Should we save New Orleans?

Eric Zorn weighs in on the resurrection of New Orleans. Earlier, Jeff Harrell offered his opinion. It's amazing when two bloggers on different ends of the political spectrum agree on something as "big" as this issue. Of course, I agree with both. The only thing worth saving for the sake of fiscal sanity is the actual Port of New Orleans and possibly some of the refineries in the area. Start drafting plans for Orleans III or relocation programs.

The images that really strike me almost dumb are those of the mobs and looters. The Third World is the rule rather than the exception, and the line between civilization and chaos is a very thin one. It's unsettling to think that any large urban area is a natural disaster away from large-scale disorder. History makes this point again and again, but to see a city fall apart in real time is unique.