As of last Monday, Tropical Storm-turned-Hurricane Isaac was heading for New Orleans in a spooky replay of Katrina, and the media was all over the story. Isaac was following a similar track and was scheduled to hit the Louisiana coast almost exactly on the 7th anniversary of Katrina. Hard to believe that was seven years ago! The file footage of Katrina reminded us of the potential for disaster, especially when one builds a city below sea level. Some parts of Louisiana experienced as much as 20” of rain, which apparently is not all that unusual for a slow-moving storm of this magnitude. Fun fact, presented to me by the weather professional in my family: in 1935, 24 inches of rain fell in two locations in Colorado in a six hour period, more than the yearly average for the subject areas. Isaac’s fury was not in its wind velocity but in the fact that it stalled around landfall, saturating the coast with heavy rains. Places like St. John the Baptist Parish and Plaquemines Parish, outside the enormous new and improved New Orleans levee, got hammered with heavy rain and storm surges. And this is just the first storm of the season! I’m waiting for Key West to take a direct hit, because those people are crazy, and notorious for riding out hurricanes. If Key West experienced a 12 foot storm surge, as occurred in parts of the Gulf Coast, it would be game over for the entire community. There’s hardy and then there’s stupid. The question I ask is what will the media do when a bona fide Category 4 or 5 rolls up on our doorstep? I call it “Chicken Little Syndrome” … desensitized by all the hype over “normal” storms, people might fail to react with vigilance when the big one hits.
Meanwhile, on went the Republican National Convention in Tampa, shortened by a day because of the storm, but chock full of baloney nonetheless. I thought N.J. Gov. Christie spoke convincingly, as did Mitt Romney’s wife, and Florida Senator Marco Rubio. But where was Todd Aiken, espousing his creative views on rape and pregnancy? And war hero or not, John McCain bugs me. He reminds me of the grumpy old man in Up!, and I can‘t believe he was the best the Republicans could come up with in 2008. I’m sure Clint Eastwood’s 12 minute “empty chair speech” will get a few hits on YouTube, but I found it painful to watch. An entire audience screaming “Make My Day” … jeesh. One final comment about political prevarication and fact checking. We express our indignation because politicians lie, and certainly there has been a lot of that going on with both parties. If we’re so indignant, why do we still drink the Koolaid? We vote for those lies. It’s a little like political Stockholm Syndrome, and perhaps if there was some political consequence to playing fast and loose with the facts, these clowns would stop doing it. The fact is most Americans, myself included, don’t have a clear understanding of the truth regarding issues that confront our nation, and until we are all more vested in the process, more apprised of what is fact and what is fiction, nothing will change. By the way, last week’s report photo was no accident; the women who make up The Faith Tones to me symbolize the face of the Republican Party today. The Democrats are the “cool” people and the Republicans are the nerds.
West Nile Virus has hit hard in Texas and this year, there have been a whopping 66 deaths nationwide attributed to the mosquito-born disease. Up here in the GWN, we’ve had noticeably less mosquitoes this season. Here’s something we don’t talk about every day: drug resistant bacteria. The CRKP super bug was first discovered around ten years ago in North Carolina. It resurfaced in Los Angeles county in 2010, and this one is an epidemic waiting to happen. This bacteria is particularly onerous in that it mutates and can transfer its drug-resistant characteristics to other bacteria. Comforting to note that these super bugs seem to surface in hospitals and nursing homes. I’d like to have stock in the drug company that comes up with the magic bullet for this one. Google CRKP and add it to your list of phobias. The only antibiotic currently available that kills it also wreaks havoc on the kidneys. I’ve said this many times before; that while I’ve always assumed it will be mankind that causes its own downfall, it is becoming increasingly apparent to me that Mother Nature will beat us to the punch. Just ask the dinosaurs who’s boss.
Final note: lyricist Hal David died. David co-wrote with Burt Bacharach and penned such hits as Do You Know the Way to San Jose (I love that one) and Raindrops Keep Fallin’ on My Head. He also wrote that Grammy winning Carpenters hit Close to You, but I won’t hold that against him.
Can’t wait to hear what the Donkeys have to say this week.
-Written by Jamie Oppenheimer c2012 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
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