It is very stirring to see the huge willingness of fellow Australians (and others) to chip in to help those who have suffered the horrible tragedy of the bushfires in Victoria. But with the aid through the Red Cross alone now in excess of $138 million (according to WA Today on 19/2/2009), not to mention donations of food, clothing and other goods through other agencies, I cannot help but wonder - just how much is enough?
Are we, through the act of donating such a huge amount of money and goods, in some way superstitiously "buying off" such a disaster from happening to us? Have we somehow been made to feel guilty that we didn't suffer some similar great misfortune? Is there some underlying competitiveness or social guilt in play, where we cannot be seen to be less generous than our neighbours (literally or figuratively)? Or have we just succumb to some huge degree of media pressure and been carried along for the ride? I do not pretend to know the answer to these questions, although I suspect each and every one of us who donated money and/or goods has our own reasons made up of a combination of these and other reasons.
So, is an appeal that has raised in excess of $138 million enough? Or is it too much? I don't think there is one easy answer to that.
On one hand, I accept that it is not enough, for the simple reason that no amount of money can replace the lost memories and lost lives. Even more so if it is found that some of those deaths might have been prevented if people had been better informed or better prepared for the oncoming fire.
But I also insist at the same time that it is too much. According to this website EVERY YEAR in Australia there are around 10,000 house fires (or approximately an average of 27 every day), resulting in 70 deaths. But we don't see an appeal raising millions of dollars for the benefit of those families. Put it another way: EVERY YEAR in Australia we see in excess of 1400 deaths in motor vehicle accidents, or nearly 4 people for every day of the year (up to 2007 - 2008 statistics not available. See this paper from the Commonwealth Dept of Infrastructure and stuff). We don't see multi-million dollar appeals to raise funds to help those families either. Or again: EVERY YEAR in Australia, in excess of 2100 people commit suicide (up to 2005 - see this ABS report summary). That's an average of nearly 6 people a day. No multi-million dollar appeals for them either. In all these examples, the cause of death is almost always preventable. These too are tragedies with similar, far-reaching implications for the families involved. The biggest tragedy of all is that they go unnoticed, while those "fortunate" enough to be caught in a major bushfire get major national coverage for nearly 2 whole weeks and an truly staggering amount of money raised for their benefit.
Don't get me wrong, the bushfires were a very traumatic experience for those involved, and for those not so involved but who have family in or around the fire areas. Many many people have lost possessions or family members - some people have lost everything, including their families. That must not be forgotten. Questions must be asked (and answered) as to why this event was such a tragedy and how we can learn from it to stop a similar thing happening in the future. But please, in amongst all the bushfire coverage, don't let us forget the daily tragedies that happen all around us every single day of the year. They too are tragedies who are just as worthy of our support, and just as worthy of having questions answered.
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