Friday, April 07, 2006

return to New Orleans?

I can fully understand why people who fled the flooding of New Orleans long to return to their homes. But is that necessarily the best thing for them? The poor miss the support of their social networks, of course. But there is also the problem that people, especially children, living in a neighborhood where everybody is poor, learn to be poor. New Orleans had a low average standard of living before the storm. Some people might be better off in the long run in a more prosperous area, where they can get better-paying jobs. I realize hypothesizing about a possibly better future doesn't help people who are grieving over their losses now. I myself had to relocate, leaving my friends, in order to find work awhile back. lost my house to repossession when I couldn't find a job several years ago. I hope for the best for the victims of Katrina and Rita.

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