B
In one way yes Rumely I agree. In another I must say things have changed. New Orleans was always lower than sea level but she had a huge network of marshlands and barrier Islands to stop storm surge and slow down approaching storms. These were constantly built up by silt deposited by the Mississippi River. The subsequent straightening and constraining of the river to keep it flowing for ship traffic spelled a slow doom for the marsh. There was no dispersal of silt to rebuild the marsh and the narrowed (and deepened) channel meant the water would be coming out at higher velocity- translation- faster water means (again) no silt deposits. Then there was Mr Go. This was a ship channel cut by the US Corp of Engineers through the marsh. This was also responsible for a huge amount of coastal errosion. Add this all together and we are left with a city with no protection from oncoming hurricanes.Reminds me of that Sunday school song derived from Scripture:
The wise man built his house upon the Rock....
The foolish man built his house upon the sand....
The rains came down and the flood came up....etc.