Hurricane John Locke

Link to Article, Louisiana counts cost of Gustav, 9/02/08, The BBC

Hurricane Gustav has swept through the Louisiana area the past couple of days, leaving a significant amount of damage behind. In comparison to hurricane Katrina, the flooding caused by Gustav has been minimal due to the maintenance of the city's levees. Residents of New Orleans were urged to evacuate, no one wanted to witness the same tragedies caused by hurricane Katrina. During hurricane Katrina, the government's response was far from immediate, leaving thousands left to fend for themselves, a Thomas Hobbs type of philosophy. The government's response to hurricane Gustav has been quite the opposite; the public was informed prior to the hurricane and given ample time to evacuate. The government stressed the urgency of evacuation, helping the public out, a John Locke type of philosophy.

I believe that advising the public to evacuate was a responsible decision for the government to announce. When the public is at risk of serious injury or death, the government should provide precautions to be taken that are for the publics best interest. I believe that had the government not advised residents to evacuate, many people would have already been seriously hurt or killed. The government is trying to improve it's policies for reaction to natural disasters, and I applaud them.