Joel Anderson, Alexandra Gutierrez, Tim Fernholz, and Aminatou Sow discuss Treme‘s second episode:
Joel Anderson: True story: Everyone from Louisiana puts hot sauce on everything.
Aminatou Sow: Welcome back to Glee: Bayou Edition. I love how they just casually dropped “mulâtresse.”
Alexandra Gutierrez: Given that Coco Robicheaux tossed that line off while sacrificing a chicken on live radio, I’m not even sure that was the most notable part of his cameo.
Tim Fernholz: The authenticity battle commences in earnest: Who has more symbolic credibility, Iraq veterans or Katrina veterans?
That little note about FEMA funding leading prisons to hold on to prisoners to attract subsidies is classic David Simon: Well-meaning incentives that warp institutions, leading to bad outcomes. It’s why his politics are so hard to classify: While his topic here leans toward the concerns of the left, the observation about the prisoners is classic conservative public-choice economics.