If the levees were going to break, at least it was after the main part of Katrina had passed -- which meant that rescue efforts were able to get going, that people didn't have to flee their houses into hurricane weather and get hit by flying debris. It sucks, but the important thing is that as many lives weren't lost.

The governor's giving a news conference now. She looks pretty terrible.

Dana, are you watching it online?

I know I'm being picky, but if they're going to wank this particular issue, for me at least, they need to be a little more careful with the way they present it.

I agree. And if he knew that he needed the insulin blocker, why didn't he arrange for it sooner. Or did he think getting regular insulin shots for a month wasn't dangerous? Again, I wish he was a better actor and we could tell when he planned something and when he's winging it. So far, he's no Jack Bauer.

Dana, are you watching it online?

Yeah, there's a streaming feed from wwltv.com, although they've lost the press conference footage. They're supposed to go back to it in a bit.

[link]

A preliminary map of the damage.

Okay, thanks. I just found the live coverage. They're saying the water levels are still rising in the Metro NOLA area.

Yeah. The anchors on WWL are doing very well, but they're obviously upset.

Now it looks like the water is gunning for the French Quarter, right down Canal St. They thought it would have started to abate by now. There are several fires too, and emergency crews can't get to them. Everything east of the Intercoastal canal, from the 9th Ward down is under like 10 feet of water.

Dana, my thoughts are with you.

In completely shallow and hopefully distracting news, Apple is apparently partnering with Motorola to create an iPod cellphone.

The development marks a melding of two of the digital era's most popular devices, the cellphone and the iPod, which has become largely synonymous with the concept of downloading songs from the Internet or transferring them from compact discs.

Roger Entner, a telecommunications analyst with Ovum, a market research firm, said he had been told by an industry executive that the new phone, to be made by Motorola, would be marketed by Cingular Wireless. Mr. Entner said it would include iTunes software, which helps power the iPod.

The software will allow people to transfer songs from a personal computer to the mobile phone, then listen to the songs, presumably through headphones. "It's a deluxe music player now on your cellphone," he said of the device.