With 40% of New Orleans still underwater (and that water being toxic), electricity still out to many portions of the city, running water available only to limited areas, sewage still unavailable in many neighborhoods, no 911 service anywhere in the city, the continued threat of infectious agents (the nature of which are as yet unknown), sludge covering recently drained areas which may or may not be dangerous (again, the nature of the sludge is as yet unknown, but it came from highly toxic water, so you do the math), no functioning hospital anywhere in the city, no stores open as yet for supplies or food, police and security forces stretched to the point that they are unable to cover the entire city (returning residents have already reported they were able to enter the city and their neighborhoods without seeing any security forces whatsoever), and a dire and precarious situation with the patched levees, Mayor C. Ray Nagin thought it was a great time to start inviting the city's residents back to, as he put it, "see what [rescue and recovery personnel] have seen and see what's left."  Obviously he's running a tourist attraction in the devastated city since there is absolutely no reason that people not involved in the recovery effort should be going back into the city at this time.

I sat amazed this morning as I watched the near 200,000 people trying to return to New Orleans at the mayor's behest.  I may despise Dubya, but I agree with the federal assessment on this — those people should not be allowed back into the city right now.  My first response was to ask what the fuck Nagin was thinking, then I realized it was obvious there was no thinking involved.

Then along comes tropical storm Rita.  Fast approaching the Florida Keys and strengthening rapidly, especially as the storm system moves over very warm water and into an area where the upper atmosphere supports accelerated and intense hurricane development, Rita is unlikely to hit Louisiana (although it's not impossible).  The storm could, however, send its outer rain bands over New Orleans and other southern parishes, thereby threatening more torrential rain and enforcing the likelihood that recently patched levees could be at extreme risk of failure.  And that is assuming, of course, that Rita doesn't pull a Katrina and turn abruptly to the north once its in the Gulf, putting it within direct striking distance of New Orleans and all of southern Louisiana.

Seeing the threat of Rita fast approaching, Nagin has now rescinded the invitation for select New Orleans residents to return and has made clear to those already in the city that they may be forced to evacuate no later than Wednesday, if not earlier, should Rita pose a risk to the city.

I honestly don't understand Nagin.  Caught unprepared by Katrina with absolutely no valid evacuation plan for his city (something he readily blames on others), why is this man still in charge down there?  He is putting people at extreme risk, he is making arbitrary and uneducated decisions, and he is playing politics with people's lives.  Unless a brain transplant is forthcoming, Nagin should be set aside in favor of more reasonable and intelligent people — people who would understand that there is still no adequate evacuation plan for the city, especially in its crippled state, and that allowing residents back into the city at this moment is asking for trouble.  Even a few days delay would be better as more services could be restored to support the population.

And there is still Rita to consider.  Even if the storm misses New Orleans entirely, any rainfall caused by the hurricane (assuming it is a hurricane when and if it passes Louisiana) could easily flood the city again by destroying the recently patched levees that are not yet completely fixed and therefore unable to withstand any significant influx of water.

Honestly, what the hell is that man thinking?