Second, let’s deal with the politics of this. First, there is massive market failure at play here. In the last year or so, seventy per cent of the properties now being destroyed (because this is ongoing, and no one knows when it will stop) lost any access to affordable insurance, or even insurance at all. The market, presumably, knew the risks and has left people high and dry. The cost, so far, is estimated to be $150 billion. A large part of that will fall on the US state or the state of California. I gather there is a fallback state scheme.
This makes clear the cost of neglect. Trump, Musk and others have spouted utter nonsense on who and what is to blame. Climate change and the failure to react are the real issues. Let’s not pretend otherwise. Trump, meanwhile, denies climate change is an issue, meaning a reaction is not possible.
The Great State of California had price controls on house insurance. Thjerefore insurance companies refused to offer house insurance policies at the prices that the Great State of California would allow.
This is a failure of idiot economics.
Fifth, there is no one but the state who can manage this. To pretend, as the far-right does, that we now need a small state is not just absurd; it literally threatens our survival. We can only manage what is coming as communities, as nations, and as cooperating countries. The small-state and even no-state logic of the far-right, coupled with their denial of climate change, massively increases our risk at present.
Guess who caused the problem, Bubba?
Fourth, those disasters will happen here. Why, for example, we are not damming the Wash from North Norfolk to Lincolnshire right now so that vast amounts of Eastern England are saved from inevitable destruction by seawater flooding in the next thirty years or so beats me. And yes, I know some wildlife locations I treasure will be lost. Those objecting for that reason need to smell the coffee: they will be lost anyway if action is not taken, and new ones will develop.
It is the environmentalists who insist upon allowing the flooding. As with the Somerset Levels. So lovely tro have those natural, precious, wetlands back, see? And given that the enviros have taken over that part of government this is a government caused problem.
See?
Funny how climatechange keeps making the really bad wildfires happen in areas that don’t practice forest management (you know, like clearing underbrush, controlled burns, etc.)
And very odd that price controls were followed by shortages – who would have guessed that?
And a state that refuses to ensure access to adequate supplies of water isn’t able to get control of these fires?
On the plus side, the fire department is making great efforts on the DEI front, so there is great comfort in that.
Co-incidence shurely? The fires in Hawaii followed the same MO as LA and the same insurance issues.
Plus this :“Unbelievable 60 fire trucks from Oregon stopped in Sacramento for a mandatory emissions testing. The exact same reason California is where they are today. Life and property would have to wait.”
https://x.com/cass_nguyen_/status/1877881131850178563
Joe Rogan left California some years ago after the third time he had to evacuate his home due to wildfires and after a fire fighter told him “One day, the wind will be in just the right direction and the whole of LA will burn to the ground to the coast”.
p.s. if only they had an adequate supply of water available to deal with wildfires.
California, bordered by Nevada, Arizona and Oregon. Oh, yeah and the Pacific Ocean, 714 million cubic Kms of water (OK, salt water, but better than everything being razed to the ground no)?
I notice that every photo I’ve seen of a firefighter in situ features a lantern-jawed, hunky bloke. Where are the girlies and trannies, then? This could be their big moment!
72 genders and only 2 functional fire hydrants.
Market failure, shirley.
I saw this comment on one of the blogs about the gilts market where Murphy had a new one ripped. So there you have it, the Murphy bukkake circle-jerk echo chamber supersedes people who actually know what they’re talking about
Richard Murphy says:
January 10 2025 at 11:46 am
Again, we will have to differ.
I had a ring round reliable people I know – OK, academics, people I have worked with and so on this morning. All agreed with my basic hypothesis. These are not lightweight people. In politcal economy terms I am clearly hitting a theme, just earlier than most people.
“Academics”. Not people who actually work in the market, know how it works and what it does. “Academics”.
Market Failure occurs when private sector entities wilfully refuse to cooperate with well-intentioned social solidarity measures instituted by government. Nationalise!
I had a ring round reliable people I know – OK, academics, people I have worked with and so on this morning. All agreed with my basic hypothesis. These are not lightweight people. In politcal economy terms I am clearly hitting a theme, just earlier than most people.
I can imagine them receiving the call, groaning inwardly and saying anything “to get this buffoon off the phone”.
Anyway, its a hypothesis and until its turned in to a theory and then tested rigorously its as valid as any hypothesis. In the meantime I’m going with the opinions of those who work where the rubber hits the road.
@Norman – “Where are the girlies”
Here you are; https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2025-01-11/l-a-fire-chief-raises-alarm-over-funding-saying-the-city-failed-her-agency
The leader of the firefighters is Los Angeles Fire Chief Kristin Crowley who had complained about inadequate funding for the fire service only last December, and has now embarrased the mayor for continuing to complain in the light of being proved right.
@Charles
I’m talking about the actual putting-out-fires stuff. I haven’t seen any photos of Los Angeles Fire Chief Kristin Crowley with a hose in her hand, fnaar fnaar.