FormCritic wrote:
Reading the article, Mike, I notice a woman angry, "that industrial plants operated in the middle of a neighborhood."

About 10 years ago, many states adopted a "gun range protection act."  Pretty much, it said that if you built a house next to a gun range, your right to complain about noise or safety was limited.  Other provisions limited liability, stating that anyone entering a gun range was forfeiting certain expectations of safety.  All in all, it was a very wise piece of legislation.

I wonder which one was there first....the factories or the neighborhood.  

I'm pretty sure it was the factories...so a lot of the families are complicit...but realistically, how many people, even now, REALLY research they area they live in? This was in the pre-Watergate, Vietnam War era when people stlll trusted their government. Plus, from what I can remember using my hazy memories of the lead smelter case, the residents were "assured" by the government and the plant the air and area was safe.  Unfortunately blind trust in government will get you the shaft almost everytime. It wasn't until the aftermath of the Vietnam war and Watergate in the 70s that government agencies started coming under scrutiny, I'm sure a lot of those families (who are lower income) moved in before that time period.

One of the most sickening aspects of that story, again from my memory, was that the lead smelters "donated" land to the local elementary schools for playgrounds...which in the 80s turned out to have something like 1000 times the levels of lead humans should be around.  They had to cart the stuff out dumptruck by dumptruck and burn it...

I'm torn about the New Orleans disaster.  One one hand, my mom and all her family live in Louisiana, and if you are from there you know that every once in awhile, you are going to get a flood.  It comes with the territory (you are below sea level in most places). You either move away, move to higher ground, or prepare to rebuild every 10 years or so.  On the other hand, I would be furious to know that my LOCAL government (not even the Feds) put off levee improvement and replacement to issue more grants for casinos and downtown hotels, and the Superdome......sheesh.  I find it ironic and amusing now that many former New Orleans residents won't move back, and state and local officials wonder why......???????  "Please move back into your neighborhood that looks like WWIII took place there, and could flood again at anytime, and is still infested with drugs and gangs, because we need more residents to beef up the tax rolls"....

Mike B.

You don't just want a regular hummer, oh no.. that's not inconsiderate enough! you want a STRETCH HUMMER! (I honestly can't believe these exist.. I mean who the hell wants to drive about in a ridiculously long and wide truck that gets like 3 foot to the gallon?)
Then paint it with lead based paint... mmm lead based paint.

And erm.. why wouldn't you check out the area you were moving into? Heck, we went for a walk about our neighbourhood before buying our house. Found out we had a park, which was never mentioned and of course several closed down pubs including one that had been burned out. yeek. Still, it's a nice enough area. Just wish we could have met the neighbours first. I honestly want to poison one neighbours cats, and maybe her too that stupid arrogant presumtous *mutter mutter mutter*

ahem.. anyway.