Humans: The Prevention vs Cure paradox.
The recent fire tragedies in Australia have given me both hope and fear for our future at the same time, confused? Well… let me explain.
The Hope:
The feeling of hope for my children’s future comes from the aftermath of these tragic events. The grit, determination and togetherness that our country showed to come together to not just support the firey’s on the front line; but the overwhelming support to the victims. In true “Aussie Spirit” and more so as a global community; people have come together to support the victims with all manner of support.
From $50 Million plus Go Fund Me campaigns from a simple comedian personality, to Big Bash athletes donating $250 for every ball hit over the fence (Matty wade is up for a few grand now); to even our in house toddler tantrum athlete Nick Kyrios doing the same within the Tennis world. Money has been thrown at the devastation from all sides, to create a huge war chest of resources to help the affected areas of the country get back on their feet. And quite rightly so.
The fact that among all the petty B/S we see in the media and on socials of arguing opinions, differences, and focusing on what separates us; when the rubber truly hits the road; US HUMANS go alright. We’re there to help each other, we bend a knee to help pick up the pieces and do what we can to assist when someone’s chips are down, and in this case burnt out.
You see the same behavior when other natural catastrophes happen around the world. Cyclones, Hurricanes, Tidal Waves, Volcanoes, Earthquakes…humans tend to band together and offer help to those effected by Mother Nature’s muscle flexing.
It gives me hope that perhaps, US HUMANS have a chance at a future. That perhaps the things that bind us are stronger than those that divide us??
But this question then beings me to the other side….
The Fear
Watching the rhetoric that has encompassed the conversation over the last 4 months as the country burned has been more than frustrating. The keyboard warriors out there using catastrophe to get their voice heard, to make noise and argue the idiocy of their ill informed, and ignorant opinions; which somehow continue to divide our nation and are leaving us lagging behind the rest of the world.
On the chopping block, was the very relevant challenge of Climate Change. I was reading this junk even from people I thought to be informed and well educated, and was fuming. From blaming the greens, to back burning tactics, to even blaming the fireys on not doing their job right; to avoid and attempt to discredit the fact that climate change is a major contributor to the severity of the fires we experienced.
As the scientific world and most global governments are standing up and using FACT backed by SCIENCE to make decisions and pathways to combating climate change; it seems the powerhouse western cultures (ours included) are seemingly lagging behind, because of what I can only put it down to is EGO and MONEY. The two most damaging motivators for the survival of our planet and global population.
And when I stand back and take a few deep breaths to try and understand what is happening; I see a HUGE problem in US HUMANS. We’re pretty darn good at coming together to fix a problem after it has occurred. As we just discussed, You and I; we put in the effort to help people after the devastation has occurred; but when we want to talk about prevention…well….that is an entirely different story.
Why can we work together globally to fix a problem after it has happened; but when we talk prevention; then all hell breaks loose? I just don’t get it.
With the world’s scientific community telling us that we are now 100 seconds to midnight on the Doomsday Clock (google it) ; and that in the next couple of years we will be at the point of no return for global warming (the heart of climate change) .. .why are we arguing?
I wonder… who will run the Go Fund Me campaign after US HUMANS are gone because we did nothing?