The name's Katrina

Last week, we witnessed how weak Man is in the face of nature's wrath. We also saw how frail a country could be in the aftermath of a natural disaster, no matter how influential or powerful this country could be. Hurricane Katrina, which is said to have left the most costly damage in U.S. history, is a wake up call- Man has been addicted to wealth, oil and power, that taking these things away could mean a considerable amount of loss.

What'a hard to bear is how other people take other's misery to their advantage. Looting and crime that swarmed New Orleans after the disaster was just proof that, indeed, the innate evil in Man comes out in most desperate times. It even becomes more horrible when these people justifies their wrong deeds: they do this to survive. This seem to be an excuse that has gained universal status: every nation suffers from this dilemma everytime natural disaster strikes, not just in the United States. Does this prove that some of us still haven't learned from the grim history of humanity? If this happens in a nation that claims prestige and power over other nations, does this mean we still have a long way to go before Man realizes that the only way to a better life is not to be selfish?



Today, I've seen the last episode of the Star Trek: Enterprise series. A swift retrospect of the three Enterprise starships played before the credits rolled, as the famous "Space... the final frontier. These are the voyages..." spiel was delivered by captains Picard, Kirk, and Archer. It's sad to realize that not all good shows do not last forever. (This episode is such a tearjerker.) But it's much more sad to think that we really have a long way to go before we could reach that level of humanity.

Here are some more things to think about regarding the unfortunate events that followed during the recent weeks:

1. The hurricane season is just starting in the U.S. Let's pray Katrina's the first and the last one in queue.

2. The United States government was so fast in reacting to the 9-11 terrorist attack, but it took them a week before the first wave of aid came to New Orleans residents who were affected by Katrina. I call this selective preparedness, if not ample proof for a much more controversial claim... you know what I mean. Farenheit 9/11. Wink. Wink.

3. We have a real energy crisis now, something that the world still seems to deny. The world's addiction to oil is like addiction to coffee. You don't immediately notice that you are addicted, until somebody else notices it. But the addict denies this fact, as it slowly affects his daily routine. It's obvious that we need alternative sources of energy, yet the world ignores this growing necessity. It's obvious that there ARE alternative sources of energy, like biodiesel, solar energy, and things like electric cars and hydrogen extracted from water. But the world seems to be caught still in the illusion that we don't need them, we don't want them, we still have enough supply of oil for everyone. Makes you think about oil cartels and the power of corporate evils over the State. Makes you think how fragile against selfish agenda the "system" is.

4. The habit of throwing the blame to someone else in the aftermath of a natural disaster is not at all an inert quality of Filipino leaders. It happens anywhere. The fact is, everyone is to be blamed for this. I was watching the news while Katrina was just collecting it's strength in the Mexican Gulf, and people seemed to be easy about it. They were really caught unprepared.

5. Imagine losing your home, your family, everything that's almost worth your life... all in a day or two. Imagine returning to where your house used to stand. Imagine returning to a place that you almost can't recognize anymore. Imagine taking away everything but the clothes that you now wear. You know their government can't act as quickly as they need to. These people need all the help that they could get, fast.