New Orleans Moule Sa Voix

Voters in New Orleans have been voting all day in a mayoral election apparantly designed to boost Californians' senses of civic pride. Twenty-two candidates are battling it out for the right to rule a blighted, once-great metropolis, and the top two vote-getters will head to a runoff. Mayor Ray Nagin is expected to celebrate a first- or second-place showing, accompanied by the sweet sounds of Parliament/Funkadelic. Democratic Lt. Gov Mitch Landrieu and sour-pickle-taster Ron Forman are expected to fight for the other slot. The Hotline provides some interesting background on the race, including this exchange between Forman and Republican Rob Couhig.

During the Chris Matthews-moderated debate on 4/19, Forman said to Couhig, "They call you the pitbull," to which Couhig responded, "They call you the nothing."

When polls close, results should be posted here.

Comments

[joshua corning]

I heard on NPR that there is a sizable vietnamese population in NO...in an interview one person desribed his demographic as libertarian.

[Fact Czech]

7,118 Vietnamese out of 478,473 total population (1.47%) as of census 2000.

We report, you decide.

How the hell is Ray Nagin beating Jabbar Gibson? The kid may have sold some drugs, but for chrissakes, he singlehandedly demonstrated more apt leadership than any elected or appointed numbnut in that whole debacle.

Free Jabbar Gibson, drug warrior stasi assholes.

[Andy_d]

There's a guy at work who used to live in NO. While there, he was robbed at least twice and got shot in the chest. He's hoping this hurricane season, NO gets hit again. Just thought I'd share that.

[Some Guy Who Sells How-To Guid]

Just back from it.

Most of the folks at the bars pointed out that, you know, all New Orleans was coming back now, and take a damn cab home.

/Really into the whole "walk the streets with a beer in hand" thing.
//There's apparently other stuff you can do there at night.
///But why would you?

[Jim Walsh]

Nagin: "We'll no longer be a city of haves and have-nots," he said. "This economic pie that is getting ready to explode before our eyes is going to be shared equally."

Good Christ, this guy sound a villain in an Ayn Rand novel...

[Doctor Duck]

CAUTION: Economic pie is HOT and MAY EXPLODE.

[cliff]

MMMMMMM, economic pie.

[P Brooks]

-Mayor Nagin-

Remind me again why there's no such thing as criminal negligence for elected officials.

Economic Pie; are there four and twenty blackbirds in it?

[Kangmei]

Joshua:

"one person desribed his demographic as libertarian."

Amazing. How can one person have a "demographic"? You probbaly mean--but who knows?--that one person described himself as libertarian. You think that's some sign of hope for your cause? Prpobably.Only gullibility vergiing on the moronic could explain the fundamentialist devotion you people have to your so-called libertarian cult. Substitute "Jesus" for "freedom" in most of the drivel you spout, and it would be indistinguishable from pious Christian sermons. For the weak, freedom can be a disaster. They overeat, go into debt, and contribute almost nothing to society. The weak are much better off--and much happier--if they're told what to do and made to do it. Restraint, duty, obligation, law--these are what we need more of, not freedom. Freedom is only for the strong. The strong can can control themselves and work.
Grow up.

[the other Mark]

Kangmei:

You are the devil. I hope that your house is the next one that a SWAT team raids by mistake.

[Marcvs]

Whoa, nice troll Kangmei. I also liked the Nietzschean touch.

[Kangmei]

Marcus,

Thanks. Sorry about the typos.

[Kangmei]

My goodness, I'm the devil! See what I mean about your similarity to fundamentalist Christians?

Freedom loves me
This I know
Because my Bible tells me so.

[andy]

God, this shit is RICH!

Please folks, keep it comin'. Who wants popcorn?

[Kangmei]

Sorry, Andy, I guess nobody wants mess around with the sacred articles of faith.

[Geotech]

Jesus, I actually voted for Ray Nagin when he first ran for mayor when I was 18. First time I voted, maybe last, too. He was campaigning as a "pro-business" Democrat and didn't play to the racial bullshit like Marc Morial. But we all saw what happened when the chips were down. Prick marched with Jesse Jackson, Al Sharpton and Morial a few weeks ago. Out in the sparsely populated, mostly white and Vietnamese sticks of East New Orleans, where I grew up and which saw worse damage than any other part of the city, there's a rusted old cargo container washed up by the storm with "CHOCOLATE CITY MY ASS, NO BANANA REPUBLIC" spray-painted in red on it.

[P brooks]

Oh ouch.

That war a good'n, Kangmei. (if that really IS your name- play checkers much?)

[Rover Random]

Hmm, that may be Kangmei, but then the so-called strong will be brought down by the jealous weak, and collared by the same laws they must abide by. Freedom for all is a much better remedy in my mind, if some people wish to ruin their lives and maybe even kill themselves through their habits, so be it.

Humans and other animals naturally prefer freedom as far as I have seen, read, and heard. To collar any of them is to do violence against their impulses, whether governed by a sentient brain or instinct. To be sure, it is a far cry from caging another animal to imprison a human, but the idea is there in both cases. You could of course claim that we aren't caged, but a cage made of other humans and their laws is just as strong as a cage of steel, though not as evident and perhaps not as reliable.

[jf]

Only gullibility vergiing on the moronic could explain the fundamentialist devotion you people have to your so-called libertarian cult. Substitute "Jesus" for "freedom" in most of the drivel you spout, and it would be indistinguishable from pious Christian sermons. For the weak, freedom can be a disaster. They overeat, go into debt, and contribute almost nothing to society.

I must have missed the lecture in libertarian dogma where we demand the weak to contribute to society, let alone refrain from overeating and going into debt.

[joshua corning]

Ok i got some confusion over what I wrote so here it is flushed out a little better.

I heard on NPR that a sizable demographic of vietnamize who live in NO are still in NO in fact most if not all of them stayed and are still there as voters. And they hope to be bigger influance in this election then they have been in the past

One spokesman for the vietnameze comunity described the vietnamese demograpohic as libertarian in political leanings.

does this mean anything? who the fuck knows.

oh wait....

For the weak, freedom can be a disaster. They overeat, go into debt, and contribute almost nothing to society. The weak are much better off--and much happier--if they're told what to do and made to do it. Restraint, duty, obligation, law--these are what we need more of, not freedom. Freedom is only for the strong. The strong can can control themselves and work.
Grow up.

yeah any clarification i make won't help you...you will always be an idiot Kengmei..

[SmokingPenguin]

...if that really IS your name- play checkers much?

Funny, I was thinking the same thing. Actually, if the email address he gave is correct, he probably enjoys other pasttimes like beating Tibetan freedom protestors, or raping and torturing Falun Gong adherents.

[wise ass]

once-great metropolis

Pre-Katrina: Worst schools in the country, corrupt police force, high crime rate, higher poverty rate... when was it a "great" metropolis? Or does "great" mean any city that isn't Baghdad?

[Another Lurker]

Since when is Jersey McJones going by Kangmei? I missed a lot over the weekend I guess.

That was some awesome trolling right there. I could almost see the foam at the corners of the mouth.

[Geotech]

God am I sick of these trolls blowing these threads off topic.