Kentucky Rain Keeps Pouring Down

 And up ahead's another town that's flooded. 😨

Floods in the eastern end of Kentucky along the Appalachian foothills have devastated the area, affecting sixteen counties and killing more than three dozen people.  More rain fell on the region last night.  Among the towns hardest hit was the coincidentally but appropriately named town of Hazard.

Flooding in this part of Kentucky is actually a common occurrence because of the steep terrain and the narrow valleys in between the hills and mountains.  What's different this time is that the rain falls more heavily and more frequently, thanks to the ongoing climate crisis.  Another problem is because is area is in the hinterlands, there is little if any investment in the infrastructure, so there is no system of culverts and pipes the can redirect the flood waters away from populated areas.  Homes that were destroyed overnight will take far longer than before to repair or replace.

This puts the climate bill that Senators Schumer and Manchin agreed to in a more immediate perspective.  Most politicians care about the present, while this bill addresses future climate conditions.  Ironically, current events would suggest that no time is better to pass this bill than now.