The hottest place to be

Mapleton PRESS, Thursday, November 1, 2007

Last Wednesday, conservative talk radio host Glenn Beck, told his listeners on his nationally syndicated show Monday that those suffering losses in the California wildfires "hate America."

"I think there is a handful of people who hate America," Beck said sarcastically, "Unfortunately for them, a lot of them are losing their homes in a forest fire today."

I wanted to pull my hair out. Cancel that, I wanted to punch Glenn Beck’s lights out. I understand that his intended target were the supposed “Media elite” (of which he himself is one) that right-wing propagandists like Beck are always afraid are going to steer our country more toward compassionate and less toward conservative.

For readers who don’t know, my wife and I taught for seven years at Los Angeles Lutheran Jr/Sr High School, a small school, in the Northern San Fernando Valley. We attended church in the Santa Clarita Valley, between the Buckweed and Stevensen Ranch/Magic Fires. Needless to say, I wrote and asked all of my friends what it was like. I’d like to share some of their stories with you.
Maureen Clemon is a graphic designer who’s safe from fires because she lives near the ocean in Long Beach. “Moe” is originally from the Soldier area.

“I'm okay, I hope all your other friends here in Cali are ok too. It is a little crazy here right now, as you can imagine. It is just starting to clear up today, but it is still hot and hazy from the fires. All the smoke has been in the air and its making people sick, my nose has been bleeding and it is really unhealthy to be outside. the sun is crazy it is neon orange and since there is so much smoke you can actually look straight at the sun without hurting your eyes. We are sad because our camping spot up in lake arrowhead and some of our favorite places to go have burned to the ground. Most of the high schools are cancelling football games and other sports because the air is so bad here. also we are still experiencing frequent and small earthquakes every couple of days. I'm just waiting for a tsunami to hit, seriously. Well, one did hit about two weeks ago-did you hear about that? it was a small tidal wave, it hit somewhere south of long beach I think. That is scary. I don't have to worry about wildfires since I live right by the beach, but i do have to worry about earthquakes and tidal waves. Ah such is life in California.”

I don’t miss earthquakes. We lost our apartment in the 1994 Northridge quake, so I know what it’s like to be an evacuee. I don’t know about Katrina a couple of years ago, but FEMA did fine by us 13 years ago.

Michael is a legal assistant who also helps with his uncle’s documentary film company. Michael’s also relatively safe by the sea in Santa Monica, but you can see that almost everyone’s family is touched by this in some way.

“My brother on the other hand lives in Castaic not far from Magic Mountain. He had to remove somethings from his house and take them to his father-in-laws, but the fire has moved and gotten closer to where his father-in-law lives so he has to do it again. Also my sister now lives in Valencia, I don't think that the fire will make it to where she is, but her Fiancé is a firefighter so I worry for him.”

We have friends our age with small kids who live near Lutheran High. Their kids already suffer from allergies. They couldn’t play outside at all. “We've stayed inside because there is so much stuff in the air,” they told me, “and kept the humidifier and air purifier on in the house.”

Christina, a cheerleading coach and cosmetologist lives near the school too, “It hit ‘close to home’ today when my co-worker went around reporting that Eternal Valley cemetery was on fire this morning. My grandpa is buried there, so when she blurted that out this morning, I got emotional. I had to remind myself that if it was true, it was ok because I know he's not really there, he's in Heaven. Well, turns out it was false, the fire was close behind it, but it was not on fire.” Christina described what it looks and feels like,
“The sky is dark, and the sun is very orange. We weren't allowed to practice outside today because the air is not good. All we can do is pray because although it seems like everything is working against the situation (number of fires, the winds), we know that with God ALL things are possible.”
This was more than a few rich stars in Malibu. Malibu, by the way is more than rich stars, there are a lot of ranchers and farmers who’s lifestyle might seem very familiar in the dry, hilly region.

Consider the fires by the numbers
There were 17 fires from Santa Barbara to the Mexican border. More than 300,000 people were evacuated, nearly 10,000 of them fled to San Diego’s Qualcom Stadium. More than 1,300 homes, businesses and buildings were lost. Costs in San Diego County alone are over $1 Billion, but the fires burned in at least 7 different counties which have been declared disaster areas.
About 6,000 firefighters battle flames in hot Santa Ana winds with gusts up to between 70 and 100 mph!
300,000 acres burned, that’s at least 400 square miles, an area bigger that New York City. At least three of the fires are now suspected to have been caused by arson.

And yet, miraculously, only one person is dead due to the fires.

This was not decadent, anti-Americans being punished by God. But it was Hell on Earth.

There are ways you can help. I’m sure that you can inquire at your local church or fire department, but in case you’re interested, here are a few charities who can certainly use your help:

"Struggling Californians who are having trouble getting the medicines they need may find expedited help through Partnership for Prescription Assistance's disaster relief program by calling the PPA's toll-free number, 1-888-4-PPA-NOW (1-888-477-2669), or user-friendly Web site, available at http://www.pparx.org.

Red Cross
http://american.redcross.org
1-800-797-8022

Salvation Army
www.salvationarmy-socal.org
1-800-SAL-ARMY

The Fire Family Foundation is a non-profit corporation established in Los Angeles for the purpose of supporting firefighters, their families, and departments. Tax deductible contributions may be sent to Fire Family Foundation, c/o Los Angeles Firemen's Credit Union, 815 Colorado Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90041. Contributors may also call 800-231-1626 ext. 2272 for more information, or visit www.firefamilyfoundation.org.

California Dreamin’

In case you didn’t know it, he name “Iowa” is derived from the French word “Ioway,” used for the Bah-kho-je Indian tribe that lived here when the first European explorers came through. The name “California” supposedly comes from a mythical Spanish island ruled by a queen named “Califia.”

I know better. “California” is actually derived from two Spanish words; “caliente,” meaning hot or burning, and “infierno,” meaning Hell.

Thus “Cali-fierno,” which became the English “California.” Or “Col-ee-forn-ee-ah,” if you prefer Governor-elect Shwartzeneggar’s pronunciation. To-may-to, to-mah-to, anyway you say it, it’s a hot burning hell, especially right now.

Roses in January and lounging by the pool in February is one thing, but what many of my friends and former students are dealing with lately is quite another.

The Associated Press reports that more than 522,000 square acres has burned in this year’s wild fires. That’s around 815 square miles for those of us who don’t farm. To give you some perspective, the entire state of Iowa covers only 56,276 square miles.

Sioux City and Council Bluffs are barely 100 miles apart. Los Angeles proper and San Diego are getting close to 200 miles apart. So imagine if the ring of fire Johnny Cash sang about was covered the entire Loess Hills, from the Minnesota border, all the way down to Missouri! Yikes. No wonder the smoke is visible from space.

More than 1,100 homes have burned down and dozens of people have died.

At this point if we wake up tomorrow to hear that Arizona finally has the ocean front property that George Straight sang about, I’d believe it.

“We've been breathing in smoke and ashes,” said Diane D’Agostin, one of our friends who lives in Camarillo, north of L.A., “they're not too close to us, moving away now. Although I heard a new fire started in Fillmore which is northeast of us.”

We also know a couple in Porter Ranch. Anne Beirling, who is originally from Wayne Nebraska, told Bethany that while their home was safe, the fires came just blocks away in the foothills. She compared it to a cross between ‘Armageddon’ and ‘M*A*S*H,’ because they could see the glow of the flames and heard a constant whipping of helicopters above.

One of my former cheerleaders is a Sophomore at UC San Diego. Remember San Diego? Sea World, the Zoo, the Wild Animal Park, the Tijuana Trolly? It used to be one of the most lush, beautiful parts of California. Much cooler and greener than L.A. Now, the Chargers had to play in Arizona because their stadium is being used as an emergency shelter.

“They are crazy! They are all over Southern California! San Diego is being burnt to a crisp! We haven't had school in three days! The air is pure smoke,” Jeraldin Kuerbiss told me. “It looks like it is finally clearing, though. There were four BIG fires in S.D. One was over 30 miles long at one point. Another has burned into Tijuana. It was pretty scary and close on Sunday, when they started. It was a little too close for comfort. Just the night before (Saturday) a bunch of us went to someone’s house right where one of the fires were!”

I for one wanted to leave after we lost our apartment in the 1994 Northridge 7.1 Earthquake. My fellow “Angelinos” and I used to scoff at “those darn rich people” who were “so stupid to live in the Malibu canyons. If they managed to survive the brush fires in the fall, then they’d lose it all in the mudslides come spring.”

But now what things hath God wrought?!
• Earthquakes
• Mudslides
• Wildfires
• Remember the energy crisis? Last year they put up with “Rolling Brown-Outs” because since they deregulated power companies Californians were gouged by high prices for electricity.
• A recall which left them with an action-figure governor-to-be who plans on repealing great sources of revenue (the $185 per vehicle per year car tax- do you know how many millions of cars there are just in L.A.?) in the face of a $38 billion state deficit! (Mind you, I’m glad I no longer live there to have to pay it, but still, why not quit your job in order to pay your bills? See my point?)
• Okay, MASSIVE, oppressive taxes, especially on cars and on gasoline.
• A mass-transportation workers’ strike. Granted, most everybody in L.A. drives an SUV, but thousands of people started trying to use the trains and the busses after the ’94 quake. Believe me, this is causing almost as much congestion as the smoke (on top of the smog.)
• A grocery store workers’ strike. Did I forget to mention that?

“They are picketing all day and night,” our friend Diane emailed me, “all about lost or decreased benefits -- which we're ALL facing! But to be supportive we've been shopping at Trader Joes (a small heath food chain that’s not among the stores being stuck against) -- the first week of the strike John went to buy milk and they were SOLD OUT!!! Even Target was sold out… I'm going to have to go to the store again soon. So, things are crazy here in CA!”

And yet my students are amazed that I ever wanted to leave L.A. “There’s nuthin to do around here,” they whine. Don’t get me wrong, I love California and have plenty of fond memories. It’s just that it’s a nicer place to visit than it is to live, although right now, even looking a mean Iowa November in the face, those California dreams are all nightmares.