Is it just me or is there something odd about receiving an email about a fashionable gun for women although I’ve never bought a gun? The presentation of the email is that left-handed women can now get an accurate, fashionable pink .38 Special + P caliber handgun with the cute name “Southpaw Pink Lady.”

It sounds more like a fruity drink than a deadly weapon.

My problem is not the thought of a woman buying a gun for self-defense, but the marketing strategy. If I got the email without a history of buying guns, then it must have been an indiscriminate mailing.

The gun is produced by Charter Arms, which says it produced a mirror image of its “wildly popular” right-hand Pink Lady firearm because of a demand from customers. The marketing verbiage is pretty effective with phrases like “compact ultra-lightweight Undercover series” and “weights a feathery 12-ounces thanks to its tough 7075 aircraft aluminum frame.” It’s almost like reading a fashion magazine description of the must-have handbag for teenagers. It even has a quasi apology for costing $36 more than its right-hand version (also pink). Who are the intended customers here?

I could be putting my personal safety at risk with this conversation, but what the heck. I really want to know what are the objection is to the Comprehensive Photo Traffic Safety Program (traffic cameras) around New Orleans, Jefferson Parish and
Gretna. People are really steamed about the cameras and some have even said they won’t pay the fines because their use is somehow illegal or should be challenged in court on the grounds of a violation of privacy rights or a lack of eyeball evidence by a uniformed police officer.

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Councilmember-at-large Arnie Fielkow will send a lucky child to Chicago to attend a baseball game July 26 between the Chicago Cubs and the Florida Marlins at Wrigley Field.

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A group of local art lovers have helped an accomplished former prison artist secure his first real home since Hurricane Katrina destroyed his Ninth Ward house and studio. 

The art enthusiasts, led by Greg Rackham, owner of Bottom of the Barrel Antiques, bought enough artwork from New Orleans artist Welmon Sharlhorne to pay his rent for six months. He will receive keys to his new home today (Saturday, July 19), and the art that landed him in his new apartment will be on display to the public from 7:30 p.m. to 10 p.m. at 1214 Decatur St. for this evening only.

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Families living in or nearVillage de l’Est in eastern New Orleans finally have a pediatric clinic nearbyto take care of their youngsters’ health-care needs.

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Was it arrogance, fear of failure or an ingrained culture that resulted in Liquigas team member Manuel Beltran’s arrest and expulsion from the Tour de France after he tested positive for the performance-enhancing drug EPO? 

With the tour’s all-out war against doping, Beltran would have had to be extremely arrogant or an idiot to think he could outmaneuver the rigorous testing in place during the tour. As it was, the drug test that found erythropoietin, or EPO, was administered after the first stage on July 5. EPO is an artificial hormone that allows the blood to carry more oxygen, which enhances endurance.

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Gambit Weekly Publisher Margo DuBos has been named chairwoman of United Way’s Women’s Leadership Council (WLC). It was a natural choice. Read the rest of this entry »

Students who attended low-performing public schools in Orleans Parish last year have an opportunity to obtain scholarships to enroll at participating nonpublic school for the coming academic year. But parents need to act quickly to obtain the 1,500 scholarships of up to $6,300 each that are available to pay for tuition for children in kindergarten through third grade.

Deadline for applications is Saturday, July 19, at 1 p.m.

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New Orleanians are truly blessed in many ways. Almost three years after Hurricane Katrina almost killed our city, we can still see evidence every day that people from all over the country have not forgotten us and support our recovery efforts in the most personal of ways — by giving their time and opening their hearts. Out-of-town groups frequently come into town to work for Habitat for Humanity, the Make It Right Foundation, or on individual homes. The generous spirit, however, goes beyond bricks, mortar, wood and drywall. Some people still are harboring some of our most vulnerable and helpless expatriates — and have given many permanent homes. I’m talking about the pets saved after the levees broke in the largest animal rescue effort in this country’s history. Read the rest of this entry »

New Orleans didn’t make it into the Top 10 of Outside magazine’s Top 20 Best Towns in America, but we did get the longest writeup of the 20 places profiled in the August 2008 issue.

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