Greg Palast has become a staple on left-wing radio talk shows (are there any left?) and a frequent talking head in the recent batch of muckraking Bush-bashing documentaries ("Unprecedented," "Orwell Rolls in his Grave," etc.). Following his directorial debut with "Bush Family Fortunes," Palast now offers a new "investigation" of Hurricane Katrina called "Big Easy to Big Empty." Oddly enough, Palast doesn´t take a directing credit (none is listed) but rather lists the film as being "written and reported" by him.
The opposite of Spike Lee´s epic four-hour-plus ´When the Levees Broke," "Big Easy" clocks in at a mere 27 minutes, though we have graciously been granted 60 minutes of bonus features to make the DVD worthwhile. Leading up to the one year anniversary of Katrina´s devastation, Palast decides to poke around to dig up some of the facts not necessarily reported on CNN or Fox.
Palast has a simple question he wants answered: What the hell went wrong? Instead of just blaming Bush (though he does plenty of that), Palast learns that a company called Innovative Emergency Management (IEM) was contracted by the government to help coordinate the evacuation of New Orleans. Problem is nobody seems to have heard of IEM before the hurricane hit, and any record of an actual plan to evacuate New Orleans seems to have disappeared along with half the city´s population. According to Palast, the only proven "experience" IEM had in managing hurricane evacuations consists of a strong record of donations to the Republican Party; no wonder on whether anyone at the company previously judged Arabian show horses. This would seem to be another stunning example of the Bush administration´s catastrophic efforts to privatize federal government (see also Blackwater in Iraq). Unfortunately, Palast doesn´t back up his allegations with much substance, settling instead for a shallow Michael Moore style confrontation at IEM headquarters which amounts to little more than "Nyah nyah, you suck."
Far more intriguing, though also not fully substantiated, is the claim that the city and state government has used Katrina as an excuse to gentrify the city. There´s a lot of prime real estate in New Orleans, particularly some public housing not too far from the French quarter that would be worth an awful lot of money if only the bothersome (mostly black) tenants could be removed from the equation. This appears to be exactly what has happened in many cases, as many residents have not been allowed to return even to homes that weren´t damaged at all by the flood waters. Palast insinuates that these public projects are destined to be future condominiums for much richer, much whiter buyers. Hard evidence is still lacking, but there is little doubt that a direct correlation exists in the new Crescent City: the whiter and wealthier the section of town, the more it has already been rebuilt.Nope still sputters for the disenfranchised. Palast meets Malik Rahim who heads the grassroots Common Ground Relief project which inspires and unites residents to work together as a collective to rebuild their homes and neighborhoods without waiting for help from local or federal government, help that may not come for years if ever. Common Ground´s motto is: "Solidarity, not charity." Whether solidarity is enough to repair the damage wrought by nature and by bureaucratic incompetence remains to be seen, but the effort is an inspiring one.
Palast spends too much time mugging for the camera, and not enough providing concrete evidence to back his allegations. However, the details about IEM are a valuable addition to the burgeoning Katrina docu-file, and the charges of opportunistic gentrification demand further investigation.
The opposite of Spike Lee´s epic four-hour-plus ´When the Levees Broke," "Big Easy" clocks in at a mere 27 minutes, though we have graciously been granted 60 minutes of bonus features to make the DVD worthwhile. Leading up to the one year anniversary of Katrina´s devastation, Palast decides to poke around to dig up some of the facts not necessarily reported on CNN or Fox.
Palast has a simple question he wants answered: What the hell went wrong? Instead of just blaming Bush (though he does plenty of that), Palast learns that a company called Innovative Emergency Management (IEM) was contracted by the government to help coordinate the evacuation of New Orleans. Problem is nobody seems to have heard of IEM before the hurricane hit, and any record of an actual plan to evacuate New Orleans seems to have disappeared along with half the city´s population. According to Palast, the only proven "experience" IEM had in managing hurricane evacuations consists of a strong record of donations to the Republican Party; no wonder on whether anyone at the company previously judged Arabian show horses. This would seem to be another stunning example of the Bush administration´s catastrophic efforts to privatize federal government (see also Blackwater in Iraq). Unfortunately, Palast doesn´t back up his allegations with much substance, settling instead for a shallow Michael Moore style confrontation at IEM headquarters which amounts to little more than "Nyah nyah, you suck."
Far more intriguing, though also not fully substantiated, is the claim that the city and state government has used Katrina as an excuse to gentrify the city. There´s a lot of prime real estate in New Orleans, particularly some public housing not too far from the French quarter that would be worth an awful lot of money if only the bothersome (mostly black) tenants could be removed from the equation. This appears to be exactly what has happened in many cases, as many residents have not been allowed to return even to homes that weren´t damaged at all by the flood waters. Palast insinuates that these public projects are destined to be future condominiums for much richer, much whiter buyers. Hard evidence is still lacking, but there is little doubt that a direct correlation exists in the new Crescent City: the whiter and wealthier the section of town, the more it has already been rebuilt.Nope still sputters for the disenfranchised. Palast meets Malik Rahim who heads the grassroots Common Ground Relief project which inspires and unites residents to work together as a collective to rebuild their homes and neighborhoods without waiting for help from local or federal government, help that may not come for years if ever. Common Ground´s motto is: "Solidarity, not charity." Whether solidarity is enough to repair the damage wrought by nature and by bureaucratic incompetence remains to be seen, but the effort is an inspiring one.
Palast spends too much time mugging for the camera, and not enough providing concrete evidence to back his allegations. However, the details about IEM are a valuable addition to the burgeoning Katrina docu-file, and the charges of opportunistic gentrification demand further investigation.
Greg Palast has become a staple on left-wing radio talk shows (are there any left?) and a frequent talking head in the recent batch of muckraking Bush-bashing documentaries ("Unprecedented," "Orwell Rolls in his Grave," etc.). Following his directorial debut with "Bush Family Fortunes," Palast now offers a new "investigation" of Hurricane Katrina called "Big Easy to Big Empty." Oddly enough, Palast doesn´t take a directing credit (none is listed) but rather lists the film as being "written and reported" by him.
The opposite of Spike Lee´s epic four-hour-plus ´When the Levees Broke," "Big Easy" clocks in at a mere 27 minutes, though we have graciously been granted 60 minutes of bonus features to make the DVD worthwhile. Leading up to the one year anniversary of Katrina´s devastation, Palast decides to poke around to dig up some of the facts not necessarily reported on CNN or Fox.
Palast has a simple question he wants answered: What the hell went wrong? Instead of just blaming Bush (though he does plenty of that), Palast learns that a company called Innovative Emergency Management (IEM) was contracted by the government to help coordinate the evacuation of New Orleans. Problem is nobody seems to have heard of IEM before the hurricane hit, and any record of an actual plan to evacuate New Orleans seems to have disappeared along with half the city´s population. According to Palast, the only proven "experience" IEM had in managing hurricane evacuations consists of a strong record of donations to the Republican Party; no wonder on whether anyone at the company previously judged Arabian show horses. This would seem to be another stunning example of the Bush administration´s catastrophic efforts to privatize federal government (see also Blackwater in Iraq). Unfortunately, Palast doesn´t back up his allegations with much substance, settling instead for a shallow Michael Moore style confrontation at IEM headquarters which amounts to little more than "Nyah nyah, you suck."
Far more intriguing, though also not fully substantiated, is the claim that the city and state government has used Katrina as an excuse to gentrify the city. There´s a lot of prime real estate in New Orleans, particularly some public housing not too far from the French quarter that would be worth an awful lot of money if only the bothersome (mostly black) tenants could be removed from the equation. This appears to be exactly what has happened in many cases, as many residents have not been allowed to return even to homes that weren´t damaged at all by the flood waters. Palast insinuates that these public projects are destined to be future condominiums for much richer, much whiter buyers. Hard evidence is still lacking, but there is little doubt that a direct correlation exists in the new Crescent City: the whiter and wealthier the section of town, the more it has already been rebuilt.Nope still sputters for the disenfranchised. Palast meets Malik Rahim who heads the grassroots Common Ground Relief project which inspires and unites residents to work together as a collective to rebuild their homes and neighborhoods without waiting for help from local or federal government, help that may not come for years if ever. Common Ground´s motto is: "Solidarity, not charity." Whether solidarity is enough to repair the damage wrought by nature and by bureaucratic incompetence remains to be seen, but the effort is an inspiring one.
Palast spends too much time mugging for the camera, and not enough providing concrete evidence to back his allegations. However, the details about IEM are a valuable addition to the burgeoning Katrina docu-file, and the charges of opportunistic gentrification demand further investigation.
The opposite of Spike Lee´s epic four-hour-plus ´When the Levees Broke," "Big Easy" clocks in at a mere 27 minutes, though we have graciously been granted 60 minutes of bonus features to make the DVD worthwhile. Leading up to the one year anniversary of Katrina´s devastation, Palast decides to poke around to dig up some of the facts not necessarily reported on CNN or Fox.
Palast has a simple question he wants answered: What the hell went wrong? Instead of just blaming Bush (though he does plenty of that), Palast learns that a company called Innovative Emergency Management (IEM) was contracted by the government to help coordinate the evacuation of New Orleans. Problem is nobody seems to have heard of IEM before the hurricane hit, and any record of an actual plan to evacuate New Orleans seems to have disappeared along with half the city´s population. According to Palast, the only proven "experience" IEM had in managing hurricane evacuations consists of a strong record of donations to the Republican Party; no wonder on whether anyone at the company previously judged Arabian show horses. This would seem to be another stunning example of the Bush administration´s catastrophic efforts to privatize federal government (see also Blackwater in Iraq). Unfortunately, Palast doesn´t back up his allegations with much substance, settling instead for a shallow Michael Moore style confrontation at IEM headquarters which amounts to little more than "Nyah nyah, you suck."
Far more intriguing, though also not fully substantiated, is the claim that the city and state government has used Katrina as an excuse to gentrify the city. There´s a lot of prime real estate in New Orleans, particularly some public housing not too far from the French quarter that would be worth an awful lot of money if only the bothersome (mostly black) tenants could be removed from the equation. This appears to be exactly what has happened in many cases, as many residents have not been allowed to return even to homes that weren´t damaged at all by the flood waters. Palast insinuates that these public projects are destined to be future condominiums for much richer, much whiter buyers. Hard evidence is still lacking, but there is little doubt that a direct correlation exists in the new Crescent City: the whiter and wealthier the section of town, the more it has already been rebuilt.Nope still sputters for the disenfranchised. Palast meets Malik Rahim who heads the grassroots Common Ground Relief project which inspires and unites residents to work together as a collective to rebuild their homes and neighborhoods without waiting for help from local or federal government, help that may not come for years if ever. Common Ground´s motto is: "Solidarity, not charity." Whether solidarity is enough to repair the damage wrought by nature and by bureaucratic incompetence remains to be seen, but the effort is an inspiring one.
Palast spends too much time mugging for the camera, and not enough providing concrete evidence to back his allegations. However, the details about IEM are a valuable addition to the burgeoning Katrina docu-file, and the charges of opportunistic gentrification demand further investigation.
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