A great tragedy is unfolding in Southern California as thousands of people are being evacuated in advance of the raging fires that are destroying their homes.
Just as most of the country experiences the four seasons, SoCal has its own unique set of seasons that includes a fire season followed by the rainy season. First, the hills are burned out, then the rains produce mud slides in areas where there is no longer any vegetation to hold back the earth.
Some of the areas that are on fire now were also burned out in 2003. What is insane here is that people continue to build and rebuild in the fire and mud slide prone areas, just like those people who build and rebuild their homes on the beach.
I feel for the victims of the fires just as I feel for those whose homes get washed into the sea every time there is a major storm. What bothers me is our tax money subsides the insurance for beach-front homeowners and pays for disaster assistance for those caught up in the fires.
Natural disasters happen and we need to help those who suffer. While few of us live in areas immune from fire, hurricanes, or tornadoes, why tempt fate by building our homes in known brush fire areas or on the beach front then expect the government to bail us out when the inevitable happens?
Tuesday, October 23, 2007
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