Quite some time back, I discussed my reasoning for how humans live their lives in fear, and how I work hard not to do so. I discussed how I am ultimately responsible for my own safety. In light of many things that have happened in the world recently, let's examine that statement again in the context of what I would call the Human Security Paradigm. First things first: Katrina and its aftermath.
Is anyone as sick as I am of hearing about it? Is anyone as appalled as I am that the people who stayed in New Orleans so quickly and easily showed their true colors by looting, raping, and pillaging their own (and their neighbors') home city? Is anyone as angry as I am that, rather than getting down to the serious, practical business of actually handling the situation, all anyone in power outside of New Orleans wants to do is point fingers? Is anyone as disgusted as I am at those who were left behind in New Orleans, now demanding "to get what we deserve" from the federal/state/local/government? I quit listening to any coverage of Katrina as soon as these things began to appear. In my mind, this entire scenario stems from one thing: the human dependence on government.
As sad as it is to say, at least in New Orleans, the '60s-era hippie-liberals have won the fight. It is those people who have worked so hard to convince everyone in America that the federal government is everyone's best option for security. Through the continued pushing of Democratic legislators to the activist jurisprudence of those they place on the bench, everything the Democratic Party has done (and in some cases, with the full complicity of the Republicans) goes in one direction: the Federal Government will do it for you, so you don't need to worry about it any more. They confront every situation you have with one of two phrases: "Let us take care of you" or "There oughta be a law". This comes out even more clearly when we see primarily who was hit the hardest; blacks and immigrants, whom the Democrats have been telling the longest that "you can depend on the Federal Government to take care of you." This is the crux of the current Human Security Paradigm in the civilized world, in which you are no longer responsible for your own actions and the government will do everything for you.
As unfortunate and horrific as it was, Katrina did the perfect job of destroying that entire concept. You CAN'T depend on the federal government, or even the state or local government, to protect you from everything. It's simply not possible. I have sympathy for everyone in New Orleans who lost loved ones or treasured possessions; I know, to some extent, how terrible a huge life-changing event can be. But I also can only say that they brought this on themselves. Having allowed themselves to be lulled into a false sense of security by government at all levels, they shut their brains off. That certainly sounds horrible; I know you might be thinking, "how can he say that? Has he no compassion?"
Look at it from my own point of view as an information security professional. It's all about risk. They knowingly live in a city built below sea level, on the Gulf Coast, where hurricanes regularly visit. The citizens of New Orleans had plenty of time before this catastrophe to pressure their local and state governments to shore up their defenses against such a disaster and to more fully enumerate their recovery plans for when this event actually occurred. The government had ample time to work to shore up the defenses and prepare the recovery plans (indeed, in the wake of 9/11, they were SUPPOSED TO HAVE DONE THIS SORT OF THINGS ALREADY.) Yet nothing was done, and here we are. If you can't calculate and mitigate your risks, and if you can't accept what happens when your preparations are not sufficient, you set yourself up for this kind of disaster. It doesn't matter if you're the President of the United States, the director of FEMA, the governor of Louisiana, the mayor of New Orleans, white, black, well-to-do, poor...you have to know where you are and what you're doing, and more importantly, what you're going to do when things go wrong. No longer can we sit back and let others do our thinking and working for us.
Taking steps to mitigate risk and recover from incidents is a constant fact of life for me, and to be honest, it extends to nearly every part of my life now. When I'm thinking about things for the future of myself and my family, the same kinds of considerations come into play. In today's "advanced" society, we seem to work very hard to isolate ourselves from "harsh reality". In the aftermath of 9/11 and the War on Terror, the rebuilding of Iraq, and now Hurricane Katrina (and possibly Hurricane Rita), Americans can no longer simply expect the Federal Government to put us in an indestructible bubble that will secure us against all calamity.
There were many failures that led to what Katrina left us, and some of them started a long time ago. The failures cannot be blamed solely on President Bush, or on the Democrats, or on the local government, or on the state government, or on the citizens themselves. Everyone failed in this situation; NO ONE IS IMMUNE FROM SOME PART OF THE BLAME.
So what's next? Where do we go from here?
Now is the time to acknowledge that everyone failed and move forward. Let's be smart and practical in our rebuilding efforts, our preparations for future disasters, and let's take the idea of personal responsibility to heart this time. I've said before, do your best and leave the rest to God; nobody here did their best, and I seriously doubt if many people even considered God in this, other than to claim that He was punishing them (or punishing New Orleans, or punishing America).
First, President Bush, in conjunction with the governor of Louisiana and the mayor of New Orleans, should step up like he did after 9/11. This is a national tragedy, and already so many Americans acknowledge that and are working to help. However, at this moment, they need strong leadership. After 9/11, Bush and Rudy Giuliani did an amazing job rallying the country around them. This needs to happen again. Bush's approval ratings are in the cellar; if he showed some leadership again he could really emerge as one of our country's finest presidents. He needs to not only show emotional leadership, he needs to show financial leadership by rolling back a great deal of the spending that has emerged from Congress (and with his blessing, I might add) in the last few years. The War on Terror and the rebuilding of the Gulf Coast CAN coexist without raising taxes, but we have to be smart about it and not hold anything else sacred.
Second, everyone needs to work in a positive way and not exploit this tragedy for personal or political gain. Those who attack Bush for inaction should be roundly ignored or openly criticized as ridiculous time-wasters. Those who loot and rape and pillage should be found and prosecuted. Those who have suffered loss must work to rebuild and not merely expect handout after handout (that is, after all, part of how they got to this point in the first place). The rest of us must be as understanding and generous as we can possibly be. No other effort can do what must be done.
Third, people need to get back to God. Not to ask Him to lay off or anything, but rather to regain some perspective in their lives. Many of those affected by Katrina are undoubtedly cursing His name now, and vowing never to darken the door of a church. This ultimately leads to further destruction. God uses negative events to bring us closer to Him again. It worked a bit after 9/11, when all Americans faced their own mortality again and realized that they can't get through this life alone, or merely with the help of other humans, but only by the grace of God.
Please pray with me that we can move forward after this and truly grow stronger. Thanks for reading along.
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