Catastrophic Flooding in Texas
Just Don't Mention Global Warming or Climate Change
Nearly 100 people are already dead from catastrophic flooding in Texas. The “blame game” has started, with the Trump administration taking heat for flash flood warnings that came too late to save those in the path of surging rivers fed by thunderstorms dumping too much rain in too short a time.
The White House, naturally, says it’s not their fault. If you want to blame someone, blame God. A quick summary from NBC:
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt pushed back against questions as to why flood alerts were issued "while people were likely sleeping" and what the administration is doing to ensure alerts go out earlier.
Leavitt noted that the National Weather Service issued escalating warnings Thursday regarding the weather forecasts as information came in. She said there were "timely flash flood alerts" including a flood watch in the afternoon, evening, and "timely flash flood alerts" at night.
"So people were sleeping in the middle of the night when this flood came — that was an act of God," Leavitt said. "It's not the administration's fault that the flood hit when it did, but there were early and consistent warnings."
“An act of God” — Divine wrath? Judgment? What, exactly?
Why do we use this expression, “an act of God,” as if God or gods are just waiting to smite people with hurricanes, floods, locusts, tornados, and (Lord?) knows what else.
Wasn’t it really an act of nature? Too much heat, too much humidity, and wind patterns combining somewhat predictably to cause dangerous flash flooding. An act of nature we can guard against. An act of God implies caprice, violence, and forces that can neither be predicted nor prevented.
We know about acts of nature. That’s why we have science and scientists, or in this case meteorologists, radar, supercomputers, and the like. We fund a national weather service of experts so that we can predict and perhaps ameliorate some of these acts of nature.
But we know as well nature is becoming more extreme. Nature’s acts are becoming more violent as the earth slowly warms and as climate patterns become more violent and hence often less predictable—as well as more punishing.
Let’s not talk about acts of God, whether as a way to shift blame or even as a form of comfort. (Speaking for myself, I wouldn’t be comforted if someone told me God had swept my loved one away in a flash flood He sent.) Let’s talk about acts of nature, and how they’re growing more violent, and the steps we can take to understand them, predict them better, and lessen their impact.
Again, “act of God” gets us nowhere. But I know man is acting, with drill, baby, drill consistency, and man’s acts are something we do have control over.
With sympathy to all those who’ve lost loved ones in the terrifying flash flooding in Texas. Nature can be brutal—it’s why we must respect it, study it, and understand it.
That area of Texas is known for flash floods - so any storm or major rain event should have been anticipated as a potential flash flood. That's an issue for the Kerr County Emergency Management. But even if foreseen or aware of the rapidly rising waters, they had no way to alert the populace, per the county judge, as that county doesn't have an alert system because the county resident didn't want to pay for it.
The notion that you can cut, cut, cut government services and pay no costs blew up last weekend. This may be the first instance of what wholesale layoffs of government employees mean, when there was no consideration of the services they performed.
I think of all those dead little girls and all the others, and it's just so sad. And I fear it will not be the last incident when cutting spending and taxes is seen to have tragic consequences.
It's a reminder of the statement attributed to Oliver Wendell Holmes: taxes [and the services they pay for] are the price we pay for civilization.
“Just Don't Mention Global Warming or Climate Change”
Oh, good Gawd, Heaven forbid! Didn’t Trump sign an Executive Order not only banning any reference to those words but also to their reality, as being subversive of American domestic and foreign policy? Deportable offenses! And is there any question about what direction meaningful discussion of any issue will take once Chatty Cathy pull-string doll Karoline Leavitt is involved?
Which brings us to Gawd… er, God. Unquestionably He’s reverted to His Old Testament archetype, the question is who will and how to profit. Israel is very comfortable with this, not only as The Author of their history, but also as Grand Sanction of their wanton offenses to humanity. Trump is attempting to negotiate an arrangement with the Other Almighty whereby He (Trump) gets to pass off some of the responsibility for His boners in return for more air time for the Other.
Meanwhile, back on Wall St. the financial and moral center of the universe, the smart money iss getting out of property insurance companies and is backing Disney Cruise Lines new class of “The Ark” cruise ships, specially outfitted to attract Christian nationalists eager to undergo “The Rapture.”