The Global Citizen: Irene's silver lining

You know what is always at the bottom of my favorite things list? Hurricanes.

Hurricanes are not desirable in the least. They wreak havoc on everything in their path and demonstrate very little care for the property of others as they make their way through the Caribbean like a five night carnival cruise.

Hurricanes have resulted in the injury of thousands and have racked up millions of dollars in property damage whenever they've reared their ugly heads.

When Hurricane Floyd made landfall in North Carolina in 1999 it racked up $3 billion in damages in that state alone, a hefty $6 billion in the country at large. Yet even these estimates are but a fraction of the damage sustained by those unfortunate enough to fall victim to these natural disasters. With this in mind, there is really no question that such occurrences are unwanted, and for very good reasons.

However my question is this: Is it possible that somewhere among those rolling black clouds is a silver lining? Is it possible that there might be benefits to such occurrences, disastrous though they may otherwise be?

As any student of international relations will tell you, the international realm is one defined by a state of anarchy. Not anarchy in the sense of burning houses and Molotov cocktails, but in the simple truth that there is no ultimate authority keeping the nations of the world in check. There is constant bickering and disagreement based on where a nation stands on the political landscape.

However, just as many nations are polarized by opposite views, so are they united under the right circumstances. One such example of this is in the aftermath of a natural disaster. No matter the political tensions present, when disaster strikes, humanity unites as a whole to aid its brothers and sisters in need. When an earthquake rocked Haiti in early 2010, people around the world reached out to give both financial and physical support to those affected. Not only were there several examples of bilateral cooperation between states, but there was also tremendous effort on the parts of private organizations and people from around the world. In addition to this outpouring of support, much awareness was raised about a country whose many issues were, in most peoples' minds not their problem. No one cared that it was the poorest nation in the Western hemisphere until that fateful day. Yet suddenly there were doctors, architects and volunteers descending upon the small island nation like so many raindrops shed by Irene this past month.

This article is not meant to argue that natural disasters are desirable occurrences. Their negative effects FAR outweigh any positive effects they could ever have. But it is worth noting that in a world where there is so much disagreement and sometimes bitterness, it is disasters such as these that remind us of our humanity and unite us on a level much deeper than our political orientations: that most basic common ground shared by all people, humanity.

Wilshire Bethel is a senior majoring in politics, philosophy, economics and law. He is from Nassau, Bahamas, and is interested in the global community and how it effects everyday life on campus.