You, Me and Haiti... On the Tightrope of Techno-Society
A commentary by Randy Stiver
United Church of God pastor, Columbus and Cambridge, Ohio
Posted January 21, 2010
 I
woke up sad Saturday morning thinking about the desperate condition of
folks caught in the earthquake in Haiti.
In and around Port-au-Prince people had been struggling for four days
to find a little food and drinkable water, while trying to rescue family
or neighbors from the rubble with their bare hands. But they were plagued
by lawless gangs roaming the streets, and lack of effective government
action to spearhead any relief effort.
Then I turned on the faucet in our bathroom sink—and no water
came out.
We still had phone lines that worked and were told by the township
emergency people that the water main broke in our neighborhood at 5
a.m. Repairs were expected to be finished by late afternoon. Whew—just
a tiny crisis!
But I tell you this—with no running water, my family and I felt
even more empathetic with Haitians facing the breakdown of virtually
all services. What would we do if we faced such a crisis? With our dependence
on all the modern conveniences, I think we would be even less prepared
to cope.
The trouble with technology
We live on a technological tightrope. One false step, like a damaging
earthquake or a terrorist attack on the electric grid or a major fresh
water supply, and wham, we're in serious straits.
The sad news is that much of the U.S. electric grid—substations,
transmission lines, etc.—is seriously aging and at risk.
"The ‘information economy' requires a reliable,
secure, and affordable electric system to grow and prosper. Unless substantial
amounts of capital are invested over the next several decades in new
generation, transmission, and distribution facilities, service quality
will degrade and costs will go up" (U.S. Department of Energy, Gridworks).
Inventory, for a moment, the technology in your house. Do your "gadgets" all
use electricity? What if electricity were cut off? Batteries, you say?
Then what about when the batteries all run down?
Yes, solar chargers could help, but what about all the industries,
stores, computers, traffic lights, fuel stations, etc.? Virtually all
our services in wealthy nations are fundamentally electrified—including
our water delivery.
Water, water hardly anywhere
Take the California Delta as
a prime example. Located east of San Francisco at the confluence of
the San Joaquin and Sacramento Rivers, it provides two thirds of the
state's residents with fresh water. But the levee system is old
and fragile. Another earthquake in the wrong place and cash-strapped
California will be survival strapped!
Now transfer that scenario to numerous water supplies for cities and
populations almost anywhere on earth. The technology required to provide
fresh water to billions is precarious in so many ways.
Fat cities
In the Great Depression of the 1930s the world's cities were
much smaller, and more of the population lived on farms. Half of Americans
were rural residents then. They had greater skills at the most basic
fundamentals of living. That knowledge, although recorded somewhere,
is practically lost on today's generations.
Now we have fat cities everywhere, easy targets for disaster, man-made
or natural. The advanced technologies make possible the extensive utility
services that we're so used to and that our urban centers completely
depend on.
In a sense, due to coping with long-standing government corruption
and ineptitude, Haitians in Port-au-Prince are likely to be more resilient
in dealing with this terrible seismic disaster than many "advanced" metro-minions
would be.
The technology tightrope
Earthquakes and natural disasters are one thing; war and terrorism
are another. With nearly 7 billion people walking a techno-tightrope,
it wouldn't take much to spread Haiti's present trauma to
many other areas.
World history hallmarked by human greed and immorality has brought
us all to the great precipice of the ages. Is this the best that man
can hope for?
Remarkably, Jesus Christ foretold our predicament. He said that in
the years immediately before His second coming to earth, there would
be deception, "wars and rumors of wars" and "earthquakes
in various places" (Matthew 24:6-8).
Actually, He said that these and other dire things like disease epidemics
would be just "the beginning of sorrows"!
But Jesus promises a much better world—ruled directly by Him
with your help, if you choose the better way of living He offers. The Kingdom
of God will bring rest and peace to a world reeling from disaster.
For more about the vulnerabilities of Western societies, see "America's
Handwriting of Warning." For more about the wonderful world
Jesus Christ will bring, see "How
World Peace Will Come."
Remember, technology is not the answer to your, my, Haiti's or
the world's problems; but Jesus Christ is.
Related Resources
The
Haitian Earthquake: Where Was God?
As we see heart-wrenching photos and video of the Haitian earthquake disaster,
we are once again left to ponder the age-old questions: "Where was God? How
could a loving God let this happen?" These questions seem to have no answer—but
do they?
Haiti's
Tragic History Contributes to Its Calamity
If you read about the turbulent history of Haiti, you'll understand much of
why Haiti is Haiti today.
GN
Commentary: January 15, 2010 - Pat Robertson on Haiti: A Bible Fact
Check
God has a plan to bring order and peace to this world. And all those who have
died—in tragedies or not—will live again and experience God's ways in action.
You'll find this plan in the pages of your Bible.
Seven Prophecies That Must Be Fulfilled Before Jesus Christ's Return
Previous generations have thought that Jesus Christ would return in their lifetimes, but they were proven wrong. Many people alive today think that Christ's return is imminent. Certainly, the Bible contains prophecies that could not have been fulfilled until this generation.
Is
God Indifferent to Human Suffering?
If God is all-powerful, He could easily prevent disasters such as earthquakes,
hurricanes, tsunamis, tornadoes, floods, droughts and volcanic eruptions. But
He lets them happen. Why?
God's
Plan to End Evil and Suffering
Is God blind to evil and human suffering? Why doesn't He intervene to
put a stop to it? Or could it be that it's we who are blind to what God
is doing and that humankind must learn some major lessons before He puts an
end to evil?
Coming:
An End to Suffering
Why is the world awash in suffering? How did the world come to be in such sad
shape? Most important, what will bring the end to human misery?
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