Where’s the Outrage?

We are starting to get into Biblical events. Flooding. Tornados. Now, fires.

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From AP:

With hundreds of wildfires raging across remote, rugged parts of California for a second week, fire officials have been forced to strategically choose which to fight and which to leave to burn for weeks or even months.

The number of fires burning in central and Northern California — more than 1,000, according to state fire officials — means authorities can’t send firefighters to battle every blaze, Jason Kirchner, a spokesman for the U.S. Forest Service, said Monday. (more…)

Tags: California Wildfires by ecthompson
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Just when I think that my life is bad and getting worse I can look around and see that I have nothing to complain about.  Some local flavor - here and here.

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From MSNBC:

A fast-moving wildfire pushed by Santa Ana winds raced through the canyons and over the mountains of this wealthy enclave for the second time in little more than a month Saturday, destroying dozens of homes and forcing as many as 14,000 residents to flee.

The fire erupted in the wee hours after the long-predicted Santa Anas finally returned, and it quickly grew before the winds died down. Forty-nine homes were destroyed and another 27 damaged, said Los Angeles County Fire Chief P. Michael Freeman.  (more…)

 

 Malibu fire [4:43m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Tags: California Wildfires by ecthompson
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It is becomes very clear that telecoms just handed the Bush administration volumes of our information without a court order and in some cases without even a request. Senator Russ Feingold has spoken out against amnesty for lawbreakers. Interestingly, Senator Dianne Feinstein has come out and supported giving the big Telecoms a free pass. Doesn’t a free pass just encourage the Bush administration to break more laws?

MoveOn has started a grass roots effort to pressure Senator Feinstein into doing the right thing.

Note:  The 10 year old that started one of the California fires will not be charged.

Tags: California Wildfires, Domestic Spying by ecthompson
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OMG.  This is awful to comprehend.  A child was playing with matches and that started a fire which burned over 38,000 acres.  I have nothing more to say.

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From CNN.com:

A juvenile playing with matches started a Southern California wildfire that wound up scorching more than 38,000 acres and destroying 63 structures, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department said Tuesday.

The Buckweed Fire began about 2 p.m. (5 p.m. ET) on October 21 in the Agua Dulce community.

Authorities immediately began an investigation, and a day later identified the male juvenile as a suspect, according to a report issued by the sheriff’s department. 

Tags: California Wildfires by ecthompson
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A small group of California firefighters was overrun by fire. They deployed protective shelters. They called in what amounts to an airstrike. After almost being burned to death, they went back to work.

Map of fires. There are still fires everywhere. Because so much stuff is burning the air quality is now a huge concern.

Local blog tries to raise funds.

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From LAT:

Firefighters took advantage of cooler weather, and even some light drizzle, today in the nearly weeklong battle against Southern California’s wildfires, but officials cautioned that blazes near Lake Arrowhead, in eastern Orange County and in San Diego County remained major concerns.

In the rugged mountains of eastern Orange County, officials were counting on the milder weather to enable them to make inroads against the Santiago blaze, an arson fire that continues to threaten hundreds of homes in Silverado Canyon. Overnight, firefighters protected homes in the narrow seven-mile canyon and used bulldozers to build a five-mile fire break, aiming to stop the fire’s march toward the Riverside County line. (more…)

 

 Heroes [3:32m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Tags: California Wildfires by ecthompson
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No, this is not the Daily Show nor the Colbert Report but instead it is FEMA. The Federal Emergency Management Agency held it’s own press conference. When I mean it’s own, I mean that there were no reporters. All the questions were asked by FEMA employees. MSNBC and Fox carried portions of the “news” conference live. This is better than Jeff Gannon.

Have you seen Michael Chertoff’s reaction? (like he didn’t know) “I think it was one of the dumbest and most inappropriate things I’ve seen since I’ve been in government,” Michael Chertoff said. Remember that this was standard operating procedure at the White House. So, someone didn’t get the memo that the White House was sort of going back to reality.

Update: FEMA official resigns.

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From WaPo:

The Federal Emergency Management Agency’s No. 2 official apologized yesterday for leading a staged news conference Tuesday in which FEMA employees posed as reporters while real reporters listened on a telephone conference line and were barred from asking questions.

“We are reviewing our press procedures and will make the changes necessary to ensure that all of our communications are straight forward and transparent,” Vice Adm. Harvey E. Johnson Jr., FEMA’s deputy administrator, said in a four-paragraph statement

In the briefing, parts of which were televised live by cable news channels, Johnson stood behind a lectern, called on questioners who did not disclose that they were FEMA employees, and gave replies emphasizing that his agency’s response to this week’s California wildfires was far better than its response to Hurricane Katrina in August 2005. (more…)

 

 Countdown - Fake FEMA news [6:03m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Tags: Bush Administration, California Wildfires by ecthompson
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President Bush was in Southern California yesterday. He smiled for the cameras. He told the press corp that he was on top of the situation. Arnold Schwarzenegger was at his side. Bush’s best line was “We’re not going to forget you in Washington, D.C.” Yeah, right.

It seems that there was a problem in the firefighter response early in this fire. Red tape prevented water dropping copters and large cargo planes from getting off of the ground. Isn’t that Bush’s job to eliminate red tape? Where was Michael Chertoff?

It is funny how the Republicans have no use for government except when it is something that they want. Cut this. Eliminate that. Bushie Dana Rohrabacher is now upset that red tape got in the way of putting this fire out early. It is unclear if the early measures would have prevented what we are seeing today but it would have been nice to have had a robust response before houses had been destroyed.

Nice personal account here. Another blogger, Vanessa, reminds us that it is people who matter.

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From MSNBC:

As wildfires were charging across Southern California, nearly two dozen water-dropping helicopters and two massive cargo planes sat idly by, grounded by government rules and bureaucracy.

How much the aircraft would have helped will never be known, but their inability to provide quick assistance raises troubling questions about California’s preparations for a fire season that was widely expected to be among the worst on record.

<snip>

“The weight of bureaucracy kept these planes from flying, not the heavy winds,” Republican U.S. Rep. Dana Rohrabacher told The Associated Press. “When you look at what’s happened, it’s disgusting, inexcusable foot-dragging that’s put tens of thousands of people in danger.” (more…)

 

 Bush In Cali [2:12m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Tags: Bush Administration, California Wildfires by ecthompson
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Well, as usual, the media can’t focus on teh important stuff.  Now, we have stories about how sweet Qualcomm stadium is.  We have stories about dogs and llamas.  Houses are still burning.  Bush has declared a state of emergency.

Below is a video of the images from Countdown.  Keith Olbermann has usual does a great job at introducing the topic then stepping back.

One California blogger has compared the area of Southern California that has been burned to the size of Manhattan (hint:  the area of destruction is bigger)

There is an interesting personal account here.

 

 Countdown - Cali fires day 3 [4:04m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Tags: California Wildfires, Countdown by ecthompson
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In the category of really dumb, Arnold Schwarzenegger said yesterday, “The people are happy. They have everything here.” He said this as he toured Qualcomm stadium.

Doesn’t that sound just like someone else? Someone who is rich and unaware of poverty. Uhmm - Mrs. Bush, after touring the Astrodome complex in Houston on Monday, said: ”What I’m hearing, which is sort of scary, is they all want to stay in Texas. Everyone is so overwhelmed by the hospitality. And so many of the people in the arena here, you know, were underprivileged anyway, so this is working very well for them.”

Tags: California Wildfires, Katrina by ecthompson
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I don’t live in Southern California. I live in North Carolina. I know that fires have seasons in southern California. They don’t get much rain during “normal” times. I also know that Global Warming, from whatever the cause, has made this area drier than normal.

My wife and I honeymooned in La Jolla just north of San Diego. I love the area. The people are very nice and friendly.

There are a lot of Katrina references being thrown around. I know that 79% of Americans own at least one car. I don’t know if there are more car owners in San Diego than there are in New Orleans. I think that there are but I’m still looking that up. I know that the median income in New Orleans is just over $30,700. Median Income in San Diego is over $55,600.

I’m not saying that one tragedy is worse than the other. If you lose your home, your home is lost, period. I just think that it should be understood that the folks in San Diego have more means as a whole than New Orleans. I just came back from New Orleans a couple of weeks ago. Large areas of the city was flooded, not just the 9th ward. Large portions of the city have empty decaying houses. Something needs to be done. Even if that something is to bulldoze those houses. There needs to be some leadership and a plan. Let’s see if the new Governor will be able to something. (I bet he will do nothing of any substance to help New Orleans or the other cities of the Gulf Coast. )

Update:  Excellent information can be found on some local California blogs - here, here and here.

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From CNN.com:

Relentless wildfires roared through Southern California for a third day Tuesday, sending more than half a million residents fleeing with family members, pets and whatever prize possessions they could fit in their vehicles.

The blazes have charred 400,000 acres and reduced 1,300 homes — 1,000 in San Diego County — to ash.

The fires have killed one person and injured more than 50. Earlier Tuesday, officials erroneously reported that a second person had died.

Earlier Tuesday, Lt. Gov. John Garamendi, said the number of evacuees “could very well approach 500,000 by the end of the day.” (more…)

 

 Fires continue in Cali [2:51m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Tags: California Wildfires, Environment by ecthompson
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