Live and Learn

Remember the common motto --“Live and you learn”? That is exactly what we need to be practicing. Another catastrophic hurricane has come and wiped out part of the Texas gulf shore. An editorial in the September 24, 2008 edition of the Austin American Statesman titled “Razing Texas, Raising Questions” brings up some serious issues involved with Texas coastal living.

Hurricanes will occur and chase residents away, but then these same residents can’t wait to come back to rebuild in practically the same place. With Hurricane Ike, new and old issues are being brought up yet again. Should people be allowed to rebuild with their backyard being the Gulf of Mexico? I have mixed views. When I go for a vacation to the beach, I want to be as close as I can to the water. I want to wake up to the sound of the ocean. It would be wonderful to have that life every single day, but that is the selfish side of me. The practical side is hurricanes will always come and that is just the way it is. Yes, there is hurricane insurance, but it affects taxes for others miles and miles away from the coastal areas. All Texans eventually end up helping to foot the bill and compensate coastal Texans for their losses. Damages from Hurricane Ike are estimating $2.1 billion. Why should we have to pay for their selfish living? There have been government efforts to move them further away from the coast for their physical and economic safety, but these residents have resisted the efforts. In January when the Legislature is scheduled to meet, they will confront questions such as how much insurance risk coastal residents should bear and how close to the shore should anyone be permitted to rebuild. With the threat of global warming and the rising sea waters, something needs to be done for the safety of our Texas gulf coast residents and the shores themselves. With a struggling economy, our state cannot afford anymore disasters like Ike.

I agree with the editorial. Something needs to be done. It is obvious to me that people and businesses will always want to locate by the ocean because of its sheer beauty and exquisite nature. That is never going to change. Not only do people want to live by the ocean, they want to vacation there as well. My proposal is once we clean up and rebuild the damages from Ike and the affects from Katrina, we need to save for the next big disaster. Instead of panicking after the damage, we need to be proactive and do what every American is being encouraged to do in this plunging economy – SAVE!. We need to save for the next hurricane whether it is next year or four years from now. We need to be prepared. Instead of raising taxes and pulling money from places where there is no money, there should be a fund ready to be distributed.

To see the full article click on the title of the editorial above.