I remember the days before meteorological forecasting became the nearly-precise science that it is today. Though we still haven’t been able to predict Mother Nature’s often capricious behavior, for the most part we now have the benefit of forewarning of everything from light rain to a heavy snow to a full-blown hurricane . . . giving us time to make preparations and take shelter. It would be impossible to calculate the number of lives that are saved each year by these warnings.

Last Friday’s devastating flash floods in Texas have taken 81 lives with 41 more missing, according to a Sunday night report — and nearly a dozen children from a girls’ campground are still unaccounted for. [Cara Tabachnick, CBS News, July 6, 2025.] The horror of the human loss is unimaginable.

There will naturally be questions now as to whether the deluge of rain that caused the flooding could have been predicted in time for campers and others to be moved out of the danger area if the National Weather Service, which is part of NOAA, had not been short-staffed due to funding cuts. And in all likelihood, we will never know the truth. The “official” government reports will deny any blame, and others will sneer at their denials. Politics as usual.

But the loss of all of those lives, and the millions of dollars in property destroyed or damaged, is not political. It is a human tragedy that could reasonably be expected to occur again and again if we are unable efficiently to track the forces of nature. And hurricane season is just beginning . . .

Meanwhile, Washington continues to cut the budgets for departments in charge of vital, life-saving environmental and recovery work . . . because someone doesn’t believe it’s necessary.

At least until the next tornado blows Mar-a-Lago to Oz.

And that same someone has said he would fly to Texas “probably on Friday,” adding that he had wanted to go on Sunday but felt he would have been “in their way.” [Id.]

So what’s wrong with Monday-Thursday?

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
7/7/25