Overreaction?

 Am I getting too old or just unable to get accustomed to the American way?

Hopefully it's the latter😊.

I have spent 99% of my life in places that are on hurricane paths and each year we prepare the best we can and wait it out. 

I have observed for some years now though, that ever since we in Jamaica started getting regular hurricane updates from the USA, a whole lot of additional and unecessary stress is added to our lives every year, as these natural occurrences occur or threaten to.

For when you look at the dramatic manner in which US television weather people bring you updates on hurricanes, it as if every one of us is going to be totally eradicated when each one forms!

Seriously, for when we never had those dramatic up-dates with pictures showing the bands swallowing us all all, the stress level was just not as terrible.

Think of it, aren’t earthquakes also natural occurrences? Because they cannot be predicted, when they happen, we mourn, pick up the pieces where we can and move on.

No additional unnecessary stress. 

That is great, for as the experts will tell you, stress is the root of all evil.

While in Jamaica, my most costly hurricane loss never came from the winds nor from ignoring warnings that the weather people would have you believe would blow you to hell and back.

It was hurricane Gustav in 2008. Not a category 5 like Gilbert in 1988. 

Gustav was barely a category 1 hurricane and it never came with much drama, but lots of water. It wasn’t even the water coming directly from the from the system which caused my misery, but a set of circumstances that one could never have imagined or prepared for.

My backyard was on the Sandy Gully, a major waterway in Kingston. But it had what was previously thought to be, an invincible gully wall.

Well Gustav by itself wasn’t the problem. My misery came from the water in the gully which was transporting a small section of a brick house, which crashed into my ‘invincible’ wall. For, unfortunately my backyard was on a corner, so the force of the water loaded with bricks tore into my retaining wall and made a large hole. Long story short, my backyard flooded to within two or three inches of the back of the house! I lived for weeks being unable to go outside for when the water had receded, my backyard had a 30-foot drop.

I am by no means suggesting that one should not take practical precautions where able, but there are so many things one can’t prevent or prepare for, so stirring up panic is of no use. 

Anyway, as  American weather people are no doubt in search of ratings, over dramatization is not too much in their my book!

I remember when Mrs. Thatcher was prime minister of England, a storm created some damage in London, but the weather people had not seen it coming, so she ordered that they all be fired!😊

Is that what American weather people are over-reacting to? You tell me.

Then there are the politicians.

We all know Florida is very flat so prone to flooding, but really, urging all who live in the path of the hurricane to evacuate has got to be too damn extreme.

For example, for days before Ian even became a category 4 hurricane and while it was hundreds of miles away from Florida, the governor was on tv urging the 2.5 millions in its orbit to evacuate. Naturally, sections of west and north western Florida ended up having traffic jams for miles.

Luckily, it was only a small proportion of those in its path who had obeyed his call!

I could not help wondering, if everyone did, where would they find safe havens? In the past, I have even heard of people evacuating, going further north only to have the hurricane bypssing where they fled from and hitting the place they had run off to!

Yes, I understand that politicians and weather people don’t want to be accused of not doing enough to protect people, but is creating mass panic the way to go? Or is it better to give practical advice, educate the population, provide things like sand bags, and create shelters where necessary?

Giving practical information on necessities that one will need, like food, cleaning supplies etc. would certainly be a better option than having panic-stricken shoppers cleaning out supermarkets to buy things they will never need. This is now part of the annual madness and it has taken hold in Jamaica too.

Having experience is really valuable I guess, as I have never rushed out to buy stuff for hurricanes. So when category 5 Gilbert hit us in Jamaica and left us without electricity for up to three months, we still survived, Yes, it was difficult and very inconvenient at times, but in my book, that beats the annual  stress and unnecessary expense of buying tons of stuff you will never need!

Each year as I watch the dramatic rituals, I often get the impression that many of these modern-day  politicians and some US weather reporters, are the type of people who would love to be able to go into crowded theaters and shout fire. Smh.

UPDATE. Ian made landfall mainly in Ft. Myers and it’s environs and my heart goes out to those affected. But that area was never targeted by the weather people. Instead it was Orlando and Tampa residents who were being urged to evacuate!

Will their true worth be valued? Nah!

I am bemused, as no doubt are the scientists who were taken by surprise by the coronavirus. For it seems clear now that they overreacted.

Don't get me wrong, I am happy they did, for had they not done so, the death rate would have exceeded the 390,000 it is today. (with the US alone having more than 110,000).

The scary thing is though, we really have no idea yet what the economic impact and indeed the death by poverty and malnutrition will be, as a result of economies all over the world, being closed down immediately and for months.

Before this vicious virus struck, over seven hundred million on this planet, lived on less than US$2 per day. Since the shutdown, the World Food Program, (WFP)  estimates that some 265 million will directly face starvation and malnutrition-related problems during 2020.

For most people in the first world, such statistics have no impact, as they are just numbers. For me, it is chilling though, since I have spent most of my life in a third world country, where avoiding those on the verge of starvation and deprivation has always been impossible.

However, those who treat the figures above as just meanless statistics will somehow be affected by what is happening to the poor, as this must have an impact on world peace and stability in many countries. 

For, consider this, if so many hundreds of thousands of people worldwide were prepared put their health and even their lives at risk this past weekend, thousands by putting their masks and social distancing away to go on the streets to demonstrate against racism in America, what will people, in general, be prepared to do when facing starvation?

 

Why am I feeling like such a prophetess of doom today, a role I have never cherished?

My more positive position arises from the fact that I feel that the spread of the disease will not be as dire as scientists are predicting, based on close proximity to each other over the last 2 weeks. Being in the outdoors in my book must make a world of a difference, so we can open up and get our economies moving.

No, I am not a scientist so call it a feeling. Yes, I am sure many will get sick and some will even die. But isn't it God who really determines when any of us must die? Yes, we can take precautions against getting ill, like wearing masks and spending more time outside, but in the final analysis, we have to learn to co-exist with diseases, for the solution can never be to cower under our beds.

I would hate to be a decision-maker in my little island of Jamaica, for you will be condemned if you do and condemned if you don't.

So you may as well do.

Before the pandemic, we had a poverty rate of between 14-17% depending on who you wished to believe. Tourism contributes 10% to our GDP and supplies 25% of the jobs, so having to close down that sector has not only been directly devastating to the workers,  but also to people like farmers, craft vendors etc.

Jamaica, therefore, cannot continue to have that sector remain closed indefinitely, especially in light of the fact that other competing destinations are gingerly opening up their countries. So while extra attention is being paid to doing everything to keep the spread of the virus to the minimum,  like deep and continuous cleaning, the mandatory wearing of masks and keeping people a safe distance apart,  had we chosen to test every visitor who visits our shores, no one would be visiting our island soon.

And opening up, cannot mean testing every visitor to the island, for that too would not only be impossible but also it would cause our competitors to wipe us out.

With our public health authorities now having a handle on dealing with the virus, the government decided to open up some schools, businesses, and tourism, partially, on the 15th, June 2020. 

For tourism. they have declared they are not requiring that visitors certify that they are coronavirus free nor will they be testing everyone who arrives on our shores. 

This has naturally caused a loud outcry from detractors.

But detractors have no responsibility for making decisions that affect people's lives and livelihood so they can be ignored when they choose to make an issue of everything.

The government has to remain bold and stick to its guns to save the majority from unnecessary peril and starvation. And they are doing just that by having facilities ready to deal with any visitor or tourism worker who becomes ill. It is the right way to proceed.

We have the sea, sun, and fresh air on our side so hopefully, the effect of this damn virus will be minimal and time will prove that this was the sane way to proceed.

On a more positive note, this awful virus has highlighted the true value of human effort in societies.

What I  mean is that before the pandemic, the "valuable"  people based on their remuneration, were, film stars, sportsmen/women and other types of entertainers. When I say valuable, I mean they are the ones who could demand any salary they wanted and get it.

Oh, I would never downgrade the role of entertainers and sportspeople, for entertainment in all forms, plays a critical role in drowning monotony and even allowing us to take a break from depressing real-life stresses.

Because entertainers and sportspeople fall within the private sector, the players are paid huge salaries.

However, when the pandemic arrived, people suddenly realized the really critical players in the society are teachers, health care workers, sanitation workers, those who provide our food etc. But these are among the lowest paid in most societies! As a result of this new awakening, all sorts of tributes including fly-overs from ace pilots, dedicated songs from musicians have sprouted up to honor the workers in these areas. But will their importance to the society be still recognized once the pandemic is under control?

I would love to be optimistic, but the reality is, most such workers are paid from the public purse worldwide and governments are notorious for underpaying such people. I don't think it's because the politicians are especially wicked, but the reality is, improving salaries means having to impose higher taxes and none of us like to pay more taxes!

So back to the title; will their true worth be of value when it comes to prioritizing who should be well compensated?

Sadly, even if it does in words,  I don't think it will show where it should, that is, in their compensation packages.