Venice, Italy, survives 365 days out of every year in water; New Orleans can survive a few days of water if it has to.

The question is what I wanted to do with the new life God has given me. This is the mission I want to take on.

Some 70 percent of Americans donated to Katrina victims.

I think the industry finally gets it. They've lost the connection with the American public, and they've got to rebuild the trust with the American public.

The immediate, highest priority need, in my humble opinion, is that we build quickly the interim structures that can channel water away from population and businesses in the New Orleans area.

Invite the best and brightest to compete for a grand prize to come up with designs, including new zoning, building codes and so forth, for New Orleans that could make it safe from water, and let the state and city pick the plan that works best for Louisiana.

I think we lost a great deal of sympathy and support with the way in which the crisis was handled, most importantly I think when we appeared to be grasping for too much at one time instead of identifying our priorities in a much more responsible fashion.