I’m having a hard time feeling
sympathy for some of the people in New York/New Jersey in the wake of Sandy. I see these people on TV and they are angrily
yelling at the television camera saying, “where is the government? We need
help.” I saw the same thing with Katrina.
I’m all for helping out my fellow man
in times of need. But, since when is it
the government’s job to prepare individuals for emergencies and provide for
them afterwards? People had plenty of time and warning to prepare for Sandy.
And a lot of them did. I saw television reports of people buying food and water
and generators, etc.. People were told to evacuate. Some did.
Maybe it is the culture I grew up in,
maybe it’s my common sense. I just don’t understand why there are so many
people crying about the government not being there to help them. People have
become way too dependent on the government. I have been taught since as far
back as I can remember to be prepared for emergencies. 72 hour kit. One year
supply of food.
Last year we were without power for
about a week I think. Which also meant no water. Since we are on a well. Not
once did it even cross my mind that the government should come help us. We had
generators. We had lanterns. We cooked on a camp stove. We huddled by the fire
with lots of blankets. Actually it was quite an adventure.
I just read an article by Bill O’Reilly.
He mentioned that he lives on Long Island or Staten Island – I can’t remember
which. But he said that he knew the power company was not reliable. So he has a
generator for those times when the power goes out occasionally. And when his
generator failed, during or shortly after the storm, he went to plan B. He knew
and contacted people who fixed it for him. He said he and his family weathered
the storm just fine.
We have become a nation that is too
dependent on government. Especially during these past four years under Obama. People
have the attitude of entitlement. That’s a dangerous place to be. Just look at
the TV reports and the angry people yelling for the government to help them.
The government cannot help individuals during a disaster. And when/if they do
come it will be slow.
We, as a people, need to take
responsibility for ourselves and become more self-reliant. When we are
self-reliant, we are better able to help others.
That’s my two cents.
Thanks for this Tam! Trevor and I discussed this very thing this morning on our 14 mile run. They cancelled the New York City Marathon because of this storm. There are thousands of runners who trained for months in order to qualify to run this event. They also had already flown there and spent hundreds of dollars to get to the race. Then they are told to go home. They were planning on having the race and then people were angry that other people could just go on with their lives while others were still awaiting help from the government. LAME-O!!! I mentioned the Munich Olympic Games and the horrible terrorist attack and murder of the Israeli athletes, and how the Games went on despite this tragedy. The organizers and the athletes recognized that if they would have cancelled the Games, the terrorists would have won. I agree with you on all points about the dangers of the sense of entitlement from government entities. Great post as always!
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