Posting opinions, letters and correspondence from far and wide. Even some to/from my elected representatives.

Tuesday, July 01, 2003

War and Natural Distasters:

It used to be that natural disasters had an impact on the citizenry such that the loss, pain and suffering that occur during a disaster was felt across the Nation and an inherent feeling of human connection was able to be translated into a Patriotic fervor.Unfortunately, natural disasters do not make the same impact that they used to. Floods, fires, twisters etc all have a significantly diminished impact in human loss, death and destruction for several reasons the most important of which is Federal Government programs (honorable intent and fundamentally necessary of course) that have reduced the need for direct involvement of the citizenry nationally. Also important, technology and development planning has significanly improved our ability to deal with natural forces.The only siginificant events in the National context that place the citizens in common peril and exercise natural human affinity and bonds are wartime events and other inexplicable externally created events (eg: terrorism). The end result? A diminishing of the strength of patriotic bonds that bind our society together. Those patriotic bonds are hardly exercised at all during peace time. Natural disasters rarely exercise them anymore.We are almost surprized, confused as to how to deal with patriotic emotions, they come so rarely to so many. Like your first personal experience with death, the emotions of patriotism seem alien to many, difficult to deal with, even unwanted.