This is for sociology. I was told to write 5 pages on what the aftermath of another 1906 earthquake would look like. Here's an excerpt from the half where I start to run out of serious material and now I'm just trying to fill 5 pages:
One month after earthquake: Hard data begin to be available concerning casualties and damage assessments. Outrage still circulates concerning the treatment of various evacuees, with cries of “it’s Katrina all over again!” in more than one media outlet. By now several people in political positions have been replaced by other people with similar levels of competence but with nicer teeth and fresher faces so the common people feel that the movers and shakers are finally placing blame on the appropriate heads. A national holiday is proposed but shouted off the table since it wasn’t an act of war that caused the devastation. Media are finally catching on to the damage in surrounding areas, including the Point Reyes National Seashore, the toppling of flora in Mt Diablo State Park, and Henry W. Coe State Park (home of TarantulaFest). Many people question whether San Francisco should be rebuilt, to which lobbyists for those companies headquartered there respond with vehement schmoozing. Candlelight rallies take place where half of the candlelight vigilees wear tie-dye rainbow t-shirts, eat dim sum and sing Sittin’ on the Dock of the Bay to support the city of the Wounded Golden Gate Bridge. The country has recovered from its shock enough to finally start making fun of the tragedy, with Jon Stewart’s Chief Earthquake Correspondent reporting live from the scene that the greatest tragedy of the day was the loss of the Golden Gate Fortune Cookies factory. California begins to relax its immigration rules when it becomes desperate for repairs to be stepped up so that the tourists keep coming to spend their money in a state that was ailing before the natural disaster struck.
6 months after the earthquake: Long term funds for reconstruction have been stymied in the senate since the Republicans are back in power and they don’t want to fund a city known for its socially liberal reputation. They try to attach relief funds to a bill that defines marriage as between a man and a woman. Further argument comes up when they realize that with the large Mormon population in the state that they also want the bill to declare marriage to be between one man and one woman, (5). Damage has been assessed in the many delicate aspects of California ecology. Biologists lament the demise of an entire species of shrimp, the sickening of two species of seaweed, and the disruption of both sealion and monarch butterfly reproduction and migration patterns.
(5) - Full disclosure: I'm LDS (aka Mormon).
And that's where I sort of putt-putted out of ideas for the night. I guess it's a good thing it isn't due until Tuesday. The first few sections are missing from this, but it's mostly statistics and the demise of the Golden Gate Bridge since it is even now being shored up against seismic activity but we with military experience understand the integrity of government construction projects. I just need one more full page of jabber and then I'm done!
One month after earthquake: Hard data begin to be available concerning casualties and damage assessments. Outrage still circulates concerning the treatment of various evacuees, with cries of “it’s Katrina all over again!” in more than one media outlet. By now several people in political positions have been replaced by other people with similar levels of competence but with nicer teeth and fresher faces so the common people feel that the movers and shakers are finally placing blame on the appropriate heads. A national holiday is proposed but shouted off the table since it wasn’t an act of war that caused the devastation. Media are finally catching on to the damage in surrounding areas, including the Point Reyes National Seashore, the toppling of flora in Mt Diablo State Park, and Henry W. Coe State Park (home of TarantulaFest). Many people question whether San Francisco should be rebuilt, to which lobbyists for those companies headquartered there respond with vehement schmoozing. Candlelight rallies take place where half of the candlelight vigilees wear tie-dye rainbow t-shirts, eat dim sum and sing Sittin’ on the Dock of the Bay to support the city of the Wounded Golden Gate Bridge. The country has recovered from its shock enough to finally start making fun of the tragedy, with Jon Stewart’s Chief Earthquake Correspondent reporting live from the scene that the greatest tragedy of the day was the loss of the Golden Gate Fortune Cookies factory. California begins to relax its immigration rules when it becomes desperate for repairs to be stepped up so that the tourists keep coming to spend their money in a state that was ailing before the natural disaster struck.
6 months after the earthquake: Long term funds for reconstruction have been stymied in the senate since the Republicans are back in power and they don’t want to fund a city known for its socially liberal reputation. They try to attach relief funds to a bill that defines marriage as between a man and a woman. Further argument comes up when they realize that with the large Mormon population in the state that they also want the bill to declare marriage to be between one man and one woman, (5). Damage has been assessed in the many delicate aspects of California ecology. Biologists lament the demise of an entire species of shrimp, the sickening of two species of seaweed, and the disruption of both sealion and monarch butterfly reproduction and migration patterns.
(5) - Full disclosure: I'm LDS (aka Mormon).
And that's where I sort of putt-putted out of ideas for the night. I guess it's a good thing it isn't due until Tuesday. The first few sections are missing from this, but it's mostly statistics and the demise of the Golden Gate Bridge since it is even now being shored up against seismic activity but we with military experience understand the integrity of government construction projects. I just need one more full page of jabber and then I'm done!
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1 comment:
LOL....your paper will be one of the more interesting to read, I'm sure.
My only thoughts were:
1. disruption to international shipping...Many companies here in the US receive goods from China and elsewhere in the East through shipping containers that arrive in SF. Expect that electronics, automobiles, and a lot of clothing and shoes will jump in price or may be unavailable for a time until those barges can go elsewhere. Just in time shipping can bite you in the butt in these types of situations.
2. I think the medical issues are going to be a bigger issue than anticipated. Not only do you have people who may not have access to medicine, but anyone who receives dialysis, chemo, or other regular medical treatment is going to have issues. Also, although insurance companies give a couple of token oxygen tanks (usually 24 hours worth) to folks on home oxygen in case of power disruption, beyond that if electricity isn't on for people to use their concentrators, you're going to have people suffocating to death. We realized that when Ella was on oxygen.
3. I think you're going to see some major issues with insurance companies. I know tons of folks who got burned out by wildfires in SoCal who still haven't been able to rebuild 3 or 4 years out. If you have any type of major rebuilding going on, it's going to be a mess. You know the 4 seasons in california--mudslide, wild fire, earthquake, and untimely for produce freezes.... All of that has led to major strains on budget & insurance companies. Later on, people may be priced out of insurance and lose their mortgages if they can't qualify to insure their home.
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