Hit and Miss #311: “Low risk”
Folks, I took that advice I shared in the last two issues—Mandy Brown’s energy makes time—and hoo boy does it ever work! Spent the afternoon in the woodshop today, thinking I’d do a project, but instead prototyping said project and practising a bunch of skills in the process.
It’s humbling to be such a beginner and surrounded by people with much more experience—the discomfort, which is very real, is good for me, I think. And, once I get past the “oh goodness I don’t belong here” each time, things feel pretty great.
Much attention this week has been on the fires—it’s frightening to realize, in writing that, that “the fires” can refer to any number of ongoing climate catastrophes. Sean wrote a post about the fires chock-full of links and references that I think are worth reading. I, too, +1 Lyn’s call for better.
One thing that struck me about the fires around Yellowknife—John Vaillant’s various appearances and commentary speak to this, too—was how, early this week, the government’s position was still, essentially, one of “low risk [right now]”. March 2020 has forever altered how I react to governments saying a potential disaster (particularly one that’s rapidly unfolding) is “low risk”, and a similar pattern seems to have played out here. It seems a dangerous and disingenuous move, though I can also understand the desire to avoid creating a panic.
I hope, once folks are out of harm’s way and the immediate danger has subsided, government officials give some hard thought to how they communicate about risk. In particular, how we prepare people for traumatic experiences like evacuating your home. Though I don’t envy those making decisions in these situations—there’s no good path.
(Relatedly, depressingly, COVID is also very much still around, and now might be a good time for some clear government communications!)
I hope for calm winds and rain, though not too much, and that folks can get back to a recognizable sense of home sooner than later—even as we must grow increasingly at home with the sudden changes of climate catastrophe. All the best for the week ahead, what we can make of it.
Lucas