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Comments:
In
the article, personal stories of six Aceh-
nese who experienced the 2004 tsunami
are told:
[excerpt
from the article]
o Jaloe, a fisherman, survived because
he turned his boat toward the gargan-
tuan waves while others steered away.
o Dr. Sri, assigned to the general hospi-
tal's emergency room, was saved by
holiday scheduling.
o Maisara, a housewife, swam through
the turbid water and grabbed hold of
a floating wooden beam.
o Romi, a deliveryman, was carried
a mile by the waves and then beached
onto a logjam of rubble.
o Haikal, a social activist, boosted him-
self atop a buoyant patch of roof.
o Faridah, a shopkeeper, regained con-
sciousness in time to wrap herself
around a palm tree.
[end
of excerpt from the article]
-
- -
The
2004 tsunami was the worst natural
disaster to occur suddenly, over a vast
area, without warning, in modern times.
In
recent times, however, natural disasters
such as
o the hurricane which hit Bangladesh in
1991, killing at least 140,000 people,
or
o the earthquake that hit northeast China
in 1976, killing over 240,000 people,
or
o the hurricane which hit East Pakistan
(now Bangladesh) in 1970, with a huge
50 foot tidal wave and a death toll be-
tween 300,000 and 500,000 people
have
been similar in nature, in both the lack
of warning -and- in the devastating impact
on human life.
-
- -
For
those of a religious persuasion, one
would be justified in pondering -if- and
-how- and -why- their deity (or deities)
of choice were -or- were not involved
in the 2004 Yuletide Tsunami (and in all
natural disasters).
The
end of the article is a reminder of
how some of a religious persuasion per-
ceive the causality of natural disasters:
Excerpt
-- end of the article:
There is a homemade sign hanging
by a rope from a broken pillar. The
writing isn't hers. Maisara would
never spell so badly. The sign was
made by others, but she finds the
sentiment to be a palliative for her
impossible sorrow.
Maisara has finally accepted the
reality that her three girls were
forever taken from her by the
water.
"Thank
you, Allah," the words say.
"The tsunami is a gift that has
brought those we love to paradise.
We are happy to let them go.
Those who stay should repent."
-
- -
For
non-religious individuals, those
who don't believe a deity or deities
are involved in the natural world, the
explanation for the disasters which
threaten humankind is straight-for-
ward:
A natural world is not beholden to
humankind, and to the extent that
humans benefit from -or- are
harmed by the natural world, that's
simply a result of the way that phy-
sical laws operate in the particular
space-time continuum we evolved
from.
As
for causality:
o No entity other than a natural world is
to be given credit as the ultimate caus-
ality of aspects of existence we like.
o No entity other than a natural world
is to blame as the ultimate causality
of aspects of existence we dislike.
To
the extent that we can understand and
overcome naturalistic risks, humankind can
benefit therefrom.
To
the extent that we are unable to under-
stand and overcome naturalistic risks, the
risk of harm to humankind persists.
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