If It Keeps on Rainin'
It is perhaps ironic that a piece found in the Opinion section of the New York Times contains such unobjectionable propositions as "water is an inexorable force that, sooner or later, will assert itself" and "levees fail".
Of course there are probably plenty out there (though few landscape architects among them) who would quibble with Alex Prud'homme's suggestions as to how to cope with these basic facts of life:
the [Army Corps of Engineers] should work with other government agencies, businesses, scientists and environmental groups to develop a greener, more intelligent system that integrates traditional engineering with natural defenses like wetlands, islands and reeds.