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The Rising Tide Conference is an annual gathering for all who wish to learn more and do more to assist New Orleans' recovery. Leveraging the power of bloggers and new media, the conference is a launch pad for organization and action. Our day-long program of speakers and presentations is tailored to inform, entertain, enrage and inspire.
8.29.2010
8.28.2010
Rising Tide V: Mac McClelland's Keynote Speech (Audio)
Update by Leigh C., 8/30/2010: Varg's list of references accompanying Mac's speech at RT is a must-read. Go. Now.
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Down in the Treme
Maitri introduces the panelists.
The show Treme was in the works before the storm hit. How different is it since the storm has come and gone?
Overmyer: Can't imagine the show without it. David Simon and Overmyer were planning a show that had nothing to do with cops.
Who's born in New Orleans? (Lolis and Davis raise their hands) For those of you who aren't, what attracted you to New Orleans?
Virgo: Immersed in the music as a young girl growing up in coastal Texas.
Walker: turned on by the Wild Tchoupitoulas music.
Overmyer: Also brought in by the music. played "Marie Laveau" over and over and over again.
Davis - You can't picture the lives of NOLA musicians without pot smoking and cursing, so its being on HBO works.
Lolis: One's experience of Carnival depends on who you're with. The show presented that very well.
Which New Orleans shows have you really hated?
Lolis: Orleans, with Larry Hagman
What's good? Frank's Place
Davis: Panic in the Streets was good.
Walker: Frank's Place, along with the Wild Tchoupitoulas, brought him into the New Orleans orbit. As for the bad ones, I wrote 1001 columns about K-Ville. Its sins are ultimately forgivable.
to Lolis and Davis: How does the process work, writing for Treme?
Lolis: we add the experience of having lived the facts that the creators and other writers have in their heads. How do you get the scene to reflect what really happened?
Eric: Part-time residency in NOLA puts him somewhere in-between the facts and the experiences. "In a way, it's a historical drama."
Walker: how do you get all the information together for your blog on Treme?
He came up with the idea to try to explain all the cultural references in the show.
Virgotex: Got That New Package! to Back of Town: Blogging Treme - what are the commonalities?
The political sensibilities were very similar. Even though The Wirehad nothing to do with Katrina, the same sorts of major issues were being dealt with
Fauborg Treme - its origins and how much has it informed Treme?
Started out as a poetry project, then Dawn Logsdon & Lolis got involved in the history. He brings his knowledge of that history to the show.
Treme - will the characters be developing?
Eric: 2nd season - Fall 2006 to spring 2007.
The Wire was a blessing and a curse - good success-wise, as it enabled them to make Treme. But the tone wasn't what most audiences all over the country were expecting.
Virgotex: Loves the "meditative" pace of the show. Touts the creativity of the work and the passage of time it deals with. Most removed from the events in the show and tends to appreciate the craft of the show more.
Rising Tide NolaKatrina NOLA New Orleans Hurricane Katrina Think New Orleans Louisiana FEMA levees flooding Corps of Engineers We Are Not OK wetlands news rebirth Debrisville Federal Flood 8-29
The show Treme was in the works before the storm hit. How different is it since the storm has come and gone?
Overmyer: Can't imagine the show without it. David Simon and Overmyer were planning a show that had nothing to do with cops.
Who's born in New Orleans? (Lolis and Davis raise their hands) For those of you who aren't, what attracted you to New Orleans?
Virgo: Immersed in the music as a young girl growing up in coastal Texas.
Walker: turned on by the Wild Tchoupitoulas music.
Overmyer: Also brought in by the music. played "Marie Laveau" over and over and over again.
Davis - You can't picture the lives of NOLA musicians without pot smoking and cursing, so its being on HBO works.
Lolis: One's experience of Carnival depends on who you're with. The show presented that very well.
Which New Orleans shows have you really hated?
Lolis: Orleans, with Larry Hagman
What's good? Frank's Place
Davis: Panic in the Streets was good.
Walker: Frank's Place, along with the Wild Tchoupitoulas, brought him into the New Orleans orbit. As for the bad ones, I wrote 1001 columns about K-Ville. Its sins are ultimately forgivable.
to Lolis and Davis: How does the process work, writing for Treme?
Lolis: we add the experience of having lived the facts that the creators and other writers have in their heads. How do you get the scene to reflect what really happened?
Eric: Part-time residency in NOLA puts him somewhere in-between the facts and the experiences. "In a way, it's a historical drama."
Walker: how do you get all the information together for your blog on Treme?
He came up with the idea to try to explain all the cultural references in the show.
Virgotex: Got That New Package! to Back of Town: Blogging Treme - what are the commonalities?
The political sensibilities were very similar. Even though The Wirehad nothing to do with Katrina, the same sorts of major issues were being dealt with
Fauborg Treme - its origins and how much has it informed Treme?
Started out as a poetry project, then Dawn Logsdon & Lolis got involved in the history. He brings his knowledge of that history to the show.
Treme - will the characters be developing?
Eric: 2nd season - Fall 2006 to spring 2007.
The Wire was a blessing and a curse - good success-wise, as it enabled them to make Treme. But the tone wasn't what most audiences all over the country were expecting.
Virgotex: Loves the "meditative" pace of the show. Touts the creativity of the work and the passage of time it deals with. Most removed from the events in the show and tends to appreciate the craft of the show more.
Rising Tide NolaKatrina NOLA New Orleans Hurricane Katrina Think New Orleans Louisiana FEMA levees flooding Corps of Engineers We Are Not OK wetlands news rebirth Debrisville Federal Flood 8-29
Politics! Politics!
Panelists introduced...all present except for Jeff Crouere. He's missing out.
Jason Berry of the American Zombie discusses his current postings on Cedric Richmond's slush funds shenanigans.
Clancy Dubos talking about the history of the slush funds. Related to the hotel-motel tax that more than covered the cost of the Superdome in the '70's - extra money had to go somewhere, so the legislature set up a system to allow individual legislators to get that extra money. Why didn't the LSED call bullshit? Because the lege set up the system and it has the potential to be abused.
Stephanie Grace goes further into the slush funds. MSM question, according to Grace: Is this a breakage of the rules or is it well within the (badly drawn up) rules?
Jacques Morial - There are always two sides to every story.
Jeff Crouere arrives in the middle of Morial's discussion.
Clancy: Smoking gun on the Richmond slush funds is the Rolex - where's the receipt for it? The rest is simply bad policy. Berrry: correction - the diamond bezel is one smoking gun, and the other is some $60,000 for renovations, and two 501(c)3s operating out of the same building, which is clearly against the rules.
Jeff Crouere: quick introduction. Congratulates Jason on his work. Hopes that the story will get more traction than it has in the MSM.
Primary elections takes -
Crouere: Joseph Cao will win reelection. He might face a damaged Cedric Richmond in the general election.
Clancy: Thinks Cao also has a good chance due to his uniqueness among Republicans - "one of the more sincere politicians on the political landscape today." But he's in a district built to elect black candidates. Once there is an increased black turnout, how will Cao fare?
Berry: A Democratic runoff would be good. Would have liked to see Karen Carter-Peterson run. Berry is a registered Democrat, and the GOP is using his information, which wasn't necessarily his intention - but he thinks Cao will pull it out.
Morial: Cao will pay for voting against health care. Do you want the congressman to take his cue from the voters or from the GOP and the archbishop?
Grace: Cao was in favor of many of the more controversial parts of the health care bill, and stood up for it initially. He voted against it for personal reasons and feels the need to explain that, and people may understand, but they don't care. Embraces earmarks in a good way. People like him, but they don't necessarily want to vote for him. Could be a heavily partisan election in terms of changing balance of power in House.
Morial: The rumors concerning abortion in health care are bullshit.
Crouere: Stood up to BP, which could play well in the election. Can conserve his energies for the general election because no one challenged him from the GOP.
Melancon: Does he have a chance?
Grace: Vitter - chosen to run against Obama, not Melancon directly.
Morial: Vitter wouldn't have a chance if the Zombie were on the story. Vitter aide who held his girlfriend hostage was supported by Vitter, and the man himself is a whoremonger and a criminal.
Clancy on the trial that never happened - Vitter could have been charged under RICO as part of the ongoing criminal investigation against the D.C. madam. The hanging of the D.C. madam, statistically speaking, is suspicious.
Berry: History of car bombings against people who oppose Vitter. He'll win the election, however, because melancon is running a shitty campaign.
Clancy: People who have voted for Vitter don't care about the facts behind his philanderings and his criminal acts. We live in a Republican state and the timing is good for Vitter.
Crouere: Melancon hasn't a prayer. Vitter'll have a funding advantage over Melancon, and he'll "tie Obama around Melancon's neck", as well as Nancy Pelosi. Got the advantage of running against people who are not strong politically.
Clancy: Never underestimate the power of luck in Vitter's campaigns.
Grace: The GOP here has rallied around Vitter as well.
Rising Tide NolaKatrina NOLA New Orleans Hurricane Katrina Think New Orleans Louisiana FEMA levees flooding Corps of Engineers We Are Not OK wetlands news rebirth Debrisville Federal Flood 8-29
Jason Berry of the American Zombie discusses his current postings on Cedric Richmond's slush funds shenanigans.
Clancy Dubos talking about the history of the slush funds. Related to the hotel-motel tax that more than covered the cost of the Superdome in the '70's - extra money had to go somewhere, so the legislature set up a system to allow individual legislators to get that extra money. Why didn't the LSED call bullshit? Because the lege set up the system and it has the potential to be abused.
Stephanie Grace goes further into the slush funds. MSM question, according to Grace: Is this a breakage of the rules or is it well within the (badly drawn up) rules?
Jacques Morial - There are always two sides to every story.
Jeff Crouere arrives in the middle of Morial's discussion.
Clancy: Smoking gun on the Richmond slush funds is the Rolex - where's the receipt for it? The rest is simply bad policy. Berrry: correction - the diamond bezel is one smoking gun, and the other is some $60,000 for renovations, and two 501(c)3s operating out of the same building, which is clearly against the rules.
Jeff Crouere: quick introduction. Congratulates Jason on his work. Hopes that the story will get more traction than it has in the MSM.
Primary elections takes -
Crouere: Joseph Cao will win reelection. He might face a damaged Cedric Richmond in the general election.
Clancy: Thinks Cao also has a good chance due to his uniqueness among Republicans - "one of the more sincere politicians on the political landscape today." But he's in a district built to elect black candidates. Once there is an increased black turnout, how will Cao fare?
Berry: A Democratic runoff would be good. Would have liked to see Karen Carter-Peterson run. Berry is a registered Democrat, and the GOP is using his information, which wasn't necessarily his intention - but he thinks Cao will pull it out.
Morial: Cao will pay for voting against health care. Do you want the congressman to take his cue from the voters or from the GOP and the archbishop?
Grace: Cao was in favor of many of the more controversial parts of the health care bill, and stood up for it initially. He voted against it for personal reasons and feels the need to explain that, and people may understand, but they don't care. Embraces earmarks in a good way. People like him, but they don't necessarily want to vote for him. Could be a heavily partisan election in terms of changing balance of power in House.
Morial: The rumors concerning abortion in health care are bullshit.
Crouere: Stood up to BP, which could play well in the election. Can conserve his energies for the general election because no one challenged him from the GOP.
Melancon: Does he have a chance?
Grace: Vitter - chosen to run against Obama, not Melancon directly.
Morial: Vitter wouldn't have a chance if the Zombie were on the story. Vitter aide who held his girlfriend hostage was supported by Vitter, and the man himself is a whoremonger and a criminal.
Clancy on the trial that never happened - Vitter could have been charged under RICO as part of the ongoing criminal investigation against the D.C. madam. The hanging of the D.C. madam, statistically speaking, is suspicious.
Berry: History of car bombings against people who oppose Vitter. He'll win the election, however, because melancon is running a shitty campaign.
Clancy: People who have voted for Vitter don't care about the facts behind his philanderings and his criminal acts. We live in a Republican state and the timing is good for Vitter.
Crouere: Melancon hasn't a prayer. Vitter'll have a funding advantage over Melancon, and he'll "tie Obama around Melancon's neck", as well as Nancy Pelosi. Got the advantage of running against people who are not strong politically.
Clancy: Never underestimate the power of luck in Vitter's campaigns.
Grace: The GOP here has rallied around Vitter as well.
Rising Tide NolaKatrina NOLA New Orleans Hurricane Katrina Think New Orleans Louisiana FEMA levees flooding Corps of Engineers We Are Not OK wetlands news rebirth Debrisville Federal Flood 8-29
Keynote Speaker
Jeffrey Bostick: introducing Mac McClelland.
References to this article.
Mac discusses instances of irresponsible reporting concerning the BP oil disaster, and of having to "look for the traces of Katrina's destruction".
The former research editor of Mother Jones was taken on a tour of New Orleans and was surprised at how badly most of the flooded areas still worked.
Discussion of the dismantling of public education on all levels is also being swept under the rug.
All of these things run through the reporting of the BP oil disaster.
Mac was told by Mother Jones to get on Twitter, which she initially resisted. But now Twitter has been the source of so many of her news tips and of where she stayed while in Grand Isle, enabled her to get her stories.
She was here to get an article about the New Orleans public defenders' office, but she looked at a map when the oil spill first happened and followed a hunch.
Discussion of how ineffective the government has been during the crisis, and of how little the Coast Guard was of help. There was no oversight of the numbers; they all came from BP.
It's easier to smuggle Burmese refugees over the border than it is to get a boat off Grand Isle, LA, to investigate the oil spill. And what is appalling is how complicit the mainstream media has been in the information blackout on the oil spill.
Recent pictures of the spill are here. Where's the oil? It's still out there on the beaches and in the water.
Bloggers are the best bulwark against such ignorance. She could not have written her stories without the aid of locals, of tweeters and local blogs.
Rising Tide NolaKatrina NOLA New Orleans Hurricane Katrina Think New Orleans Louisiana FEMA levees flooding Corps of Engineers We Are Not OK wetlands news rebirth Debrisville Federal Flood 8-29
References to this article.
Mac discusses instances of irresponsible reporting concerning the BP oil disaster, and of having to "look for the traces of Katrina's destruction".
The former research editor of Mother Jones was taken on a tour of New Orleans and was surprised at how badly most of the flooded areas still worked.
Discussion of the dismantling of public education on all levels is also being swept under the rug.
All of these things run through the reporting of the BP oil disaster.
Mac was told by Mother Jones to get on Twitter, which she initially resisted. But now Twitter has been the source of so many of her news tips and of where she stayed while in Grand Isle, enabled her to get her stories.
She was here to get an article about the New Orleans public defenders' office, but she looked at a map when the oil spill first happened and followed a hunch.
Discussion of how ineffective the government has been during the crisis, and of how little the Coast Guard was of help. There was no oversight of the numbers; they all came from BP.
It's easier to smuggle Burmese refugees over the border than it is to get a boat off Grand Isle, LA, to investigate the oil spill. And what is appalling is how complicit the mainstream media has been in the information blackout on the oil spill.
Recent pictures of the spill are here. Where's the oil? It's still out there on the beaches and in the water.
Bloggers are the best bulwark against such ignorance. She could not have written her stories without the aid of locals, of tweeters and local blogs.
Rising Tide NolaKatrina NOLA New Orleans Hurricane Katrina Think New Orleans Louisiana FEMA levees flooding Corps of Engineers We Are Not OK wetlands news rebirth Debrisville Federal Flood 8-29
Rising Tide V: The Twitter Stream
Here is a streaming view of all the Tweets using the #RT5 hashtag for the convenience of those following at home or in the audience. Enjoy!
Rising Tide Nola Katrina NOLA New Orleans Hurricane Katrina Think New Orleans Louisiana FEMA levees flooding Corps of Engineers We Are Not OK wetlands news rebirth Debrisville Federal Flood 8-29
Rising Tide Nola Katrina NOLA New Orleans Hurricane Katrina Think New Orleans Louisiana FEMA levees flooding Corps of Engineers We Are Not OK wetlands news rebirth Debrisville Federal Flood 8-29
Conference Beginnings
Loki kicks it off with a Bloggers' Prayer after opening remarks by Kim Marshall and Alli deJong.
If you are using Twitter, use the #RT5 hashtag to mark your tweets as being from the Rising Tide Conference.
Public Safety panelists are introducing themselves.
Allen James: founded Safe Streets in 2006 to bring about public funding for indigent defense. Safe Streets tries to organize the community and inform them about public policies and the criminal justice system.
Jon Wool: discusses the Vera Institute
Ronal Serpas: discusses his background, what brought him into law enforcement, the challenges
of directing Gen X and Gen Y officers, and he emphasizes that good policing involves the entire community.
Susan Hutson: "My job is to be totally up in Ron's business." She is New Orleans' second police monitor. There's an "unprecedented wave of cooperation now" between the NOPD and the independent police monitor's office.
Scharf to panelists: What is your plan to deal with police misconduct?
Hutson: Hopes that Danziger was an anomaly, but if it does happen again, they want to be prepared for it.
Serpas: Concerning Danziger - The behavior of the Danziger officers was incomprehensible and an insult to the community - the other insult has been to those officers who did serve during Katrina and served well. Speaks of Hosli and Burrell's bravery and rescues. Less than 1 1/2 % of calls have anything to do with murder, robbery, rape, assault, burglary. Nearly ten times that number is spent on false alarms. And yet, the murder rate here is high. We must redirect how we do the policing.
Wool: Discusses intervention of the Department of Justice. Development of a pretrail incarceration system must be built. A "continuum of rational, just services" is key to maintaining public safety.
Both Wool and James comment on feeling as though Serpas has just taken a lot from their notes on law enforcement.
James: "We shouldn't expect radical change" despite the presence of the DOJ and the improvements of the police force. Each of the elements of the criminal justice system affects the other.
Serpas: Our disagreements (between the panelists) won't be major. Difference between 1994 and today: there were individual officers doing individual things then - today, there is a system-wide failure. "Our system has completely come off the tracks."
Scharf: How do you change a police culture?
Hutson: What will happen here will echo what happened in L.A.: there will be greater scrutiny on how the officers report crimes.
Serpas on police misconduct:
"You lie, you die" - People will be questioned in public hearings
A false report will result in termination.
Aiding in a false report will result in dire consequences.
If you fail to cooperate in an internal investigation, there will be consequences.
Look at how hiring practices can be changed to aid police culture.
Also look at how you promote officers.
Rising Tide NolaKatrina NOLA New Orleans Hurricane Katrina Think New Orleans Louisiana FEMA levees flooding Corps of Engineers We Are Not OK wetlands news rebirth Debrisville Federal Flood 8-29
If you are using Twitter, use the #RT5 hashtag to mark your tweets as being from the Rising Tide Conference.
Public Safety panelists are introducing themselves.
Allen James: founded Safe Streets in 2006 to bring about public funding for indigent defense. Safe Streets tries to organize the community and inform them about public policies and the criminal justice system.
Jon Wool: discusses the Vera Institute
Ronal Serpas: discusses his background, what brought him into law enforcement, the challenges
of directing Gen X and Gen Y officers, and he emphasizes that good policing involves the entire community.
Susan Hutson: "My job is to be totally up in Ron's business." She is New Orleans' second police monitor. There's an "unprecedented wave of cooperation now" between the NOPD and the independent police monitor's office.
Scharf to panelists: What is your plan to deal with police misconduct?
Hutson: Hopes that Danziger was an anomaly, but if it does happen again, they want to be prepared for it.
Serpas: Concerning Danziger - The behavior of the Danziger officers was incomprehensible and an insult to the community - the other insult has been to those officers who did serve during Katrina and served well. Speaks of Hosli and Burrell's bravery and rescues. Less than 1 1/2 % of calls have anything to do with murder, robbery, rape, assault, burglary. Nearly ten times that number is spent on false alarms. And yet, the murder rate here is high. We must redirect how we do the policing.
Wool: Discusses intervention of the Department of Justice. Development of a pretrail incarceration system must be built. A "continuum of rational, just services" is key to maintaining public safety.
Both Wool and James comment on feeling as though Serpas has just taken a lot from their notes on law enforcement.
James: "We shouldn't expect radical change" despite the presence of the DOJ and the improvements of the police force. Each of the elements of the criminal justice system affects the other.
Serpas: Our disagreements (between the panelists) won't be major. Difference between 1994 and today: there were individual officers doing individual things then - today, there is a system-wide failure. "Our system has completely come off the tracks."
Scharf: How do you change a police culture?
Hutson: What will happen here will echo what happened in L.A.: there will be greater scrutiny on how the officers report crimes.
Serpas on police misconduct:
"You lie, you die" - People will be questioned in public hearings
A false report will result in termination.
Aiding in a false report will result in dire consequences.
If you fail to cooperate in an internal investigation, there will be consequences.
Look at how hiring practices can be changed to aid police culture.
Also look at how you promote officers.
Rising Tide NolaKatrina NOLA New Orleans Hurricane Katrina Think New Orleans Louisiana FEMA levees flooding Corps of Engineers We Are Not OK wetlands news rebirth Debrisville Federal Flood 8-29
8.26.2010
Last Minute Updates
Rather than write new posts, we'll update this as needed, so check back for new information.
Don't forget to join us Friday at 7:30 at The Howlin' Wolf. There will be a cash bar and a menu from which to order if you come hungry or thirsty. We won't be offering conference check-in Friday night, so you won't be picking up name badges or swag, but we'll be happy to assist you in registering for Saturday's conference at Friday's meet and greet.
The price for Rising Tide, which includes morning breakfast beverages and pastries as well as lunch, is $25 but will be $30 Saturday morning at the door, space available.
Check out the complete program here. Register now here.
We'll see y'all there.
Rising Tide NolaKatrina NOLA New Orleans Hurricane Katrina Think New Orleans Louisiana FEMA levees flooding Corps of Engineers We Are Not OK wetlands news rebirth Debrisville Federal Flood 8-29
Don't forget to join us Friday at 7:30 at The Howlin' Wolf. There will be a cash bar and a menu from which to order if you come hungry or thirsty. We won't be offering conference check-in Friday night, so you won't be picking up name badges or swag, but we'll be happy to assist you in registering for Saturday's conference at Friday's meet and greet.
The price for Rising Tide, which includes morning breakfast beverages and pastries as well as lunch, is $25 but will be $30 Saturday morning at the door, space available.
Check out the complete program here. Register now here.
We'll see y'all there.
Rising Tide NolaKatrina NOLA New Orleans Hurricane Katrina Think New Orleans Louisiana FEMA levees flooding Corps of Engineers We Are Not OK wetlands news rebirth Debrisville Federal Flood 8-29
8.24.2010
RT panelists are everywhere...
Rising Tide 5 Aug. 28 at the Howlin' Wolf ...
Keynote speaker Mac Mclleland ...
"The goal is not to let it blow up": A tour of BP's relief rig
Treme panelist Eric Overmyer...
Treme News: Eric Overmyer Looks Back on Season One
Treme panelist Dave Walker ...
'Witness: Katrina' tells storm's story through the lenses of home-video cameras
Public safety panelist Susan Hutson ...
In New Orleans, an unprecedented push for police reform
Public safety panelist Chief Ronal Serpas...
Superintendent Ronal Serpas presents 65-point plan for reforming the NOPD
Environmental panel moderator Steve Picou...
Seafood is safe, scientists say, but oil spill will impact physical and mental health for years ...
Politics panelist Jason Berry...
Children don't mean a thing, if you aint' got that bling...
Politics panelist Stephanie Grace...
Five years later, a recovery mayor?
Politics panelist Clancy Dubos...
The Storm That Changed Everything
Politics panelist Jeff Crouere...
Political Correctness Doesn’t Quit, Dr. Laura Does Over N-Word Storm
Environmental panelist Robert Verchick ...
Loyola law professor to sign new book this weekend
Keynote speaker Mac Mclleland ...
"The goal is not to let it blow up": A tour of BP's relief rig
Treme panelist Eric Overmyer...
Treme News: Eric Overmyer Looks Back on Season One
Treme panelist Dave Walker ...
'Witness: Katrina' tells storm's story through the lenses of home-video cameras
Public safety panelist Susan Hutson ...
In New Orleans, an unprecedented push for police reform
Public safety panelist Chief Ronal Serpas...
Superintendent Ronal Serpas presents 65-point plan for reforming the NOPD
Environmental panel moderator Steve Picou...
Seafood is safe, scientists say, but oil spill will impact physical and mental health for years ...
Politics panelist Jason Berry...
Children don't mean a thing, if you aint' got that bling...
Politics panelist Stephanie Grace...
Five years later, a recovery mayor?
Politics panelist Clancy Dubos...
The Storm That Changed Everything
Politics panelist Jeff Crouere...
Political Correctness Doesn’t Quit, Dr. Laura Does Over N-Word Storm
Environmental panelist Robert Verchick ...
Loyola law professor to sign new book this weekend
8.23.2010
Rising Tide 5 Press Release: Program and Schedule
Rising Tide NOLA, Inc. will present its 5th annual Rising Tide Media Conference centered on the recovery and future of New Orleans and the Gulf Coast on Saturday, August 28, 2010, 9:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m., at The Howlin’ Wolf, 907 South Peters St., in New Orleans.
RISING TIDE 5: SCHEDULE / AGENDA
8/28/2010 - The Howlin’ Wolf
8:30am – Doors open: Conference check-in with coffee, pastries & juice sponsored by Levees.org
9:30 – Opening Remarks: Kim Marshall, Chair & Alli deJong
9:45 – Crime and Justice Panel: Tulane Criminologist Peter Scharf to serve as moderator. We are also pleased to announce that New Orleans Police Chief Ronal Serpas has agreed to sit on the panel.
Panelists include:
Ronal Serpas was recently named Chief of the New Orleans Police Department. The native New Orleanian was most recently Chief of Police in Nashville, TN. The Times Picayune described his Nashville tenure like this: “The hallmarks of his tenure have been a reliance on statistical data in policing, a crackdown on gangs, an exponential boost in neighborhood watch groups, and wide-scale traffic enforcement.”
Jon Wool directs the Vera Institute of Justice’s New Orleans office, which is working in partnership with local criminal justice leaders and civic and community groups to improve the effectiveness and fairness of the system. Previously at Vera, Jon worked to improve indigent defense systems and on sentencing reform, was the Senior Counsel to the Commission on Safety and Abuse in America’s Prisons, and was a staff attorney with the Legal Aid Society’s Criminal Defense Division in Manhattan, after clerking for Chief Justice Shirley Abrahamson of the Wisconsin Supreme Court. He received a JD from Yale Law School and a BA from New York University.
Allen James is Executive Director of Safe Streets.
Susan Hutson is the independent police monitor for the City of New Orleans.
11:00 – Keynote Address: Mac McClelland
McClelland is Mother Jones’ human rights reporter, writer of The Rights Stuff, and the author of For Us Surrender is Out of the Question: A Story From Burma’s Never-Ending War. She has “been on the gulf Coast since the early days of the Gulf oil disaster and... documented every last drop of it.”
Mac has reported from locations that include Malaysia, Australia, Thailand, Micronesia, Burma, New Orleans, and Bhutan on subjects such as the hot young Bhutanese king, post-Katrina recovery efforts, South Pacific conservation initiatives, and the decline of American manufacturing. She has posed as a high-class freelance call girl and has embedded herself into dumpster-diving culture. More importantly, she is, according to The American Prospect, “a total bad-ass”.
11:45 – Break
12:00 – Environmental Panel: “Paradise Lost” moderated by Steve Picou, a lifelong environmental activist, musician and futurist with a systems-oriented perspective. He is an outreach agent with the LSU AgCenter in the New Orleans area where he helps people and organizations reduce their impact, save energy and find ways to develop sustainable lifestyles and businesses. A blogger since 1997, Steve currently expresses his thoughts on the environment, politics, music and social justice primarily via nolamotion.com and highlights eco-abuse at dyingoaks.posterous.com.
Panelists include:
Robert Verchick is the Gauthier – St. Martin Chair in Environmental Law at Loyola University New Orleans. Currently on leave, serving in a government position in Washington D.C., he is a graduate of Stanford University and Harvard Law School. An expert in environmental law and the developing field of disaster law, he has taught at several American law schools as well as at universities in China and Denmark. His newest book Facing Catastrophe: Environmental Action for a Post-Katrina World, has just been released by Harvard University Press.
Len Bahr, founding editor, frequent writer for LACoastPost and former director of the Governor’s Applied Coastal Science Program, Bahr has advised several Louisiana Governors’ administrations as well as the LA Dept. of Environmental Quality, Hazardous Waste Division. He has also served in various capacities as a researcher and professor at Louisiana State University and at the University of Maryland Chesapeake Biology Laboratory.Lunch – Provided by The Howlin’ Wolf
2:00 – Politics Panel: Moderated by Peter Athas, longtime New Orleanian and recovering lawyer who currently owns a small business in the French Quarter. He has been blogging as Adrastos at his eponymous blog since 2005 and is also a contributor to First Draft and Back Of Town. He is one of the founders of the Rising Tide Conference and is currently its Poohbah of programming. He lives Uptown with his beautiful and brilliant wife, Grace and their two cats, Oscar and Della Street.
Panelists include:
Jason Berry, a documentary filmmaker and IP media consultant from New Orleans. His first full length documentary was completed in 2006 with fellow filmmaker, Vince Morelli, titled, Left Behind: The Story of the the New Orleans Public Schools. Berry began his blog, American Zombie, in 2006 as anonymous source reporting on corruption issues within New Orleans City Hall. After breaking numerous corruption issues within New Orleans city government, Jason went public with his identity in 2009 after being threatened with a libel suit by a New Orleans' city official. He was the 2009 Rising Tide Ashley Award winner.
Clancy DuBos, the chairman and co-owner of Gambit Communications, Inc., and the political editor/columnist for Gambit weekly newspaper in New Orleans. He also is the on-air political commentator for WWL-TV (Eyewitness News Channel 4) in New Orleans, and a licensed attorney. Clancy and his wife Margo have owned Gambit since 1991, and he has been an attorney since 1993.
Jeff Crouere, a native of New Orleans, LA is the host of a Louisiana based program, Ringside Politics, which airs at 7:30 p.m. Fri. and 10:00 p.m. Sun. on WLAE-TV 32, a PBS station, and 7 till 11 a.m.weekdays on WGSO 990 AM in New Orleans and the Northshore.
Stephanie Grace, a political columnist with the Times-Picayune in New Orleans, focusing on local, state and national politics, and since Aug. 29, 2005, Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath. Before moving to the op-ed page in 2003, she spent eight years as a political reporter for the paper.
Jacques Morial, “...a native of New Orleans with over a quarter century of inter-disciplinary professional experience in the areas of community organization, public policy analysis and development, capital finance, dispute resolution and strategic communications.” - Louisiana Justice Institute. Jacques is also occasionally seen playing himself on HBO’s Treme.
3:00 – Break
3:15 – Presentation: Why Can’t We Get Some Dam Safety in New Orleans?
Tim Ruppert , engineer and NOLA Blogger, exposes inequities between the Federal government’s design methods for dams and levees. For his Rising Tide 2 presentation, “In Levees We Trust” Tim explained why the so-called “100-year level of protection” is completely inadequate for a highly developed and populated area such as New Orleans. This year Tim expands upon that topic and asks why dams and levees alike are not designed as life safety systems.
3:45 - Presentation of 2010 Ashley Morris Memorial Award
4:00 – Down in the Treme: Maitri Erwin, Moderator, founder of Back of Town: Blogging Treme, author of Maitri’s VatulBlog & reporter for VizWorld.com, she is also Indian Languages advisor to Project Gutenberg, the first producer of free electronic books.
Panelists include:
Eric Overmyer is a playwright, television writer and producer. He is the the co-creator and Executive Producer of HBO’s hit series, Treme, and has written and produced numerous TV shows, including Law & Order, Homicide: Life on the Street, The Wire and New Amsterdam.
Becky Northcutt, one of two non-NOLA ringers blogging Treme at Back of Town, she sometimes writes about pop culture, the environment, and politics at First-Draft.com. She created the short-lived Got that New Package! blog about The Wire, and was lucky enough to share that obsession with Ashley Morris and Ray Shea, among others. She is a queer, a naturalist, a music lover, and a Texan, none of which she had any choice about.
Dave Walker has bee a TV columnist for the New Orleans Times-Picayune since September 2000. Before that, he worked as TV columnist and pop culture writer for the Arizona Republic, and before that he was a feature writer and columnist for the Phoenix alternative weekly New Times. Born in Kansas City, raised in Chicago. His American Rock 'n' Roll Tour, the first guide to pop music landmarks, was published by Thunder's Mouth Press in 1992.
Davis Rogan is a New Orleans musician who began his broadcast career on WTUL at the age of 10, and was a DJ at WWOZ for 13 years. He first came to prominence in the New Orleans music scene with his eight piece funk group All That, for which he was lead singer, band leader, principal songwriter, arranger and producer. Davis is also script consultant for Treme and makes periodic appearances on the show.
Lolis Eric Elie, a staff writer for HBO’s Treme, his television work includes include Faubourg Treme, the PBS documentary directed by Dawn Logsdon. He was also a columnist for the New Orleans Times-Picayune for 14 years. --Rising Tide 5
The one-day conference features speakers and panel discussions on the status and future of the culture, politics, criminal justice system, environment, and flood protection of New Orleans and the Gulf Coast. Past speakers have included actor and outspoken champion of New Orleans Harry Shearer, and authors Dave Zirin, John Barry, Christopher Cooper and Robert Block.
Rising Tide NOLA, Inc. is a non-profit organization formed by New Orleans bloggers in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and the failure of the federally-built levees. After the disaster, the internet became a vital connection among dispersed New Orleanians, former New Orleanians, and friends of the city and of the Gulf Coast region. A surge of new blogs erupted and, combined with those that were already online, a community of bloggers with a shared interest in New Orleans and the Gulf Coast developed. In the summer of 2006, to mark the anniversary of the flood, the bloggers of New Orleans organized the first Rising Tide Conference, taking their shared interest in technology, the arts, the internet and social media and turning advocacy for the city into action.
Conference registration is open at http://www.risingtidenola.com/. Registration is only $25 until Friday and includes lunch. Day of registration is $30. Please bring non-perishable food to contribute to Rising Tide's food drive benefiting Second Harvest Food Bank.
There will be pre-conference party hosted by the New Orleans bloggers on Friday evening August 27 from 7:30pm to 10:30pm, also at the Howlin’ Wolf. More information is available at the Rising Tide 5 Website: http://www.risingtidenola.com/ and at the Rising Tide blog: http://www.risingtideblog.blogspot.com/
The New Orleans bloggers will present the annual Ashley Award named for Ashley Morris—blogger and passionate advocate for New Orleans—who passed away in April, 2008. The Ashley Morris Award is given each year to an outstanding blogger writing about New Orleans and the challenges it faces.
Rising Tide’s featured artwork, available as a poster and t-shirt, is once again produced by the award-wining editorial cartoonist and artist Greg Peters of Suspect Device.
Tables for booksellers and vendors are available at the Rising Tide 5 Conference by calling Tim Ruppert at 504-975-3591 or by e-mailing tmruppert@yahoo.com. Rising Tide 5 is sponsored by The Canary Collective, Gambit Weekly, Levees.org and Cox Communications.
Those interested in sponsorship should e-mail info@risingtidenola.com. Information about registration is available by emailing registration@risingtidenola.com. The telephone number to call for information about Rising Tide 5 is 866-910-2055.Connect with Rising Tide on your preferred platform:
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/RisingTideNOLA
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/RisingTide
###
RISING TIDE 5: SCHEDULE / AGENDA
8/28/2010 - The Howlin’ Wolf
8:30am – Doors open: Conference check-in with coffee, pastries & juice sponsored by Levees.org
9:30 – Opening Remarks: Kim Marshall, Chair & Alli deJong
9:45 – Crime and Justice Panel: Tulane Criminologist Peter Scharf to serve as moderator. We are also pleased to announce that New Orleans Police Chief Ronal Serpas has agreed to sit on the panel.
Panelists include:
Ronal Serpas was recently named Chief of the New Orleans Police Department. The native New Orleanian was most recently Chief of Police in Nashville, TN. The Times Picayune described his Nashville tenure like this: “The hallmarks of his tenure have been a reliance on statistical data in policing, a crackdown on gangs, an exponential boost in neighborhood watch groups, and wide-scale traffic enforcement.”
Jon Wool directs the Vera Institute of Justice’s New Orleans office, which is working in partnership with local criminal justice leaders and civic and community groups to improve the effectiveness and fairness of the system. Previously at Vera, Jon worked to improve indigent defense systems and on sentencing reform, was the Senior Counsel to the Commission on Safety and Abuse in America’s Prisons, and was a staff attorney with the Legal Aid Society’s Criminal Defense Division in Manhattan, after clerking for Chief Justice Shirley Abrahamson of the Wisconsin Supreme Court. He received a JD from Yale Law School and a BA from New York University.
Allen James is Executive Director of Safe Streets.
Susan Hutson is the independent police monitor for the City of New Orleans.
11:00 – Keynote Address: Mac McClelland
McClelland is Mother Jones’ human rights reporter, writer of The Rights Stuff, and the author of For Us Surrender is Out of the Question: A Story From Burma’s Never-Ending War. She has “been on the gulf Coast since the early days of the Gulf oil disaster and... documented every last drop of it.”
Mac has reported from locations that include Malaysia, Australia, Thailand, Micronesia, Burma, New Orleans, and Bhutan on subjects such as the hot young Bhutanese king, post-Katrina recovery efforts, South Pacific conservation initiatives, and the decline of American manufacturing. She has posed as a high-class freelance call girl and has embedded herself into dumpster-diving culture. More importantly, she is, according to The American Prospect, “a total bad-ass”.
11:45 – Break
12:00 – Environmental Panel: “Paradise Lost” moderated by Steve Picou, a lifelong environmental activist, musician and futurist with a systems-oriented perspective. He is an outreach agent with the LSU AgCenter in the New Orleans area where he helps people and organizations reduce their impact, save energy and find ways to develop sustainable lifestyles and businesses. A blogger since 1997, Steve currently expresses his thoughts on the environment, politics, music and social justice primarily via nolamotion.com and highlights eco-abuse at dyingoaks.posterous.com.
Panelists include:
Robert Verchick is the Gauthier – St. Martin Chair in Environmental Law at Loyola University New Orleans. Currently on leave, serving in a government position in Washington D.C., he is a graduate of Stanford University and Harvard Law School. An expert in environmental law and the developing field of disaster law, he has taught at several American law schools as well as at universities in China and Denmark. His newest book Facing Catastrophe: Environmental Action for a Post-Katrina World, has just been released by Harvard University Press.
Len Bahr, founding editor, frequent writer for LACoastPost and former director of the Governor’s Applied Coastal Science Program, Bahr has advised several Louisiana Governors’ administrations as well as the LA Dept. of Environmental Quality, Hazardous Waste Division. He has also served in various capacities as a researcher and professor at Louisiana State University and at the University of Maryland Chesapeake Biology Laboratory.Lunch – Provided by The Howlin’ Wolf
2:00 – Politics Panel: Moderated by Peter Athas, longtime New Orleanian and recovering lawyer who currently owns a small business in the French Quarter. He has been blogging as Adrastos at his eponymous blog since 2005 and is also a contributor to First Draft and Back Of Town. He is one of the founders of the Rising Tide Conference and is currently its Poohbah of programming. He lives Uptown with his beautiful and brilliant wife, Grace and their two cats, Oscar and Della Street.
Panelists include:
Jason Berry, a documentary filmmaker and IP media consultant from New Orleans. His first full length documentary was completed in 2006 with fellow filmmaker, Vince Morelli, titled, Left Behind: The Story of the the New Orleans Public Schools. Berry began his blog, American Zombie, in 2006 as anonymous source reporting on corruption issues within New Orleans City Hall. After breaking numerous corruption issues within New Orleans city government, Jason went public with his identity in 2009 after being threatened with a libel suit by a New Orleans' city official. He was the 2009 Rising Tide Ashley Award winner.
Clancy DuBos, the chairman and co-owner of Gambit Communications, Inc., and the political editor/columnist for Gambit weekly newspaper in New Orleans. He also is the on-air political commentator for WWL-TV (Eyewitness News Channel 4) in New Orleans, and a licensed attorney. Clancy and his wife Margo have owned Gambit since 1991, and he has been an attorney since 1993.
Jeff Crouere, a native of New Orleans, LA is the host of a Louisiana based program, Ringside Politics, which airs at 7:30 p.m. Fri. and 10:00 p.m. Sun. on WLAE-TV 32, a PBS station, and 7 till 11 a.m.weekdays on WGSO 990 AM in New Orleans and the Northshore.
Stephanie Grace, a political columnist with the Times-Picayune in New Orleans, focusing on local, state and national politics, and since Aug. 29, 2005, Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath. Before moving to the op-ed page in 2003, she spent eight years as a political reporter for the paper.
Jacques Morial, “...a native of New Orleans with over a quarter century of inter-disciplinary professional experience in the areas of community organization, public policy analysis and development, capital finance, dispute resolution and strategic communications.” - Louisiana Justice Institute. Jacques is also occasionally seen playing himself on HBO’s Treme.
3:00 – Break
3:15 – Presentation: Why Can’t We Get Some Dam Safety in New Orleans?
Tim Ruppert , engineer and NOLA Blogger, exposes inequities between the Federal government’s design methods for dams and levees. For his Rising Tide 2 presentation, “In Levees We Trust” Tim explained why the so-called “100-year level of protection” is completely inadequate for a highly developed and populated area such as New Orleans. This year Tim expands upon that topic and asks why dams and levees alike are not designed as life safety systems.
3:45 - Presentation of 2010 Ashley Morris Memorial Award
4:00 – Down in the Treme: Maitri Erwin, Moderator, founder of Back of Town: Blogging Treme, author of Maitri’s VatulBlog & reporter for VizWorld.com, she is also Indian Languages advisor to Project Gutenberg, the first producer of free electronic books.
Panelists include:
Eric Overmyer is a playwright, television writer and producer. He is the the co-creator and Executive Producer of HBO’s hit series, Treme, and has written and produced numerous TV shows, including Law & Order, Homicide: Life on the Street, The Wire and New Amsterdam.
Becky Northcutt, one of two non-NOLA ringers blogging Treme at Back of Town, she sometimes writes about pop culture, the environment, and politics at First-Draft.com. She created the short-lived Got that New Package! blog about The Wire, and was lucky enough to share that obsession with Ashley Morris and Ray Shea, among others. She is a queer, a naturalist, a music lover, and a Texan, none of which she had any choice about.
Dave Walker has bee a TV columnist for the New Orleans Times-Picayune since September 2000. Before that, he worked as TV columnist and pop culture writer for the Arizona Republic, and before that he was a feature writer and columnist for the Phoenix alternative weekly New Times. Born in Kansas City, raised in Chicago. His American Rock 'n' Roll Tour, the first guide to pop music landmarks, was published by Thunder's Mouth Press in 1992.
Davis Rogan is a New Orleans musician who began his broadcast career on WTUL at the age of 10, and was a DJ at WWOZ for 13 years. He first came to prominence in the New Orleans music scene with his eight piece funk group All That, for which he was lead singer, band leader, principal songwriter, arranger and producer. Davis is also script consultant for Treme and makes periodic appearances on the show.
Lolis Eric Elie, a staff writer for HBO’s Treme, his television work includes include Faubourg Treme, the PBS documentary directed by Dawn Logsdon. He was also a columnist for the New Orleans Times-Picayune for 14 years. --Rising Tide 5
The one-day conference features speakers and panel discussions on the status and future of the culture, politics, criminal justice system, environment, and flood protection of New Orleans and the Gulf Coast. Past speakers have included actor and outspoken champion of New Orleans Harry Shearer, and authors Dave Zirin, John Barry, Christopher Cooper and Robert Block.
Rising Tide NOLA, Inc. is a non-profit organization formed by New Orleans bloggers in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and the failure of the federally-built levees. After the disaster, the internet became a vital connection among dispersed New Orleanians, former New Orleanians, and friends of the city and of the Gulf Coast region. A surge of new blogs erupted and, combined with those that were already online, a community of bloggers with a shared interest in New Orleans and the Gulf Coast developed. In the summer of 2006, to mark the anniversary of the flood, the bloggers of New Orleans organized the first Rising Tide Conference, taking their shared interest in technology, the arts, the internet and social media and turning advocacy for the city into action.
Conference registration is open at http://www.risingtidenola.com/. Registration is only $25 until Friday and includes lunch. Day of registration is $30. Please bring non-perishable food to contribute to Rising Tide's food drive benefiting Second Harvest Food Bank.
There will be pre-conference party hosted by the New Orleans bloggers on Friday evening August 27 from 7:30pm to 10:30pm, also at the Howlin’ Wolf. More information is available at the Rising Tide 5 Website: http://www.risingtidenola.com/ and at the Rising Tide blog: http://www.risingtideblog.blogspot.com/
The New Orleans bloggers will present the annual Ashley Award named for Ashley Morris—blogger and passionate advocate for New Orleans—who passed away in April, 2008. The Ashley Morris Award is given each year to an outstanding blogger writing about New Orleans and the challenges it faces.
Rising Tide’s featured artwork, available as a poster and t-shirt, is once again produced by the award-wining editorial cartoonist and artist Greg Peters of Suspect Device.
Tables for booksellers and vendors are available at the Rising Tide 5 Conference by calling Tim Ruppert at 504-975-3591 or by e-mailing tmruppert@yahoo.com. Rising Tide 5 is sponsored by The Canary Collective, Gambit Weekly, Levees.org and Cox Communications.
Those interested in sponsorship should e-mail info@risingtidenola.com. Information about registration is available by emailing registration@risingtidenola.com. The telephone number to call for information about Rising Tide 5 is 866-910-2055.Connect with Rising Tide on your preferred platform:
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/RisingTideNOLA
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/RisingTide
###
Schedule for This Year's Conference
8:30 AM Conference opens. Light breakfast is served
9:30 AM Opening Remarks by Kim Marshall and Alli deJong
9:45 AM Public Safety Panel, moderated by Peter Scharf
11:00 AM Keynote address by Mother Jones human rights reporter Mac McClelland
11:45 AM Short break
12:00 PM “Paradise Lost” environmental panel moderated by Steve Picou
1:00 PM Lunch
2:00 PM Politics Panel hosted by Peter Athas
3:00 PM Short break
3:15 PM “Why Can’t We Get Some Dam Safety in New Orleans?” presentation by Tim Ruppert
3:45 PM Presentation of the 2010 Ashley Morris Memorial Award
4:00 PM “Down In the Treme”, moderated by Maitri Erwin
Rising Tide NolaKatrina NOLA New Orleans Hurricane Katrina Think New Orleans Louisiana FEMA levees flooding Corps of Engineers We Are Not OK wetlands news rebirth Debrisville Federal Flood 8-29
9:30 AM Opening Remarks by Kim Marshall and Alli deJong
9:45 AM Public Safety Panel, moderated by Peter Scharf
11:00 AM Keynote address by Mother Jones human rights reporter Mac McClelland
11:45 AM Short break
12:00 PM “Paradise Lost” environmental panel moderated by Steve Picou
1:00 PM Lunch
2:00 PM Politics Panel hosted by Peter Athas
3:00 PM Short break
3:15 PM “Why Can’t We Get Some Dam Safety in New Orleans?” presentation by Tim Ruppert
3:45 PM Presentation of the 2010 Ashley Morris Memorial Award
4:00 PM “Down In the Treme”, moderated by Maitri Erwin
Rising Tide NolaKatrina NOLA New Orleans Hurricane Katrina Think New Orleans Louisiana FEMA levees flooding Corps of Engineers We Are Not OK wetlands news rebirth Debrisville Federal Flood 8-29
8.16.2010
Where Are They Now?
As we come upon the fifth anniversary of the storm and the Federal Flood, all of us getting Rising Tide a-rising off the ground each year have done some looking back from time to time. It seems to be almost imperative to do some revisitation of the things that have gone wrong and right since the conference's earliest days, and we do that by doing our best to improve upon the programming and the general organization of the conference - with much assistance from you, the attendees in person and in spirit.
However, it's also a good thing to check out where past participants are in recent times and what they're up to...so I'll be kicking it off with the past keynote speakers' doings.
Far as I can tell, RT I keynoter Chris Cooper is now a vice-president of a PR firm in the DC area and his fellow keynoter and co-author of the book Disaster Robert Block is currently the space editor and NASA correspondent for the Orlando Sentinel.
RT II's main man Dave Zirin of edgeofsports.com is always up to something, which is a good thing. His most recent activities consist of hosting his Sirius XM radio talk show, on which players such as former Saint Scott Fujita are featured, and, in-between appearances on MSNBC's (Whoops, that's been corrected from CNBC. Thanks, Adrastos!) Morning Joe program and the Rachel Maddow Show, promoting his latest book, Bad Sports: How Owners Are Ruining the Games We Love. Anybody still grumbling over Tom Benson's gift to the Superdome faithful of ripping over 1000 seats out to accommodate a larger press area can certainly relate.
The author of the inspiration for the name of the conference, John Barry came along for Rising Tide III and shared his current assessments of flood protection in southeast Louisiana. He's still an active member of the Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority of Louisiana and the vice-president of the Southeast Louisiana Flood Protection Authority - East, and is also a Distinguished Scholar at Tulane and Xavier Universities' Center for Bioenvironmental Research. Good to see he's still working for major improvements to southeast Louisiana's environment.
Harry Shearer rocked Rising Tide IV with his assessment of how well the word has gotten out about the failures on all levels surrounding the eventsof8/29/2005 and in the years after, and he's rocking again with his new documentary The Big Uneasy, to be shown locally at the Prytania Theater and at Canal Place on August 30th, Check here for show locations and times by you.
And keynoter-to-be Mac McClelland, judging by her Twitter stream, just paid a visit to one of the relief wells out in the Gulf. Reportedly:
Any other dish on what past panelists are up to these days? Share those stories in the comments below, and be sure to join us on August 28th for more.
Rising Tide NolaKatrina NOLA New Orleans Hurricane Katrina Think New Orleans Louisiana FEMA levees flooding Corps of Engineers We Are Not OK wetlands news rebirth Debrisville Federal Flood 8-29
However, it's also a good thing to check out where past participants are in recent times and what they're up to...so I'll be kicking it off with the past keynote speakers' doings.
Far as I can tell, RT I keynoter Chris Cooper is now a vice-president of a PR firm in the DC area and his fellow keynoter and co-author of the book Disaster Robert Block is currently the space editor and NASA correspondent for the Orlando Sentinel.
RT II's main man Dave Zirin of edgeofsports.com is always up to something, which is a good thing. His most recent activities consist of hosting his Sirius XM radio talk show, on which players such as former Saint Scott Fujita are featured, and, in-between appearances on MSNBC's (Whoops, that's been corrected from CNBC. Thanks, Adrastos!) Morning Joe program and the Rachel Maddow Show, promoting his latest book, Bad Sports: How Owners Are Ruining the Games We Love. Anybody still grumbling over Tom Benson's gift to the Superdome faithful of ripping over 1000 seats out to accommodate a larger press area can certainly relate.
The author of the inspiration for the name of the conference, John Barry came along for Rising Tide III and shared his current assessments of flood protection in southeast Louisiana. He's still an active member of the Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority of Louisiana and the vice-president of the Southeast Louisiana Flood Protection Authority - East, and is also a Distinguished Scholar at Tulane and Xavier Universities' Center for Bioenvironmental Research. Good to see he's still working for major improvements to southeast Louisiana's environment.
Harry Shearer rocked Rising Tide IV with his assessment of how well the word has gotten out about the failures on all levels surrounding the eventsof8/29/2005 and in the years after, and he's rocking again with his new documentary The Big Uneasy, to be shown locally at the Prytania Theater and at Canal Place on August 30th, Check here for show locations and times by you.
And keynoter-to-be Mac McClelland, judging by her Twitter stream, just paid a visit to one of the relief wells out in the Gulf. Reportedly:
My attempts to instigate exhibition fisticuffs btwn my BP & Transocean PR handlers were unsuccessful.Well, we're glad she hasn't gotten the memo about the oil disaster being over. We're expecting great things from you, Mac. *wagging of finger* Only because she keeps delivering.
Any other dish on what past panelists are up to these days? Share those stories in the comments below, and be sure to join us on August 28th for more.
Rising Tide NolaKatrina NOLA New Orleans Hurricane Katrina Think New Orleans Louisiana FEMA levees flooding Corps of Engineers We Are Not OK wetlands news rebirth Debrisville Federal Flood 8-29
8.03.2010
Mac McClelland: Links, Links, Links ...
Below is a large collection of links to RT5 keynote speaker Mac McClelland's many blog posts and articles about South Louisiana at Mother Jones. Hold down the control key, open up some tabs and devote some time to her peerless reporting of the BP oil disaster...
Also see her Burma reporting: Complete archive of Mac McClelland articles.
Also see her Burma reporting: Complete archive of Mac McClelland articles.
Articles:
University of New Orleans: Broke but Unbroken
Heart Like Water: Surviving Katrina and Life in Its Disaster Zone
Blog posts:
"All I Wanted Was to See Happy Faces"
Mainstream Media Helps BP Pretend There's No Oil
Robbing New Orleans to Pay for BP's Spill
How Many Oil-Spill Victims Is BP Cutting Compensation To?
Did You Know Tar Balls Glow Orange Under UV Light?
Uniformed Cops on BP Payroll? Enter the ACLU
Depression, Abuse, Suicide: Fishermen's Wives Face Post-Spill Trauma
La. Police Doing BP's Dirty Work [Video]
Louisiana Tea Partiers Rally for More Drilling
More Dirty Details From My BP Mole
Inside Oil-Spill Pelican Rehab [Photos]
"We Don't Need This on Camera": BP's Crappy Cleanup Job
Official Government Stats = BP Spin
ICE Running Immigration Raids on Oil-Spill Workers
My BP Mole Spills the Secrets of BP's Cleanup Ops
"Ignore Her": The BP Press Lockdown Continues
New Orleans Notebook: Disaster Tourism
New Orleans Notebook: Bug Blight
What Will Happen to Louisiana's Wetlands?
A Strike Against Oil Spill Lawsuits
New Orleans Notebook: Freezing Budgets, Overheating Pants
Can You Eat Oil-Slick Oysters?
Who's Trying to Kill New Orleans?
Happy Anniversary, Katrina Victims! You Could Celebrate With Cash if You Weren't So Unscrupulous
7.31.2010
Last Chance...
I'm sorry, folks, but every time I've been seeing the Rising Tide tweets warning everybody that the cost of the conference goes up on August 1st, I've had this song in my head:
So, if you don't want the biggest earworm in your life plaguing your brain, do two things:
Rising Tide NolaKatrina NOLA New Orleans Hurricane Katrina Think New Orleans Louisiana FEMA levees flooding Corps of Engineers We Are Not OK wetlands news rebirth Debrisville Federal Flood 8-29
So, if you don't want the biggest earworm in your life plaguing your brain, do two things:
- Don't click on the YouTube above
- Register now before the price goes up by $5.
Rising Tide NolaKatrina NOLA New Orleans Hurricane Katrina Think New Orleans Louisiana FEMA levees flooding Corps of Engineers We Are Not OK wetlands news rebirth Debrisville Federal Flood 8-29
7.22.2010
Keynote speaker announced
Mac McClelland, human rights journalist for Mother Jones, has agreed to be keynote speaker for Rising Tide 5. We're thrilled to have McClelland at our conference, as she has written many of the most compelling stories about the oil gusher's effect on coastal communities.
Register for RT5 today and see Mac McClelland on August 28th.
Register for RT5 today and see Mac McClelland on August 28th.
7.14.2010
Come to Rising Tide 5 Cheap
I received an announcement that Air tran Airlines is having a fare sale until July 27, 2010. The fares are pretty good, here are one way fares to New Orleans.
Remember Registration is just $20 until August 1.
Airtran Airlines is not an official sponsor of Rising Tide and other airlines may have equal or better fares.
Rising Tide NolaKatrina NOLA New Orleans Hurricane Katrina Think New Orleans Louisiana FEMA levees flooding Corps of Engineers We Are Not OK wetlands news rebirth Debrisville Federal Flood 8-29
Akron/Canton $64 - $209Not all fares are available on all flights and seats are limited, but if you want to come to Rising Tide 5 this opportunity together with our great hotel rate make Rising Tide 5 an affordable and unique opportunity to support New Orleans and the Gulf Coast.
Allentown $69 - $184
Aruba $124 - $234
Asheville $59 - $69
Atlanta $49 - $159
Atlantic City $69 - $146
Baltimore $49 - $184
Bloomington/Normal $69 - $184
Boston $49 - $204
Branson $64 - $189
Buffalo/Niagara $69 - $184
Cancun $99 - $154
Charleston, WV $79 - $79
Charlotte $49 - $174
Chicago (Midway) $69 - $184
Columbus $54 - $174
Dallas/Ft. Worth $77 - $194
Dayton $49 - $174
Denver $84 - $190
Des Moines $79 - $194
Detroit $69 - $184
Flint $69 - $184
Ft. Lauderdale $69 - $184
Ft. Myers $69 - $209
Grand Rapids $59 - $174
Gulfport/Biloxi $59 - $173
Harrisburg $69 - $184
Houston (Hobby) $79 - $184
Huntsville $69 - $169
Indianapolis $59 - $184
Jacksonville $49 - $209
Kansas City $74 - $194
Key West $69 - $214
Knoxville $64 - $64
Las Vegas $109 - $214
Lexington $74 - $94
Los Angeles (LAX) $114 - $234
Memphis $49 - $184
Miami $69 - $144
Milwaukee $49 - $194
Minneapolis/St. Paul $49 - $204
Moline/Quad Cities $69 - $189
Montego Bay $69 - $224
Nassau $44 - $214
New Orleans $59 - $185
New York (LaGuardia) $74 - $204
Newport News/Williamsburg $54 - $209
Omaha $74 - $154
Orlando $44 - $139
Pensacola/Gulf Coast $49 - $209
Philadelphia $69 - $184
Phoenix $119 - $214
Pittsburgh $64 - $184
Portland $69 - $149
Raleigh/Durham $49 - $164
Richmond $54 - $184
Rochester $49 - $194
San Antonio $79 - $204
San Diego $109 - $234
San Francisco $114 - $224
San Juan $74 - $214
Sarasota/Bradenton $69 - $209
Seattle $114 - $224
St. Louis $59 - $184
Tampa $59 - $184
Tunica $69 - $159
Washington, D.C. (Dulles) $74 - $184
Washington, D.C. (Reagan National) $74 - $184
West Palm Beach $69 - $209
White Plains $79 - $144
Wichita $69 - $194
Remember Registration is just $20 until August 1.
Airtran Airlines is not an official sponsor of Rising Tide and other airlines may have equal or better fares.
Rising Tide NolaKatrina NOLA New Orleans Hurricane Katrina Think New Orleans Louisiana FEMA levees flooding Corps of Engineers We Are Not OK wetlands news rebirth Debrisville Federal Flood 8-29
7.13.2010
Volunteer with Rising Tide 5 and Second Harvest Food Bank
Rising Tide 5 is proud to assist the efforts of Second Harvest Food Bank of Greater New Orleans and Acadiana. We are conducting a food drive in conjunction with the conference, and we also have a volunteer opportunity on Friday, August 27, the day before the conference.
We will be packing food boxes from 9:00 a.m. until noon, on Friday, August 27, at Second Harvest's Elmwood warehouse. Rising Tide 5 committee member Alli de Jong is coordinating the food drive and the volunteer meet-up in Elmwood. She can be reached at service@risingtidenola.com.
Please join us for this year's Rising Tide public service opportunity. We'll be packing food boxes for distribution to hundreds of families who've seen their jobs and livelihoods evaporate. If you are coming from out of town, we can hook you up with a ride to Elmwood.
In the meantime, you don't have to wait until late August to support the efforts of Second Harvest Food Bank of Greater New Orleans and Acadiana. You can donate a Healthy Bag any time. For more information about the food bank's mission, go to www.no-hunger.org.
We will be packing food boxes from 9:00 a.m. until noon, on Friday, August 27, at Second Harvest's Elmwood warehouse. Rising Tide 5 committee member Alli de Jong is coordinating the food drive and the volunteer meet-up in Elmwood. She can be reached at service@risingtidenola.com.
Please join us for this year's Rising Tide public service opportunity. We'll be packing food boxes for distribution to hundreds of families who've seen their jobs and livelihoods evaporate. If you are coming from out of town, we can hook you up with a ride to Elmwood.
In the meantime, you don't have to wait until late August to support the efforts of Second Harvest Food Bank of Greater New Orleans and Acadiana. You can donate a Healthy Bag any time. For more information about the food bank's mission, go to www.no-hunger.org.
7.12.2010
Rising Tide on the Radio
Rising Tide 5 was the subject of Crystal Kile's Community Gumbo Friday morning on WTUL in New Orleans. Check out the Podcast.
7.09.2010
Hotel for Rising Tide 5
We have a Rising Tide 5 group rate at the Marriott Springhill Suites Hotel, across the street from The Howlin' Wolf.'
Telephone 1.888.364.1200 to make reservations.
The cutoff date for reservations is August 9th.
Single Reservation:
http://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/MSYSH?groupCode=rtnrtna&app=resvlink&fromDate=8/26/10&toDate=8/30/10
Double Reservation:
http://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/MSYSH?groupCode=rtnrtnb&app=resvlink&fromDate=8/26/10&toDate=8/30/10
Rising Tide NolaKatrina NOLA New Orleans Hurricane Katrina Louisiana FEMA levees flooding Corps of Engineers We Are Not OK wetlands news rebirth Debrisville Federal Flood 8-29
Thurs night, 8/26 - Sun night, 8/29 = $79.00 per night
All rooms are "suites" with sitting room/office area
Rate applies to rooms with 1 king bed or 2 double beds
Double rooms sleep 6, King rooms sleep 4
Telephone 1.888.364.1200 to make reservations.
The cutoff date for reservations is August 9th.
Single Reservation:
http://www.marriott.com/
Double Reservation:
http://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/MSYSH?groupCode=rtnrtnb&app=resvlink&fromDate=8/26/10&toDate=8/30/10
Rising Tide NolaKatrina NOLA New Orleans Hurricane Katrina Louisiana FEMA levees flooding Corps of Engineers We Are Not OK wetlands news rebirth Debrisville Federal Flood 8-29
7.07.2010
Rising Tide 5, August 28, 2010
Rising Tide 5
Saturday, August 28, 2010
9:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.
The Howlin’ Wolf
907 South Peters Street
New Orleans, Louisiana
Rising Tide NOLA, Inc. will present its 5th annual new media conference, centered on the recovery and future of New Orleans and the Gulf Coast, on Saturday, August 28, 2010, 9:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m., at The Howlin’ Wolf, 907 South Peters St., in New Orleans.
The one-day conference features speakers and panel discussions on the status and future of the culture, politics, criminal justice system, environment, and flood protection of New Orleans and the Gulf Coast. Past speakers have included actor and outspoken champion of New Orleans Harry Shearer, and authors Dave Zirin, John Barry, Christopher Cooper and Robert Block.
Rising Tide NOLA, Inc. is a non-profit organization formed by New Orleans bloggers in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and the failure of the federally-built levees. After the disaster, the internet became a vital connection among dispersed New Orleanians, former New Orleanians, and friends of the city and of the Gulf Coast region. A surge of new blogs erupted and, combined with those that were already online, a community of bloggers with a shared interest in New Orleans and the Gulf Coast developed. In the summer of 2006, to mark the anniversary of the flood, the bloggers of New Orleans organized the first Rising Tide Conference, taking their shared interest in technology, the arts, the internet and social media and turning advocacy for the city into action.
Rising Tide 5 is proud to support the efforts of Second Harvest Food Bank as they lead the fight against hunger in south Louisiana. Our conference this year will include a food drive and volunteering for Second Harvest Food Bank. Please bring at least one, but preferably several, non-perishable food items to Rising Tide this year, to support Second Harvest Food Bank's response to the increasing need for emergency food assistance in Louisiana's coastal parishes. For more on what to donate, contact Alli deJong at allidejong@gmail.com or visit www.no-hunger.org.
Conference registration is open at http://www.risingtidenola.com and at the Rising Tide blog: http://www.risingtideblog.blogspot.com
2010 Rising Tide sponsors include The Canary Collective, a media publishing agency, and Levees.org.
Rising Tide’s featured artwork, available as a poster and t-shirt, is once again produced by the award-wining editorial cartoonist and artist Greg Peters of Suspect Device.
The New Orleans bloggers will present the annual Ashley Award named for Ashley Morris—blogger and passionate advocate for New Orleans who passed away in April, 2008. The Ashley Morris Award is given each year to an outstanding blogger writing about New Orleans and the challenges it faces.
Tables for booksellers and vendors are available at the Rising Tide 5 Conference by calling Tim Ruppert at 504-975-3591 or by e-mailing tmruppert@yahoo.com
Those interested in sponsorship should e-mail info@risingtidenola.com.
registration@risingtidenola.com. The telephone number to call for information about Rising Tide 5 is 866-910-2055.
Connect with Rising Tide on your preferred platform:
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/RisingTideNOLA
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/RisingTide
Rising Tide NolaKatrina NOLA New Orleans Hurricane Katrina Think New Orleans Louisiana FEMA levees flooding Corps of Engineers We Are Not OK wetlands news rebirth Debrisville Federal Flood 8-29
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