Today at work, a few co-workers were talking about how sorry they felt for everyone in New Orleans and throughout hurricane Katrina's wake. And while I certainly feel for these people, you really should know that you're living in a hurricane zone and you're most likely going to get hit once or twice a year. And it's not like they weren't given warnings. There's been people who died because they stayed behind even though mandatory evacuations were in place for days before the storm hit.
Of course, it's hard to imagine your pumps failing, but the fact that you even need pumps to keep the city above ground in the first place tells you you probably shouldn't be living there. If you live somewhere that should be underwater if not for pumps constantly pumping out water, then you should be prepared for the consequences when the pumps fail, which, they eventually will. And if you also must stay above ground by not only utilizing pumps, but also dams and levees, both of which are likely to fail at one time or another, you really shouldn't be upset when your house goes floating down the river with you in it.
Like I said, I truly do feel for these people that have lost their homes. But they knew the risks involved in living there. It's the same thing as living in tornado-alley in a mobile home. Sooner or later, a tornado will pick up your house and toss it around. I live in Southern California. Sooner or later, we're going to have a massive earthquake which will cause death and destruction. It's a fact of life. And while, for the time being, I don't have any say in where I live, I wholeheartedly accept the fact that at any time the ground could open up and swallow our home.
I'm not trying to be callous or mean and I hope life can get back to normal as soon as possible, but why can't we just leave New Orleans the way it should be - under water? Why can't we just let nature take back the land that lies below sea level? Must we always try and outdo mother nature? As the hurricane dies out further north, it'll still be dumping water which will flow down the Mississippi and further drown New Orleans. Instead of pumping it out for weeks (some say up to 2 months of pumping), let it stay. Relocate these people to Nebraska or some other god-awful place. They can take their chances with tornadoes and let the water level rise to where it should be.
URL: CNN.com
Of course, it's hard to imagine your pumps failing, but the fact that you even need pumps to keep the city above ground in the first place tells you you probably shouldn't be living there. If you live somewhere that should be underwater if not for pumps constantly pumping out water, then you should be prepared for the consequences when the pumps fail, which, they eventually will. And if you also must stay above ground by not only utilizing pumps, but also dams and levees, both of which are likely to fail at one time or another, you really shouldn't be upset when your house goes floating down the river with you in it.
Like I said, I truly do feel for these people that have lost their homes. But they knew the risks involved in living there. It's the same thing as living in tornado-alley in a mobile home. Sooner or later, a tornado will pick up your house and toss it around. I live in Southern California. Sooner or later, we're going to have a massive earthquake which will cause death and destruction. It's a fact of life. And while, for the time being, I don't have any say in where I live, I wholeheartedly accept the fact that at any time the ground could open up and swallow our home.
I'm not trying to be callous or mean and I hope life can get back to normal as soon as possible, but why can't we just leave New Orleans the way it should be - under water? Why can't we just let nature take back the land that lies below sea level? Must we always try and outdo mother nature? As the hurricane dies out further north, it'll still be dumping water which will flow down the Mississippi and further drown New Orleans. Instead of pumping it out for weeks (some say up to 2 months of pumping), let it stay. Relocate these people to Nebraska or some other god-awful place. They can take their chances with tornadoes and let the water level rise to where it should be.
URL: CNN.com
posted by Blake | 21:41
1 Comments:
I'm no expert. [/disclaimer]
about this:
but why can't we just leave New Orleans the way it should be - under water? Why can't we just let nature take back the land that lies below sea level? Must we always try and outdo mother nature?
Well, funny thing is, New Orleans was at or above sea level when it was founded/first built. What happened? the combination of the city sinking due to erosion and just the natural ebb and flow of the earth, and the entire mississippi flood plain forgetting that it's a mississippi flood plain.
the wetlands around the lakes and rivers have been nearly obliterated over the years. granted, some of this development happened before we knew any better about the importance of natural wetlands. with buildings, roads, towns, and other miscellaneous infrastructure in their place, there is no natural setup to absorb overflow of the water.
and this -
But they knew the risks involved in living there.
Well, it's sometimes hard for people in our educated, privilidged class to comprehend how NOT a choice it is for people to live where they live. With the exception of a small fraction of the unevacuated people, we're talking about the lowest socioeconomic class not just in that part of the town, but in the whole country. The poor in NO are damn POOR - it's one of the more problematic of zones in the country for education, health, homelessness, drugs, crime, etc. Most of these people were born there, and their parents were born there - it wasn't a choice to live there, and they usually do not have the means to get out (I'm talking long-term, like leaving your home town permanently, not just for storms) or a place to go once they're out. We can't judge them for this - we can't blame them for being trapped there.
it's all just so sad.
also, it's late and i'm feeling more, you know, liberal and verbose than usual. sorry for unloading here, dude.
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