xmlns:og='http://ogp.me/ns#'. The Digibandit: Jul 5, 2013

Friday, July 05, 2013

Firefighters Should Not Burn to Save Rich Folks Homes

 
 
 comment to article below - "As someone who fought forest fires in British Columbia for five years, I have to say that this sort of tragedy would never happen in Canada. We always worked with the utmost caution: no one should ever die to save trees and homes. The sort-of gung-ho militarized nature of US firefighting is unnecessary and ultimately dangerous."
 
 After the Big Burn of 1910, which consumed three million acres in a weekend, the Forest Service became the fire service — a protector of woods and cabins rather than a mere steward of the great public land domain. Now almost 40 percent of the Forest Service budget is given over to firefighting. Decisions on which fires to battle often come down to how many homes are in a given area.