Thankfully, I have never known anything approaching the grinding poverty on display in New Orleans. I imagine the reasons for it are many. I came across a thought provoking piece on the subject via the driftglass blog. It's worth your time.
Peter T.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/chi-0509150091sep15,1,3209937.story?coll=chi-entertainmentfront-hed&ctrack=1&cset=true
