Disasters, Both Natural and Unnatural

Wednesday, June 2, 2010

Tags: current events, politics

The above image is not a Photoshop.

It’s an aerial shot of Guatemala City after a massive, 200 ft. deep sink hole swallowed a chunk of the city in the aftermath of tropical storm Agatha. The storm, along with the landslides in its wake, has left over 100 dead and caused crippling damage to the local infrastructure. It’s another example of the potency of nature even in the 21st century. We’ve done so much as a species to exercise dominance over the planet, yet we’re still undeniably fragile in the maw of a hurricane, the cloud of a volcano, or the grasp of an ever enlarging oil plume.

The Gulf has been on my mind lately. It’s an exceptionally difficult problem; one in which we all share the blame, despite what arm-chair critics would have you believe. BP may have acted irresponsibly in some of the decision-making, but realistically the volume of oil we consume creates an inherent likelihood for oil-related disasters. They’ve happened before, and will probably happen again if alternative methods of energy production are not aggressively pursued. That should be our lesson, both as voters and individuals: reduce consumption, support visionaries.

Equally important is the hope that this event shifts the paradigm of US national security priorities back home, away from more obfuscated conflicts halfway around the world. The US military is perhaps the largest organized force at our country’s disposal. Their active use for domestic disaster relief is invaluable, as evident by the sheer volume of aid provided by the Coast Guard and National Guard during Katrina. Honestly, if you think the response was bad, imagine just how much worse it would have been if Russel Honoré hadn’t shown up. I’m of the opinion that the modern world requires our military to be as adept at providing aid and relief as it is at eliminating enemies.

Our country is currently focusing such a tremendous amount of man and brain power into what either is or could easily become a quagmire in rural Afghanistan and Northern Pakistan. We’ve killed Al Qaeda’s “number 3 man” probably 17 times by now. The bastard just keeps coming back. I would never suggest, of course, that Al Qaeda or international terrorism in general is a safe thing to ignore. I am of the persuasion, though, that smaller, targeted operations are a more beneficial method of tackling the problem. Our route of overt military operations in which we expend vast quantities of human and fiscal resources while simultaneously risking enlargement of the problem is frankly unsustainable. It’s been over 7 years since the invasion of Iraq and the country remains marred by domestic conflict and cultural disparity. Aghanistan is worse. Though both countries have admittedly liberalized by comparison to their previous regimes, there are serious issues with corruption and and security that may be unsolvable in the practical future.

Expending our energy on more clear-cut problems may ultimately prove to be our best national security policy. After Katrina, who would deny that coming up with a better plan for coping with a category 5 hurricane isn’t a good idea? Just because the US is a “first-world” country doesn’t make us immune to nature’s fury. We have fault lines, hurricanes, volcanoes, fires, and floods just like everyone else. Consider, for a moment, what would happen if a hurricane creates a storm surge in the oil filled Gulf. If we don’t have a plan for dealing with that we damn well should be working on it.

If you feel passionately about providing relief to those in need, please consider contributing to the following organizations: The American Red Cross, The Peace Corps, The Salvation Army. I’m sure there are many more worthy causes if you search on your own as well.

© 2010 Jeff and Company