A perspective on our American hurricane devastation

AP photo

By

Don Krieger

“Each year in Bangladesh about 26,000 km2 (around 18% of the country) is flooded, killing over 5,000 people and destroying more than seven million homes.”

This comes from the following Wikipedia article. Though not the most reliable source, this information is consistent with many others.

This year the number of reported deaths so far is only at 1,200 throughout southeast Asia but the following CNN article reports that 1/3 of Bangladesh is “under water.”

I certainly do not think that we should minimize the death and suffering here in America. But the extraordinary self-centeredness of the American public in simply ignoring the far greater devastation others endure is disturbingly reminiscent of the neglect syndromes seen in individuals with parietal strokes.

Don Krieger

I have built satellites, worked in the operating room, been in a cult, …

I earn my living as part of a group which is trying to understand and treat head injury.

In my poetry and short blog pieces, I want to express ideas with unambiguous clarity and intensity.

I willingly sacrifice rhyme and meter, art, cleverness, elegance, and beauty for these.