What is it about human nature that despises warnings? Why do we hate those who use their convictions and experience to warn others simply because they care? Why are those who speak warnings mocked as though they were stupid or "pessimistic". Is not CAUTION a very WISE word? Is not the word CAUTION in the dictionary for a reason? Doesn't caution allow room and time to make WISE decisions? Caution implies that we do NOT know it all.........it promotes HUMILITY! People who are prone to bravado, strong personalities, must be held in check and tempered with respect and the concern for others. Simply put, the invitation to disaster dwells in all of us.
When the space shuttle "Challenger" blew up into thousands of pieces as millions watch on TV on January 27th, 1986, I wonder how many of them actually knew that the engineers from Morton Thiocol in Utah warned NASA that launching Challenger in January with the temps below 53 was extremely dangerous and could compromise the O-Rings (the round rubber gaskets resting in the joints between the 3 sections of each rocket booster). The O-Rings purpose was to keep the hot gases from escaping between these sections. With 5000 degrees of heat and half a million gallons of fuel an explosion was eminent. Yet NASA was under bureaucratic pressure to launch by a certain date because Ronald Reagan had spoken of the lauch in his State of the Union address. And so we watched as the world mourned over the loss of 14 people eager to enter space. Clearly we see impatience and an unwillingness to place safety before schedule. Even the press criticized NASA because of the delays. Doesn't the press have any sense? And can you believe that the day of the launch the temp in Florida was only 26 degrees with ice all over the shuttle! Shocking that all rationale can leave a mind! Millions of dollars and years of hard work vanished in a few tragic moments!
During the investigation, NASA tried at first to cover up that the engineers at Morton Thiocol PLEADED with NASA NOT to launch because of the O-Rings, but eventually the truth came out.
And yet, we DO NOT LEARN from our mistakes! Once again the space shuttle "Columbia" was launched in 2003 and the tape showed that when it launched a piece of rubber foam broke off and hit the left wing. The managers at NASA knew that that could pose a serious problem if it damaged any of the ceramic tiles covering the shuttle. The ceramic tiles and carbon panels act as a shield as they absorb the extreme temperatures from re-entry. If they were in any way damaged or cracked, heat could penatrate the orbitor body resulting in an explosion. Yet NASA chose to do nothing about it........not even warning the astronauts. So they continued like it was business as usual because NASA decided it just was not important enough. And once again we watched in horror as the space shuttle blew up into millions of pieces over Texas, killing several more. Why do we wait until it is too late and then "act" so sorry for the loss! Didn't it MAKE JUST PLAIN SENSE to exercise caution even if others are being "inconvenienced"?
The same thing happened to the Titanic. We all remember that ship.......that "unsinkable" ship that God Himself could not sink! I believe God allowed that to happen because of man's arrogance and pride. God DID NOT sink the ship, man's arrogance and pride did. They did not heed the MANY warnings of icebergs and wanted instead to parade their "pomp and circumstance" by arriving in New York a day early. Over 1200 souls perished in the frigid waters! And yet once again we "act" so sorry for the incredible loss.
The same thing is going on today in America. I think most folks will genuinely not see the urgency until they are out of toilet paper or their toilets will not flush! That is how bad it is. Problems and warnings should be heeded and addressed immediately.....nip it in the bud so to speak.....before it festers into something much larger that will require more energy and time to fix. Problems will always be with us but failing to address them or ignoring the warnings will not make them go away. Facing the TRUTH requires responsibility but not many are willing to invest their time and energy to make the big changes required.
All of these examples are lessons to be learned from........NOT repeated!