July 6, 2025- The somber air, across the country, has many wondering whether the slashing of disaster response programs at the Federal level was done in haste. It’s not surprising; indeed, it was only a matter of time. That the horror should have struck in the heart of Texas, on one of the two most significant national holiday weekends, is breathtaking, but it, too, is not surprising. The sheer scale, and speed, of the flood would have overwhelmed even the most state-of-the-art warning systems. Only a 24/7 monitoring of the state’s, indeed the nation’s, many river systems can hope to prevent a repeat of the damage caused by the rampaging Guadalupe. The DOGE cuts to FEMA only proved to be salt in the wound. The funds that were cut would not, in and of themselves, have saved the 82 people who died in the flooding.

Still and all, it is time to have second thoughts as a nation, with regard to planning for disaster response. The lives of innocents, especially of children, cannot be sacrificed for the sake of anyone’s financial portfolio or for the sake of bigger, more powerful weapons. No foreign adversary is going to come into the United States and find a docile populace. No well-heeled American is going to go broke, anytime soon. Mother Nature, however, is in an escalating state of turmoil -and disasters like Kerrville, or the January fires in the Los Angeles area, will only require more of our national resources.

Congress and the President have had their “Big Beautiful” moment. They have shown us their power. Now, let’s see that power used for the safeguarding of communities, and the healing of hearts that have once again been devastated by nature’s ravages. I recommend establishment of a National Endowment for Protection and Recovery. That would help build systems designed to fend off fires and floods, as well as being the funding basis for FEMA.