Pummeled By Hurricanes Again

How do extreme natural disasters impact your life these days? 

“Anyone who says they’re not afraid at the time of a hurricane is either a fool or a liar, or a little bit of both.” (Anderson Cooper)

On the morning after Hurricane Milton slammed into the central weather coast of Florida, I again breathe in with a sigh of relief that I’ve “dodged a bullet” from this latest tropical  scare in Fort Lauderdale.There was a time that I actually looked forward to the occasional September hurricane striking South Florida when I was teaching. For I’d be privileged then to enjoy a few days off from my daily teaching grind at the beginning of the semester. The occurrence  of hurricanes also created more interest in my social studies curriculum as my students feverishly plotted hurricane locations on free newspaper maps and studied the history of past storm impacts in their community.

But as a result of “climate change” occurrences, hurricanes now strike Florida more frequently and with greater intensity than ever before. Thus I feel more like a “sitting duck” these days as I listen to a constant fusillade of “Breaking News Reports” about expected storm surge, wind damage, and flooding likelihood when our community lies within the striking cone of uncertainty. I also wonder more often during these crisis times whether our elected leaders actually care about the people they serve. 

So along those golden beaches of both east and west coasts of Florida, it’s important to understand how our democracy should function in such an emergency hurricane problem. As one example, I’m concerned that conspiracy theories of untruth will discourage or confuse hurricane victims about rebuilding their lives as so desired. So whether you are rich or poor, young or old, liberal or conservative, as well as express a particular religious affiliation, think deeply about the issue of our Florida hurricane crisis when you decide who to vote for in the upcoming election on November 5. For we desperately need leaders who actually serve EVERYONE they represent.