CommentsLIFE OBSERVED--The systematic dumbing down of American public education over the last 40 years – seen in places like the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) and their non-functioning equivalents throughout LA County -- is having a profoundly negative effect on the ability of people to act intelligently and understand how to survive as we face an ever-increasing number of ecological disasters. Case in point, Hurricane Harvey.
Our public (non) education system has created an ignorant, compliant population that is no longer intellectually capable of sequencing enough relevant facts to prepare themselves to understand in context the layered meaning of catastrophic events like Hurricane Harvey. These disasters are occurring at an ever-greater frequency and magnitude around a world, many in places most Americans can no longer even find on a map.
The candidacy, victory, and presidency of Donald Trump has only exacerbated this Tweeted-know-nothing, militant, ignorant attitude when it comes to addressing global warming. Bolstered by the climate change denial of their leader President Trump, the number of people denying global warming has doubled. This, even though 99% of scientists tell these folks that it is real and we are rapidly approaching a point of no return if we wait much longer to fully address this problem.
As devastating as Hurricane Harvey was and continues to be, with loss of life and damage in the billions, there might be a small blessing in disguise if it helps know-nothing conservative deniers of global warming to see the light through the 50 plus inches of rain that has dowsed and devastated Texas.
How solidly conservative will Texas and other Southern bastions of Trump supporters remain once “every 10,000-year” catastrophes like Harvey become an annual event? Might it finally occur to them in the 2018 elections to question their unwavering fundamentalist support for Trump and company that, "He who troubleth his own house shall [literally] inherit the wind [and the rain and...]?"
In Houston and elsewhere in Texas and Louisiana, many people didn't leave, even when they were told unequivocally about the unprecedented magnitude of Hurricane Harvey. It was not believable to them; without proper education, they could not contextualize the catastrophe that was coming.
Bangaladesh and other places like it worldwide have already been subjected to such unnatural natural disasters, but have only been mentioned briefly in news reports – reports these people probably never watched, read, or understood.
There's a new, rather insightful joke circulating around in Houston these days:
“How do you get your car's radio to work after your car has been flooded by Hurricane Harvey? You ‘bang ala desh.’”
(Leonard Isenberg is a Los Angeles, observer and a contributor to CityWatch. He was a second generation teacher at LAUSD and blogs at perdaily.com. Leonard can be reached at [email protected]) Edited for CityWatch by Linda Abrams.
