Now at first, I have to confess, this struck me as kind of odd. Your spouse calls you to tell you about an earthquake at your house, a potentially catastrophic natural event, and the first thing you say is, “Was it on Twitter?”
Science blog Effect Measure asks the important question, “Why would any sane person put a Level 4 biodefense lab in Galveston?” Fortunately for us all, the lab is still under construction and not operational – so we don’t have to worry about an Ebola outbreak during the Ike cleanup – but certainly millions of dollars have been wasted. One would think Homeland Security and the UT System could find a drier and less populated location in Texas. I’ll nominate Lubbock.
In other Ike-related news, the Galveston County Sherrif’s department decided not to evacuate the county jail, although it was expected that the entire island would be covered by Ike’s storm surge. Considering the outcry after New Orleans prisoners died in their cells after Katrina, this is a pretty brazen decision. But the Lone Star State has never been known for its compassion toward prisoners.