MALIK: No one should be left on roofs to die
Hurricane Helene, a hurricane that has horribly affected North Carolina, currently has a death toll of at least 231, along with the hundreds of people who are still unaccounted for. The immense flooding and power outages have led to many families losing the ability to connect with their relatives and stay safe in their homes.
The hurricane has led to a devastating loss of homes, infrastructure and people. CNN has described it as "one of the deadliest hurricanes to strike the U.S. mainland in the last 50 years." The overwhelming grief and shock of the hurricane and its effects can still be felt as rescue teams move in and deal with the aftermath, along with the impact of Hurricane Milton, which hit the U.S. shortly after.
One of the most shocking things about Hurricane Helene's destructive path is that one of the towns affected was supposed to be a new climate haven, a perk that made more people want to live there as the constant threat of climate change became clearer.
This image of a haven did not include a consideration of potential days of power outages, infrastructure of many towns destroyed or the number of lives lost. As a result of Hurricane Helene, there is a newfound realization that there may soon be no place that can be declared a "climate haven." It has been known that climate change may be unpredictable. It is now clear that we cannot make any predictions on how to avoid it.
The ideas of avoiding climate change through a new postal code or new technologies are all called into question as we face its existence as unpredictable and unavoidable.
At the time of this article being written, there are currently only four years and 200-something days left to "limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius," according to the Climate Clock. As someone who has not even changed her favorite film in the past four years and 200-something days, I cannot help but be pessimistic about the direction we are heading toward.
It is not only our fuel dependence in the U.S. that is creating a world in which we may no longer be able to live, but the Israel-Hamas War has also exacerbated the amount of carbon dioxide emissions released. It is important to note that the U.S. has sent approximately $17.9 billion in aid to Israel since Oct. 7, 2023.
The war, continuous aid from the U.S. and the current expansion of the conflict to Lebanon provides a dim future for not only Palestinians in Gaza but also for everyone's future in the world. The emissions from the first 120 days of the conflict generated more carbon than one year's worth of emissions from 26 individual countries.
When considering the cost and consequences of climate change in the U.S., it cannot be ignored that the previous year's cost for weather-related disasters was $92.9 billion, a large sum that must be considered in our deliverance of unwavering aid and support to a situation that is only exacerbating our own expenses.
We have to think of what we could be doing to help people who have lost their homes and families rather than support a war that is unpopular even within Israel.
We could give money to more climate-safe infrastructure and help rebuild towns' economies in the aftermath of the destruction left by Hurricanes Helene and Milton. These problems have solutions that are neither quick nor easy to implement, but I do know they will not be solved if we let both presidential candidates support fracking without constant criticism. It is not just our money they hold in their hands but our futures.
As we send more and more dollars abroad, I cannot stop thinking about a sign that a woman held up after Hurricane Katrina: "No Iraqis left me on a roof to die."
How many more roofs will we allow the state to leave people on? How many times will we scroll past shocking disasters we were "unprepared" for? How much more of a bubble will we create around us before we realize the only difference between us and them is our false belief that our postal code has given us some sort of protection?
Sehar Malik is a junior in the School of Arts and Sciences majoring in Molecular Biology and Biochemistry and minoring in French. Malik’s column, “People Talking,” runs on alternate Tuesdays.
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