Mayor Nagin's "DESIRE" T-Shirt! Media keeps showing photo...does it

[KoKo]

hurt his image with folks who find "DESIRE" on a Mayor's T-Shirt in a time of crisis for his city kind of "questionable?"

What is "DESIRE" anyway...I figured DU'er could clue in this average American who is wondering about this, also.

Somehow...it looks not so good as PR to keep seeing this photo with that T-Shirt, which also is on DU's front page. Please...No Flames. If Desire" is the best and hottest CD for Human Rights ever released then I, along with many average Americans am very clueless, which may be the truth of it...but there are many other folks who don't get the T-Shirt/DESIRE, either...and they don't have someone they can ask about it. :shrug:

I'm only asking because I don't know. THANKS!

[rodeodance]

1. perhaps the Streetcar?--that old movie famous in NO

[karlrschneider]

5. That's what I assumed it referred to...but what the hell difference does

it make anyway?
:eyes:
(rhetorical, not hassling you personally) ;-)

[Dem Agog]

2. I see nothing wrong with it at all...

Don't know what it's "for" but it sure beats the human emotions you'd find on *'s shirts:

GREED
HATRED
RACISM
ANGER

[opihimoimoi]

3. The DESIRE FOR BETTER....Thats my take

[KingFlorez]

4. It's Streetcar

It's sold in the city store, it's custom for the city

[scarletwoman]

6. I believe it's the name of a street in NO.

From which the great Tennessee Williams play, "Streetcar Named Desire" got its name.

sw

[DoYouEverWonder]

8. Yes Desire Street and the Desire Street Streetcar

are both famous names.

It is probably a t-shirt for the Desire Street Ministries would be my guess.

[tocqueville]

27. Google a Streetcar Named Desire

Amazing that there is a generation not even knowing of this masterwork...


http://www.nationmaster.com/encyclopedia/A-Streetcar-Named-Desire
http://bywater.org/strtcar.htm

[astonamous]

7. I don't know about that one, but here's one for *

[KoKo]

10. Great graphic and quote for Bush...the Athelete...who rides his bike to

nowhere. :D He IS an IDIOT...and clueless to boot. So are the rest of the folks in his Admin. Pot Gut Supposedly Sick Dick Cheney/Road Runner Chertoff and Condi/Ferrigamo Shoe Rice and Pig/Boy Rove Limbaugh WANNA BE and the rest..

UGH...

[IndyJones]

9. Maybe since he's been so busy,

it's the only clean one he had left. Or maybe someone gave it to him to borrow because his got dirty. Or maybe he thinks it's a cool tshirt.

[OneGrassRoot]

11. I personally..........

think Nagin is a hottie, so I never noticed the shirt....:*

[ohio_liberal]

34. Ain't he though

:D

[garthranzz]

12. It's a street in N.O. - hence the play title

Tennessee Williams lived for a time in N.O. There's a literary and arts festival held there named after him. (Please note the present tense - there is, not there was - my city will be rebuilt.) Desire street'at the end of the French Quarter, one of the older parts of the city. It was well-known in N.O. before the play. And, by the way, there never was a a streetcar line on Desire street - literary license. I don't know what else is on the T-shirt, but I'm sure it's a play on the streetname and a promotional campaign for improvement. The city had a lot of initiatives like that, trying to motivate the Black population to do well in school, stay off drugs, etc.

[SoCalDem]

20. I like this one

[JanMichael]

13. Mother of God, it's in reference to the Tennessee Williams play

"A Streetcar named Desire."

Which is the name of a street in New Orleans.

Jesus H. Christ, this society is illiterate as hell.

Screw me, I am going to bed.

[KoKo]

18. Jan Michael...I'm Southern...my roots go back...I know who Tennesee

Williams is and I know the play "Streetcar Named Desire."

BUT...average Faux/CNN/MSNBC see Mayor of NO out there with a "T-Shirt" on which reads "DESIRE" and they are thinking of a tarted up contestant on "Survivor."

You forget that most Americans don't know who the hell Tennesee Williams is...and what a Play is... It's the NEW AMERICA!

I'm frustrated that you would diss my post as if it was some kind of clueless idiot who posted it.

How the hell would I know whether Nagin was wearing a T-Shirt Promoting a new NO Rock Band or one promoting Williams Play?

:shrug: Think about it...? What would most Americans think. It's been a long time since any American cared a shit about Tennesee Williams and anything he wrote. Even "I" had to ask and I read everything he wrote...but it seems like a very long time ago...in "Old America."

[FlaGranny]

26. He also forgets you don't need

to have read Tennessee Williams in order to be literate. I tried reading him - just don't like his stuff. Different strokes for different folks. I've read or tried to read most of the classics. Some I like, some are so boring to me I can't get past the first chapter.

[KoKo]

30. He's definitely not for everyone...I agree..

and don't think folks read him like they used to ...he's kind of out of date now, I think... thanks.

[NYC]

32. Tennesse Williams plays are somewhat sordid.

That's my best general description.

I've read A Streetcar Named Desire, and I've read about Tennessee Williams. A T-shirt that says simply "Desire" could mean anything, as far as I'm concerned.

So, have we determined that Mayor Nagin is wearing a T-shirt with "Desire" on it because of the Tennessee Williams play?

If he wore it because projects on Desire Street were flooded, who would have printed it so fast?

[KoKo]

33. Could be that he's been working on redevlopment projects and the

whole neighborhood got those T-Shirts for a special event to raise money , or there could be a revival of the play "Streetcar" going on in NO's (there's some fine print under "Desire" on the shirt which I can't read), or it could be that it's a T-Shirt that's popular for tourists who come to NO's because the name "Desire" is catchy?

Could be any of that, I guess, but I knew that the Limbaugh/Fox crowd will make much of it for their clueless audiences and use it against him to make fun of him, when they shouldn't. He's a Democrat and they'd rather blame him than FEMA or Bush for what went on with Katrina.

:shrug:

[NYC]

42. Do you have a picture? I haven't seen the fine print.

If a whole neighborhood got those T-shirts, I think that explains it. Likely other neighborhoods did not print T-shirts, so wearing that one was wearing a New Orleans T-shirt. I think that's what a mayor should do.

As far as the right wingers making fun of him, they were going to make fun of him no matter what. So they latched onto a T-shirt. Big deal. I suppose most people will just ignore that.

They always blame Democrats. Always, always, always. That's what they do. Let me know if you have a picture.

[mzmolly]

31. Frankly, I only know of "Street Car" via the old Brando movie.

I couldn't tell anyone who wrote it prior to this thread. ;)

[magnolia]

38. Didn't the last election prove....

...that most Americans are stupid! Don't we already know that FOX is corrupt! Why waste even a single brain cell worrying about what they think. They DON'T THINK!

[Lancer]

25. I'll have what you're having, JM.

eom

[ramblin_dave]

14. A T-shirt named Desire

http://www.americancityandcounty.com/mag/government_tshirt_named_desire/

When one thinks of New Orleans, refinement and the city's wealth of history are often overshadowed by the more lewd aspects of its draw — and with all the glitz and debauchery that Bourbon Street offers, it is no wonder. To recast the city's image and create resident pride and tasteful souvenir choices for tourists, this spring the city started its own product line, Desire. Reminiscent of the blue and white tiles used to spell out street names in the French Quarter, the T-shirts are attempting to generate a positive image for New Orleans.

[DoYouEverWonder]

16. Good find, that's got to be it.

Wish we could find some pics but I didn't have any luck.

[KoKo]

15. Could it be an advertisement for NO's Production of "Streetcar?" There's

some fineprint under the Logo...but I don't have capability to blow it up to read it. Maybe it's his way of showing pride in his city that a new production of "Streetcar" was ready to open?

I thought it might be a band...because it sort of looks like that kind of T-Shirt...but many folks out there in the American Hinterlands would ask the question I did. I wasn't dissing him, though. I wondered what it meant. It doesn't look good PR wise and we Dems need to fight for Ray Nagin and Blanco...because the RW/Repugs and the Mainstream Repugs have them in their Blame Target.

We need to know what this T-Shirt says and means to counter what might be attacks..and since some of us Dem out there have questions...might be good to find out?

[nickyt]

17. As a former NO resident

may I add that the Desire Project in New Orleans is one of the most feared in the city. Taxis won't go in there, and cops demur.

[SmokingJacket]

19. It's the name of the PROJECTS on Desire Street! nt

[KoKo]

28. AHA! THANK YOU! That' makes sense that he wears a T-Shirt standing

up for the folks who are flooded (one assumes) on DESIRE STREET. Finally I got an answer that makes sense as to why he took pride in wearing it. I assume you know this for sure? I hope you do..but it makes the most sense, and I hope the media asks him about this so that he has a chance to expain. Folks in Fargo, ND or Princeton, NJ just might not understand why he wears that T-Shirt. And that's what my post was trying to Point OUT through all the dissing and moderate flames that I was a clueless idiot who hadn't read Tennesee Williams. :D

It's okay...I had my flame suit on, just in case.

[poppet]

21. I like the T-Shirt

I think it is appropriate

[AnnInLa]

22. Also, the Desire Housing Project

don't know if it still existed before the Hurricane or not, but it was pretty infamous.

[The Traveler]

23. Like desire in athletics

the compulsion to excel?

[bklyncowgirl]

24. Desire, is a neighborhood in New Orleans a very poor neighborhood.

From what I understand the Desire projects are among the most squalid in the country.

[KoKo]

29. Thanks again for those folks who know NO's and the Desire Neighborhood

for cluing in those of us who are thinking it's Tennesee Williams "Streetcar" he's wearing the shirt for.

:thumbsup:

[SmokingJacket]

41. I could be wrong, but I do believe the buses there often say

DESIRE on them in the front window!

I loved seeing that...

[pitohui]

35. i thought they were torn down

i haven't been in that area in ages, i thought they were torn down but won't say for sure, the link i found telling the story of the area just says it is being "redeveloped" & 2000 census information is no longer accurate

certainly it was a horrid place in its day & badly in need of change, the police had abandoned it at one point & allowed the crack dealers to take over

[HeeBGBz]

36. It's a New Orleans thing

To hell with anyone who has a problem with it.

[kskiska]

37. In the play

Blanche duBois followed the advice of strangers who suggested she "take a streetcar named Desire, and then transfer to one called Cemeteries."

Just the other day there was a story on TV on Desire Street and how the inhabitants were coping. It seemed to be a mixed race neighborhood that didn't look too bad. People were out cleaning up. The projects were something else, though.


Before demolition

To save building costs, Desire's structures were built of wood with a brick veneer. But difficult repairs and high insurance costs for the non-fireproof buildings made these buildings very expensive to maintain. It is said that tenants often waited years for the Housing Authority of New Orleans (HANO) to make repairs to their apartments, plumbing, and light fixtures. Eventually units began to fall apart.

[kskiska]

39. Here's the answer re: the T-shirt

LOCAL COLOR/A T-shirt named Desire

Sep 1, 2004 12:00 PM
Wendy Angel

New Orleans creates a product line to bolster community pride.

When one thinks of New Orleans, refinement and the city's wealth of history are often overshadowed by the more lewd aspects of its draw — and with all the glitz and debauchery that Bourbon Street offers, it is no wonder. To recast the city's image and create resident pride and tasteful souvenir choices for tourists, this spring the city started its own product line, Desire. Reminiscent of the blue and white tiles used to spell out street names in the French Quarter, the T-shirts are attempting to generate a positive image for New Orleans.

About two years ago, when Mayor C. Ray Nagin took office, the idea of having a city store with custom merchandise — much like the city-run merchandise store in New York City — surfaced. With that as a long-term goal, the city's marketing department launched an internal campaign with the slogan “It's time to care again,” a takeoff on New Orleans' rather unflattering nickname “The City That Care Forgot.” The campaign used lettering that looked like the old blue and white tiles in the French Quarter, and it proved to be such a hit that the city decided to use the tile-like lettering on T-shirts. “We saw these as an opportunity to kind of test the market for city-branded apparel and products,” says Matt Konigsmark, marketing director for New Orleans.
The understated T-shirts simply brandish the word Desire, hinting at the famed Tennessee Williams play “A Streetcar Named Desire,” which is set in New Orleans. The marketing department wanted to appeal to residents as well as tourists. who otherwise have raunchier T-shirt choices with slogans such as “New Orleans: Proud to Crawl Home.”

more…
http://www.americancityandcounty.com/mag/government_tshirt_named_desire/

[Catherine Vincent]

40. My thought is that with the predicament that he was in at the time

that may have been the only clean shirt he had available.