Some Say the World Will End in Fire

[mallorys_camera]

Reports coming out of Los Angeles are un-fucking-believable. The acreage burned by the now-six out-of-control fires is bigger than the island of Manhattan.

These reports are in sharp contrast with the completely frozen landscape I’m observing from my bedroom window.

Cue the Dickensian-named poet Robert Frost:

Some say the world will end in fire,
Some say in ice.
From what I’ve tasted of desire
I hold with those who favor fire.
But if it had to perish twice,
I think I know enough of hate
To say that for destruction ice
Is also great
And would suffice.



I know the firestorms’ path a little bit: People Magazine used to summon me down to their LA office approximately twice a month when I worked for them in the ‘90s.

And my charismatic ICM boss Maria has—had?—a futuristic mansion in the Hollywood Hills.

Climate change manifests as a series of increasingly apocalyptic disasters that look so great on Instagram, you are bound to net simply loads of new followers when you post pix:



Rest of America really hates California.

Message boards across the Internet are spilling over with Schadenfreude: These people think they’re above it all, that the rules and laws they impose on us don’t apply to them. And during the Biden years the Democrats tried to do to the entire country what they’ve done to poor California. Leftists ruin literally everything they touch and control - there are no exceptions.

I don’t honestly see how political ideology factors into fire control.

The right-wing press is making a very big deal out of the fact that the current LA mayor shaved $17 million & change from the fire-fighting budget & cost-shifted it to the fighting-homelessness budget. But I think there is a good chance that one or more of these fires started in a homeless encampment.

And anyway, I’m not sure what an $17 million additional dollars might have done. I mean, LA’s fire department is overwhelmed because they were fighting first four and now six infernos simultaneously. How many hundreds of additional fire-fighters would they need to tackle six raging blazes? Would $17 million actually have covered the cost of the men and their equipment?

Plus LA’s reservoirs are actually full. The fire hydrants did run out of water, but that’s because high water demand outpaced the speed at which water service officials could replenish the tanks—and the water storage facility tanks had just been filled to full 3-million-gallon capacity on Monday.

The magic bullet for firestorm prevention is said to be brush control.

2023 was an unusually rainy year in Southern California, so I imagine there is a lot of brush.

I don’t know anything about what brush control measures were being taken around Los Angeles, and whether those measures are the responsibility of individual homeowners or the state of California.

I do know there are a number of federal parklands around Pacific Palisades, so the responsibility for brush control there falls upon the Feds. Don’t hold your breath waiting for Trump to allocate $$$ for brush control on California’s federal lands!



I imagine the political fallout from these fires is going to be horrendous.

Enough to turn California into a Red State?

Maybe.

Northern California will remain steadfastly progressive & Blue, but Southern California is where the population is, and an event like this one strikes me as one of those 180-degree-turn-around, come-to-Jesus events— not unlike Sept 11th—which veered a number of my left-leaning pals to the right.

On the plus side, this is the most diverse, equitable, and inclusive fire in LA’s history!

And I do loathe Gavin Newsome, so I will not be sorry if this ends his political career.

Comments

[suzannareads]

I thought of the Frost poem yesterday too. It was unreal to watch the fire burning down Runyon Canyon in real time last night. And the winds there are still blowing.

[mallorys_camera]

Yeah. None of the fires are under control, which means they are going to grow larger.

[rebeccmeister]

Southern California has always shocked me by how red it already is.

Since S and I drove out there in December, I can tell you, there isn't any more brush buildup right now this year as compared to most other years. But the LA basin was DRY DRY DRY DRY DRY. If you cough you will start a fire. Many fires are started by utility lines still. The situation with the late-season Santa Ana winds is horrible. But anyone who lives in California needs to understand the reality of the Santa Ana winds. They can pretend to live in paradise, but they live in California.

And again, SoCal is already very, very red.

[mallorys_camera]

Points south of LA like Orange & San Diego Counties are Red. (The John Birch Sociiety—remember them?—was headquartered in Orange County.) And the Central Valley.

But if you look at Los Angeles County party registration stats, you'll see 53% registered Democrats & 17% Republicans. It's LA County I'm thinking of.

[asakiyume]

On left-wing Bluesky, rather than focusing on money diverted to fighting homelessness, they're focusing on money diverted to the LADP ... but then there's also this debunking it. IDK, in this era it's hard to know what's what.

[mallorys_camera]

On left-wing Bluesky, rather than focusing on money diverted to fighting homelessness, they're focusing on money diverted to the LADP

The LAPD (like the NYCPD) is seriously underfunded due to the Defund the Police initiatives that were so popular a couple of years back.

So, I say Bullshit to left-wing Bluesky.

[asakiyume]

Well, and the other posts says it's not even true/accurate, so *shrugs*

I think the left-wing posts are evidence of the fact that whatever your political leanings, you tend to find a narrative that supports or enhances them--for a while. I do think sometimes people decide they've had enough and change their outlooks, but I certainly see people doubling down a lot, too (whatever their outlook).

[mallorys_camera]

I'm not on Bluesky, but I sure get the impression that it's an echo chamber.

The other reason county and municipal budgets are routinely cut is because more & more funding has to be allocated towards debt interest and liability payments. The debt is usually the result of pension commitments. Think about that! Essential services are being cut so we can pay interest to the wealth-hoarding classes! Just look at the UK if you want to see what things are gonna look like in the States in 10 years. This is why something needs to be done to rein in deficit spending.

[asakiyume]

Amen! We need to change so many things.

[mellowtigger]

If home insurance wasn't already expensive because of Florida's recurring flood/storm damage, it's about to get even more interesting when those super expensive houses need to be replaced. Thankfully, I own my home 100% and could theoretically drop the insurance if I had to.

[mallorys_camera]

Congratulations on owning yr home 100%!!!! That's awesome.

[smokingboot]

I've read this post a few times now. And when I stop my mind quacking and wait for a thought to come, nothing does. It looks like horror. I'm glad you are safe.

What is it abou GN that moves you so?

[mallorys_camera]

He was a terrible bully about mask mandates. (I was always on the fence about mask mandates. I mean, I was always going to wear a mask—I'm the high-risk demographic—but I didn't understand why everyone had to.) Pious & stern.

And then, at the height of the pandemic, he was photographed whooping it up unmasked with half a dozen pals at the oh-so-tony French Laundry restaurant in full Masque of the Red Death glory, so you know,, poseur and hypocrite.