This season of many and startling hurricanes challenges us North Americans--and our myopic media--to widen our horizons beyond the point where a storm hits Florida or the Gulf Coast.

As Taran noted in last week's discussion on the WELL, "Well, you see... there's a few countries in between Ivan and Florida which deserve mention as well..."

While we wait for Taran to follow up, here's an illuminating animation from NOAA, showing Ivan's path, engulfing island nations as it moved west-northwest across the Caribbean.