George Neumayr of The American Spectator fills in more of the picture on the pre—existing rot in New Orleans, which laid the foundation for the anarchy apparently spreading through much of the flooded city.

New Orleans has one of the highest murder rates in the country. By mid—August of this year, 192 murders had been committed in New Orleans, "nearly 10 times the national average," reported the Associated Press. Gunfire is so common in New Orleans —— and criminals so fierce —— that when university researchers conducted an experiment last year in which they had cops fire 700 blank rounds in a neighborhood on a random afternoon "no one called to report the gunfire," reported AP.

New Orleans was ripe for collapse. Its dangerous geography, combined with a dangerous culture, made it susceptible to an unfolding catastrophe. Currents of chaos and lawlessness were running through the city long before this week, and they were bound to come to the surface under the pressure of natural disaster and explode in a scene of looting and mayhem.

Read the whole thing.

Thomas Lifson  9 02 05