Let’s see how various fringe candidates in Louisiana are intending to ride the Tea Party wave to electoral success. 1. Remember David Duke? Well, he’s planning a comeback, and he thinks it might be a promising time to begin a 2012 Presidential run. In preparation, he recently posted a video “Message to the Tea Party” […]
Author Archives: Mark Moseley
Mark Moseley blogs at Your Right Hand Thief. Until mid 2014, Mark Moseley was The Lens' opinion writer, engagement specialist and coordinator for the Charter Schools Reporting Corps. After Katrina and the Federal Flood he helped create the Rising Tide conference, which grew into an annual social media event dedicated to the future of New Orleans.
Posted inGovernment & Politics, Opinion
Who dat say they’d pay mo’ for a cool driver’s license?
Legislative watchdog C.B Forgotston expects Gov. Bobby Jindal to veto a bill that repeals the fee increase on driver’s licenses, which the Jindal administration ordered earlier this year. Forgotston correctly asserts that this fee is tantamount to a tax, and he urges everyone to support the repeal and oppose a veto. As a stalwart opponent […]
Posted inGovernment & Politics, Opinion
Barton’s not the only one using “shakedown” language
U.S. Rep. Joe Barton’s fellow Republicans quickly forced him to apologize for his “shakedown” remark and to retract his apology to BP. A little more about Barton, a Texan, from the NY Daily News: Rep. Joe Barton, a Republican who once angered ailing 9/11 responders by comparing them to the cartoon character Wimpy, called Tony […]
Posted inGovernment & Politics, Opinion
What’s in a blowout’s name?
The May 1980 issue of Popular Mechanics discusses what at that time was the world’s worst oil spill – the Ixtoc I blowout, which gushed an estimated 140 million gallons into the Gulf of Mexico for 10 months. Towards the end of the article we learn that “Ixtoc”, is the Mayan term for “blowout,” or […]
Posted inGovernment & Politics, Opinion
Another man-made disaster, another presidential speech
As President Obama prepares to make a prime-time address about the oil gusher, South Louisiana finds itself in a familiar position: reeling from man-made disaster, concerned about the future, and hopeful their president will make a bold commitment to the region in front of a national TV audience. Based on past experience, the smart money […]
Posted inGovernment & Politics, Opinion
Come to the Anadarko side: We might have liability limits
BP’s U.S. stock price plunged over 16 percent Wednesday, before partially recovering. CNBC commentator Jim Cramer was “mesmerized” by the descent, as BP’s total lost market capitalization, since the Deepwater Horizon explosion April 20, surged to over $90 billion. Many analysts linked the drop to a Reuters report quoting a BP source saying that “at […]
Posted inGovernment & Politics, Opinion
…and the rig you rode in on
The late, great Ashley Morris struck a chord with displaced Louisianans when he wrote his famous FYYFF post three months after Katrina and the federal flood disaster. It was a perfectly timed rant that resonated among bloggers focused on New Orleans, and passionately expressed their common frustrations. FYYFF became a touchstone within the local blogging […]
Posted inEnvironment, Opinion
Oil companies tax our coast; it’s time we tax them back
Bienvenue en Louisiane! We’re still calling ourselves the Pelican State, but who knows what the future holds? Louisianans identify with pelicans because they are unique, non-extinct birds that seem to coast through life and eat lots of fresh seafood. We admire them because when times get tough, pelicans will prick their breasts and feed their […]
Posted inGovernment & Politics, Opinion
Without bolder action on spill, greatness to slip from America
For the second time in five years, an incredulous nation watches the New Orleans region deal with an out-of-control, man-made disaster. And, once again, an incredulous nation watches the government mount an ineffective response. Five years ago, Americans watched water gush through breached floodwalls and drown 80 percent of New Orleans. Helicopters dropped huge sandbags […]
Posted inGovernment & Politics, Opinion
Blame it on the porn
As we remain cautiously optimistic about the progress of the top kill operation to stop the Macondo oil gusher, I want to focus on porn. The Times-Picayune’s Mark Schleifstein reports that An investigation of Minerals Management Service employees in Lake Charles found a widespread culture of accepting gifts from oil companies, including hunting and fishing […]