RE: Amazing Katrina-related essay

From: Elena Dent <debadger_at_pacbell.net_at_hypermail.org>
Date: Tue, 6 Sep 2005 22:15:28 -0700

Some of it made sense, some of it was sophistry. But that's what you'll see
in anything written for mass consumption.

Years ago some friends in the SF club I belonged to decided to do a panel at
the local SF Convention. "Colonel Dubois on the topic of 'What Do We owe
Our Culture/Tribe/Country.'" They thought they would then walk in and say to
the effect, "Well, I'm sorry, Colonel Dubois was unable to make it, so I was
asked to be his replacement.." and they'd have a few Heinlein fiends
together to sit around and bs. The room was full. Whups. So, they went in
with their line of "Colonel Dubois wasn't able to make it, so I've been
asked to chair this discussion." And the question WAS asked:

What do we owe our "tribe", what does it owe us? How do you, personally,
define 'us-in-the-tribe'? Your family, your friends, your immediate
neighbors... up the street? Two blocks out? Three? Second cousin twice
removed you've never met before?? What would you do for them, what should
you expect of them as fellow members of your tribe?

And the conversation was interesting, and it was honest. It was also good
that the room they got was small and the time frame was a mere half hour,
which was enough to get people thinking but not going for each others'
throats. What was more remarkable was that for the rest of the convention
you could hear, now and again, the discussions continuing quietly. They got
people to think, and in a venue not noted for serious thinking (when lots of
high-toned flimflammery was far more popular... and discussions of the Sword
of Sharpness' merit against the Shield of Impregnability}

Is this peanut gallery crap? In a way, yes and in a way no. I've read one
of Thomas Sowell's books and while I do not agree with some of it I do with
other ideas he has. I've read Jared Diamond's _Collapse_ and _Guns, Germs
and Steel_ and uncomfortable as some of it is.... it is NOT peanut gallery
crap. I haven't read enough J. K. Galbraith, but what I have (and it's
dense and not a light read) I think he's got a lot of other very good
points. One of the most important is that there is no one simple answer,
but that shouldn't stop you from trying to find solutions; and keep trying.

Obviously the writer empathized with the article he quoted; so would we all.
At least I hope so. We'd all agree we'd rather be part of that small group
who DID try to make a difference rather than the ones who raped and killed
and those who left the dead to rot. On the other hand, we know that we just
MIGHT be part of the group who left the dead in the water (what could we
possibly do for them, all on our own?) and we might well be part of the
group who broke into the supermarket but I think we would also be part of
the group who took only what we really did need and maybe helped someone
else who couldn't reach.

At least one account of the New Orleans police 'looting' a pharmacy was a
group of cops escorting some doctors there to pick up everything they could
for the makeshift hospital they'd set up in their convention hotel. Not
having seen most of the coverage, I refuse to speculate; especially given
the tiny snippets available to the Press. The BBC's reporters expressed
quiet astonishment at being the only boat in sight, helping refugees.
Surely there should be more out??

Elena
Received on 2005-09-06 22:15:41