When Boatloads of Federal Money Attack ~Mike Church~In 1817, President James Madison vetoed(1) Henry Clay and John C
Calhoun’s “Bonus Bill” which would have given the Federal Government
funding and authority to begin building levees, canals and roads. In his
veto Madison wrote “The legislative powers vested in Congress are
specified and enumerated, and it does not appear that the power for
constructing canals, and improving the navigation of water courses… is
among the enumerated powers vested by the Constitution in the Government
of the United States.”
If only Madison had been around in 1858 to stop Congress from siccing
the Corps of Engineers on the levees of the Mississippi River(2), LSU
would have a million more dollars and professor Ivor van Heerden might
still be employed there. You see, after Katrina, van Heerden, as deputy
director of LSU’s Hurricane Center looked into the levees that failed
and concluded there was “catastrophic structural failure”, this after
warning(3) in 2003 that the city was doomed if the right storm surge hit
her.
~Hat Tweet @lunanola ~Today at LA Music Factory @ 210 Decatur: One Mind Brass Band @ Noon; Smoking Time Jazz Club @ 1 PM; Billy Iuso @ 2 PM! Johnny Sansone w/ Anders Osborne, Stanton Moore, & Robert Mercurio @ 3 PM! Dukes of Dixieland @ 4 PM, 
~The 20-song CD includes a poster map with a special Junior Ranger
game, and a booklet with the lyrics to each song, so kids can sing
along. Proceeds from the sales of Songs for Junior Rangers support
educational and interpretive programs in national parks. Along
with Ranger Jeff Wolin, Rangers Matt Hampsey and Bruce Barnes from New Orleans Jazz National Historical Park appear on the album, as well as
many talented New Orleans musicians. The songs cover a variety of subjects, including elk in “Wapiti
Hoppity,” caving in “Spelunka Funka,” glaciers in “Frozen Bulldozin’,”
and Mount Rushmore in “Four Presidents.” Musical elements include hip
hop, reggae, blues, jazz, rock, zydeco, funk, and even polka. The CD was
made possible through a grant from the National Park Foundation and is
distributed and marketed by Eastern National.
