Whew, not a good week for my adopted home state of Louisiana. One story that you have probably heard, and two that you probably haven't.

1) Re-elected New Orleans mayor Ray Nagin, when asked why his city still hasn't been cleaned up (an Atlanta Fed publication says that 86% of debris caused by the storm on private property still remains) said "You guys in New York can’t get a hole in the ground fixed and it’s five years later. So let’s be fair." Which reminds me of just about every other time I've heard pleas for fairness in public debate. When all outcomes of a group are equal to the worst performing member of that group, it is labeled "fair." It's been my experience that comparing your position with others, instead of with a goal you set for yourself, usually is stifling. Instead of figuring out how to fix his city, Nagin finds a worse situation, points to it, which enables him to continue to sit around.

2) A white school bus driver in Coushatta made nine black children sit in the back of the bus, saying that the front of the bus was for white kids. I guess you can take solace in the fact that instances like this are so rare that, when they do happen, they make the news. Wonder if the driver has a Confederate flag flying at home. I know, I know, the South didn't fight to keep slavery. State's rights and such, yup. And Al Qaeda hates us because we have troops in Saudi Arabia, not because we're not Muslims.

3) And, rounding out why you shouldn't want to move here (thanks, Baton Rouge pols!), Louisiana came in not 48th, not 49th, but dead last in a Forbes ranking of the best states for business. Virginia came in first. Too bad there isn't a hole in New York we can blame this on. Our neighbor, Texas, is number two on the list, so you'd think some spillover effects of good governance might occur, but I've noticed that Louisianans like corrupt politicians because it gives them something to laugh at. Like when you voted for the loser for prom king because you wanted to laugh at me! er, I mean him.