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Well, we have tenative dates that will avoid conflicts at Venice Marina. Arrive Sunday, July 27th and leave Sat. Aug. 1. Or any portion thereof. We have access to a huge barge houseboat in Venice Marina that will sleep 14, has a commercail kitchen and a real big lounge and deck. For those of ya'll familiar with the place, its the Superior Oil houseboat sitting right by Hi Pocket's old houseboat. Cost on the houseboat is about $75 p.p. a night. My son says he can line up someone to cook for us. Venice Marina rents FEMA trailers for about $150 a night that will sleep 6 if they are VERY close friends, better for 3.

This will be a cost-splitting deal for lodging, food - and boat expenses for those coming without a boat.

We will have to pull the trigger within about 2 weeks on the accomidations, so I need a show of hands with some commitments soon.

What ya'll think?

UV

UV,
We're in and I have dockage covered & sleeping quarters handle for the crew of the Short Circuit (4), will be dock right where it is right now about 3 houseboat camps over from Andy's Topaz. Andy showed me the camp/houseboat that your talking about, very nice guys, I have stayed in the Fema trailers also and about (4) persons max in my book, 6-persons is max but like Vic says, "Close Friends Only".

DQ

We are thinking (1) vessel and (4) souls. We will all tenatively plan to sleep on dry land each night.

I am confirming dates now.

Count me in too, unless a huricane blows thru then.

Andre' - you be's our official worry wart, consider it your job to warn us way ahead of time. See ya Wed nite at Mansour's with the Brides.

UV

UV, count me in for the whole week. I plan on bringing a boat to fish and stay on. gonna have to beat the Hyena boys one more time. I 'd be happy to do a shrimp boil and/or make a pot of gumbo too.

The Broke Dick, Money's in the Iron, Surgeon General of the UVI

Matt

Matt Holcomb wrote:UV, count me in for the whole week. I plan on bringing a boat to fish and stay on. gonna have to beat the Hyena boys one more time. I 'd be happy to do a shrimp boil and/or make a pot of gumbo too.

The Broke Dick, Money's in the Iron, Surgeon General of the UVI

Matt

Matt, Sorry to hear that the syphilis is so far advanced. What's the next to go after mental acuity?

I can't remember what's next.

I found the answer Matt. You will apparently be cutting the top off your boat to convert it to an express.

Now that right there is funny, I don't care who you are........unless you're Timmy.....

You know it's a good thing people call me, when your kicking me around, so I can defend my, errrrrrrrrrrrr, never mind. jackass

thuddddddd wrote:You know it's a good thing people call me, when your kicking me around, so I can defend my, errrrrrrrrrrrr, never mind. jackass

You are missing the point Timmmaaay. For two Texans to team up on a yankee, well that's pure love my friend. If we didn't kid you, we don't give a shit about ya. Sorry to hijack UV, I'm all hopped up on Jack Daniels, Sudafed and Tony Chachere's, I just got all excited thinking about the possibilities of a reunion, and kicking UVI SG's ass again. Back to the roll call....

UV

I will be located just downstream on SW Pass at about mile marker 17 building a containment island for one of the oil companies who lost some storage tanks and are now cleaning up hydro carbons by creating a steel walled containment island.

I would sure like to fish a day or two, I have access to one of the Crew Boats and we could throw some rods off the side and drag hooks around for the day I may even be able to get some pipe welded on for outriggers although it would be one of those cut them off to dock kind of deals (coonass sport fishin).

I have a place to stay (one of the tugs). Can I sign up for one of the numerous "also fished" spots in UV 8.5?

I finally got around to reading the decision handed down by the Louisiana district court in the citizen’s class action suit against the Corps of Engineers over the failed levees. It is without a doubt one of the most profound and articulate statements ever fostered by a federal court. I know it should probably go in the Political Section but I am putting it in here because all of us need to take to heart the insight into the future given by this court.


UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
EASTERN DISTRICT OF LOUISIANA
IN RE KATRINA CANAL BREACHES CIVIL ACTION

CONSOLIDATED LITIGATION

January 30th 2007

Conclusion of the Court

While the United States government is immune for legal liability for the defalcations alleged herein, it is not free, nor should it be, from posterity’s judgment concerning its failure to accomplish what was its task. The citizens of each and every city in this great nation have come to depend on their government and its agencies to perform certain tasks which have been assigned to federal agencies by laws passed by Congress and overseen by the Executive Branch. It should not be unreasonable for those citizens to rely on their agents, whom they pay through their taxes, to perform the tasks assigned in a timely and competent way. However, because of § 702c, there is neither incentive, nor punishment to insure that our own government performs these tasks correctly. There is no provision in the law which allows this Court to avoid the immunity provided by § 702c; gross incompetence receives the same treatment as simple mistake.

This story–fifty years in the making–is heart-wrenching. Millions of dollars were squandered in building a levee system with respect to these outfall canals which was known to be inadequate by the Corps’ own calculations. The byzantine funding and appropriation methods for this undertaking were in large part a cause of this failure. In addition, the failure of Congress to oversee the building of the LPV and the failure to recognize that it was flawed from practically the outset–using the wrong calculations for storm surge, failing to take into account subsidence, failing to take into account issues of the strength of canal walls at the 17th Street Canal while allowing the scouring out of the canal–rest with those who are charged with oversight.

The cruel irony here is that the Corps cast a blind eye, either as a result of executive directives or bureaucratic parsimony, to flooding caused by drainage needs and until otherwise directed by Congress, solely focused on flooding caused by storm surge. Nonetheless, damage caused by either type of flooding is ultimately borne by the same public fisc. Such egregious
myopia is a caricature of bureaucratic inefficiency.

It is not within this Court’s power to address the wrongs committed. It is hopefully within the citizens of the United States’ power to address the failures of our laws and agencies. If not, it is certain that another tragedy such as this will occur again. Accordingly, IT IS ORDERED that the United States' Motion to Dismiss with respect to Counts I-III and VI-VII of the Superseding Master Consolidated Class Action Complaint and to Strike the Remaining Counts (Doc. 6380) IS GRANTED

Clay

Clay, consider you-self in.

UV

My boat's still layed up in my driveway. Can't see her being ready in time. I'm in Belle Chasse, 2 blocks behind Jeanfreau's hardware store. Come check her out -- bring sandpaper.

Tom wrote:[
You are missing the point Timmmaaay. For two Texans to team up on a yankee, well that's pure love my friend. If we didn't kid you, we don't give a shit about ya. Sorry to hijack UV, I'm all hopped up on Jack Daniels, Sudafed and Tony Chachere's, I just got all excited thinking about the possibilities of a reunion, and kicking UVI SG's ass again. Back to the roll call....

Course I know'd that. usez guyz are the bestest.
sides you also own the real"best boat ever built" with the sturgen general running a close second.Butttttttttttttttt best day boat catagory clearly goes to the RLDT

Marshall Mahoney wrote:My boat's still layed up in my driveway. Can't see her being ready in time. I'm in Belle Chasse, 2 blocks behind Jeanfreau's hardware store. Come check her out -- bring sandpaper.

Any progress since this.....?

Mike,

Marshall I think has it ready to paint, He has made some good progress since I seen it last year own my way down to Venice Marina. I think he has posted some pictures of it since.

R,
DQ

How did that happen?

Nic

katrina

Yea. Katrina. That bitch. One would think that I would be further along with repairs than I am, but with kids and baseball, then football, then baseball again, and work...

I have finished the fiberglass repairs (from the Katrina damage, but have to work on the osmotic blisters that I discovered after soda blasting the bottom). In the process, have become immune to fiberglass itch. I am in the sanding and priming stage. I finished rough priming the bridge and just started sanding the topsides in preparation for priming. As I believe Mikey said, "I'm 75% finished but have another 80% to go."

I took these pictures this morning (I hope the link works!)

http://share.shutterfly.com/action/welc ... nQ&notag=1

thats a hell of a patch...i hope i get to fish on her again someday.....obviously a lucky boat

We don't have enough guys committed to rent the big houseboat, so it's FEMA trailers for shore accomidations for those not sleeping on boats. We will do some of our own cooking (thanks, Surgeon General) and eat at the Venice Marina restaurant otherwise.

I've got my son, Capt. Brent, working on slips for the 5 or 6 boats that are committed.

le bon ton roule'

UV

Vic,
Please add me to the list. Weather permitting, I'll bring Queen of Hearts from Pensacola.

-Kel