A Fragile Infrastructure

With even the slightest change in weather, this country shuts down.

After unusual weather conditions, public transport and many other amenities were dramatically cut down. My commute time was trebled and many people simply stayed away from work to avoid this inconvenience. What is striking about this whole situation is the relative mildness of the conditions. There was no hurricane or heatwave to cause this, but instead a momentary change that most countries would hardly notice.

The fragile infrastructure of this country has never been more apparent. Why were we so un-prepared to deal with this mild change? The answer lies in the foundations of this infrastructure. Like many countries, we have felt the shame of being 'backward' and thus strove to adopt some of the most modern city and country based technology. But without a natural progression towards these advances they are foolishly sought and foolishly implemented.

Further than this, such a fragile infrastructure is indicative of a fragile national mindset. The innate conservatism of this country is latent in our inability to deal with the slightest change. Our rigid systems whether physical, mental or social should be more pliant in a fluctuating world.

But we are a rigid people and so we run the risk breaking at every challenging turn.

-The English Student