The disappearance of Malaysia
Airlines flight 370 exposed to the world the limits of man, with all of his
advanced technology, to be in control of his destiny. The very reality that a
large, technologically advanced and electronic communications laden aircraft
could seemingly vanish from the face of the earth is sobering. Many of us probably assumed that pilots were
in constant contact with air traffic control or some automated tracking system was
on at all times that could not be deactivated by someone on board, but it seems
that is not true. In a world build around getting instant answers, it’s a shock
for people to discover we don’t have it all under control.
Men have walked on the surface of the moon. We have rovers
on the surface of the planet of Mars and we have a craft that has left the
solar system and is headed into the far reaches of space. We have technology
that allows us to capture billions of cell phone calls and internet searches,
but there are blank spots on this planet where we are blind.
The safety of any jetliner with hundreds of passengers
on board is in the hands of the pilots and it is now obvious that in some parts
of the world that is truer than others. We want to know what happened now and
sit in shock to find out we can’t know instantly because of our human
limitations. The general public is always shocked to discover the reality of
our limited knowledge and reach here on earth.
We still have to depend on the goodwill, skills and sound
minds of those in control when we become a passenger of any type. This reminds
us that what we have come to view as routine is not routine, when we board that
train, ship or airplane we have truly placed our lives into the hands of people
we don’t know. We often forget the risks involved when our technology enables
man to do what is not natural to him such as traveling at high speeds on land, sailing
across the surface of the ocean or flying across the sky. Those things are not
inherently natural to us, but have become safe and accepted practice, so it
unnerves us when we see something like Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 disappear
without a trace. We don’t like to be reminded of our human frailties. Please,
say a prayer for the missing and their loved ones.
