12.17.2008

what i'm watching: when the levees broke

If the storm doesn't kill me the government will
I've got to get that out of my head
It's a new day today and the coffee is strong
I've finally got some rest

So a man's put to task and challenges
I was taught to hold my head high
Collect what is mine,
Make the best of what today has

Houston is filled with promise
Laredo is a beautiful place
Galveston sings like that song that I loved
Its meaning has not been erased

And so there are claims forgiven
And so there are things that are gone

Houston is filled with promise
Laredo is a beautiful place
Galveston sings like that song that I loved
Its meaning has not been erased

And some things, they fall to the wayside
Their memory is yet to be still
Belief has not failed me
And so I am put to the test

"Houston," Michael Stipe, Peter Buck, Mike Mills


We just finished watching "When The Levees Broke," Spike Lee's documentary about the destruction of New Orleans and its people after the failure of the levees during Hurricane Katrina.

I don't know why it took me so long to see this movie. Perhaps it's because August 29, 2005 was our last day in New York City, and August 30, 2005 was the day we moved to Canada. When we plugged back into the world and came up for air, we struggled to grasp what had happened.

Or perhaps it's because I knew how much it would hurt. Four hours of unremitting pain, and the incredible resiliency of the human spirit.

It's a great movie, very well made, by far Lee's best and most important film. I always think I'm the last person to see any movie, but if there's anyone else out there who hasn't seen it yet, do.

A hurricane: Bush, FEMA, insurance companies, racism, neglect and the Army Corps of Engineers. If you want to know why I came to hate the country of my birth, watch this movie. But keep a box of tissues handy.

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