Blaming Others Except Ourselves

Ondoy is gone. Pepeng is going. Let us hope Melor does not come. Typhoons visit our country every now and then with increasing fury. Calamities happen everywhere not only in our country but around the world. Whose fault is it?

We read in the papers that some people are quick to point an accusing finger at others except themselves. There is this archbishop that insinuated God must be angry with GMA due to the corruption scandals she is involved in. I think this kind of thinking is so myopic. What about the earthquake that hit northern Luzon  in 1990 and the Mt. Pinatubo Eruption in 1991? Could it be said that God was angry at Cory Aquino who was the president at that time?

Let me make it clear that I am no fan of GMA. But to blame her entirely for the calamities is very unfair. For me, we are all responsible for the things that happen to us. Take for example the garbage that we irresponsibly throw everywhere. They surely clog the pathways of rain water. Or the subdivision developers who have cleared the hillsides of Rizal province. And the illegal loggers who have felled with impunity thousands of trees in the Sierra Madre Mountains. Think of the buildings, factories and power plants that contributed to climate change.

You may excuse yourself and say "Oh I did not throw any garbage irresponsibly. I am not an illegal logger. I do not own any factory." Oh yes, but what did you do to help clean the environment?

See? Somehow we can blame ourselves for either the sin of commission or the sin of omission. Instead of playing the game of blaming others, let us start rebuilding. There is a big task ahead of everyone especially government officials. Perhaps the task of preparing a plan for the next "Ondoy" should be a priority aside of course from the job of helping the victims start a new life.