The article asserted that New Orleans had "long been a place for vacation, celebration and resources, from oil to seafood", and that it was time for the federal government to give something back to New Orleans by delivering on past promises of providing it with better protection from hurricanes: “we need our Congress -- to fulfill the promises made to us in the past. We need to be safe.”

The article also urged citizens of New Orleans to “let Congress know that this metro area must be made safe from future storms. Call and write the leaders who are deciding our fate … Flood them with mail the way we were flooded by Katrina. Remind them that this is a singular American city and that this nation still needs what we can give it.” 

Mike Arrieta-Walden of The Oregonian has saluted the service The Times Picayune rendered its community in the aftermath of the hurricane.

He said: “ … if ever the importance of a newspaper was apparent, it was in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Before public officials acknowledged the magnitude of the disaster, journalists at the Times-Picayune with unique knowledge of their city discovered and shouted it … with the help of the Web, they brought together a community scattered across the country.”

Last Sunday's Times Picayune editorial exemplifies the service that regional and local papers are supposed to provide for their communities, a service that has been repeatedly diluted by corporate ownership. 

In the wake of such a tragedy, surely the Times Picayune will continue working for the community and as Arietta-Walden predicted: “the newspaper will be able to fully and publicly address the daunting issues ahead for the city”.

Sources: New York Times, Editor and Publisher, The Oregonian