May 2, 2010

New Orleans: The Emotional Hit

By Michael Shaw

(Patrick Semansky/AP. April 29, 2010)

If the oil slick’s physical threat to New Orleans isn’t devastating enough, the  looming emotional impact extends far beyond that.  This half-submerged car in Venice, Louisiana — photographed Thursday — is not just a monument and a daily reminder of the destruction of Katrina, it’s now a potential repeat-casualty to this new environmental cataclysm.

To the extent the vehicle represents the exposed and compromised psyche of the region, the question is, how much more can NOLA and the Gulf region absorb?

Update 5pm PST:

Scott Olson/Getty Images

This photo offers still another Katrina echo, also from Venice today.