Summary

Should government rebuild New Orleans? Edward Glaeser asks whether the residents would be better off with $200,000 in their pockets than to have $200 billion spent on infrastructure: shouldn't we be insuring the people, not the place? New Orleans has been declining and its people mired in poverty for decades; its port and pipelines cannot employ a large city, and $200 billion is unlikely to change that.

Recommended Citation

Glaeser, Edward L. (2005) "Should the Government Rebuild New Orleans, Or Just Give Residents Checks?," The Economists' Voice: Vol. 2 : Iss. 4, Article 4.
DOI: 10.2202/1553-3832.1121
Available at: http://www.bepress.com/ev/vol2/iss4/art4