Featured
Katrina
Sugar Editorial Picks
The New Orleans 100: A Look at the Good That's Happened Since Katrina
The New Orleans 100 is a worldwide initiative to "highlight and encourage discussion among millions about 100 of the most innovative and world-changing ideas to take root in the city since Katrina." Creative maverick think tank All Day Buffet wanted to combat the negative press New Orleans receives in mainstream media by spotlighting the best things happening in the city, and let me tell you, it wasn't hard. There's a wealth of inspiring projects going on these days in the Crescent City in the worlds of art and architecture, culture, music, entrepreneurship, education, non-profit, and social innovation.
Other Search Results
New Orleans Locals Still Homeless After Katrina
A unique homelessness situation confronts post-Katrina New Orleans. A recent survey conducted by advocacy groups shows that a majority of the homeless were residents of New Orleans before the hurricane, and lost their jobs and homes as a result.
Figures cited in today's New York Times include:
- 86 percent of homeless are from the New Orleans area.
- 60 percent cite Hurricane Katrina as the cause of their homelessness, while 30 percent said they received assistance from FEMA at one time.
- 80 percent have at least one physical disability, 58 percent have had some kind of addiction, 40 percent are mentally ill, and 19 percent deal with all three issues.
- The number of homeless has doubled since Katrina, according to rough estimates.
Katrina Survivors Required to Repay Rebuilding Money
In another blow to Hurricane Katrina survivors who've struggled to rebuild their lives, some are receiving crushing phone calls — they may have to refund thousands of dollars of grant money they received to rebuild. Apparently in the rush to get aid to homeowners in need, over-payments were rampant.
The contractor who was hired to distribute payments from the Road Home grant program has just uncovered 1,000 to 5,000 cases that it says will require collection effort.
Headline: Katrina Victims Booted Out of FEMA Trailers
Government health officials are now strongly recommending residents still living in FEMA trailers following Hurricane Katrina, be relocated. Due to dangerously high levels of formaldehyde present in the FEMA trailers used for the past two years as temporary housing, the CDC is issuing a warning stating that the trailers are toxic enough to cause burning eyes and breathing problems for people who have asthma or sensitivity to air pollutants.
Fumes from 519 trailer and mobile homes in Louisiana and Mississippi average five times the level that people are exposed to in most modern homes, according to the US Centers For Disease Control and Prevention.
Did FEMA Withhold Health Info About Katrina Trailers?
40,000 FEMA trailers are still being lived in following Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. This week, the House science committee alleged that FEMA "ignored, hid and manipulated government research on the potential impact of long-term exposure to formaldehyde" directly impacting those still calling FEMA trailers, home.
The crux of the committee's argument is that FEMA chose to disregard the first opinion they received from the first Center for Disease Control and Prevention expert, which stated that there is no "safe" level of formaldehyde exposure, and that any exposure can pose a cancer risk.
Bad Lieutenant: Good Cop Gone Nuts
Nicolas Cage has said, "There's a very fine line between Method actor and schizophrenic." In Werner Herzog's Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans, he teeters that line maniacally, with an ever-increasing slur and crooked swagger. Cage plays Terence McDonagh, a detective in post-Katrina New Orleans investigating a drug-related murder and his personal threshold for cocaine and heroin.
The Last Decade in Less Than Seven Minutes
Believe it or not, we're about to start a new decade in less than two months. That means we can all get ready for the barrage of recaps about the last 10 years, which have truly seen a lot of strange and sad events. This has been a decade dominated by terrorism, wars, Terri Schiavo, Hurricane Katrina, and gay marriage bans.
Say What? Brad Pitt For Mayor!
"I'm running on the gay marriage, no religion, legalization and taxation of marijuana platform. I don't have a chance."
— Brad Pitt joked on the Today show this morning about running for mayor of the Louisiana town where he has been leading on Hurricane Katrina reconstruction efforts.
Link Time!!!
- Jared Leto has a new hair raising look — D-Listed
- Tyra gets a nutritionist to get her shape in shape — FitSugar
- Tiffani Theissen expecting her first baby — Us Weekly
- Top ten celebrities that should join Twitter — PopEater
- Rihanna visits MTV studios in NYC — JustJared
- Daniel Craig is still rocking a moustache — Lainey Gossip
- Levi Johnston arrives in NYC to shoot Playgirl — Pink Is the New Blog
- Eva Mendes needs a little help from Zoe — Egotastic
- A-Rod has interesting taste in artwork — The Superficial
- Katrina Bowden is red hot! — Hollywood Tuna
- Joanna Krupa needs a break from dancing — Hollywood Rag
- Mariah Carey and Kim Kardashian battle it out — cityrag
- Tori Amos graces us with a midwinter track — popbytes
- Here's Ben Affleck on Curb Your Enthusiasm last night! — goldenfiddle
First of Brad Pitt's Make It Right Houses Done in New Orleans
Three years after Hurricane Katrina, the first homes built in by Brad Pitt's Make It Right rebuilding project are complete. Touring the building site in the Lower 9th Ward with Angelina and kids in tow this week, one ecstatic grandmother gave Brad a huge hug. She said of her new electric yellow house, "Honey, this is like heaven on earth."
More on CasaSugar
Fall Award Season
Top Brands
Notify Jeans
Passionata
Crocs