Reply #39: Not to mention... [View All]

these people chose to live there because it is in the "pristine" forest and it is "so beautiful". In reality, thanks to fire suppression policies over the years that pristine forest has become a tinder box. A catastrophic fire around Tahoe has been forecast and dreaded for years by fire officials. Now it's here and we're reaping what we've sown.

I got slammed last night for saying that I didn't consider a wildfire in Tahoe as a castrophe. I should have qualified that. In terms of people losing possessions it is an immense tragedy. In terms of the forest it's a boon. Fire is part of nature. The forest will be back and stronger than ever in time. As I said then, I still hope that everyone gets out safely and no one gets hurt.

I have one other thing to say. I have a very good friend who's an elite firefighter who fights wildfires all over the west. For all I know he's fighting this fire (he's fought Tahoe area fires before). Let's keep them in our thoughts tonight OK.