You might expect dwellers in third world countries would fear and avoid dangerous islands and beaches subject to nature’s special abuse by tide, hurricane and tsunami. And surely elite, educated tourists know the winter hotspots where vacation pleasures can be indulged in safely.
Remarkably, lemming-like retirees migrate to Florida to glom real estate with a prime view inside the eyes of hurricanes, while savvy Snohomish County homemakers cyclically rebuild upon flood plains and banks of raging rivers. Surprisingly, Puget Sound city slickers congratulate themselves for being security conscious because they wear seat belts while driving in a precarious flood zone, atop a world class earthquake fault, next to a mountain range full of active volcanoes. Seat belts.
Tell me humanity inherits a suicide gene. Don’t tell me choosing to live on quicksand subjected to deadly geological burps and meteorological gasps, then losing that risky gamble is a “tragedy.” Do send a tax-deductible disaster donation to the American Red Cross; but when the Big One hits here, recognize between screams the “irony” of it as she kicks out your teeth.
As on an Asian shore, we in Everett live where history and science guarantee dramatic and death-dealing disruptions. Living on the edge, gambling with our life – intoxicating, isn’t it?
Bruce Q. Hill
Monroe
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