According to the L.A. Times (reg. req'd), the games industry may be a shining hope in the re-building of New Orleans and other parts of the South of the US in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. It's a rather unlikely headline in the currently anti-games climate of the US government, but one which is regularly repeated worldwide in between ban-this-sick-filth, as cities in need open their arms to digital entertainment to provide jobs, skills training and livelihoods in return for tax breaks.
Gosh, aren't we fickle?
There's a great debate going on at gamepolitics on the subject.