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We are not afraid
In this moment, the most American thing we could possibly do is to reject fear and make this our mantra: we are not afraid.
This week, flooding in Michigan caused two dams to breach. In the city of Midland, 41,000 people could soon be “under approximately 9 feet of water,” according to the state’s governor, Gretchen Whitmer.
As of May 10, 2019, California had seen 675 wildfires. As of May 10, 2020, the state had seen 1,130 — a 60% increase.
My home state of Texas is, as always this time of year, bracing for hurricane season. Modeling out of Penn State University’s Earth System Science Center say that 2020 could be the busiest hurricane season in decades.
These national disasters represent very real threats to the safety of millions of Americans in just three of our fifty states. There are, no doubt, countless more across the country, to say nothing of Coronavirus-19, which has, as of this writing, claimed the lives of almost 100,000 Americans in less than four months.
Fires, floods, and hurricanes are tangible. We can see them and feel their effects directly on our communities. If you or someone you know has contracted COVID-19, the disease is clearly tangible as well. But if you haven’t, to some, the actions we’ve taken to slow…
