A number of current and former public officials took it on the chin this past week. Much of the criticism was justified, but there was overkill in several of the high profile cases. We witnessed continuing political ineptness from coast to coast, as well as an insurance calamity that happened 1000 miles away from Louisiana, but still will have a direct bearing on what policyholders here pay.
First to take place was the trauma in New Orleans. A U.S. Army veteran, who had been radicalized by his views of Islam, zeroed in on New Year’s Eve crowds on Bourbon Street killing 15 revelers at 3:15 in the morning. Could this terrorist attack have been prevented? Many, including this writer, believe so. Few cities in America have a concentration of revelers in one area that draws millions of people in a month’s time, a Sugar Bowl, the Super Bowl, and Mardi Gras. If there was ever an area that should be protected with drones, extensive surveillance cameras monitoring 24 hours a day, and street barriers that were supposed to be installed and working in the French Quarter streets, New Orleans was the place. Yet the city and no detailed plan dealing with known threats. There were a few temporary barriers that easily could have been (and were) driven around. City officials from the Mayor on down really dropped the ball.
Next came the devastating California fires. When early warnings of possible major wildfires might spread to Los Angeles, Mayor Karen Bass took immediate action. She flew to Ghana to attend the inauguration of the new president there. She also had slashed $23 million from the Los Angeles Fire Department’s budget just a few months earlier.
