Some months ago, we watched a lot of news coverage about the devastation Puerto Rico encountered from a hurricane, and, along with the reports of damage were also reports that the infrastructure of the island was very unstable. You got the idea it was cobbled together and extremely vulnerable to adverse conditions. Whether it be corruption at work (or non-work) was not really addressed. The headlines just emphasized it was an island in a hurricane area that would be devastated by high winds and sea surges, etc.

That was, of course, bad for the residents when it happened. All sorts of news shows highlighted the disaster and the length of time for help to reach the residents. Apparently, some supplies set in delivery areas with no way of reaching those needing them.

What I have been wondering about lately is how recovery is being handled in Puerto Rico; I don’t find  internet news headlines linking to follow-up information. Is Puerto Rico being rebuilt in a responsible manner? Is there corruption siphoning off money or not? Is the power structure being rebuilt stronger . . . or are really long extension cords crisscrossing the island, sort of the way I manage to get my electric lawnmower to reach the far corners of my yard?

And, then, who holds the responsibility for rebuilding? The Army Corps of Engineers probably is trying to get power to people, but does that entail the building a secure infrastructure or it is just their job to provide access to power? I believe, in such situations, they work under FEMA and are not tasked with construction of a brand-new, really good infrastructure.

In short, I know nothing about what is going on in Puerto Rico now, although I was inundated with videos and pictures of the destruction and, before that, with predictions that a bad hurricane would deal with Puerto Rico the way the big bad wolf did with the pigs’ houses that were not built of brick.

So . . . is there money for brick? Is it getting to responsible people? This would be a slower news story, of course, and it appears that more than not, the public eye is drawn to the WHOOOSH and then when that is over, the newscasters intone, “Well, moving on . . .