Sup with this?
The Root noted last week that it seems we live in a time of unprecedented natural disasters...most of which seemed to have all happened in the past year.
The two events that stand out the most are:
- The tsunami which killed a quarter of a million people after Christmas last year.
- The earthquake in Pakistan. The death toll has topped 79,000 (as of this morning).
Throw in a record-setting hurricane season in the U.S. (and related flooding in New Orleans and the Northeast), it's a bit scary. Last year was bad enough (Frances, Ivan, etc.) This year is worse. Dennis, Katrina, and Rita caused severe damage. Tammy caused the NE flooding. And Wilma is now poised to hit Florida. For the first time since 1933, they've exhausted the list of names for hurricanes in one season. If another storm forms, they start using Greek letters to name the storms (and there are several weeks left in the hurricane season).
I don't know if this all means anything. I'm not an "end times" kind of person who reads into natural events like these. Still, it IS kinda scary to see these things happening...and that a couple of these events (the tsunami and the Pakistan earthquake) have ridiculously high death tolls.
I guess I just don't want to be the person sitting here in the illusionary safety of my own home feeling safe and sound yet having no compassion or awareness for what's happening around the world. My biggest gripe is that gas prices have gone up. Relatively speaking, it's a silly gripe. Sure, it's a headache...and that kind of thing really impacts you when you're on a tight budget. But..at least for now...I still have my home, my family, and haven't lost 79,000 or 250,000 (or even just a mere 1100) of my neighbors and family.
It's something worth thinking about.
The two events that stand out the most are:
- The tsunami which killed a quarter of a million people after Christmas last year.
- The earthquake in Pakistan. The death toll has topped 79,000 (as of this morning).
Throw in a record-setting hurricane season in the U.S. (and related flooding in New Orleans and the Northeast), it's a bit scary. Last year was bad enough (Frances, Ivan, etc.) This year is worse. Dennis, Katrina, and Rita caused severe damage. Tammy caused the NE flooding. And Wilma is now poised to hit Florida. For the first time since 1933, they've exhausted the list of names for hurricanes in one season. If another storm forms, they start using Greek letters to name the storms (and there are several weeks left in the hurricane season).
I don't know if this all means anything. I'm not an "end times" kind of person who reads into natural events like these. Still, it IS kinda scary to see these things happening...and that a couple of these events (the tsunami and the Pakistan earthquake) have ridiculously high death tolls.
I guess I just don't want to be the person sitting here in the illusionary safety of my own home feeling safe and sound yet having no compassion or awareness for what's happening around the world. My biggest gripe is that gas prices have gone up. Relatively speaking, it's a silly gripe. Sure, it's a headache...and that kind of thing really impacts you when you're on a tight budget. But..at least for now...I still have my home, my family, and haven't lost 79,000 or 250,000 (or even just a mere 1100) of my neighbors and family.
It's something worth thinking about.
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