Dissertation on Hurricane Matthew

Now that Matthew has left his wake of terror, panic, fear and tv meteorologist’s on-camera non-stop histrionics behind, we who live on Amelia Island  will now enter the philosophical discussion phase.

For the next few weeks, conversations in Amelia Island’s pubs, bars, restaurants, fitness clubs and Starbucks will center on the question, “What did you do when Matthew hit?”  There will be two sides, those who evacuated and those who did not.

Those who did not leave will make a point of their great courage and those who did will emphasize their superior wisdom.  It is not an argument anyone can win but it is interesting to look at it from a philosophical point of view.

Now that it’s over it’s all academic anyway.  Those who stayed faced a win or lose situation.  If they came out unscathed they won, if the got killed, they lost.  The evacuators, on the other hand, had a win-win situation since no matter what happened on the island they would not be killed.

Since I was one of those who evacuated, I like to look at in in the framework of Philosopher Blaise Pascal’s famous wager.  He postulated that it is better to live as if there is a God, then die and find out there isn't, than to live as if there isn't a God, then die and find out there is. Applying that logic I figured it was better to leave the island believing it would be destroyed, then find out it wasn’t, than to stay on the island believing it would not be destroyed, then find out it was.  And be killed.

So my choice was to leave the island, stay in a very comfortable hotel  (which provided a full breakfast of bacon and eggs)  a safe distance from potential calamity, take the essentials of life  like some basic foodstuffs and a well stocked bar and make the best of it.  I suppose you might call it the Citrus Philosophy:  If life hands you a lemon, make lemonade, and it helps considerably if you toss in a few shots of vodka.