And now for something a little more serious.....

Having suffered through my pathetic humor the past couple of blogs I know your ready to go back to the usual format. And nothing could be more serious than the recent events in Japan. Another devastating earthquake and Tsunami has ravaged that part of the world. I have many thoughts about all this. Here are some of them:

First, once again the United States shows its true mettle by offering and providing any and all aid it possibly can. To Obama's credit, he was quick to offer this as he should have been. I only hope he realizes that this is the America that he represents and not the one he goes around apologizing for. I would like to see him talk about this during his next overseas trip instead of what bad world citizens we have been. Be it earthquakes, floods, landslides whatever, America is always the firstest with the mostest to any spot on the globe.

Secondly, as Japan starts the onerous task of rescue, rebuilding and mourning its dead, I hope the global warming crowd will observe some decorum during this time. I know as sure as the sun coming up tomorrow that they will eventually place the blame for this earthquake on man made global warming. Wait, that's only partly true, I'm not really sure the sun will come up tomorrow.

Of course, there will be the inevitable hue and cry about the dangers of nuclear energy. The same bunch that criminalizes big oil and dirty coal will have a heyday over this. The very same energy sources that have heated, cooled and transported millions upon millions for the last 125 years are now the bane of man's existence, according to them. Of course there are dangers with nuclear energy, as there are with all energy sources. Certainly the Japanese, above all other nations, would have the most reservations about the effects of a nuclear accident. But they see the advantages of taking that risk. If and when solar and wind become viable economical sources of energy, people will die providing those too. All occupations have hazards.

Living near water and over fault zones is risky. The rewards are fantastic. The beauty of oceans and mountains beckons us all. But the earth is master over us, not we over it. If it wants to reclaim or release its dominion it will do so as if we didn't even exist. This is the speculative nature of living in these areas. The people of California know this, but I doubt that this tragedy will cause any of them to leave.

Please don't think for a minute that I have no feeling of loss over this horrific event. It is a terrible human toll that I, as well as you, cannot help but feel very sad about. But my pragmatic self knows that we will recover from it, learn from it and go on with life. A life that is as fragile as it is precious.