I don’t get it!
For those of you who missed it, the east coast was blasted by a hurricane/crazy tropical storm this past weekend. We have a lot of very smart scientific people out there who study this stuff like it is their job, and they all suggested that this event was going to be substantial and the destruction was going to be in the billions.
They were right. Just ask the people who lost homes and property and the family members who lost one of their own. I think at last count that over forty people died as a result of the storm. People lost their homes and many of them did not have flood insurance. Bridges and roads and businesses were lost and we are not even sure how much real damage there was…….at least not yet. For some people, this damage was not significant enough.
I am no scientist, but I am reasonably sure that this storm lived up to most of the scientific expectations that we heard about for more than a week from all the weather experts. From what I have been able to see of the results of the storm in New England, upstate NY, and along the Atlantic coast this storm was no joke.
Yet…….I have been reading and seeing people on the news who are complaining that the government and the scientists made too much of this whole event. People complained that they shut down their businesses for no good reason and others seem to think that this is just another example of the government being too involved in our lives. Some are upset that they lost tourist money while others are angry that their weekend was upset because of the government insistence that many evacuate.
We have been here before and if I remember correctly there were tons of complaints that the government did not respond quickly enough and the scientists did not get the information to the masses fast enough so they could get out of the storms way. We were inundated with 24 hour news reports, blogs, and talking heads who seemed to have nothing better to do than complain about anything and everything related to the storm. They complained loudly there there was not enough notice. Not enough government and scientific involvement.
This time the government was ready. The military was ready. Governors and mayors were ready. The powers that be insisted that people move out of the way and prepare for the fury of a major storm all in the name of safety. Sounds like a great plan to me…even in hindsight. Yet, people still find cause to complain and bitch.
I will say it again…..I don’t get it. The government can’t win. Scientists can’t win either. What the heck do people want? Would they prefer no government/scientific involvement so that they could decide and fend for themselves? Remember how that worked out for us?
Enough already, unhappy people. Be thankful that most people survived and that the government had your best interests at heart. But most of all, just stop all the bitching! It could have been a whole lot worse!
My heart goes out to all who lost homes, property and people as a result of the storm. My thanks go out to those who prepared us for the coming of the storm and for all those who will help to deal with the consequences of this terrible event.
