Superdome Tour

The Superdome Post-Katrina:



The Superdome renovation - which included everything from extensive roof repair to sanitizing every seat - cost $185 million: $116 million from FEMA, $41 million from the Superdome Commission, $15 million from the NFL and $13 million from the state.

The FEMA money came from funds to cover uninsured losses to state property, which is separate from funds used to reimburse individual homeowners. The Superdome is one of nearly 1,000 state-owned facilities that will receive assistance.

"This money could not have been spent in the neighborhoods," Thornton noted.

Roy Mouledous, vice president of the Broadmoor Construction Management Agency that oversaw the project, said 30 of the Dome's 35 sub-contractors were locally owned.

"We need jobs and this generated construction jobs," Mouledous said.

Abysmal as the conditions became, Thornton believes the Superdome "saved 30,000 lives" in the evacuation.

"Some would have been in their attics or rooftops," he said.

The renovation isn't complete, just football-ready. The Monday night game is only one event in the long process of hurricane recovery. In stark contrast to the Superdome, the Dominion Tower stands vacant next door, its windows still shattered. The nearby Hyatt Hotel has yet to reopen.

"The symbolism can't be overstated," Thornton said. "The citizens have lost so much, the last thing they wanted to lose was their football team and their stadium. If we can rebuild this place, there's hope for the neighborhoods."

A Tour on Sept. 11, 2006:

Baghdad Bomb Targets Holiday Shoppers

BAGHDAD, Iraq, 09/24 - A car bomb ripped through crowds of shoppers stocking up before the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, police in Baghdad said Saturday.


At least 28 people were killed and 26 others hurt in the blast at a market where people were buying gasoline and other supplies in the Baghdad Shiite stronghold of Sadr City.

Shiite Muslims will start to observe the Ramadan holiday starting Sunday, while the holy month begins Saturday for Sunnis.

People carried survivors out of the narrow, muddy streets toward ambulances in the aftermath of the attack at about 10 a.m.

College student Dhiyaa Ali told AP he found bodies and blood everywhere when he ran to help after hearing the explosion from his home.

The bomb was placed in a barrel near a gasoline tanker where people were lining up to buy fuel.

Space Travel Can Be a Dangerous Adventure

The effects of weightlessness on the human body were evident today at a welcome home event for the crew of Space Shuttle Atlantis.

Amid the festivities at Ellington Field, Houston, astronaut Heidemarie Stefanyshn-Piper fainted twice. Both times she appeared confused just before her legs began to buckle. NASA officials and fellow crew members quickly braced her fall and helped her to the ground.

Despite being a little red-faced, Stefanyshn-Piper remained in good spirits.

"Boy, if that's not a little embarrassing," she said, according to the Associate Press.

Stefanyshn-Piper is among the six member Atlantis crew that returned Thursday after a 12-day long stay in space to add a solar array to the International Space Station.

Experts say Stefanyshn-Piper's fainting spell is not unusual....
Read On....

Sri Lanka Travel Warning Upgraded

The Foreign Office is advising Britons against all travel to the north and east of Sri Lanka.
They also said Britons in these areas should "leave at the first available opportunity".

Fighting between government forces and the Tamil Tiger insurgents in these areas is fierce.

The FO had already warned visitors that there was a high threat from terrorism in Sri Lanka, with an increasing risk of Britons and other foreigners being caught up in attacks.

Israel On Alert

Reports emerging on 21 September 2006 indicate that Israeli security forces will be on the second highest level of alert for Rosh Hashana -- the Jewish New Year -- and the upcoming holidays, in light of warnings of terror attacks. Thousands of additional police, border police and soldiers will be deployed to guard transportation depots, places of entertainment and other public gathering places. Police officials have urged citizens to stay alert during the holiday season.

In another development, Jerusalem police officials have designated separate streets for Muslims and Jews during the peak hours of Friday prayers to avoid clashes during the Jewish holiday period and Ramadan. According to this arrangement, Muslims will be allocated Hagay Street, which crosses the Old City from south to north, whereas the Jews will be allocated Shalshelet Street, which crosses the Old City from west to east. Because the Jewish month of Tishrei will coincide with the Muslim month of Ramadan starting this weekend, Israeli officials fear that clashes are likely to break out between the tens of thousands of Jewish and Muslim worshippers in the Old City of Jerusalem. Israeli officials also anticipate a record number of Jewish visitors to the city where an estimated 1 million people are expected to arrive at the Western Wall on Sukkoth alone.

Perspective (Choose a Photo)

This is the first in a series of "Life In Perspective" photo comparisons.
Check back each day or so for a new one.

Home or abroad.....which photo tugs at your heartstrings or angers you the most?
They are certainly both disturbing, but the perspective is your own.
Well?


Kevin Carter’s photo of a vulture waiting for a child to die in Sudan.



A Homeless child walking the streets in Dallas, Texas.

Warning Against Thailand Travel Issued

BANGKOK, Thailand (AP) -- The United States has urged Americans to reconsider any travel to Thailand while Britain told its citizens living there to stay in their homes, after the Thai military toppled the country's prime minister in a coup.

Japan and Australia advised citizens to be extremely careful in the Thai capital, where tanks surrounded government offices, and to avoid political rallies or concentrations of military personnel.

"In light of the very uncertain political situation and apparent military-led takeover of the government, we strongly advise Australians to reconsider their need to travel to Thailand until the situation is clarified," the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade said.

It asked those already in the capital to stay at home, and monitor the media.

The U.S. Embassy, in an e-mail to its citizens living in Thailand, said that while there had been no reports of violence in the overnight coup, Americans should "monitor the situation closely, avoid any large gatherings and exercise discretion when moving about the city."

"At this point, we are not advising Americans to leave Thailand; however, Americans planning to travel to Thailand may wish to carefully consider their options before traveling until the situation becomes clearer."

Britain's Foreign Office, in a notice on its Web site, warned that movement in the capital may be curtailed due to the imposition of martial law that came as Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra was in New York attending the U.N General Assembly.

Japan and Singapore issued similar notices through their Foreign Ministries that urged nationals to remain in "safe" locations in the capital and avoid places of potential disturbances, such as the palace and government buildings.

South Korea advised its citizens against visiting Thailand, saying the situation remains "volatile."

New Zealand also warned its citizens in Thailand to be careful when moving around the city.

"Don't go sightseeing around government buildings. If a curfew is imposed -- and there is talk of a curfew -- then it should be respected," Ambassador Brook Barrington told Radio New Zealand in Wellington.

The New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it was assessing whether to change its advisory for Thailand.