Burning Question

Since we're now past Memorial Day, the traditional start to summer has begun - and the city of Lincoln began heating things up by having most of the Lincoln Public Schools District Office burn to the ground Monday night.

That massive fire wasn't the only subject that crossed our minds today.

The harsh rebuke of the Republican Party from Bruce Barlett, former top advisor to both President Reagan and President Bush (the elder), was a burn of an entirely different kind, one that we did not expect. We've also got a burning desire to dig back into the debt ceiling battle - which turned an even scarier corner last night, after the GOP-led House of Representatives' bit of overheated political theatre.

Our focus today, though, is on the many people in our hometown, Lincoln,NE, who are focused on the aftereffects of that devastating fire at the LPS Administrative office.

As we've mentioned on occasion, one of our own, web guru Shawn, experienced a similar fire disaster three years ago this July - so he knows what many of those who worked in that building may be going through.

Right now, the people who worked there - and everyone who worked in any school in the area - are feeling a mix of emotions. Loss, regret, sadness, and worry are just a few of the emotions that many Lincoln teachers, secretaries, and administrative staff are likely dealing with today.

The burning question those victims are asking themselves - and probably others - is one that no one can answer with absolute clarity. Having been through a similar experience, however, we can give some advice, as a good friend gave to our staffer when disaster happened to him.

That burning question is just this: When will things get back to normal?

It takes time, hope, and the support and help of friends and neighbors, to get past any major disaster, including a fire like the one Lincoln experienced. Like it or not, it also takes money and a willingness to work together for the common good of everyone affected by the disaster.

We hope that Lincolnites take the attitude of combined sacrifice and community effort to work together to recover from this disaster, and not adopt the attitude displayed recently by GOP house Majority Leader Eric Cantor, that emergencies shouldn't be treated like emergencies.

That attitude, that we are each part of an "own"-ership society - where each of us are on our own - is the one ingredient that anyone attempting to recover from disaster doesn't need. It turns most hope to hate - and it makes recovery take much longer.

We don't know when things will get back to normal for Lincoln's school workers, any more than we know how long it will take for the people living in Joplin, Missouri, those recovering from the tornadoes in Alabama, or those affected by the floods along the Missouri and Missippi.

What we do know is that if you know any of those folks affected, we hope you reach out to them. Offer help - even if it's just a few moments of your time to let them vent about their frustrations.

Let them know they are not alone.

That's the first step to getting back to normal.