At the annual meeting of the American Historical Association in Atlanta one panel was devoted to Katrina. Fifteen people showed up for the discussion, which was held at the unappealing time slot of 9am on Saturday morning. (4800 attended the convention.)

Pessimism pervaded the room. The chair, Tulane's Lawrence Powell, confessed that the only bright spot was the passion with which volunteers from across the country had descended on the city to extend a helping hand. The federal government's response has been anemic, he indicated, noting that fewer than 100 of the 90,000 homeowners in need of federal aid had received money to rebuild.