By Ray Cardello for October 3, 2022 Season 13 / Post 28

Hurricane Ian is gone, but it has left us with years of rebuilding. There are areas of Florida that will not be rebuilt. They are so devastated that the only option will be to bulldoze and start from scratch. People have lost every physical possession and are finding they have no insurance and nowhere to turn. There was no discrimination on the part of Ian. Rich, poor, white, black, or brown were all victims. There is no one to blame for their situation. They were living their lives one day, and by the will of God and a stroke of bad luck, they were in the path of nature’s evil.

Cities like Sarasota still have 70% of the residents without power, and downed trees hamper the recovery process. The flooding continues from the rain and water from the Gulf. Now the residents are bracing for water from the rivers to the east that is overflowing. Four days after Ian passed this area, the devastation is not yet done. The meter keeps running.

Power is being restored, and water is flowing for many, but some areas of southwestern Florida have seen massive damage to the infrastructure that will require months or years to correct. Bridges that once were the only access to island communities are washed away, and barges will be the mode of connection for the foreseeable future. The damages will be investigated and prioritized, and the meter will keep running on the total cost of the devastation. Where will the funds come from to put Florida and South Carolina back together again? In a true American manner, we will start the presses and print what is needed.

The government is spending money at record rates. The National Debt no longer appears to be a concern. We do not plan for tragedies like Ian as we continue spending as the well will never run dry. The problem is the well ran dry years ago, and now we are just borrowing from our future. Every month, we see billions of dollars of aid going to Ukraine. These funds are not debated as stand-alone bills but are included as footnotes in bills like the continuing resolution signed this past week. A continuing resolution is a means of keeping the government running without a shutdown. These CRs are now a means to bury spending without debate or notice. There is no accountability for these funds.

The President is prepared to spend up to a trillion dollars buying votes with Student Loan Forgiveness while we have people who have lost everything looking for just a little help. Helping these people is the right thing but is not the way to assure political power for Biden and his Party. Politicians like Biden are not concerned with being correct. Their only concern is remaining in power. That thinking has worked at keeping Joe Biden, a once mediocre Senator and now a senile President, entrenched in D.C. for over fifty years.

There is a movement worldwide as countries elect Conservative leaders. The people are speaking as they will be here in less than forty days. We will start holding these people accountable, and wasting money to buy votes will no longer be accepted. Somebody has to step up now and say no more for Ukraine and pet projects until Florida is intact and money is in the bank to handle future disasters that put our brothers and sisters in pain.