By Ian Punnett

I’m having the worst case of deja vu tonight.  It was three years ago tonight that we were tracking Hurricane Katrina.  When I first went on the air the night that Katrina hit, we talked about our prayers and hopes that the hurricane would continue to weaken as it approached New Orleans and that it would deliver only a glancing blow to city.  By the end of the show that night, it was clear that that’s exactly what Katrina had done and I believe the last thing I said that night was that it looked like New Orleans was safe.

I went to bed so relieved and, like the rest of the world, woke up so horrified when the levies began to fail against the storm surge.

I love New Orleans.  It has everything I love in a vacation destination:  kind people, fascinating history, cool cemeteries, spooky Spanish moss, great food, beignets, dependable weather, rich coffee and creepy museums.To me, going to New Orleans is like vacationing in an episode of Scooby-Doo.

  

I fear that while Katrina buried New Orleans by jogging to the east, Gustav will bury New Orleans by heading to the west so once more I am asking you to hold that wonderful city and its in your prayers tonight and until they are safe from this storm.

Obviously, the Republicans fear another Katrina as well.  Politico.com says:

John McCain said the Republican National Convention may be postponed, after federal officials said Hurricane Gustav was gathering to a devastating Category 5 as it headed toward star-crossed New Orleans.

“It just wouldn't be appropriate to have a festive occasion while a near-tragedy or a terrible challenge is presented in the form of a natural disaster,” McCain told Chris Wallace of “Fox News Sunday” in an interview taped for Sunday. “So we're monitoring it from day to day and I'm saying a few prayers, too.”

I’m hoping that the convention doesn’t have to be delayed because, as you know, I live in St. Paul, MN (or as Wolf Blitzer said the other day as he walked the floor of the Excel Engery Center, “St. Paul, Missouri”) and getting downtown is an incredible pain in the neck because of all the security.  Temp walls, barbed wire, huge police presence on the ground and in the air; it isn’t quite “Escape from New York,” but it’s close.  I rode my scooter down to haberdasher to pick up the new vestment that Heimie had made for me and it took me forever to get around the area that’s sealed off by police.  

Meanwhile, did you see this headline?

Michael Moore says, Hurricane Coming During GOP Convention 'Proof There Is a God in Heaven' 

Such a cheap shot, if you ask me, although he’s not the only one taking it.  It kind of reminds me of that whole Evangelical “let’s pray to make it rain on Obama’s acceptance speech” thing.  Yikes.  I mean, if storms were proof of God, shouldn’t priests being doing the weather on TV?

Then again:

A Chinese man who swore to God that he didn't owe money to a neighbour was hit by lightning a minute later.

The man, named Xu, made the oath in front of a crowd of neighbours in Fuqing city, reports Southeast Express.

He vowed that he had never borrowed money from Mr Huang, who claimed Xu borrowed 500 yuan, the equivalent of eighty dollars, from him three years earlier.

"He borrowed 500 yuan three years ago from me for a friend's marriage gift, but he has denied it ever since then," said Huang, who went to Xu's home to demand payment.

"I told him that if he dared to swear to God that he didn't owe me the money, then I would waive his debt," said Huang.

Xu made the oath, but was suddenly struck by lightning a minute later.

Step One:  Recover and get home from the hospital.  Step Two:  Pay the man!

Speaking of incredible stories from Asia, have you heard?

It's a currently big news in Indonesia. Metal wires about 10-20 cm long grow from a woman's body! Skeptics initially thought that is must be "self-inflicted". Doctors however, have other theories but have given up on providing any scientific or medical explanations.

The woman had this problem for 17 years and is currently being investigated by the Ministry of Health. Initial consultation with doctors and specialists found that the wires are also inside her body. At this stage, there were no current medical explanations or any case ever exist. Hence, there is but only one other possible consideration… Occult magic.

Not sure I agree with the iron-clad conclusion on the occult but it is fascinating.  I like my lap like I like my laptop--wireless.

Here’s the link to the video if you want to see it:

http://mysterytopia.com/2008/08/indonesian-woman-manusia-kawat-claims.html

The way the North Pole is melting, it might as well be in Indonesia.  Did you catch our friend Captain Kelly last week talking about the new Northwest Passage that will become the hot new shipping lane?  This update is at Physorg.com:

Satellite observations from mid-August depict that a new record of low sea-ice coverage could be reached in a matter of weeks.  Current ice coverage in the Arctic has already reached the second absolute minimum since observations from space began 30 years ago.  Because the extent of ice cover is usually at its lowest about mid-September, this year's minimum could still fall to set another record low. 

Because global warming is such a “polarizing” issue amongst Republicans, it will be interesting to see if it will come up much during the convention this week.

John McCain believes that man-made global warming is happening and that it is a threat to our national security and future success.  You’d think that if any Republican governors would be out there on the watchtower for global warming, it would be the governor of Alaska, Sarah Palin.

By the way, I’m not sure about that pick.  Putting a governor with only 18 months experience on the ticket--even one as dynamic and appealing as Gov. Palin--will either be a touchdown or a fumble.  I can’t decide.

Sometimes I see pictures of McCain and Palin standing together and I think, that’s so crazy it just might work.  And other times I see them together and it looks like a photo from the Daddy-Daughter-Dinner-Dance at the club.

Either way, this week, I’ll be collecting stories from the streets of the Republican National Convention which is just down the street from me.  Who knows, I might even get invited to a party or two!  Should be fun.

Call me, “St. Paul Confidential.  Off the record, on the QT and very hush-hush . .  .”