me. Not since 9/11 have I been so interested in viewing TV footage and reading news updates online about a particular event.

There is talk of rebuilding the city, but if and when that happens, the city will clearly never be the same again. This is mostly because of the mass evacuations. It would be one thing if people would be allowed to return to the city--and their old jobs and lives--in just a week or two. But simply fixing the levies and draining the flood water will likely take weeks and months. Even then, I'd imagine that a lot of buildings and homes will have to be destroyed. The refugees will need to find work elsewhere, and many of them might decide that it isn't worth it to try to return, and end up putting down roots elsewhere. I suspect that only a fraction of those who fled the city before the hurricane and are being bussed out now will ever return.

Al-Qaeda must be loving this. If they ever manage to detonate a nuclear device in an American city, as is their goal, the pictures from New Orleans should offer them a sneak preview of the damage and chaos they might inflict. Clearly, the US govt., both federal and state, is totally incapable of responding to an enormous catastrophe such as the destruction of a city. Hell, even a "dirty bomb," which would not cause much physical damage but would spark chaos and panic, would likely be too much for the govt. to handle.