The Democratic National Convention is only the centerpiece of a much larger amorphous collection of panels, symposiums, media tents, and protests. Homebase for us bloggers is the "Big Tent". Here at the Big tent, a media tent setup by Kos, we have access to wi-fi and precious laptop power. Upon arrival to the Big Tent, I was approached by a representative of Oxfam America, who invited me to a round table discussion on Hurricane Katrina Recovery.
At 1:00 today I attended an event held at the 7th floor of the Denver Public Library on Hurricane Katrina recovery. Ted Koppel was the host of the round table discussion including luminaries such as Senator Mary Landrieu of Louisiana, CNN's Donna Brazile, Raymond C. Offenheiser (President of Oxfam America, and Mary Troupe who is the Executive Director of the Coalition for Citizens with Disabilities in Mississippi among others. Also in attendance but not in the round table was Ethel Kennedy and Kerry Kennedy, both of whom sat right next to me.
I arrived about 10 minutes late after walking about 2 miles to get there from the Big Tent. What became apparent upon arrival was how serious this event was. The security guard downstairs was convinced that I was mistaken when I told him that I had RSVP'd. He reluctantly lead me to the elevator and escorted me upstairs.
The nine participants along with the moderator were positioned around a large round table. Against the wall were about 15-20 of us media including the Kennedy ladies. Senator Landrieu was speaking when I quietly took my seat in the corner. Ted Koppel started by calling on the guests individually to open the discussion. After speaking, more times than not, another panelist would respond. Pretty soon Koppel was just directing traffic for the lively discussion.
There was so much content worthy of posting on this blog, that I am going to break it down into several posts.
One post is going to be about how Governor Haley Barbour has abused his power to the detriment of thousands of victims as well as the state of Louisiana. Senator Landrieu was angry about the port expansion project. Ted Koppel was in disbelief over how a Governor can divert funds appropriated by Congress to use in his own discretion.
Another post will be about the wetlands of Louisiana that are rapidly disappearing. These wetlands server as a speed bump for hurricanes.
Another post will center around a spirited discussion between several of the panelists on who is to blame, what should we be worried about, and what can we do to get things right next time.
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