Henry Payne was spot-on in his observation that increased societal wealth brings about changes that help a country minimize the loss of life that comes from natural disasters such as earthquakes.
Yet too often we hear disdain for policies that bring about economic growth. Usually these are phrased in terms of “protecting the environment.”
A few years ago, there was an earthquake in western China. It was deadly, in part because government corruption lead to shoddy construction techniques and materials. Another reason was that the province just wasn’t wealthy enough to afford the building codes and materials that are present in the U.S., Japan, and other wealthy countries.
Back in the mid-1990s, I overheard a conversation among two acquaintances that has stuck with me since. “If China ever develops to the level the U.S. does, it’s over for the planet.”
What an anti-human attitude. It condemns billions of people, currently in poverty, to continued poverty–and vulnerability to natural disasters.
Such an attitude is based in part on ignoring the fact that people not only impose demands on the planet, they are, as one smart man once observed, the ultimate resource, turning raw materials into resources, and finding fixes to natural disasters.
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