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What roles did woke policies play in the conflagration in Los Angeles?

What roles did woke policies play in the conflagration in Los Angeles?

Yes, it has been a prolonged perfect fire storm ravaging Los Angeles – drought conditions with lots of dry vegetation … high temperatures … strong winds.  Some excuse the failure to contain the fires to this combination of conditions.  They say it simply overwhelmed the system. 

But none of those conditions are unique or unprecedented in that region.  The Santa Ana winds have blown regularly for years.  Drought conditions are common.  And wildfires are iconic events – even bad ones.  It is commonly referred to as the “fire season” – much like the east coast has a hurricane season and mid-America has a tornado season.

That excuse suggests that no one could have anticipated what happened.   It was a force majeure – an act of God.  In fact, it was not only foreseeable, it was also predicted by a number of authorities and experts.  The folks in charge in Los Angeles and Sacramento had seen this movie before in the form of earlier devastating fires that wiped out communities and killed residents,

We know a number of things for sure.  As the wildfires erupted in Los Angeles, there were not enough firefighters to combat the blazes.  There was not enough equipment – ground and air.  There was not enough water. We know that a million-gallon water reservoir was intentionally empty.  There were not enough preventative policies or contingency plans – such as evacuation education … effective fire-specific zoning and building codes … and fire-impeding landscaping regulations and practices. 

We also know that the Los Angeles and the California state budgets reduced funding of firefighting services – despite the regions high risk of major fires and the anticipated increase in the number and intensity based on global warming.  Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and Governor Gavin Newsom could have mitigated the situation by effective government decisions and policies – but they did not.

In terms of funding, it was merely a matter of priorities.  More specifically, it was an example of how progressive budgeting priorities trumped essential needs – the primary responsibilities of government.  Many have pointed to the woke and DEI social and cultural expenditures as examples of misplaced priorities.  That is because they are the most obvious and most egregious of misplaced funding priorities.  They are among the least urgent matters … the most political issues.  Arguably they are things that should not have been funded by government in any case.

That does not mean they are the only extraneous lower priority line items that could be cut.  There are others.  Money was added to the budget for decorative landscaping – not fire resistant landscaping.  Some have argued that this actually added fuel to the fires.  There was an increase in the police budget, but not for enforcement.  It was for community and social services – a soft form of police defunding,

It is no small irony that there have been increases in expenditures for dealing with the homeless crisis (a crisis worsened, if not created by progressive policies) … while at the same time the underfunding of firefighting services has resulted in tens of thousands of additional homeless folks.

Progressive policies are destroying states and major cities across the nation – increasing crime, reduced protections, accommodating, not mitigating, the homeless crisis, crushing expenditures, exorbitant taxes, housing crisis.  See what progressive leadership has done to Detroit, Chicago – and now Los Angeles.

Make no mistake about it, the scope of the current wildfire disaster in California is not just Mother Nature.  It has been the result of progressive policies that put philosophic social and cultural issues ahead of basic essential government services.  It is a leadership problem.  Newsom survived a previous recall effort.  Will there be another?  The petitions to recall Bass are already on the streets.   (I am betting it will be successful.)

In the days to come — and the media, civic groups and government agencies will dig deeper into the causes of the conflagration.  I have no doubt that the woke government policies and priorities will loom large on the list.

So, there ‘tis.

About The Author

Larry Horist

So, there ‘tis… The opinions, perspectives and analyses of businessman, conservative writer and political strategist Larry Horist. Larry has an extensive background in economics and public policy. For more than 40 years, he ran his own Chicago based consulting firm. His clients included such conservative icons as Steve Forbes and Milton Friedman. He has served as a consultant to the Nixon White House and travelled the country as a spokesman for President Reagan’s economic reforms. Larry professional emphasis has been on civil rights and education. He was consultant to both the Chicago and the Detroit boards of education, the Educational Choice Foundation, the Chicago Teachers Academy and the Chicago Academy for the Performing Arts. Larry has testified as an expert witness before numerous legislative bodies, including the U. S. Congress, and has lectured at colleges and universities, including Harvard, Northwestern and DePaul. He served as Executive Director of the City Club of Chicago, where he led a successful two-year campaign to save the historic Chicago Theatre from the wrecking ball. Larry has been a guest on hundreds of public affairs talk shows, and hosted his own program, “Chicago In Sight,” on WIND radio. An award-winning debater, his insightful and sometimes controversial commentaries have appeared on the editorial pages of newspapers across the nation. He is praised by audiences for his style, substance and sense of humor. Larry retired from his consulting business to devote his time to writing. His books include a humorous look at collecting, “The Acrapulators’ Guide”, and a more serious history of the Democratic Party’s role in de facto institutional racism, “Who Put Blacks in That PLACE? -- The Long Sad History of the Democratic Party’s Oppression of Black Americans ... to This Day”. Larry currently lives in Boca Raton, Florida.

25 Comments

  1. Harold blankenship

    The stupidity of the democrat governor and legislature was the reason for the tragedy of California. The people had a chance to get rid of Newsom but voter fraud is still rampant

    • FRANK DANGER

      Yes, the hurricane seasons are prolonged perfect storms ravaging Florida, the Carolinas, and other Southern States. Overcrowding the low lying beach areas, buildings that pancake without even a storm, rain, high winds, inadequate public transit for evacuation, lack of adequate gas supplies, not enough bottled water, and too many old people who can’t move fast. Some excuse the failure to contain the hurricane’s wind, rain, and storm surge to this combination of conditions. I mean why did they build houses in ravine with streams in North Carolina?

      But none of those conditions are unique or unprecedented in that region. Hurricane winds have blown regularly for years. Surge conditions are common. And hurricanes are iconic events – even bad ones. It is commonly referred to as the “hurricane season” – much like the west coast has a fire season and mid-America has a tornado season which, incidentally Republicans should fix too. Right after the hurricanes. And you have to do better than just a sharpie.

      • Larry Horist

        Frank Danger … You mention low lying beaches — as if that is a unique area. Florid is low lying state. The highest point if Britton Hill — 345 feet above sea level. That is a comparable to a 34 story building. Florida’s average height above sea level is 100 feet … a tens story building. Florida does a fairly good job in terms of hurricanes — including building codes and escape routes.. A poor job against addressing higher water levels. But that is true everywhere. The idea that man can reduce green gas emissions to bring down the temperature of the currently warming planet is a fool’s dream. And we do that without mitigating against high water and flooding .. including going back to banning construction in flood plains. The current fires in California, however, are the result of incompetence,… lack of planning … and spending priorities. As more of the incompetence and misplaced priorities come to light, the folks in the California are going to even more angry at the local and state leadership. .

        • FRANK DANGER

          Larry, they were your words, tongue and cheek, parroted back to you with a Florida hurricane spin to amuse you. I would not be so stupid as to “just wing it” as to a root cause assessment of Florida, or any other State’s, hurricane preparedness, and I most certainly would not blame Florida’s, or any State’s Republican Party for it. At least not without a lot of research and supporting facts.

          One time did a boat cruise on a bay below Naples with a Captain/Guide with a Steven Wright comedian’s deep voice and slow delivery. So funny. Regales us with all the safety procedures, vests, and then says: “if the boat goes down, skip the vests, step over the side and walk to shore….” Then, “what do you call a hill in Florida?” “Bridge.” Still remember it a few decades later. So funny, must have been the delivery. I may make fun of Florida because you are funny about it, but I do love to visit the State, and think Disney is a fantastic place to unwind in their aura of goodness, kindness, inclusiveness, safety and healthy food. We call it “entering the bubble.” Miami too although rush trip, ended up in a strip motel in what seemed a seedy, ethnic part of town. Kept a chair against the door kind of place and, for some reason, no team support. Well, one night, late, hungry, there’s a diner thingee katty corner a block down neon glowing. I gird my loins and trot down to the place, frankly a bit scarred. Inside, it’s full of cops, it’s a cop diner. We laugh, talk, they teach me the ways of the cuban sandwich, and had a great time and meal. Given I had shelter, food, and protection, the trip went swell. Didn’t see much of the city though. Have done airboats, swamp hikes, dipped in the sea on both sides, but still have the keys to see, hopefully before they go under.

          Thanks for the geography lesson.

          Actually the post below was the original; you can see, like you, I screwed up the name so, in my case, the moderators too a while to release it. Yours go in right away with wrong names. Hmmm.

          Bottom line to all this: too soon, you have many accusations, but little supporting evidence. What else is new in your world?

        • Cristina

          Enjoyed your article but like the Progressive Democrats you make no mention of population numbers. Is there some collusion somewhere to avoid discussing population numbers and what that means to quality of life, the environment, etc.
          Mao thought he could outsmart Mother Nature and did his best to exterminate little sparrows but with disastrous results for the Chinese people. Are you being like Mao and ignoring, not understanding, any environmental issues?

          • Larry Horist

            Cristina … Way not like Mao. Not into exterminating sparrows. You are correct, the world populations is a significant environmental factor — both in the damage we do to the environment … threat to other species … consumption of resources… etc. Population self control has never worked. That was big political issue in the 1960s. Obviously population increases are the reasons we have so many housing developments in dangerous locations. Why all that housing in California is so close to each other? Look at all the multimillion dollar mansions on the ocean less than 15 feet apart. And now they are gone Population is a huge issue … more than just a comment in a commentary about fires.

  2. Frank sterson

    Oh my. My first comment is wtf is wrong with DeSanctimonious and the entire rightwing army of rocket scientists that hurricanes continue to damage Florida.

    And how about Noth Carolina; they didn’t even see it coming yet hurricanes hit NC every year.

    Didn’t they know hurricanes are not unique or unprecedented to the region?

    They are not only foreseeable but forecasted for the region. His leader even forecast them with his weather sharpie.

    Where’s the funding, where’s the first responders, landscaping, and flood walls? Who will stop the rain?

    Maybe let the smoke die down before you cast the first stone. It’s just more maga thinking from the owners of the shallow state.

  3. AC

    Larry, so you say. Therefore the whole of it must be true. Any one who is otherwise convinced doesn’t have a clue. The Bay Area disastrous fire has caused and is still the cause of untold misery and unimaginable tragic loss.
    Finding fault and political posturing misses the hour of greatest need for the folks who cannot see past managing one day at a time.
    There’s time enough for philosophizing and pointing fingers all around after current needs are seen to in the lives of those who lost their security of a home address in LA fires and from hurricanes past.
    Those who have no real remedy, relief, or empathy should keep their peace.
    Those who want small government and fewer social programs are first in line when government relief
    Is called for after natural forces sweep across wide regions of our country with devastating consequences.

    • Larry Horist

      AC…I suppose you are critical of all those folks who have lost everything and are enraged at the political leadership. Saying this is not the time for addressing the causes is just a dodge by those are culpable. we can do two things at once. Address the causes — physical and political can be discussed even as the fires rage. Holding folks accountable does not interfere with the emergency efforts.

  4. FRANK DANGER

    The author, IMO, fails to prove his points in this article, from start to finish. The start, his own headline: “What roles did woke policies play in the conflagration in Los Angeles?” Apparently, the author is not sure enough of his own research to make a conclusion, he goes for an open-ended question for you to be judge. He takes a non-stand like this often. No style points for that lack of being direct, plain, and simple.
    Well, I judge him busted, not that he’s wrong, but that he’s shown zero evidence that he’s right.
    It’s a conclusionary story written while the fire is still raging. Do the words: “too soon” ring true.
    I used to admire the Bush crowd for, unlike the knee-jerk Democrats always with a ready guess answer, just saying: “too soon to tell, under investigation, will take time, will get back to you.” Takes little to make a guess, takes a lot to say —- let’s wait, investigate, and get a good answer. And yeah, yeah, yeah, I answer too soon on everything and my writing is anything but direct, plain, and simple. It’s a curse; I try hard to get better every day. By the time I am 95…….

  5. FRANK DANGER

    The author’s Democratic, woke, smear slam story is about budgets, storm size, available manpower capacities, water inventories, yada, yada, yada. And yet, there’s only a single number, 1,000,000 gallons, but not a single $$$, no windspeeds, number of firepersons, just generalized accusations leading to: “Progressive policies are destroying states and major cities across the nation – increasing crime, reduced protections, accommodating, not mitigating, the homeless crisis, crushing expenditures, exorbitant taxes, housing crisis. See what progressive leadership has done to Detroit, Chicago – and now Los Angeles.” Well, here’s another fine nice mess Democrats have gotten our country into. Makes you wonder how we remain the strongest economy and military in the world. Dumb Democratic luck, I guess. And FYI: he’s off about 20% on his number. And he only had one….
    In the case of the million gallons; its 117,000,000 and it’s designed for domestic water and firefighting, as in homes, not giant wildfires. “The Palisades Fire erupted on Tuesday, Jan. 7, and by 3 a.m., the three 1-million-gallon water tanks in Pacific Palisades ran dry due to “extreme demand,” officials said. Winds gusting over 100 miles per hour prevented air support from helping to douse the flames with other water sources.
    “We had a tremendous demand on our system in the Palisades. We pushed the system to the extreme,” said Janisse Quiñones, the DWP’s chief executive and chief engineer, in a press conference Wednesday. “Four times the normal demand was seen for 15 hours straight, which lowered our water pressure.””

  6. FRANK DANGER

    Get it? They went through 2 million plus gallons by 3 am, only hours into the fight that put four times the highest demand that they have ever seen. This water is for drinking as well as dousing house fires. For wildfires, especially this one, the hydrant water is not the main dousing agent: the planes have those. Since it’s drinking water, there was no access to untreated water like salt water. Oh yeah, hard to fly planes in 100 mph gusts.
    Again, this is not the time for blame, for shame, and face it, the LA fire chief who accused the mayor for shorting the budget, got accused of prioritizing dei over talent, and everybody has a dart for the governor, does not help. The Fire Chief will live up to her title, fired. You can’t dis the boss done hired you in a surprise public appearance as a career advancing move. Obviously, she cannot take the heat and has issues with the proper dousing of PR flames, politics or basic job performance. Most employees will hash this out with the boss before outing the boss in a surprise public attack unless so grievous as worth losing job over. The governor has set up a web site for clearing the misinformation, or non-factual information that people like the author should avail themselves of.
    But let’s be clear on the facts. Santa Ana winds run 40-60mph, gusts up to 70mph. These are over 100 mph. This is usually the rainy season; this year it is bone dry. They can handle a major burn or a number of smaller ones. This was, I multiple major burns, perhaps four at one time. It’s over 6 square miles, 1.5 times the size of Paris.

  7. FRANK DANGER

    Were there mistakes in planning, preparation, and performance: probably. Can we do better, absolutely. Is it too soon for the blame game and shame: yes. Let’s get the fire out, get the people sheltered, start the recovery process, and then —- let the dogs of recrimination loose for the root cause assessment and improvement recommendations.

  8. FRANK DANGER

    CNN on the city budget, hiring, etc. Again, NUMBERS. *https://www.cnn.com/2025/01/12/us/fire-department-los-angeles-wildfires?cid=ios_app*
    Gavin’s site to clear up misinformation: *https://www.newsweek.com/gavin-newsom-launches-new-website-fight-california-wildfire-misinformation-2013608*
    Facts are our friends. I spell my name: danger. And I mean it.

    Editors note: the Gavin Newsome site is blocked by PBP and I cannot post it. That’s why this is multi-part, trying to find the blockage.

  9. Darren

    If Fire Breaks, De foresting, Brush removal was enforced, the Damage my have been able to be contained.
    Less embers flying, a natural slowing down of the speed at which the fire could grow along with
    the ability of needing less water.
    Why was all this not done?
    There it is!
    NO, Lets save the natural habitat of an endangered mouse! ( Mickey I suppose )
    Lets save the Vegetation that may become extinct, as if that could happen.
    Every day ASS HOLES wanting to save the planet cause this kind of disaster and most
    are to stupid to realize that actual damage they are invoking!
    No one should loose their home or life to fire or such tragedy, but this plays into the hands of Stupid!
    A lot of the people misplace from this are IN favor of Saving the nature and for that they paid the price.
    Stupidity will always find a way.
    Keep saving the planet because now you need a tent!
    At least Newsome helped the homeless before he was helping you.
    Now maybe you realize why!
    Anyone stupid enough to NOT take preventative measures probably voted for Newsome!
    Again, the only tree you saved was stupid, because when you plant stupid, stupid will grow!!!

    • FRANK DANGER

      “If Fire Breaks, De foresting, Brush removal was enforced, the Damage my have been able to be contained.”

      And if pigs could fly, we could have them drink up and piss the fire out.

      Come on man, lots of accusations, ideas, concepts, but not a single fact.

      I keep saying: give this one some time before you hang the witches. It would be great if you had evidence and could prove anything that you said.

      • Americafirst

        Shhhh everybody. Dictator at work!

        • FRANK DANGER

          Shhhhh everybody. Name caller at play!

          • Americafirst

            Stop calling everyone else names and we just may stop calling true names at you, little Frankie! You opened that door a long time ago all by yourself. You started the game. We are in it to win it!

          • Frank stetson

            Besides The Dumpster, what names has Frank Danger or Stranher Danger called anyone.

            I changed.

            What’s your excuse?

  10. Darren

    Any where else in the country with sane people.
    Firebreaks at the least would have been done.
    They did it there in the 70s 80s and 90s then the save the environment
    loons got in the way!
    They did it back then because it works!
    Other parts of California still do it.
    Because it works!
    Kern county still does it and there 2 hours away.

    • Frank dNger

      Darren: they do have firebreaks in places.

      How wide is a 100mph wind firebreak?

  11. Americafirst

    Guess what I found out about Florida. They are setting woods on fire. Smart burns. Controlled burns to get rid of the debris on the ground. Guess what I found out about the LA fires? No controlled burns. Criminal actions. But my opinion is the LA fires were done on purpose to rid LA of the child traffickers, block the entrances to the tunnels. So much more but I am not allowed to tell it. Yet! My name is not Americafirst for nothing!

  12. Frank danger

    Guess what AF didn’t find out about California. They have a target of about 400,000 acres on controlled burns per year. In 22, they hit 100k acres. Can’t speak to exactly what areas in what years.but given la’s air quality, harder to gain permits there.

    Doesn’t matter. First, these areas are older and not designed communities for wildfire suppression. Plus, 100 mph winds pretty much makes fire breaks useless.

    Take a breather before you hurl crap against the wall. Let the smoke die, and they the experts do a deep dive for root causes and future recommendations.

  13. Americafirst

    OMG, he just always has to have the last word. What a guy!

  1. Frank Danger .... Lots of opinion and not a scintilla of evidence. Where is your proof, old man? Funny how…