August Memorial

As we have fallen into August some thoughts come to my small brain about the month. That is, I was thinking about the infamous event that occurred on August 29th, and continued thereafter for weeks.. For all that live in my city the most infamous August day was August 29th, 2005. That's the anniversary of the greatest single (in money terms) total property destruction via a natural disaster, in the history of the world.
It's the anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, destroying not only my city, but most of the coastal areas of Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama. Strange thing though, the crazy politicians here are marking that anniversary this year with a memorial that seems more like a party (Well, New Orleans has always been known as the party city) than a solemn remembrance of the lives and property lost last year.
Can you believe the city will have jazz band with a concert to memorialize the event? There will be a festival of sorts, a party with food and dancing on the first anniversary of the tragedy, even a fireworks display was planned (but that has already been canceled due to public outrage). It seems callous and disrespectful to those who lost loved ones or their homes. But the this reflects the total lack of competence and pathos of the semi recovery following the storm. Fortunately, I will be out of town and not have to witness that spectacle.
Mom must have been right when she told us all to wash our hands regularly. Dirty hands can be a problem, as in the case of a "shaky" hand question. You see, in Mount Pleasant, Michigan recently the case of the "handshake assault" was finally resolved when a jury acquitted a man who had been charged with assault after shaking hands with the "victim". Authorities said an assistant prosecutor, police officer and courtroom bailiff got sick after shaking hands with him. John Curates Ridgeway, 42, was seen pulling out a vial of liquid and rubbing his hands with the contents after a December jury trial in which he was found guilty of driving without insurance. The assistant prosecutor, Amanda Swanson, became suspicious and tried to avoid contact when Ridgeway offered his hand for a handshake. But John insisted on and did shake hands with he, the officer who arrested her and a bailiff of the court. The three got sick within an hour or so, showing 24 hour symptoms that included nausea, headaches, numbness and tingling. Two of the three eventually went to the hospital.
But John said the substance he put on his hands was just olive oil. John testified that he used oil to anoint "corrupt man will just lay down on buildings" and that it was meant to rid the buildings of demons.
Alas! He was acquitted Friday of assaulting a police officer and two counts of assaulting a public officer. If convicted, he could have faced six years in prison, and I assume he would have had plenty of free time for hand washing while in jail.