(no subject)
i've been reading the news almost religiously the past four or five days. i don't think i've ever been this into the news. maybe it's because it's so close and so disturbing. maybe it's because i actually know somebody down there and it suddenly hits closer to home. maybe it's because i can hardly believe that such a culturally iconical and historically rich city has been completely devastated. maybe it's because i can't believe how poorly we as a country responded to this.
it's a sad sad way for this to happen, but it's finally shown the world that we really aren't the superpower that we claim to be. look at the tsunami that happened over in the asian pacific, to countries whose economic, military, and emergency-response powers are dwarved by what we, in theory, could provide. they managed to wrap up the aftermath of an even bigger natural disaster than the one that hit us. and we could see it coming. we knew what would happen.
my friend vanessa lives forty miles away from new orleans. we've not heard a single word from her. neither i nor her friends from ohio, where she studies. i try to imagine what it must be like for people down there; and then i also try to imagine what vanessa and her family are going through. i don't know their situation in relation to that of the constantly broadcasted condition of new orleans. i don't think her city got hit as hard. but i still couldn't imagine. it's hard for me to sit here in my undisturbed comfort and try to conjure up the reality of having lost everything i own. everything but the clothes upon my back.
europe has responded with overwhelming offers of support and assistance. which is so refreshing in a day and age where america/americans generally get (or are believed to get) a bad rep from the international community. though they did throw that in there. (and rightfully so, i believe.) there has been plenty of criticism, mostly of bush and the inadequacy of a country like america to care for its own citizens. headlines in a couple newspapers in britain and germany: "anarchy in the US" and "apocalypse now" respectively.
kind of silly, isn't it, the show that we've put on for the world, only to be brought to our knees by something that was really much more preventable than how it turned out.
i ran into a friend of my mother's here at western the other day, and we always stop and chat when we see each other. she told me a friend of theirs had gotten accepted to a ph.d. program at a university that was just levelled by hurricane katrina. that made me think of all the other college-bound kids (and adults) and the blow that must have been. it's just...insane. i guess i am paying more attention to this than other catastrophes that have happened (around the world) because this is so close to home. that and the fact that i'm being so inundated by it. america does pipe up about international crises, but it's another thing when it happens here. the flood of information and pictures into the media is bigger than the actual flood in new orleans. nothing better than home-grown headlines, i guess.
it's sad, regardless of where it happens. but right now i think i'm really dwelling upon it because i want so badly to hear from vanessa. i've never before known a person who was right down in the eye of such an event as this, somewhat comparable to the tsunami or 9/11 when it comes to shock, cries for help, and just plain tragedy.
i'm curious to see how the city will turn out. i'm afraid to see how much has been lost. forever.
it's a sad sad way for this to happen, but it's finally shown the world that we really aren't the superpower that we claim to be. look at the tsunami that happened over in the asian pacific, to countries whose economic, military, and emergency-response powers are dwarved by what we, in theory, could provide. they managed to wrap up the aftermath of an even bigger natural disaster than the one that hit us. and we could see it coming. we knew what would happen.
my friend vanessa lives forty miles away from new orleans. we've not heard a single word from her. neither i nor her friends from ohio, where she studies. i try to imagine what it must be like for people down there; and then i also try to imagine what vanessa and her family are going through. i don't know their situation in relation to that of the constantly broadcasted condition of new orleans. i don't think her city got hit as hard. but i still couldn't imagine. it's hard for me to sit here in my undisturbed comfort and try to conjure up the reality of having lost everything i own. everything but the clothes upon my back.
europe has responded with overwhelming offers of support and assistance. which is so refreshing in a day and age where america/americans generally get (or are believed to get) a bad rep from the international community. though they did throw that in there. (and rightfully so, i believe.) there has been plenty of criticism, mostly of bush and the inadequacy of a country like america to care for its own citizens. headlines in a couple newspapers in britain and germany: "anarchy in the US" and "apocalypse now" respectively.
kind of silly, isn't it, the show that we've put on for the world, only to be brought to our knees by something that was really much more preventable than how it turned out.
i ran into a friend of my mother's here at western the other day, and we always stop and chat when we see each other. she told me a friend of theirs had gotten accepted to a ph.d. program at a university that was just levelled by hurricane katrina. that made me think of all the other college-bound kids (and adults) and the blow that must have been. it's just...insane. i guess i am paying more attention to this than other catastrophes that have happened (around the world) because this is so close to home. that and the fact that i'm being so inundated by it. america does pipe up about international crises, but it's another thing when it happens here. the flood of information and pictures into the media is bigger than the actual flood in new orleans. nothing better than home-grown headlines, i guess.
it's sad, regardless of where it happens. but right now i think i'm really dwelling upon it because i want so badly to hear from vanessa. i've never before known a person who was right down in the eye of such an event as this, somewhat comparable to the tsunami or 9/11 when it comes to shock, cries for help, and just plain tragedy.
i'm curious to see how the city will turn out. i'm afraid to see how much has been lost. forever.