LINES OF THE DAY

". . . But the past does not exist independently from the present. Indeed, the past is only past because there is a present, just as I can point to something over there only because I am here. But nothing is inherently over there or here. In that sense, the past has no content. The past -- or more accurately, pastness -- is a position. Thus, in no way can we identify the past as past." p. 15

". . . But we may want to keep in mind that deeds and words are not as distinguishable as often we presume. History does not belong only to its narrators, professional or amateur. While some of us debate what history is or was, others take it into their own hands." p. 153

Silencing the Past: Power and the Production of History (1995) by Michel-Rolph Trouillot

Monday, April 6, 2009

Shooting Tremé

From the Sunday NY Times Media and Advertising section, "A Disaster Still Raw, Years Later," by David Carr. Much of the column is constituted of an interview with David Simon. A pull, below, the content of which matters all more with the stupidities of the Jindal Gang doing its best to wreck whatever progress has been managed so far:

The emergency has passed, but the crisis remains, abetted by feckless municipal
leadership and a national attention span that is measured in days, if not
minutes. Some events require not just recollection, however, but endless
examination.
The lessons of Katrina and those of the financial collapse that
now commands our attention seem remarkably similar: warnings went unheeded,
hubris obscured the dimensions of a tragedy, and an effective response came too
late. To those who were here after the flood, the epic ruination of an American
city is still something that does not seem real. But it was.
And real is a
specialty of Mr. Simon. During a panel discussion at the Tennessee Williams/New
Orleans Literary Festival the weekend before, Mr. Simon called the decline of
American journalism “heartbreaking.” But you get the feeling that he’s still in
the same business, working with a different and much larger pencil. “The way
people here talk is like gold laying in the street,” he suggested, his voice
filled with wonder.
If the show is picked up this spring, Mr. Simon’s crew
could start shooting the rest of the first season as soon as this summer. But
nothing is going to happen until November — beginning shooting any time before
that would be to go into the teeth of the hurricane season, and the insurance
cost would be prohibitive. New Orleans is a place where vulnerability is a way
of life.

2 comments:

Frank Partisan said...

David Carr is very interesting. He is from Minneapolis, where he was the editor of our equivalent to The Village Voice.

The last line of the post is thunderous, New Orleans is a place where vulnerability is a way
of life.

Foxessa said...

"New Orleans is a place where vulnerability is a way of life."

Do I know it! I never felt so safe as when I went to bed the first night after moving back here from NO. I was off the street, protected by doors with locks, windows with gates, and neighbors who weren't insane.

The state of my general, 24/7 anxiety had crawled so gradually up to an explosive level that I had no idea how much I felt a target until I felt safe again.

This is not good for the blood pressure of New Orleans's residents.

Love, c.