Memory

When Disaster Strikes 1 Part 1: Disasters Don't Create Inequality-They Reveal It 2 Part 2: Why Some Cities Burn (And Others Don't) 3 Part 3: The Sacrifice Calculus 4 Part 4: Elite Disaster Strategies 5 Part 5: Famine and Political Power 6 Part 6: Earthquakes and Governance 7 Part 7: Pandemic Politics 8 Part 8: Why We Forget ← Series Home Key Takeaways Forgetting is politically convenient: Disaster memory challenges interests that benefit from the status quo. Attention is finite: Political systems can only focus on so many issues—and disaster preparedness loses to immediate concerns. Disaster industries profit from amnesia: Some industries depend on repeated disasters—and have incentives to prevent learning. Memory requires maintenance: Keeping disaster lessons alive requires institutional and cultural work that rarely happens. The Eternal Return In 1900, a hurricane struck Galveston, Texas, killing an estimated 6,000-12,000 people—the deadliest natural disaster in American history. ...

The Secret Life of Ordinary Objects ← Series Home The Cycle of Revelation and Resistance: Why Societies Consistently Squander the Window for Reform The catastrophic failure of a city or an industry—be it through flood, fire, or earthquake—serves as a powerful, agonizing moment of collective revelation. It strips away the comforting illusions of equity and competence, exposing the deep-seated political and economic choices that predetermine who lives, who dies, and who ultimately benefits from the disaster’s aftermath. ...