Stormin' into New Orleans

"I don't understand...you came all the way from Israel just to see the Saints?" – time after time I was asked by surprised New Orleans residents to explain what are my business in their decaying city. You can understand their amazement. In the US the city is still mentioned with regard to hurricane Katrina, but not a lot of Americans still occupy their mind with thoughts about it's wreckage, people and football team. Today, a year and four months after the storm.

Once upon of time, things were different. New Orleans was known as the nightlife capitol of the US. The city that care gorgot, they used to call it. That's how it was in the French Quarter, between the Jazz concert and the strip clubs of Bourbon street – Sodom and Amora of America. The alcohol, drugs and sex all over made you forget any care, worry or the wife that stayed behind with the Kids at home. And then Katrina came and changed everything. No only that the care showed it face in New Orleans, since those terrible days, it seems it was the city itself which was forgotten.

Congressional hearings, civil protests and even the well spoken documentary by Spike Lee didn't really managed to attract the attention of the government to the rebuilding process. Although they try to convinse everybody that the Big Easy is back, the scars on it's bleeding streets indicates there is a crisis going on. That's the way it goes when you have Iraq and Afghanistan on the top of your agenda. In our mother empire it's not accustomed to act according to the principal of your poor – first. And George W. Bush knows that in the neglected Louisiana metropolin there are a lots of poor, this year more than ever.

The city is ruined, half of its residents are still refugees all over the country, but the government keeps on with its invisible hand policy, which fits well with it's capitalism principles. In the end, they believe in the White House, everything will fall into its place. The hand is invisible, so is the pocket it needs get money from. The simple people needs to start up their life again with charity and yeah…on the refuge the Saints supplies – Hope, something it need more than money.

I also spent a considerable amount of money on plane ticket and hotel in order to get to New Orleans for the second time in my life and have a chance to watch the Saints in the Superdome – a dream that lasted six years until his fulfillment, six years since I became a die hard fan of the team. Just like that, a result of an unexplained neurotic episode.

Not as in my case, you could attribute the love of the local healthy fans to their local loyalty. There is no other logical reason to relate to the biggest loser in NFL's history. Today they don't any choice left. All of New Orleans look up to the Saints, because they are their only bouy in the pool of mud around them. Mud that nobody cares too much of drying.

New Orleans is a small city in American standards and after the washing it experienced, it even shrunken (only half of its 500 thousand citizens return from exile). Despite its humble territory, you can split it in two – New Orleans of above and New Orleans of down-under (and there's no correlation to Uptown/Downtown terminology). In August 29th 2005 the divide became clearer when the storms water left the French Quarter alone, but wiped out the other neighborhoods, shattering them completely.

Today, except few puddles here and there, the city is not flooded anymore, but the destruction is apparent until today. Overwhelming the visual shocking evidence of shattered homes, are the horrible stories. Everyone has one, although lots of residents of New Orleans of down-under can't tell theirs. More than thousand killed, thousands others still missing. You also know that they won't be back anymore.

In the "Upper New Orleans" life go on, slowly though. The wealthy resident are slowly recovering their homes and businesses. Even the tourists start drizzling again through Louis Armstrong airport, and becoming mist over the beers glasses in the sleezy bars of the French Quarter, where the Neon started shining again, as well as the police cars flashing lights.

Yeah, life is good in Bourbon Street, but if you take a wrong turn, it may end. Crossed the border between Upper and Down-under New Orleans and you might find yourself washed away through the bare sewage of drugs and crime struck Canal street.

In spite of what the authorities try to show with their campaigns, New Orleans is still divided between reach and poor, those who reconstruct their homes and those who invaded others, between working men and murderous drug pushers, and yeah…between whites and blacks. It seems the only things that trickled into the life of all of the city population are the waters of Lake Pontchertrain and the New Orleans Saints - The destruction and hope, that everybody shares.

The Saints are an unusual case of rebuilding. Maybe that's why the local see a glimpse of hope in them, with their ability to change, renew and come out of the ruins. The rejuvenation of the football team gives to the people a lot of feel good atmosphere, but also self confidence and faith in the resurrection of the city. The Saints recovered of the toughest of their 40 years of existence, to charge into the playoffs in the best season they ever had. Now, they even looking forward to the Superbowl. If they can do that, New Orleans can surely rebirth. And the fans, they believe. Sure they believe, as the bunch of signs show from every house or store: "We Believe!".

Three months ago, nobody believed in the Saints. After a catastrophic season they experienced in the shadows of Katrina's clouds, nobody had a reason the believe in them, even the die-hard fans. A week before the 2005 season started, the team was forced to leave to Texas and watch their home court – the mighty Superdome – turn into a giant public shelter for the storm refugees and disintegrated from inside out.

During these days, the team was also disintegrating from one hotel to the other, between one lose, to the second to the third. With no supporting home crowd, with no minimal training conditions, the Saints finished the season with a horrendous record of 3 wins in 16 games. Rumors started to float about Tom Benson, the team owner, intentions to abandon the city and place it in San Antonio for good.

In the End, 185 million dollars that FEMA invested in the reconstruction of the Stadium, and a subtle fiscal pressure that the NFL board of directors put on Benson, brought the Saints back home for 2006. but it wasn't enough to gain the hearts of the fans.

The one that did manage to do just that, big-time, was the 42 years old new coach, Sean Payton, whom in his first year as a head coach in the demanding NFL, decided to tear apart the infrastructure that his predecessor laid, and started rebuilding – a little bit like the recovery effort of the whole city, but full steam. Payton released half of the team's roster and piled in the locker room bunch of veterans with good personalities, Ones that would be ready to devote themselves to the chronic looser, in this extreme impossible situation.

Among those new players, arrived also the new Quarterback, Drew Brees. Like New Orleans, Like the Saints, so is the 28 years old star who needed to recover himself after tearing a ligament in his throwing shoulder. That was the reason he was released by the San Diego Chargers and had some trouble finding a new team. But Payton wasn't afraid to gamble on him, two months after he got out of surgery. It was the best gamble the brilliant-bold-young coach did, one out of many. After a long recovery period, Brees led his new team to the Playoffs, as one of the best players in the league.

Brees story is one of bunch of miracles happened in the Superdome this year. Another big miracle was picking Reggie Bush second in the 2006 draft in April. The USC Running-Back was considered as one of the best gifted players to ever get out of college league, and was destined to be the first pick in the draft owned by Houston. But the Texans passed on him form unexplainable reasons. The Black and Gold blessed their uncommon good fortune, and put their hands on the bright star. Now, with a "President Bush" of their own, the local residents can give up the original one, from Washington DC.

Above all the good performance on the field, Brees leadership and Bush promise, it was their contribution to the community that stood up. Like others in the Saints organization, Brees and Bush dedicated themselves to work with helpless in the real world outside the one again protecting Superdome, and became local heros, real civil servants.

Bush surpassed it all when he put hundreds of thousands of dollars to some of the city's institutes, even before he signed his millions contract. In addition to that he leads a campaign called 'yard by yard' (yardbyyard.com) to help raise money for his new home town recovery (actually, Bush is from San Diego, California). He also put 25 presents of his 25 Jersey sales to the same cause (needless to say, his jersey is the most popular all over the US).

The Fans didn't stay apathic. They were willing to forgive and forget – the 39 previous years of ongoing failures and disappointments, the agony and broken hearts and even Benson abandoning murmurs. For the first time in the Saints history, all the season tickets were sold out even before the season started - Sold-out which is even more impressive when you think about the dramatic shriveling of the population in the last 14 months. As many as 900 thousands people are living now in the greater New Orleans – 70 thousand of them own a season ticket.

But the love of New Orleans to Saints is much wider and overwhelming than those 70 thousands fans that shakes the space trapped in the Superdome, you can feel it all over, anytime, everywhere – in Upper New Orleans and the Down-Under one.

There are literally no other conversations these days in the city. The horror stories of Katrina were replaced by arguments about the team chances in the playoffs – something nobody didn't even imagined back in the start of the season. Brees, Bush, Joe Horn, Deuce McAllister, Marques Colston and the other surprising starts took complete control on the everyday agenda.

I came to New Orleans to watch the Saints, in their last regular season game in the last day of 2006. on my way to the Superdom I was really happy to see the residents go out to the neglected streets and filling the parking lots with Hip-Hop music and barbeques smell.

People are smiling, enjoying life, surge into the gigantic stadium. Inside the atmosphere is not as calm. Tens of thousands fans are getting actively involved with the game, responding to every step, producing an unbearable sound – a chants for their messiahs, the players. A true genuine love, almost desperate. The Superdome that was altered as a shelter from the storm, became a household for the storm from within, sheltering from the frustrating silence outside.

In the end of a meaningless but very emotional game, the Saints lost 21:31 by the Carolina Panthers. It didn't change much about their chances – the team kept its position and went on to the NFC final. One win away from the Superbowl in Miami – Unbelievable.

The following day, the first one of the new year, the local newspaper The Times Picayune, opened his first 2007 edition with the headline – "Bring on the Playoffs". Touching, optimistic. One that kept on browsing through the inner pages found out that during the night there were three people getting murdered. A reminder of the bitter reality, which New Orleans is still coping with, when it wakes up of its dream, and find out it still in coma.

This article was originaly published on ynet - 13.01.07

The Bush that saved New Orleans

"I'm probably going get in a whole bunch of trouble" said Ray Nagin, New Orleans' mayor in an interview from the besieged city after hurricane Katrina. "We authorized 8 billion dollars to get to Iraq lickety-quick. After 9/11, we gave our president unprecedented powers lickety-quick to take care of New York and other places…You mean to tel mw that a place where you probably have thousands of people that have died and thousands more that are dying every day, that we can't figure out a way to authorize the resources that we need? Come on, man".

"You know, I'm not one of those drug addicts. I am thinking very clearly…I don't know whether it's the president's problem, but somebody needs to get their asses on a plane and figure it out right now…I don't want to see anybody do anymore goddamn press conferences…

"Don't tell me 40 thousands people are coming here. They're not here. It's too doggone late. Now get off your asses and do something, and let's fix the biggest goddamn crisis in the history of this country", Nagin went on and on with the blunt interview, in which he heavily criticize President George W. Bush, seeing the apocalyptic sights of the city whirl pooled by water and looters.
"I am just – I'm at a point now where it don't matter", he broke down in the end, "People are dying. They don't have home. They don't have jobs. The city of New Orleans will never be the same in this time".

A year after this overwhelming interview, It's hard to say New Orleans recovered. The fun lovin' city, the corrupted night life capitol of the US, was deserted and stayed behind with half of its citizens gone. Those who stayed are trying to resurrect their life after the horrendous destruction that the storm left behind.

Now, when melancholy and sadness all around, it seems only one thing left giving hope to the local residents – Mr Bush. No, not the hated president, god forbid...but a football player - 21 years old, Reggie Bush, whom came to the 'Big Easy' as a messiah on a white Hamer and brought a new optimistic hype with him. Something bigger than sports. Something that might pull the city from the mud she is stuck in. in every way.

They say that the Southern Louisiana's swamps is a breeding nest for mosquitoes, alligators and football players. There are a lot of football stars growing up in the area, but when it comes to the local NFL team, the New Orleans Saints, the fans community knew only disappointments. Since it was established 40 years ago, the Saints made themselves a name of chronic no-luck losers that always fails in most critical time, even if they can't be accountable for it.

Once upon of time, the local voodoo shamans claimed that the source for the failures is in the course of the deads, buried so they say under the giant Superdome. Now, when the graves are flooded and the whole city became one huge cemetery, there is no use in metaphysic explanations for the devastation of the Saints during 2005. for once, it is fully expectable.

The Saints did manage to evacuate in time in the eve of the storm, leaving to San Antonio, but left their property, heart and mind in their New Orleans' homes and in the Superdome, which became a giant shelter for the thousands of refugee, and was torn apart inside-out. For a moment it seemed as if they left their loyal fans forever.

It didn't felt that way because of the players and coaching staff, that did all they can as refugees in Texas, under impossible conditions, to give the residents a light sense of normal life. Something to look forward to, beyond the personal recovery of each and every one of them. The lack of confidence was caused because of owner Tom Benson.

The 79 years old automobile dealer, whom bought the team in 1985, signaled in the last couple of years about his intentions to take his players, bag the equipment, and leave to another city – bigger and with a better media and commercial potential. Hurricane Katrina was a one time opportunity to do it. The team left to San Antonio because of the circumstance, but if it was up to Benson, it might as well stayed there.

A flirt with San Antonio's mayor and public statements indicating disconnecting from the city, brought the biggest break of trust between Benson and New Orleansians: Nagin opened his big mouth again and demanded that the billionaire will bring the team back to the city, but to stay away from its municipal borders. The residents started their own bizarre custom and sprayed harsh slogans on furniture and refrigerators that they got out of their houses.

Benson became a persona non grate in Louisiana, but the NFL board of directors forced him back to city, since deserting it in its worst time could have serious implications of the image of the league as a whole. The Saints marched back home this year, but the fans didn't, they developed too much of a deserting anxiety. Few of those who stayed purchased season tickets for 2006. Most of them preferred to buy a Benson's voodoo puppet from the closest witch shop, so they can put pins in it.

For his good fortune of the most hated man in the south-east, it's not the hell spirits that decide his destiny. The last draft brought New Orleans a messiah in Reggie Bush. The 29th of April will be remembered as one of the most important days in Saints history. USC star, one of the best college football players of all times, fell in the hands of the Saints against all odds. Now, when the sun is flickering again through the heavy clouds that covered it, you can say it laughing out cloud that something good came out from devastation.

It's been two years that Bush is mentioned as one of the most heralded sportsman in the US. After his first year in the LA campus, it was obvious he was a unique talent. An un-human athlete with exceptional field vision. One of a kind. As in the case of Lebron James in basketball, it was well known that Bush will be a future first draft pick. After he shattered so many NCAA records, won to championship as a Trojan and a lot of personal trophies (one of them, the luxuries Heisman Trophy), there were speculations surfing up that the Houston Texans started losing games intentionally so they can have the worst record in the NFL, which means gaining the first draft pick, which means getting Reggie Bush.

But even Bush, which is known for his sharp awareness and his great instincts, couldn't predict the dramatic turn of event come draft day. The negotiations with the Texans was getting into a dead end, because of the unprecedented financial demands of his agents. In Houston's ground control, they were saying: "We have a problem", and turn to their plan B, a totally unexpected scenario: The Texans went for NC State's defensive end, Mario Williams, that didn't ask as much.

They couldn't believe it in New Orleans, but picked Bush second without hesitating. Shocked sports journalists all over the US were overwhelmed as well – It reminded them of the spooky decision the Portland Trail Blazers made in the 1984 NBA draft, picking Sam Bowie second, favoring him more than Michael Jordan.

Well...Reggie Bush is not Michal Jordan, and won't be like him. Basketball is a game of stars with international exposure, unlike football – the ultimate team sports, which has troubles gaining popularity overseas. So it happened that Bush found himself in New Orleans – a modest media market of 250 thousands people, that rediscovered their team. With the news about picking Bush, the fans flooded the ticket offices. 55 thousands season tickets were sold in only a month – a new record. Really astonishing, considering the dwindling of the city population in the last year.

In few hours Bush became the most popular celebrity in the city and during his first visit there, he got chanted everywhere he went. Even the cynical Saints fans, whom maintained their apathy, when Benson started a new page and signed coach Sean Payton and Quarterback Drew Brees, found themselves smiling and shaking hand with the owner. Hey, he's the one who will need to pay Bush millions. He has no choice. The sports hope of New Orleans is his financial opportunity.

With 62 million contract for six years, you can say that also Bush got his financial opportunity. His magic numbers on the field transferred onto millions in his bank account. And there is no one like Bush dealing with the numbers. That is the reason he was so anxious to wear the Saints number 5 jersey, even though it contradicted to league rules.

It could have been an unimportant anecdote, but in two days after the draft there were 15 thousands order for his new jerseys. Without putting a number on them, stores couldn't deliver the goods. Bush asked the league to take a step towards him and promised to donate 25 percent of his merchandise income to the recovery efforts of New Orleans. The league denied his request, but Bush decided to stay firm with his promise, even though he had to settle for number 25. The new jersey became a hit and is sold in a crazy rate.

It was only a first sign of his noble behavior. A short time after he came to New Orleans, he donated tens thousands dollars to a local school for disadvantaged kids which was going to be shot down. He took upon himself to save a neglected high school football field which was destined to be destroyed. He took advantage of his connections with Hamer company (that signed a millions sponsorship deal, like he has with other commercial companies like Adidas) to donate ten SUB's to the authorities that fighting these days to rebuild New Orleans. Bush, that came from the other coast of the US, was discovered as a true philanthrop. A true service man in the ruined environment of the city.

True, there are a lot of athletes who invest a lot of their money, time and fame into charity, but nobody does it even before negotiations on his contract started. That's why the way Bush had put himself for the benefit of the city, such a short time after he went there and even before signing a contract, is an unheard of true unique story.

"Yes, it is abnormal" said Bush agent, Mike Ornstein to the Times Picayune, "There is not another player who has done as for the community he was moving into before he got signed. This is my 32rd year doing this, representing athletes like Marcus Allen, Tim Brown, Tony Gonzalez, Shannon Sharpe. They're all older guys. Reggie is the first rookie I've worked with for a long, long time. He's very, very special.

"We came here on draft day, and we drove around the community. Peter King, who writes for Sports Illustrated, made a statement in the car: 'Reggie, you have a chance to be the most influential player in the history of the National Football League.'

"He looked at Peter and we were driving around, and he said, 'You know what? I'm going to be that guy.' He stuck by that, and this is the start of that".

And if it is only the beginning, there is truly a reason to be optimistic. Reggie Bush is like the famous Dutch young kid who stuck his finger in hole in the damn and save his city from the flood. It is enough for the citizens, whom stopped expecting the president George Bush and his administration to help them. For now, they will settle for their own President Bush – He didn't score a touchdown yet or won a game for the Saints, but he is giving the people of New Orleans someone to look up too. As even mayor Nagin himself knows, as he chanted in his crown speech after last June elections: "We got Reggie Bush". Because people are dead, they don't have homes, but with this 21 years old kid, at least they have hope.

- this article was published in it's Hebrew version on ynet.co.il on Aug 29th, 2006