How privatization crippled CA's ability to fight the wildfires.

[barbaraann]

Delay in Aerial Water Drops Is Criticized
Some officials in San Diego County blame the Davis administration. Overlapping jurisdictions hindered early responses.
By Tony Perry and Gregg Jones, Times Staff Writers

SAN DIEGO — As fire continued to destroy large portions of San Diego County, the dispute between some local officials and the administration of Gov. Gray Davis intensified Tuesday over why aerial tankers and water-laden helicopters were not available in the first two days of the blaze.
...
Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-Alpine), whose home was destroyed by fire Monday, said federal legislation that would smooth the way for the military to use its helicopters to fight fire on public and private land is being stymied by private companies that lease firefighting planes to state governments.
...
"The only chance to stop the fire was aerial tankers early on Sunday morning, backed by bulldozers, and that's what didn't happen," said Richard Carson, an economics professor at UC San Diego and an expert on public policies involving disaster response, including large-scale brush fires.
...
"There's a reluctance among the firefighting bureaucracy at the state and federal levels to use military assets until they exhaust the last of private companies," Hunter said.
...

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-sandiegooct29,1,5044079.story?coll=la-home-headlines

Republicans have an utter lack of empathy for the suffering they cause other human beings, but when it hits THEM they are outraged.

[XanaDUer]

1. Yup.

Republicans have an utter lack of empathy for the suffering they cause other human beings, but when it hits THEM they are outraged...

Pretty much defines the neo-con psyche.

[lcordero]

2. I hope that he wasn't insured

It takes a really stupid person to outsource or privatize something that is mission critical.

[sandnsea]

3. Bullshit

My son works for a private company in Oregon. NO private contractors have been called on this fire. I don't know what all political games are being played on this fire, but it is becoming apparent to me they are. So far, it is almost an exclusive state, federal and local fire with the military being called in BEFORE private contractors. The military is called in before private companies alot on big fires, so that doesn't totally surprise me. But the private companies aren't being called up at all. And they really don't have the power to circumvent the decisions to deploy. And come to think of it, if I recall, Bush needed to sign the emergency disaster thingy to get the military in anyway. That happened Sunday. This fire is going to be totally politicized and we need to be careful in jumping to conclusions and make sure we get it right.

For the record, I'd be perfectly happy if we dumped privatizing altogether. I think it's stupid for alot of reasons.

[The Backlash Cometh]

4. It's a horrible thing to say, but someone has to say it:

I love it when a Republican gets sucker-punched by his own politics. Limbaugh is feeling the blow and now Republican Duncan Hunter. In Hunter's case the issue is privatization. We now know we've been lied to. Privatization isn't cheaper and it isn't more efficent. All it does is give a very few select people in this country a good easy living so they can have the privilege of calling themselves "rugged individualist" and hold themselves out to be proof that the Republican American dream is still attainable. Meanwhile, Rome is burning.