Monday night marked the first return of a major sporting event to the hurricane ravaged city of New Orleans. I watched with mixed emotions. On the one hand, it was a far cry from the scenes that are engrained in my mind from just a year ago:
People wading through water with babies in hand
People looting
Dead bodies floating in the water
Dead bodies covered with sheets
Descriptions of the breakdown of society and the horrible things that could be found in the Superdome and the Convention center
People on roofs crying for rescue
People vowing never to go back
The scene Monday was one of jubilation and triumph. Here tens of thousands of people celebrated a victory. The fact that in just over a year the city would be able to hold such an event seems impossible. All the destruction seems like a distant memory.
But then my thoughts turned to a much more somber note. So much energy, money, and time was spent getting a sporting facility ready to host a game while all reports seem to indicate that most of the poorest people still remain homeless. There are entire sections of New Orleans that have not been touched except to clear rubbish out of the roads for vehicles to get by. Why are so many people making this game the benchmark of the return to New Orleans while thousands (if not millions) have not even returned to their previous life? Have such people been ignored for the sake of a stupid game? Has restoring their lives and homes been put further down the list then recreation?
Some justify the effort being put on this event saying that the Saints represent a significant part of the economy. Up to a certain point I may concede the point. But clearly people have to come first. Don’t they?
So I watched the game and the people cheering and waving towels and wondered, “What would I think if was refuge from New Orleans watching from some distance place? Would I be delighted or disgusted? Energized or embarrassed?”
How about you?
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3 comments:
I'd be jubilant, and I was. IF it takes something silly, like football, to gather a downtrodden people in a spirit of celebration and optimism, then do it. You cannot put a price tag on that.
Last night I heard that FEMA has 25,000 mobile homes that the government spent almost a billion dollars on that have never been used. They're just sitting down there. I don't know what the homeless need to do to claim those, but it seems like nobody should be homeless.
In a society where our god is sport, it is nice to have god return. It brings hope.
The temple must be rebuilt and operating in order to have a happy society.
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