Tuesday, August 30, 2005

The More Things Change...

When the Levee Breaks ("Kansas" Joe McCoy, 1929)
If it keeps on rainin', levee's goin' to break (2x)
And the water gonna come in, have no place to stay

Well all last night I sat on the levee and moan (2x)
Thinkin' 'bout my baby and my happy home

If it keeps on rainin', levee's goin' to break (2x)
And all these people have no place to stay

Now look here mama what am I to do (2x)
I ain't got nobody to tell my troubles to

I works on the levee mama both night and day (2x)
I ain't got nobody, keep the water away

Oh cryin' won't help you, prayin' won't do no good (2x)
When the levee breaks, mama, you got to lose

I works on the levee, mama both night and day (2x)
I works so hard, to keep the water away

I had a woman, she wouldn't do for me (2x)
I'm goin' back to my used to be

I's a mean old levee, cause me to weep and moan (2x)
Gonna leave my baby, and my happy home
 
Last night, I overheard someone point out that Katrina hit
the Gulf Coast at the end of the month. I suspect a number
of those folks who "chose" to stay and ride it out actually
just flat couldn't afford to evacuate.

Meanwhile I'm watching a dumbass news story about a
vacationing family that couldn't find a car to rent, so they
took a limo--all the way back to Chicago.

3 comments:

ohdawno said...

Cost 'em $3,700. It should help that limo driver stay solvent till the roads dry out. Yeah, I always look for the silver lining. The Trib did a story about them: http://tinyurl.com/ahsnc

I'm thinking I might take the limo over a bus to "an emergency shelter at a gym on a Jackson, Miss., college campus" myself. One never knows how they're going to handle themselves in an emergency.

Mac said...

Geez--if you can afford it, I suppose. It just seems like $3700 could do a lot more good than that, in the face of this disaster

Anonymous said...

I just responded to that 'end of the month' statement on another forum. For many, many people - End of the Month also equals End of the Money. No cash, no credit, no car, no escape. I'm sure there were people who 'chose' to stay; I'm equally sure there were many people who could not leave unless they walked - and walk to where and do what when you got there? It bugs me when people run their mouths before they run their brains.