September 05, 2005
Can we do any better?
I remember listening to the warnings from Ray Nagin, the New Orleans mayor, on the radio last Sunday. To be honest I paid them little heed, as I tend to when such warnings are issued in nations which clearly have the ability and infrastructure to cope with whatever disasters are beckoning. Needless to say, I watched events unfold since then with a mixture of incredulity and horror. I've no right to indignation from my position of safety some 7000 km distant, and I shan't attempt to apportion blame - there shall be enough of that to spare over the coming weeks and months. Some good may yet come of it. The US media seems to have stirred itself from it's political apathy, and pointed questions are being asked. Climate change may yet become a serious issue at the forefront of US politics; a welcome change if so.
Still, it seems as though all the focus is on New Orleans at the moment. Amongst the news stories I noted a study which included the flooding of New Orleans as one of the top three potential disasters faced by the United States (the other two being a terrorist attack on NYC, and a 9 point quake on the San Andreas fault-line). I can't help by wonder about the rest of the globe. One thing New Orleans has surely taught us - along with the tsunami earlier in the year, and the Iranian earth quake in the preceding year - is that such tragedies are rarely unforeseen. What other great potential disasters lie ahead of us now? How many are we unprepared for? And what are we going to do about them? Of course, the all encompassing "we" hides a multitude of apathies. I believe there's a quote attributable to Bill Clinton that sums up the problem: "When everyone is concerned, no-one is." The future's sure to bring much hand-wringing and finger pointing, but how much concrete action?
Thought iMark at September 5, 2005 11:56 PM | TrackBackOK, shameful as it is, I could not tear myself away from the typo to concentrate on the horrific details implied by the blog posting. Not only am I anal about such things (you KNOW this, and I have been trying to cut down on the harping on about typos and it is your blog so you can write what you wish), but this one was too much to pass up. I hope to heavens you paid the mayor of New Orleans heed, not head.
Sorry, I know, it's a sickness, you can't blame me ...
Posted by: Fiona Scott at September 7, 2005 06:23 PMError corrected. For what it's worth you can pull me up on my spelling whenever you wish - I don't mind, honest (and I don't blame you).
Of course, what I really think you need is an outlet where you can vent such feelings for yourself. Somewhere you can free those creative juices of yours. Something like... a blog. I could put in a word with the big guy who runs this place. It wouldn't take much - a blog of your own, you know you want one :)
Think about it
Posted by: iMark at September 7, 2005 08:40 PMOK, that was deserved. I did try keeping a journal this year. I already has two whole entries ...
Posted by: Foots at September 9, 2005 05:09 PMThe other thing is, I'm kind of a little resentful. After being educated in the old-fashioned way and believing that my superior skills in grammar, spelling and mental arithmetic implied some kind of intelligence, I am now faced with a child of incredibly high IQ who has none of those skills and am gradually realising that a large proportion of the smarter people in the world don't have them either. Also, that I may not quite make it into the category of 'the smarter people in the world'. I got hosed.
Posted by: Foots at September 9, 2005 05:15 PMOh, now that's just stuff and nonsense, with a hint of self-pity thrown in (and believe me, I've learned a thing or two about self-pity this year). You owe yourself better than that. I've known you long enough to appreciate just how intelligent and resourceful you are - the good grammer, spelling and mental arithmatic are just a bonus. Trust me, you're in the "smarter people in the world" category, whether you realise it or no.
And I'm serious about the blog as well ;)
Posted by: iMark at September 9, 2005 05:25 PM