by Don Brown
July 19, 2011
As Floridians, it could be said that, in many ways, we have a shared destiny. Certainly that is true in some measure, particularly as it relates to our extraordinary exposure to tropical storms and hurricanes. As humans, when we feel vulnerable our instincts may bring us to very different courses of action. Some will analyze the situation, develop a strategy to reduce or mitigate their vulnerability and by doing so significantly reduce the likelihood of injury.
On the other hand, some will ignore the risk or simply hope it never touches them. Another strategy we often fall back on is based on a little recognized fact that in western culture we tend to focus on symptoms rather than the root causes of our problem. In some high profile cases, such as Band-Aids and Tylenol, this tendency has made some folks a lot of money. Focusing on symptoms rather than the cause can also be seen in many other aspects of western culture, not the least of which is “Public Policy” and public discourse.
Finally, there are those who cope with uncertainty by pointing the finger of blame at others, claiming “it’s their fault we are in this mess.”
Since, as Floridians, we are all in this “hurricane boat” together it is very tempting to embrace such fault finding. After all, if we can blame our misfortune on someone else then we somehow “feel better”. In fact, in some cases a lot of money can be made by pandering to this aspect of human nature.
In my opinion, no better example of this “fault finding” tendency can be found than much of what has been published recently about Florida’s exposure to hurricanes. Some have gotten so caught up in this strategy that “truth” and “the facts” have fallen victim. The pursuit of a “booger man” (so to speak) has replaced calm and logical analysis.
Speaking of calm and logical analysis; the purpose of this email is to recommend an article I found recently in “The Bottom Line” published by Crown Communications. The link to that article is: http://bit.ly/rg31xq.
I highly recommend you follow the link and read this article.
On many occasions I have been criticized for suggesting that: “Florida does not have an insurance crisis. Rather, ours is a hurricane crisis and a human behavior crisis, i.e., our desire to live in very beautiful, but dangerous places while expecting someone else to pay for our risk taking.” Notwithstanding the criticism I continue to believe this to be true.
Again, please follow the hyperlink shown above. I believe you will enjoy hearing a little different prospective.
Quote:
Self-preservation and self-development are common aspirations among all people. But there is also another tendency that is common among people. When they can, they wish to live and prosper at the expense of others…This fatal desire has its origin in the very nature of man – in that primitive, universal, and insuppressible instinct that impels him to satisfy his desires with the least possible pain.
— Frederic Bastiat
Don Brown is a Senior Fellow with The Heartland Institute and a former member of the Florida Legislature where is served as Chairman of the House Insurance Committee
