My youngest son and his girlfriend were just here for a visit from Wisconsin and I have to admit that I loved having them here. You may ask where is here. Here is Ft. Myers, Florida. Actually I live in unincorporated Iona which is closer to Ft. Myers Beach and Sanibel. This is a beautiful time of year in Southwest Florida. The mornings are cool and the air conditioning is off. This weather is why some of us move to Florida. It definitely is not the politics. As I was drinking my coffee this morning a flock of White Pelicans were doing their aerial ballet up in the sky and at that moment I was glad to be alive to see it. Every state has its natural wonders. I always loved the fall colors is Wisconsin and the trick is to search out the wonders that are always around us. I am way more fortunate than many down here.

When company comes to town they want to see the sights. In Southwest Florida our sights have changed in the last four months. Ft. Myers beach went from this old feel Florida to something that looked like a bombed out city and that is no exaggeration. You can look at pictures and video but when you look at it in person that is when you feel the real impact of the disaster that all of us now face. Much of the debris has been removed by FEMA and now you can actually see the destruction even better to the buildings off the main drag. The destruction goes on for miles and miles. When I was taking my Son and his girlfriend on a tour of Ft. Myers Beach they only made it halfway down because it was too depressing for them. It really is a heart wrenching sight to see all those homes and businesses destroyed for miles and miles. To see all the shrimp boat piled up like they were just huge toys is something to see. When you see those sights it is hard to get them out of your head. You have to remember that Ian was almost four months ago and there are places that still look like it was yesterday. After the tour of Ft. Myers Beach they didn’t really want to see anymore of the destruction and I don’t blame them.

Almost four months has gone by and most of the country and the press have moved on from Southwest Florida and the disaster we still face every day. There are people still in pain here. There are people still living in tents under the bridge going out to Ft. Myers Beach. We have no champions to come and help us. You don’t hear it but I think more than a few feel abandoned by their own government. You still see a huge FEMA presence but it looks like our Governor has just disappeared. He is just too busy worrying about suppressing the teaching of Black history in our schools to really worry about the people that have lost everything. Our Representative to the House of Representatives, Bryan Donalds I feel never really showed up and do we have any Senators that really want to help the people of Southwest Florida? I just don’t see it. Even the Senator that lives here but represents Wisconsin is nowhere to be seen. In the news you see a few feel good stories that put a positive spin on what is going on down here which is fine, but the stories that you don’t hear about the businesses and the people that have just given up.

What will happen in Southwest Florida is the same thing that has happened in other beach areas devastated by natural disasters. Rich developers will come in and build homes and business that will cater to a wealthier class of people than those that were displaced. The mom and pop restaurants and businesses will be replaced buy something more upscale and national. There will be a lot of people that in five years will see and much different Ft Myers Beach than what was there before. 35 years ago my wife and I would stay at a little place in Panama City Beach called the Beachcomber. It was just a Mom and Pop joint right on the beach. If you read John Grisham’s book, “The Firm” his main character stays at the Beachcomber while visiting his mother that works at the Waffle House across the street. Well, a Hurricane came along in the Nineties and damaged the old place and some developer came in and built some 20 story high-rise. It is still called the Beachcomber but it isn’t the same. This is what will happen in Southwest Florida. Many will say it is progress. I will not be one of them.

In Florida very few groups actually talk about climate change and what it is doing to the State of Florida. Maybe some don’t believe in climate change. Maybe some think, for some reason, that the private sector will save them from climate change. Maybe some think that it is too late to do anything about climate change. I think that we have all three groups here. I personally feel that no matter what we do now we can’t reverse what is already happening. Does that mean that we must just throw up our hands and give up? We should be taking the stance of saving what we can for future generations. When Lake Erie was dead people didn’t give up. Now Lake Erie is one of the best walleye fishing lakes in the country. I spent about 40 years sailing on the waters of Lake Michigan. Today the lake is much cleaner than it has been during my lifetime. I remember when the air was so polluted that acid rain was killing our lakes. We made it better. How? Science working with our Federal Government is how. Maybe if we reversed what we are dumping into the Gulf Red Tide will not be as bad. Yes, there was actually a time when this country believed in science to help it find solutions. There was a time where profit for a few did not over ride the good of the general public in the eyes of the government.

There have always been corporations that have lied to the American Public. Cigarettes are the first thing that comes to mind and how long the tobacco companies hid the fact that their products ruined our health. Lead pipes and our drinking water, lead in paint, and asbestos to just name a few all have been banned because they harm us. DDT reeked havoc on the environment. The government had to step in and ban all these things. People that believe that the private sector will look out for your well being in front of their profits are not being honest with you. For us to move forward we have to put people first. I sure hope Generation Z does a better job than us Baby Boomers.