Efficient land use during a time of national crisis
Ok, here is something that I have been thinking about for days and finally have a few minutes to put my thoughts down on cyber paper.
We have hundreds of thousands of 'evacuees' (we do not call them refugees for a number of reasons..) from the Gulf Coast region following the near total devistation by Katrina. We also have the government shuttling people all over the country in order to disperse this massive group of people and not strain the infrastructure and resources of any one or two metropolitan areas. Much of this on an admitted temporary basis.
Now, wait for it....here it comes....We also have closed military bases around this great nation with hundreds if not thousands of units of housing that could be put to good use. Ok, I will give you a minute to let this sink in.....
Think about it, you have entire subdivisions/communities that need to be relocated. Military bases were commuies in and amoungst themselves. Having spent time in the service of this country, I can tell you that many of the military bases were set up to be somewhat self-sufficient. They contained large storage facilities, medical clinics, barber shops, and a PX, to name but a few.
A closed base could be re-opened and set up to house a displaced community. Supplies that are being handed out of the back of trucks could be placed into some of the storage facilites and then used for distribution of blankets and clothing. The medical clinic(s) could be re-opened and staffed by the many volunteers who are now set up in make-shift clinics. The PX could be re-opened and used to keep and distribute food and other basic necessities (toothbrush, toilet paper and other hygiene items). The people from the community would have the ability to try and re-establish themselves and live in more of a stable environment. This would also allow for a mental healing from the events of the past almost 3 weeks to begin. Communities surrounding the closed bases would begin to see increases in purchases at local businesses. I know someone is going to say that there would also be an increase in crime in the surrounding communities, and yes, I think that is going to happen when you have an influx or large groups of people to an area. It doesn't matter the area, or the races involved, it is just a natural occurance associated with large populations.
Overall it would appear to be a win-win. Other than one or two things I have pointed out above, I don't really see a downside to this.......but then I am not in government helping to screw up things with the recovery.....
We have hundreds of thousands of 'evacuees' (we do not call them refugees for a number of reasons..) from the Gulf Coast region following the near total devistation by Katrina. We also have the government shuttling people all over the country in order to disperse this massive group of people and not strain the infrastructure and resources of any one or two metropolitan areas. Much of this on an admitted temporary basis.
Now, wait for it....here it comes....We also have closed military bases around this great nation with hundreds if not thousands of units of housing that could be put to good use. Ok, I will give you a minute to let this sink in.....
Think about it, you have entire subdivisions/communities that need to be relocated. Military bases were commuies in and amoungst themselves. Having spent time in the service of this country, I can tell you that many of the military bases were set up to be somewhat self-sufficient. They contained large storage facilities, medical clinics, barber shops, and a PX, to name but a few.
A closed base could be re-opened and set up to house a displaced community. Supplies that are being handed out of the back of trucks could be placed into some of the storage facilites and then used for distribution of blankets and clothing. The medical clinic(s) could be re-opened and staffed by the many volunteers who are now set up in make-shift clinics. The PX could be re-opened and used to keep and distribute food and other basic necessities (toothbrush, toilet paper and other hygiene items). The people from the community would have the ability to try and re-establish themselves and live in more of a stable environment. This would also allow for a mental healing from the events of the past almost 3 weeks to begin. Communities surrounding the closed bases would begin to see increases in purchases at local businesses. I know someone is going to say that there would also be an increase in crime in the surrounding communities, and yes, I think that is going to happen when you have an influx or large groups of people to an area. It doesn't matter the area, or the races involved, it is just a natural occurance associated with large populations.
Overall it would appear to be a win-win. Other than one or two things I have pointed out above, I don't really see a downside to this.......but then I am not in government helping to screw up things with the recovery.....
posted by Scott at 8:19 PM
2 Comments:
That is a wonderful idea! Really well-thought-out. You would think that someone in charge of the relief effort might have considered this, but apparently not.
That is a terrific idea. I grew up near a base that was slowly closed down and you are right it would be put to good use by the evacuees.
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