	Bob Hostetler > Writing

When Disaster Strikes

by Bob Hostetler

Hurricane Katrina has wreaked havoc in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama, flattening communities, flooding cities, and sweeping away a so-far incalculable number of hopes, dreams, and lives. When such devastation occurs, it’s natural to ask, “Why?”

Time Magazine answers, “Global warming, in theory at least.” A Monday (August 29) article by Jeffrey Kluger cited “a lot of people” (without quoting—or even naming—one) who believe that we—“and our global warming ways”—are to blame. The article cited an M.I.T. study which found that hurricane wind speeds have increased about 50% in the past 50 years as evidence, but neglected to say if the study even hinted at global warming as a possible cause.

Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., went one better: he wrote on Monday that “As Hurricane Katrina dismantles Mississippi’s Gulf Coast, it’s worth recalling the central role that Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour played in derailing the Kyoto Protocol and kiboshing President Bush’s iron-clad campaign promise to regulate CO2.” In other words, Kennedy’s answer to the “Why” question is: It’s President Bush’s fault. Kennedy said, “We are all learning what it’s like to reap the whirlwind of fossil fuel dependence which Barbour and his cronies have encouraged. Our destructive addiction has given us a catastrophic war in the Middle East and—now—Katrina is giving our nation a glimpse of the climate chaos we are bequeathing our children.”

It is human nature to look for some sort of rhyme and reason when horrible things happen, but reflexively blaming global warming or (by extension) a Republican governor and president for Hurricane Katrina must strike even the most partisan observer as a stretch at best, and crazy at worst. The truth of the matter is, hurricanes—even devastating ones—have been around a lot longer than the Barbour and Bush administrations. Natural disasters—even the most tragic—even predate cars and airplanes. Life is not a “risk-free” offer. Never has been. Not even in the United States of America.

It never hurts to take precautions, of course. No less a sage than wise King Solomon once said, “A wise person uses the eyes in his head, but a fool walks in the dark” (Ecclesiastes 2:14, GW). Wise policies (such as, in this case, encouraging people to relocate away from flood plains and beachfronts) can sometimes have an effect on the impact of such natural disasters. This is partly why last December’s earthquake in Iran took 41,000 lives, while a slightly stronger 1989 earthquake in San Francisco claimed 63 lives.

But King Solomon also said, “I again saw under the sun that the race is not to the swift, and the battle is not to the warriors, and neither is bread to the wise, nor wealth to the discerning, nor favor to men of ability; for time and chance overtake them all” (Ecclesiastes 9:11, NIV). Caution, preparation, and prevention can provide some protection from some forms of misfortune, but we only deceive ourselves if we expect to eliminate all tragedy from our lives, and perhaps even more so if we try to blame our political enemies for the fickle forces of nature.

Of course, we may not like the truth of the matter. It’s no fun knowing that there’s no way to be sure that tragedy will not befall me the next time I leave my home…. or stay home, for that matter. As it was in Solomon’s day, so it is in ours: time and chance often trump wisdom, strength, wealth—even caution. But that doesn't mean we can do nothing. We can:

1. Ask “What now?” instead of “Why?” The philosophical question, “Why?,” is worthless in the face of such tragedy, because it can’t really be answered satisfactorily—certainly not in a way that will soften the grief of those who have lost businesses, homes, and loved ones. Trying to answer “Why?” more often just piles grief on top of grief. The better question—the healthy question to ask—is, “What now?” We can’t always understand what has passed. We certainly can’t change it. But we can affect the future.

2. Rise to the occasion. It is appalling to see our fellow citizens looting stores and businesses in the aftermath of this devastating tragedy; it’s hard to imagine a punishment too severe for such conduct. Thank God that the more common reactions to such events are generosity, hard work, and even heroism.

3. Pick up the pieces. It will take years, of course, for New Orleans and other areas to recover from this catastrophe, but it is heartening to see the speed and alacrity with which relief efforts have begun around the country (and, we may hope, from other areas of the world that have been recipients of American magnanimity at such times). Churches and synagogues are among the most efficient vehicles for help at such times, as well as agencies like The Salvation Army (www.salvationarmyusa.org) and World Relief (www.wr.org), among many. And efforts like the Butler County Sheriff’s drive to truck bottled drinking water and personal hygiene items to ravaged areas represent the best way to react when disaster strikes.

It’s not easy coming to terms with the fact that some things are out of our control. But they are. Some may seek to explain what they cannot control. Others may seek to cast blame. But blessed are those who do…what they can.

This article appeared in the September 2, 2005 edition of the Hamilton Journal-News, with the title, “Random Acts of Violence.”

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