Join us on Thursday night December 4 for another wild and zany edition of Politics with a Punch.This will be our special Christmas Comedy show as we celebrate the holidays and look back at another crazy year.
It is exciting; we have a new President and a new District Attorney, but, alas, the same Mayor of New Orleans. Oh well, can’t have it all! On our star studded show, we’ll cover the bailouts, the elections, the trials, the scandals and, of course, the inauguration.
Our show will take place at the Cricket Club, 2040 St. Charles Avenue, New Orleans, one of the most exquisite facilities in town. For this show, we are also opening the doors early, at 6 p.m. for a Punch Happy Hourand Dinner. The Cricket Club bar will be open and a delicious drink and appetizer menu will be offered for Punch patrons. This social time is also a great way to network, explore business opportunities and possibly find your next client, customer or partner.
As usual, the program will begin at 8 p.m. Post event, the Cricket Club bar will remain open for Punch patrons.
For Thursday night, we are excited to have an outstanding panel of celebrities:
·Julia Reed, Author, Contributing Editor for Vogue & Newsweek
·Adam Swensek, “Cha Cha Pitoulas” Satirist, New Orleans Levee
·Robyn Walenksy, Morning Show Co-Host, Rush Radio 99.5 FM
Here are some of the many topics we will discuss:
Obama Announces His Cabinet; Is this Clinton’s third term or is he wisely picking experienced Washington veterans? Should he choose Hillary as Secretary of State? Is it wise to keep your friends close and your enemies closer?
Race for 2012 Has Already Begun; Can Sarah Palin overcome her negative press and lead the party in the next election? Will Governor Bobby Jindal run for President? If not, what is he doing in Iowa on a cold November Saturday?
Dollar Bill Faces the Voters Again; Despite the indictments, the congressman is the favorite in a race against a former ethics professor. Can the man with no ethics beat the ethics expert? If he wins, what will this do for our image? Can it get any worse?
Free Fast Eddie? Former Governor Edwin Edwards has assembled an impressive team of supporters pushing a presidential pardon, even his former opponent Dave Treen. Will it be enough to convince President George W. Bush to pardon him? If Bush can free a rapper and a bald eagle murderer, shouldn’t Edwin get sprung? Will he wait until the final minute of his term to announce the pardon?
Crime Capital of Nation; New Orleans wins another prestigious award, most violent city in the U.S. Chief Riley blames poverty and bad schools, but Harry Connick says the Chief should be fired. Nagin stands by his man and says Riley offers “cutting edge” leadership. Or is it really “cutting edge” incompetence?
Where is the Cash? $19,000 in evidence is missing from the NOPD property and evidence room. Who is minding the store? Should one of the few working crime cameras be placed in there? A WDSU-TV report showed plenty of mishandled evidence, rusted weapons and DNA evidence shoved in a common refrigerator. Was there beer in there also? Riley blames Katrina, but when will he accept blame?
Showdown at City Hall! When Councilwoman Stacy Head confronted Sanitation Director Veronica White, there were fireworks. Not surprisingly, Mayor Nagin yelled racism without a shred of evidence. Others wanted to know why New Orleans spends so much more than Jefferson Parish. Where there’s smoke, there’s fire?
With so much serious discussion, it is helpful once a month to be able to poke fun at some of the hilarious, insane and unpredictable events which occur in this state.
On Thursday night Governor Blanco will give us her unique perspective on Governor Jindal and the new President; Fletcher Mackel will tell us what is wrong with the Saints and LSU; Travers Mackel will give us insight on what happened in the NOPD evidence room and the latest report from the Marinello trial; Mikko will entertain us with his priceless, one of a kind perspectives on all of these local controversies; Julia Reed will give us a national outlook on New Orleans and our reputation; Adam Swensek will charm us with his zany and unique political satire; and Robyn Walenksy will share her bird’s eye view as a talk show host commenting on all of the hot topics we discuss.
In between, we’ll address the controversies and the outrageous antics of our local leaders and have plenty of fun in the process.
Since 2002, along with Steve Sabludowsky of Bayoubuzz.com, I have been a part of one political tradition that has grown into quite a success story. Of course I’m referring to Politics with a Punch, which is held monthly on stage before a live audience. It is our own local version of “Politically Incorrect.” It is a fast-paced, free-wheeling, no-holds barred discussion of what is happening in our city, state and nation.
In our six years of existence, we have featured some of the top political, business, comedic, media and entertainment talent in Louisiana. I am honored to MC Politics with a Punch, an event which has attracted sell-out crowds for the past several years.
We are expecting another exceptional performance on Thursday night. Special note, the doors open at 6 p.m. for Happy Hour, the event begins at 8 p.m.
The event features the former Governor of Louisiana who faced the most devastating natural disaster in state history; a popular sports anchor who offers insight and top notch journalism in reporting on our beloved local teams; a respected news reporter who covers the top stories every night with professionalism and objectivity; a provocative actor and comedian who is known for his brilliant and hilarious satire; a nationally respected author and commentator blessed with exceptional talent; a hilarious writer who provides much needed entertainment to the readers of New Orleans; and a newcomer to our media scene who is starting to make a major impact on our community. It doesn’t get much better than this panel!
Tickets are usually $15.00 per person/$25.00 per couple; however, I am pleased to offer a limited number of VIP discount tickets at the price of $10.00 per person.
If you would like to take advantage of this opportunity, please RSVP by sending me an e-mail reply. You can also purchase tickets in advance on-line at our website:
Well if that is so, then while you are me you can ask Kathleen about the significance of the paint job on the memorial hall ceiling during her administrative affects. What would be the reasoning for painting over such an historical fresco? Image??? Embarrassment? Timing is everything, and so is coincidence... Written by
on 12/3/2008
REPORT SPAM OR ABUSE
RAIN MAN,.,.,……. It is only incoherent to the incoherent , and how can it be a monopoly when we always have your astute smack down as the crème de la crème PLASTERED on top of it? Oh, I know, you are simply P.O.’d because you have to have the last word in don’t you???? Some band leader you are… Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!!!! Written by
on 12/2/2008
REPORT SPAM OR ABUSE
I am RAIN MAN, and guilty of incoherent ranting and monopolizing this blog. Written by
on 12/2/2008
REPORT SPAM OR ABUSE
Yes, please ask Kathleen why the overlapping veneer applied to the fresco beneath on the ceiling of the Memorial Hall in Baton Rouge during her administration........... That went against preservationist protocol as far as I can figure it..... Is some observation being quashed, painted over??? Little bits here, little bits there..... Sitting in the Memorial Hall of the Louisiana State Capitol in Baton Rouge on the mid-morning of November 10th , 2005 I began taking in the surrounding architecture after the two troopers left. It was somewhat odd to me as I sat in the folding chair. It was vaguely like having been stuck somewhere off to the side in the ‘bad boys’ corner…….. Ehh….. Fine by me. Looking at the chipped pockmarks along a portion of the marbled walls I wondered to myself; “How is it that things ever came to that?”...... All around the immense hallway were marbled statues of a few past and prominent Louisiana political figures gazing motionlessly at the spaces full of nothing in front of them. They stood perched, larger than life scale on their individual pedestals scattered around intermittent places along the sidewalls of the expansive room....... Although apparently carved out of white Italian marble or other similar material they had a faint dusty yellowish tinge that seemed to be clinging to them sort of like old tar and nicotine will do on an imitation crystal chandelier in some New Orleans Bordello as a result of many smoky nights long past.,,,,,,, Trying to capture the theme of the fresco that covered the ceiling above me and disappeared into the distance down the Mall was like trying to make sense of colored snowflakes in a Kaleidoscope. I am sure that individually they had meaning, and some can even evoke a moment of consternation on their subject content. However, as a group, the yellowing and stained presentations merely merged into a hodge podge of meaningless and self-defeating chaos..... They were all intended to represent the rich cultural heritages relating to varying eras gone by, but their significance were lost to me in their individual fogs as each appeared to be vying for ordered and restrained dominance over the other within the presentation. Each scene, each design related to a chapter in portions of Louisiana history that had been eclipsed by the passage of time, yet are actually still in existence to certain and varying degrees while tucked away from obvious view, even though they were in plane sight in Louisiana if one really wished to experience them. Perhaps they are a fairly actual rendition of some quandaries found in life. Problems, problems, problems. I wondered to myself why this was…….. The rest of the surrounding décor, scant as it was seemed equally unordered although everything was in place. Their overall themes pertaining to the art deco era that had arrived on the scene too late to have had any true relevance or representative cultural firmness, and I supposed this was probably realized even way back then by a few of the enlightened ones after the various adornments were finally acquired and installed,,,,,,. That decorative and architectural style only represents a brief decade or two in history during the rest of the countries final transitions from the remnants of steam driven engines to jet propulsion. Even the minimalist Louis IV stylized haberdashery incorporated in subliminal portions seemed reminiscent of some form of stylized art Nuevo that had been inspired by a cheap cabernet……… Overall, as I surveyed my surroundings, the atmosphere displayed, the way the movements of people were directed or restricted within the confines of the buildings inner walls, it all appeared to me to be borderline Orwellian in nature. This motif caused me to realize how fragile things are, and how easy it would be for things to revert to the ways they were in the past if people were not mindful, and guarded in the authorities they granted others to have over them……. Then it all came to me….. The entire interior decor was a feigned attempt at demonstrating some kind of maturity, which had never truly happened……. True population driven leadership was not represented in any of the manifestations, and appeared to be all but non-existent in the varying facades that were intended to impress the unknowing as they viewed the countenances erected along the pedestals at the walls for their visage. Instead, it all appears only to be little clusters of things, and little groups of individual people represented as the ones that had been, and still are running the show…… I have said before that the Memorial Hall at the State Capitol is about as sacred of a sacred location, if ever one is to be found in Louisiana. All of the trappings and trimmings I saw on that day did not truly portray the Louisiana I knew though, aside from its darker side and I suppose we all have one of those to say the least………….. It all simply and seemingly had nothing in common with the good values and the good people of Louisiana I have met over the years. The only good thing I recall seeing on the Capitol grounds that day which seemed to portray the true spirit or nature of Louisiana, aside from the kindly octogenarian Gentleman at the door who spoke with me for only a very brief moment, was the large statue of Governor Huey P. Long that stood out front. …….. It is a magnificent statue. Probably one of the more truer representations of human nature as can be found anywhere on the face of the earth……………………………… In addition, outdoors is the best place to be…… Not trapped inside of some draconian stylized mausoleum, shielded away from the true light of the day……. The immense statue of Governor Huey P. Long is seemingly swayed back as he is beholding to the magnificence of the capitol structure his statue faces, but it is not the structure itself he is beholding to. The structure merely represented the presence of the possibilities of the good things in the air that were yet to come and were in store for Louisiana in due time….. If care, planning, prudence, and proper discipline were incorporated……. That time has long passed by. Even the bridges that bear the name of Governor Long’s immediate replacement are rusting away becoming dilapidated and falling to the wayside now one by one as the years roll by…. In addition, those structures were truly the beginnings of what was supposed to become modern Louisiana… They have served their purposes well. They were realized as a result of proper thinking, and careful planning, and prudent applications of limited resources that were available…….. And the prevailing domineering type attitudes before those days appear to have become the adopted standard after his passing and continue on circumventing much of the good groundwork that had previously been laid. However, somewhere the money is going to have to be found to replace not only those aging bridges, but also to build other bridges and roadways that Louisiana needs. …. Governor Huey P. Long was an ideal that had never quite fully been allowed to come completely to life, let alone mature. Perhaps that is good, and perhaps that is bad. History will never know. But what was done was done, and we will never know what the rest of the story could have developed into because it was cut short mid chapter……. What I do know is there was a world of poverty, disparity, and lack in much of Louisiana back in those days, and from what I can see, he did the best he could with the resources he had at hand and he definitely left an indelible mark on the face of Louisiana……. This fact is evidenced by the roads, bridges, charity hospitals, and school systems he instituted for the common good and harmonious perpetuation of a modern Louisiana even sometimes these institutions are misused by people that have forgotten their original intent and purposes……… And much like the faux baroque style artwork scattered around inside the building that his statue faces, it appears that the progressive type of ideals he was able to partially institute while in office will only remain a collective series of dated muses in Louisiana’s history. ………. Unless……… Written by
on 12/2/2008
REPORT SPAM OR ABUSE
