By james art Hurricane Milton slammed into Florida on October 9, causing countless power outages across the state, killing at least 24 people and destroying homes across the region. This happened just days after the disaster of Hurricane Helena led to an even higher death toll of more than 130 civilians living in the American South.
This type of natural disaster most often hits the Atlantic coast of the United States, and the hurricane season usually runs from June to November. When La Niña—the cold phase of the Southern Oscillation cycle—occurs, people in the south can expect to prepare for storms. Given that the Atlantic Ocean region sees “seven hurricanes and three major hurricanes per year,” Americans must see these as very devastating but very natural phenomena, right?
Unfortunately, some people refuse to see this as a natural disaster or tragedy – they present it as a conspiracy.
While meteorologists were just doing their jobs tracking natural disasters, many far-right conspiracy theorists decided it would be useful to believe and spread false information about these disasters. Some of the “information” mentioned includes the claim that meteorologists target and direct hurricanes to red states.
Former President Donald Trump also said some things about the hurricane that weren’t necessarily true. At a rally in Michigan, he said his opponent in the upcoming general election, Vice President Kamala Harris, had directed money from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to fund housing for undocumented immigrants. This ridiculous claim was clearly not true and was not made out of genuine concern for the hurricane victims, but instead out of contempt for undocumented people.
Some other prominent Republican figures have theorized that the weather can be controlled. Georgia Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Green, who has been condemned by both her colleagues and much of the general public for being a far-right conspiracy theorist, stated in a post on the social media platform X that “they can control the weather,” as refers to an unnamed group of people.
Just how crazy the suggestion that the weather can be controlled begs the question of whether Trump and Green are sincere in their claims or just spreading these lies because of the upcoming election.
Misinformation is common in the run-up to major elections, with 64% of election officials reporting that in 2022, false information made their job more difficult and the process more dangerous. The fact that prominent right-wing figures propagate and endorse these two theories is a danger to our democratic process.
As the 2024 presidential election approaches and false accusations against Harris and her administration pile up, it also makes Americans wonder if the masterminds behind these conspiracies are trying to sway both public opinion and the vote in their favor.
When politicians like Trump can say whatever they want, even if the statements are false, without consequence, there is nothing stopping them from continuing. Trump has faced public backlash from news outlets over his claims about FEMA, but the backlash does not pose a threat to his re-election campaign.
It is unfair to meteorologists to face backlash for doing their job because a government official decided to lie. It is not fair for Trump to make such serious, baseless accusations against his opponent. There are many things Republicans could choose to criticize Harris for — her policies, her future handling of the economy, or other personal beliefs — but simply lying about her is unprofessional. The only thing people can hope for is that people don’t take such serious claims at face value.
After all, the government can’t control the weather, the Biden-Harris administration doesn’t take money from FEMA, and all of these conspiracies are false. Listen to trusted and reliable meteorologists for forecasts and weather forecasts and only them. Exercise critical thinking and digital literacy when navigating online environments.
Rebecca Do is the Opinions Intern for the fall quarter of 2024. She can be reached at [email protected].
Edited by Trista Lara.