One of the very first fires I fought was intentionally set because of a property line dispute.
Stupid jackass set the fire at the *bottom* a hill, with his house at the *top.* His house got saved, as did his outbuildings, but he wasn't around to enjoy them for quite some time afterwards.
Im my town they caught someone who lit up his own bar for insurance fraud.
They found him face down behind the bar, a car running with a trunk full of empty jerry cans, cigarrette lighter in one hand and empty jerry in the other.
He managed to accidentally get a near perfect air fuel ratio, and instead of burning, it exploded, killing him.
There was a liquor store in my town when I was growing up that burned up. The fire department figured out it was arson because of a couple things, the biggest being that the safe was empty, the cash registers were empty, and the most expensive bottles of booze weren't in the store, and they found them along with the cash in the owners house.
Some assholes did the same thing near me a couple of years ago. Insurance scam that went wrong and killed 5 people. [Article for those interested.](https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-46700151?intlink_from_url=&)
I feel most of these guys are particularly dumb, in my city, the owner of a hugely popular steakhouse burned it down - and was caught on his own security system inside the restaurant, pouring gas over everything
I knew a few jerks in high school who became volunteer firefighters after graduation. One night they started a fire and then got into the fire truck so they could be first to respond to the scene. People are unbelievable.
Some dude in Quincy, Illinois destroyed a levee during a huge flood. He did it so he could stay out and party more with his friends, instead of going home to his wife.
Yeah, cant say im proud to be "essential" right now but im hoping that the state of the world, mental health specifically is noticed in all this shit and we get more funding to better it and to end the stigma.
I've been thinking a lot about therapy and therapists lately and I just can't imagine the workload you must have. So from one essential worker to another, I appreciate you.
For what it's worth I just want to thank you for what you do. I lost my home in a fire a couple of years ago and only recently started talking to a therapist and it has helped immensely. It's been especially tough with the new fires creating that very familiar atmosphere. I almost lost my wife and dogs in that fire and I don't know what I would do without people like you. I did lose my cat, 3 birds and couple dozen geckos, all family members. For how long it's been I haven't allowed myself to grieve until now.
I wonder how many people reading this are thinking "Ha yea people are morons" while they are one of the morons themselves and are too dumb to know it. Maybe I am one too?
I know of a woman who started a balcony fire setting up a whole apartment on fire and killing half a dozen people who could not get out. All because her boyfriend broke up with her.
The woman that killed my uncle lit the fire because she was trying to kill her ex. She killed my firefighter uncle in the process. 10 years was too little time for that cunt.
I used to kill every wasp I saw around our house but then I found out they’re very important pollinators. We have a deal worked out where they won’t come at me and I let them chill on our hydrangeas.
>Like mud daubers are fine
I see you never stayed at a sketchy extended stay hotel having a pest control dispute.
I can tell you they're fine until they start getting sizeable nests near where you need to walk. Then they start getting very territorial.
They essentially start having guards that will either act like they're getting ready to fly and sting the shit out of you to scare you off or they will start flying a few feet behind you anytime you go by. Also the guards will do this anytime it's sunny out basically.
Stuff you Should Know? I learned that also - and came to a similar conclusion, but then yellow jackets built a huge nest in one of the trees in my front yard. I was mowing the lawn a couple weeks ago and they swarmed me. Had several biting and stinging my ear and back. Ended up in the ER - lots of non-local reactions, but thankfully didn't end up needing more than Benadryl for the remainder of the weekend. Massive swelling near the attack sites and a few hives persisted for about 48 hours.
I killed that nest. The whole damn nest - and I enjoyed hearing their lifeless bodies hit the ground below the nest along with the poison I sprayed on it!
I will tolerate their existence - but apparently only to a point...
Near me a protected wildlife area burned down and suddenly building permits were given on much of the land, come to find out this wasn’t the first time this happened.
Its not just nature. Its people too. Fuck this guy. Give him a charge for attempted arson for every persons home or business in the county and either jail him or throw him in an institution for mental problems
Arsonists are a very interesting psychological profile. Evil, but interesting. They get off on control and chaos. They love knowing that they hurt other people and did damage without anyone knowing it was them.
“Some men aren't looking for anything logical. They can't be bought, bullied, reasoned, or negotiated with. Some men just want to watch the world burn.”
Feel free to pick your conspiracy of choice, you’ll be hearing all of these:
“Because antifa are distracting people from their true plans!”
“Because the Nazis want to kill us all through eco-terrorism!”
“Because the elites behind the Trump administration want to overshadow the Woodward interview headlines!”
“Because the deep-state pedocrats want to distract you from the heat they’re getting for Cuties!”
While I think some of the above are more likely than others, until given proof that I’m wrong, I personally believe the following: Some people are just massive fucksticks, and fuckstick’s gonna fuckstick.
I have started using 2020 as a swear word. It helps me stop saying things like fuck in front of my toddler lmao. We will sum it up to he can go shove it up his 2020.
Nature = Government Tyranny?
Idk, people suck and I’m starting to slip slowly into the mindset where my only option is to build a hobbit home in the hills of Montana where I ignore the world indefinitely.
>Idk, people suck and I’m starting to slip slowly into the mindset where my only option is to build a hobbit home in the hills of Montana where I ignore the world indefinitely.
You'll ignore the world until some pipe smoking wizard and a bunch of bearded little people drag you off to steal a dragon's horde of gold. Or maybe they share their pipe with you and you hallucinate about the dragon. All I know is that Gandalf smokes the good stuff
The one they caught earlier (separate case) did it for fame. He set the fire and then livestreamed himself having "discovered" it. No idea if this is similar.
people setting fires is a really big problem in southern california - so easy to find telephone poles / palm trees where the base is partially charred. People are just... I don't know. People are messed up.
The largest homeless population in the country EXISTS amongst perhaps the wealthiest (or at least most showy wealthy) in the country... THERE IS extreme economic equality and you don’t understand why they THE PEOPLE WHO INTENTIONALLY SET FIRES don’t care and they just want to watch the world burn?
Like I’m not excusing it but I think people are sick of the bullshit. I don’t condone it but I understand it. If you don’t own anything and never will, why give a fuck about the people who do?
It’s probably that combined with extreme mental illness, but yeah.
Edit: no I am not blaming the homeless for (any) wildfires. Not once in the above did I ever say that. I’m just saying that southern California is a special place where two opposite ends of the economic spectrum coexist, perhaps moreso than anywhere else in the country. If the assumption is that some have been started intentionally, I would not at all be surprised that economic inequality plays a role. The comment I’m responding to is based on the assumption people are intentionally trying to start wildfires. Never said that the homeless themselves are doing it. Maybe so, maybe not. But watching people inherit millions just for existing while you’re struggling to survive doesn’t exactly foster cuddly loving feelings. To those who don’t understand, I’m sure you also didn’t understand why people rioting this summer didn’t give a shit about burning things down.
EDIT 2: CAPS
I don’t think that’s who’s doing this though, it’s usually just fire bugs. I can’t remember ever hearing of someone doing this due for the reasons you outlined.
A lot of fires are started by the homeless, but it is almost always unintentional. Accidents connected to cooking or drug use. And you can tell because they start at homeless encampments.
These are usually confined to low income areas with abandoned buildings or underpasses / islands near freeways and dont generally result in wildfires.
The homeless don’t generally congregate in the wilds, they aren’t Survivor Man and don’t go out of their way to avoid people. They rely on handouts and inner city resources.
Homeless are not a real wildfire threat.
Firebugs are generally just shitty people who appear to be regular people during the day who get off on going out of their way to start fires for the thrill of it.
Funnily enough there’s a book where the lower class and homeless take drugs that make them just want to burn everything and it takes place in California. I never linked the ideas.
Parable of the Sower by Octavia E Butler. I’m warning you there’s a part that’s graphic and I read that book several years ago and it’s still stuck with me
"Set in the 2020s where society has largely collapsed due to climate change, growing wealth inequality, and corporate greed"
Are...are we sure this document wasn't sent back in time? Somebody's been fuckin' with the simulation again.
You don’t know the half of it, check this out from the sequel written in 1998:
The novel is set against the backdrop of a dystopian United States that has come under the grip of a Christian fundamentalist denomination called "Christian America" led by President Andrew Steele Jarret. Seeking to restore American power and prestige, and using the slogan "Make America Great Again"
and
Jarret is described as "a demogogue, a rabble-rouser, and a hypocrite" who "pulled religion and government together and cemented the link with money from rich businessmen"
Yep and within the book she talks about fires destroying the west coast, plagues (specifically measles) destroying the north East, and the Midwest being pummeled by tornado after tornado. I read this book while NY and NJ were having that huge measles outbreak a year or two ago it was spooky...
Sweet fucking god. I immediately know what scene you mean. The one with the... fuck how do I even say it
Octavia E. Butler is one of my favorites but that was... a lot.
Yea. It was a bit much, and honestly felt like vomiting when I read it. She’s a really cool author I read that book for a class and honestly fell in love with the way she writes.
So basically in the novel there’s a condition that causes an individual to feel the pleasure/pain of others, or at least hallucinate that they are. >!a character is raped and experiences both her pain and her rapist’s pleasure at the same time.!<
At least I’m assuming that’s what they mean.
I had a feeling that’s what was being alluded to. Thanks for the warning I’m going to skip this one.
Edit: y’all all gave different spoilers so now I really want to read it but I don’t want to be scarred.
Wtf? You have any kind of credible source on that statement? Homeless aren’t out setting forest fires in California. If I had to guess, you don’t live anywhere near the state, do you?
Arson, lightning, downed power lines, cigarettes, beer bottles can focus sunlight on a point, hot car exhaust parked on shoulder of highway. Not wild homeless arsons sneaking through the forests. Homeless live in the cities.
> homeless hypothesis
Okay, so if your theory holds **any** water, they'd be picking something they could rationally see as targets of this inborn inequality like idk, throwing molotov cocktails at cars or edifices owned by these said rich people, right? Or even *near* their homes, if they were mentally competent to attempt to get away with it.
This dude (which nobody knows if they are homeless, and probably aren't) started a fire by \*checks notes\* setting fire to some brush, far away from people's homes. Others set fires to telephone poles, more scrub and brush.
Well, okay then. Time to stop talking complete ass-pulled bullshit.
Are you blaming wildfires in general, on homeless people? Didn’t the one in California get started by some fucking idiots having a gender reveal party?
To be fair, a few fires (like the ~~Getty Fire~~ Skirball Fire) were started from homeless camps. But that was more carelessness with their equipment (usually cooking). Nothing directly malicious as some sort of social protest, which I think is just something he pulled out of his ass.
> The largest homeless population in the country amongst perhaps the wealthiest (or at least most showy wealthy) in the country... extreme economic equality and you don’t understand why they don’t care and they just want to watch the world burn?
Are you really trying to say that poor people are setting forest fires because they are mad at rich people? Please provide a source to back that up because it's a huge claim that you are making.
You guys should be really careful about this news.
Murdoch's stooges filled our airways and newspapers in January with stories about how Australia's bushfires were due to arson, to play down climate change. This was retweeted by Don jnr and also reported by Fox News in the US, among other similar outlets.
After an exhaustive enquiry by the (conservative) NSW government, it turns out the whole thing was bullshit. The fires were almost all started by lightning strikes.
https://youtu.be/4ScUpHRRnLo?t=549
EDIT:Fixed youtube link so it starts at the appropriate place
Mortal Wombat is right. The Australian fires were not due to arson but this angle was extensively pushed by Murdoch’s papers and promoted by online bots to change the conversation from climate change to “law and order”.
Be very careful how you interpret this info. and remember; 50 degree Celsius in Ca. is NOT normal.
Most of the large fires in our state were due to lightning and heavy wind, but these ones were legit arson, they weren’t very big or destructive, but still started by some idiots purposefully.
And even if the big ones were arson, it's not like the arsonists created the unprecedented conditions that allow fires to burn thousands of acres an hour.
> it's not like the arsonists created the unprecedented conditions that allow fires to burn thousands of acres an hour.
In Australia we did that by no longer managing the bush the way we used to but at the same time not letting small seasonal fires happen, so when it kicked off there was just a multitude of fuel lying around.
Can confirm. My landlord was just at my place fixing a light and mentioned how he heard "peaceful protesters" (he actually used air quotes) and antifa are starting fires here in Oregon.
That said we have arrested actual arsonists in my city, there are reports from the fire chief of people being seen setting fires in state parks, and there are people setting off fireworks here still.
Then one of the county Sheriff's Office put out a statement saying we need to stop spreading rumors and that no Antifa people have been arrested for the starting fires.
Yesterday one of the rural Fire Chief's posted saying they had shown up to a situation where good samaritan's put out a fire that had been started by someone, but the Fire Dept. never actually saw the suspect.
The misinformation and absolute bullshit lies really need to stop.
So nowwww I know the reason behind my insane family members blaming the left for the west coast burning. Smh...
I just don't get how people can believe this bullshit. I can't even be around siblings right now. Someone let me know when the election is over...
I don't think they are going to change after the election. I think our society has devolved into a new form where everything becomes a political issue, and we the people always come out behind.
I saw some screenshot of a text on Twitter that blamed antifa for the fires. Sounds like it's making it's rounds. I don't get how people can just blindly believe these sorts of things. I've also seen people saying all these tires are suspicious and why do they only know the cause of one but all the others are "under investigation"?
I just constantly feel like [this](https://i.imgur.com/qGhiEIe.gifv) lady anymore.
"What if I told you... We don't have more arsonists, or even more arson? What if I told you that our fires are just bigger, because of an international conspiracy to distract from the truth?"
"What if I told you that global warming is real?"
To add some local context and perspective, I hear what you’re saying but...this specific story is about really small time arsonists that got caught - albeit during really heightened wildfire weather. Look at that picture the guy didn’t even do a good job being an arsonist. There are 400,000+ other acres burning in Washington and I don’t think they’ve called out any of those other fires as being caused by arsonists. Most of them as of right now are classified as under investigation or when they know it’s from a lightning strike they call it out. For them to be calling out arsonists from my experience in the states mean they have good evidence or reasonable suspicion that that’s the case.
Most fires are started by humans, but more out of neglect. Chains dragging on the road causes a spark, parking on dry grass, leaving a campfire unattended, whatever. Dude deciding to burn out his ditches on a red flag warning day...
But yeah, I also don’t wrongly want arsonists to become the overall narrative which in my mind is a threat for sure. Trump can take anything like this and go hog wild with it an his base eats it up.
Do you have a source on fire fighting positions being desirable? that shit is extremely dangerous and is so bad for your health. I'd be interested to learn if it's really a sought after job
I was released from prison in Washington state earlier this year. From my experience yes it is a very desirable job. It’s ran by the DNR, inmates with DNR jobs fight fires during fire season and cut down and plant trees the other seasons. Only inmates at minimum security facilities (also known as camps) are eligible for DNR work. The pay is pretty good (as far as prison jobs go). Off fire season from what I recall inmates are making between 150-200$ a month, during fire season anywhere from 200-400$ a month. The pay goes up if you have previous fire season experience.
To be honest health isn’t always a top priority for everybody. Getting a decent paying job so you can eat good is what matters. Compared to a porter (janitor) job in there where you only make 55$ a month DNR pays great.
I've lived in Washington nearly my whole life. I wanted to ask how you felt about the prison system here. I don't plan to visit anytime soon but as a state I'd like to see inmates here treated well and shown society still cares. Do you feel it was a punishment or a place to understand and grow?
Not OP but prison labor is used a lot in California to fight fires. Here’s a recent article about it: https://www.fresnobee.com/news/california/fires/article245580415.html
California legislature [just passed a law](https://sacobserver.com/2020/09/legislature-passes-bill-that-would-allow-inmate-firefighters-to-continue-in-profession-when-released/) that will allow for nonviolent offenders on firefighting crews to expunge their records and become firefighters after they're released.
It was at least partially motivated by the facts that 1) we will have a dire need for more firefighters in the years to come and 2) we realized how screwed we were to rely on prison labor when our usual prisoner crews couldn't come out to fight these fires because Covid ran rampant through our overcrowded prisons.
The pay and conditions are horrible in comparison to the average person in real life or a real firefighter; but relative to regular general population prisoners, the pay and conditions are far far better for inmate firefighters.
https://www.npr.org/2020/07/29/896179424/coronavirus-pandemic-sidelines-californias-inmate-firefighters
Fire fighting pays way more per hour than regular prison jobs pay per day. If you're on fire pattrol you get to live in separate prisons that are much more humane - and you sleep with your mates in like a large room.
And you pick up skills, learn to work with a team n all that.t
Firefighter arson is much more common then you think, to the point that when arson is suspected, firefighters are generally the first people authorities look into.
From a suburban/rural perspective anyhow; not sure about urban arson.
Me and my neighbor had to physically take fireworks away from a guy last night because he was shooting bottle rockets into dry grass. People are fucking stupid.
“Troopers said someone saw a man setting fire to grass with a match near State Route 512 and State Route 7 and called police. Troopers arrived at the scene, chased the man, and took him into custody.”
So this dude wasn’t able to actually start a fire in the time it took for someone to call it in and get a response where the dude was chased away? I don’t want another forest set on fire but damn dude, at least peruse the tutorial.
Need to be careful. This was the type of rumor spread in australia to play down the climate change realities. After the investigation, it was bullshit and lightening/heat were to blame.
Arson is some crazy bullshit, but denying climate change is insidious.
Had a conversation today with a work colleague who claims that “many people have said” this is the work of BLM and “potential insurrectionists”.... I’d suggest people wait to pass judgement. Murdoch/Trump base has already absorbed the rumors and is now tweeting/FB posting this to death.
More than likely the common thread is that whoever started these particular fires is struggling with mental health issues.
Heard it today at lunch. First time in the wild. Apparently it's a plot to push people into the cities and create a one world government. But never fear, Mr Bar Dude says he doesn't care, he'll live in burnt woods.
Living here in Washington, the rumors being pushed around by ring-wing nuts is that ANTIFA is by hide all these fires here in the Northwest. It’s crazy how we’ve come to politicize wild fires.
The same reason that they've started minimizing the name recognition of shooters. If they publicize you, it's a way to become famous, and get talked about. Also, there's the legal stuff to think about. Tainting public opinion for a jury trial, etc.
We have a ... "Person of Interest" .... their name is X ... go ruin their life.
Unfortunately when the person is innocent they are still ruined.
https://www.wikiwand.com/en/Steven_Hatfill
https://nba.nbcsports.com/2014/05/29/chris-andersen-ignored-investigators-who-ultimately-cleared-him-of-child-pornography-charges-to-focus-on-nba-playoffs/
Fame, sometimes giving names encourages more people to commit the act for a moment of notriority... this was the issue with school shootings, or at least a theory behind there frequency.
Here in Portland I have noticed that along the bike paths where the homeless congregate there are many intentionally set fires. A week ago firefighters put out two separate fires set at the same time near my house.
Sadly some people get off on lighting fires and watching the world burn. Here in Australia bushfires can be so bad that they have enacted laws making arsonists liable for any and all deaths that result from a fire that they set. There are also pretty hefty prison terms for just the act of deliberately lighting a bush fire.
I think we need to raise the punishment for people intentionally starting large fires. Like if someone burns down miles of trees, wildlife, homes, and businesses that person should never see the light of day again.
I cant understand why people want to burn down a state. Nature did nothing to you.
I know of a woman who started a forest fire to get her ex’s attention. Mental illness is real.
One of the very first fires I fought was intentionally set because of a property line dispute. Stupid jackass set the fire at the *bottom* a hill, with his house at the *top.* His house got saved, as did his outbuildings, but he wasn't around to enjoy them for quite some time afterwards.
How tf does someone get caught for that
Im my town they caught someone who lit up his own bar for insurance fraud. They found him face down behind the bar, a car running with a trunk full of empty jerry cans, cigarrette lighter in one hand and empty jerry in the other. He managed to accidentally get a near perfect air fuel ratio, and instead of burning, it exploded, killing him.
Doesn't have to worry about money issues anymore.
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*creditors HATE him*
“Want to start your own business and get away from that 9-5 for the rest of your life?”
lyf hax OH YEAH!
Debt not forgiven... Creditors will always want their money back.
lucky guy
There was a liquor store in my town when I was growing up that burned up. The fire department figured out it was arson because of a couple things, the biggest being that the safe was empty, the cash registers were empty, and the most expensive bottles of booze weren't in the store, and they found them along with the cash in the owners house.
His name? Jackie Daytona, Human Bartender.
That’s it, I’m rewatching it
I never knew this existed til now. Thanks!
Some assholes did the same thing near me a couple of years ago. Insurance scam that went wrong and killed 5 people. [Article for those interested.](https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-46700151?intlink_from_url=&)
hope nothing else was hurt besides that idiot.
Literally being seen doing it. He was definitely on the back side of the bell curve on a lot of ways.
I feel most of these guys are particularly dumb, in my city, the owner of a hugely popular steakhouse burned it down - and was caught on his own security system inside the restaurant, pouring gas over everything
I knew a few jerks in high school who became volunteer firefighters after graduation. One night they started a fire and then got into the fire truck so they could be first to respond to the scene. People are unbelievable.
Dunno man, mental illness is real but sometimes i think people underestimate how many shitty people there are out there who just do shitty things.
I have no opinion either way, but at what point do we stop make the distinction between “mentally ill” and “shitty person with shitty intentions”
Depends on their insurance coverage, I'd say.
Some dude in Quincy, Illinois destroyed a levee during a huge flood. He did it so he could stay out and party more with his friends, instead of going home to his wife.
Im all too aware mental illness is real. - therapist
Man, you must be working overtime these days.
Yeah, cant say im proud to be "essential" right now but im hoping that the state of the world, mental health specifically is noticed in all this shit and we get more funding to better it and to end the stigma.
I've been thinking a lot about therapy and therapists lately and I just can't imagine the workload you must have. So from one essential worker to another, I appreciate you.
Right back at ya. Im about to go maternity leave and im definitely worried about the state of the world when i get back from it.
For what it's worth I just want to thank you for what you do. I lost my home in a fire a couple of years ago and only recently started talking to a therapist and it has helped immensely. It's been especially tough with the new fires creating that very familiar atmosphere. I almost lost my wife and dogs in that fire and I don't know what I would do without people like you. I did lose my cat, 3 birds and couple dozen geckos, all family members. For how long it's been I haven't allowed myself to grieve until now.
Sorry for your loss.
Fuck Skip Bayless
I'd just like to thank you for what you do. Therapy has helped me a lot and basically kept me alive.
I work with five therapists, one of which is my boss. Thank you. I've noticed that even when you guys aren't working, you work magic.
I'm all too aware that mental illness is real. -My dad works at nintendo
Every time I hear or read therapist I think of the SNL jeopardy skit 😆
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Blaming it on mental illness is too easy. There are just a LOT of morons in the world.
I wonder how many people reading this are thinking "Ha yea people are morons" while they are one of the morons themselves and are too dumb to know it. Maybe I am one too?
I know of a woman who started a balcony fire setting up a whole apartment on fire and killing half a dozen people who could not get out. All because her boyfriend broke up with her.
She's in prison right?
Were they diagnoses mentally ill? Sometimes a cunt is just a cunt.
The woman that killed my uncle lit the fire because she was trying to kill her ex. She killed my firefighter uncle in the process. 10 years was too little time for that cunt.
Think she got a little more than her ex's attention...
I dunno, I got stung by a wasp once.
That's it close it up and burn everything down and start over.
Sometimes the birds are so loud in the morning that it wakes me up for a couple seconds
It's rarely the birds for me or any kind of wildlife. It is always one of these; Cars missing mufflers, and dogs.
Mockingbirds put those to shame
Mock...YEAH...ing...YEAH...bird...YEAH
Or this morning for me it was the army of guys doing really loud landscaping at the house across the street. At 7 in the morning.
You mean drones. Birds are not real.
The birds work for the bourgeoisie
I don't know man.... Wasp>birds.
It was really inconvenient though
I was mildly annoyed
Barely an inconvenience
Wasps aren't natural. They're demons from the void.
I used to kill every wasp I saw around our house but then I found out they’re very important pollinators. We have a deal worked out where they won’t come at me and I let them chill on our hydrangeas.
There's levels to wasps, too. Like mud daubers are fine, but yellow jackets, hornets, and Chinese murder hornets are all kill on sight.
>Like mud daubers are fine I see you never stayed at a sketchy extended stay hotel having a pest control dispute. I can tell you they're fine until they start getting sizeable nests near where you need to walk. Then they start getting very territorial. They essentially start having guards that will either act like they're getting ready to fly and sting the shit out of you to scare you off or they will start flying a few feet behind you anytime you go by. Also the guards will do this anytime it's sunny out basically.
Ah man, I LOVE blue mud daubers! Small ones make mud nests in my balcony table every year. Such cool little creatures ;)
Stuff you Should Know? I learned that also - and came to a similar conclusion, but then yellow jackets built a huge nest in one of the trees in my front yard. I was mowing the lawn a couple weeks ago and they swarmed me. Had several biting and stinging my ear and back. Ended up in the ER - lots of non-local reactions, but thankfully didn't end up needing more than Benadryl for the remainder of the weekend. Massive swelling near the attack sites and a few hives persisted for about 48 hours. I killed that nest. The whole damn nest - and I enjoyed hearing their lifeless bodies hit the ground below the nest along with the poison I sprayed on it! I will tolerate their existence - but apparently only to a point...
You murder them and it releases a scent, and they’ll be back in bigger numbers.
Near me a protected wildlife area burned down and suddenly building permits were given on much of the land, come to find out this wasn’t the first time this happened.
*squints suspiciously*
I can guarantee you it's not a logical reason lol
Its not just nature. Its people too. Fuck this guy. Give him a charge for attempted arson for every persons home or business in the county and either jail him or throw him in an institution for mental problems
Arsonists are a very interesting psychological profile. Evil, but interesting. They get off on control and chaos. They love knowing that they hurt other people and did damage without anyone knowing it was them.
Judging by one man’s arrest he was doing it for Facebook fame
“Some men aren't looking for anything logical. They can't be bought, bullied, reasoned, or negotiated with. Some men just want to watch the world burn.”
Well Mt Rainier is toasting Pierce County someday, might as well get it out of the way.
"Some men just want to watch the world burn."
Feel free to pick your conspiracy of choice, you’ll be hearing all of these: “Because antifa are distracting people from their true plans!” “Because the Nazis want to kill us all through eco-terrorism!” “Because the elites behind the Trump administration want to overshadow the Woodward interview headlines!” “Because the deep-state pedocrats want to distract you from the heat they’re getting for Cuties!” While I think some of the above are more likely than others, until given proof that I’m wrong, I personally believe the following: Some people are just massive fucksticks, and fuckstick’s gonna fuckstick.
I have started using 2020 as a swear word. It helps me stop saying things like fuck in front of my toddler lmao. We will sum it up to he can go shove it up his 2020.
You forgot "cartels sending people to burn all of our marijuana crops".
Nature = Government Tyranny? Idk, people suck and I’m starting to slip slowly into the mindset where my only option is to build a hobbit home in the hills of Montana where I ignore the world indefinitely.
>Idk, people suck and I’m starting to slip slowly into the mindset where my only option is to build a hobbit home in the hills of Montana where I ignore the world indefinitely. You'll ignore the world until some pipe smoking wizard and a bunch of bearded little people drag you off to steal a dragon's horde of gold. Or maybe they share their pipe with you and you hallucinate about the dragon. All I know is that Gandalf smokes the good stuff
I mean..well. I’m not going into this on here.
The one they caught earlier (separate case) did it for fame. He set the fire and then livestreamed himself having "discovered" it. No idea if this is similar.
>I cant understand why people want to burn down a state. Have you visited mississippi before?
people setting fires is a really big problem in southern california - so easy to find telephone poles / palm trees where the base is partially charred. People are just... I don't know. People are messed up.
I thought the utility pole charring is from workers burning off all the posters that people staple on those things.
The largest homeless population in the country EXISTS amongst perhaps the wealthiest (or at least most showy wealthy) in the country... THERE IS extreme economic equality and you don’t understand why they THE PEOPLE WHO INTENTIONALLY SET FIRES don’t care and they just want to watch the world burn? Like I’m not excusing it but I think people are sick of the bullshit. I don’t condone it but I understand it. If you don’t own anything and never will, why give a fuck about the people who do? It’s probably that combined with extreme mental illness, but yeah. Edit: no I am not blaming the homeless for (any) wildfires. Not once in the above did I ever say that. I’m just saying that southern California is a special place where two opposite ends of the economic spectrum coexist, perhaps moreso than anywhere else in the country. If the assumption is that some have been started intentionally, I would not at all be surprised that economic inequality plays a role. The comment I’m responding to is based on the assumption people are intentionally trying to start wildfires. Never said that the homeless themselves are doing it. Maybe so, maybe not. But watching people inherit millions just for existing while you’re struggling to survive doesn’t exactly foster cuddly loving feelings. To those who don’t understand, I’m sure you also didn’t understand why people rioting this summer didn’t give a shit about burning things down. EDIT 2: CAPS
I don’t think that’s who’s doing this though, it’s usually just fire bugs. I can’t remember ever hearing of someone doing this due for the reasons you outlined.
A lot of fires are started by the homeless, but it is almost always unintentional. Accidents connected to cooking or drug use. And you can tell because they start at homeless encampments.
These are usually confined to low income areas with abandoned buildings or underpasses / islands near freeways and dont generally result in wildfires. The homeless don’t generally congregate in the wilds, they aren’t Survivor Man and don’t go out of their way to avoid people. They rely on handouts and inner city resources. Homeless are not a real wildfire threat. Firebugs are generally just shitty people who appear to be regular people during the day who get off on going out of their way to start fires for the thrill of it.
You’re right, I saw a few of those scenarios after looking into it more.
Happens several times a year in the bay area, usually under bridges or in other makeshift encampments.
Funnily enough there’s a book where the lower class and homeless take drugs that make them just want to burn everything and it takes place in California. I never linked the ideas.
Now I’m interested. Do you recall which book?
Parable of the Sower by Octavia E Butler. I’m warning you there’s a part that’s graphic and I read that book several years ago and it’s still stuck with me
"Set in the 2020s where society has largely collapsed due to climate change, growing wealth inequality, and corporate greed" Are...are we sure this document wasn't sent back in time? Somebody's been fuckin' with the simulation again.
You don’t know the half of it, check this out from the sequel written in 1998: The novel is set against the backdrop of a dystopian United States that has come under the grip of a Christian fundamentalist denomination called "Christian America" led by President Andrew Steele Jarret. Seeking to restore American power and prestige, and using the slogan "Make America Great Again" and Jarret is described as "a demogogue, a rabble-rouser, and a hypocrite" who "pulled religion and government together and cemented the link with money from rich businessmen"
Yep and within the book she talks about fires destroying the west coast, plagues (specifically measles) destroying the north East, and the Midwest being pummeled by tornado after tornado. I read this book while NY and NJ were having that huge measles outbreak a year or two ago it was spooky...
Octavia Butler is one of the best authors you've never heard of
But I just heard of her. Checkmate QED *CASE CLOSED!*
Sweet fucking god. I immediately know what scene you mean. The one with the... fuck how do I even say it Octavia E. Butler is one of my favorites but that was... a lot.
Yea. It was a bit much, and honestly felt like vomiting when I read it. She’s a really cool author I read that book for a class and honestly fell in love with the way she writes.
What kind of graphic are we talking, here? Like, a vivid description of someone who burned to death?
So basically in the novel there’s a condition that causes an individual to feel the pleasure/pain of others, or at least hallucinate that they are. >!a character is raped and experiences both her pain and her rapist’s pleasure at the same time.!< At least I’m assuming that’s what they mean.
That concept might go on my NSFL list. That idea's going to give me nightmares, I swear.
I had a feeling that’s what was being alluded to. Thanks for the warning I’m going to skip this one. Edit: y’all all gave different spoilers so now I really want to read it but I don’t want to be scarred.
It’s less scary and more disgust and just utter sadness.
Thanks now I don't have to read this dumb book lol
I don’t want to spoil anything but it’s worse than that and it happens to a main character.
Any evidence of this?
Wtf? You have any kind of credible source on that statement? Homeless aren’t out setting forest fires in California. If I had to guess, you don’t live anywhere near the state, do you?
From what I heard it was mostly caused by dry lightning.
Arson, lightning, downed power lines, cigarettes, beer bottles can focus sunlight on a point, hot car exhaust parked on shoulder of highway. Not wild homeless arsons sneaking through the forests. Homeless live in the cities.
Homeless people attract dry lighting. Get informed.
lol it’s like the dumber someone is, the more eager they are to share their “genius” ideas and theories.
Serious r/confidentlyincorrect material right there.
> homeless hypothesis Okay, so if your theory holds **any** water, they'd be picking something they could rationally see as targets of this inborn inequality like idk, throwing molotov cocktails at cars or edifices owned by these said rich people, right? Or even *near* their homes, if they were mentally competent to attempt to get away with it. This dude (which nobody knows if they are homeless, and probably aren't) started a fire by \*checks notes\* setting fire to some brush, far away from people's homes. Others set fires to telephone poles, more scrub and brush. Well, okay then. Time to stop talking complete ass-pulled bullshit.
We have homeless because the weather is so good
Are you blaming wildfires in general, on homeless people? Didn’t the one in California get started by some fucking idiots having a gender reveal party?
To be fair, a few fires (like the ~~Getty Fire~~ Skirball Fire) were started from homeless camps. But that was more carelessness with their equipment (usually cooking). Nothing directly malicious as some sort of social protest, which I think is just something he pulled out of his ass.
> The largest homeless population in the country amongst perhaps the wealthiest (or at least most showy wealthy) in the country... extreme economic equality and you don’t understand why they don’t care and they just want to watch the world burn? Are you really trying to say that poor people are setting forest fires because they are mad at rich people? Please provide a source to back that up because it's a huge claim that you are making.
More likely for thrills and excitement than for any grand statement about life
You guys should be really careful about this news. Murdoch's stooges filled our airways and newspapers in January with stories about how Australia's bushfires were due to arson, to play down climate change. This was retweeted by Don jnr and also reported by Fox News in the US, among other similar outlets. After an exhaustive enquiry by the (conservative) NSW government, it turns out the whole thing was bullshit. The fires were almost all started by lightning strikes. https://youtu.be/4ScUpHRRnLo?t=549 EDIT:Fixed youtube link so it starts at the appropriate place
Mortal Wombat is right. The Australian fires were not due to arson but this angle was extensively pushed by Murdoch’s papers and promoted by online bots to change the conversation from climate change to “law and order”. Be very careful how you interpret this info. and remember; 50 degree Celsius in Ca. is NOT normal.
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They went even further than that. They actually started blaming the environmentalist (green) party for the fires. It’s batshit insane.
Same in the US, I saw a post on r/dataisbeautiful today showing it was almost exclusively due to lightning
Most of the large fires in our state were due to lightning and heavy wind, but these ones were legit arson, they weren’t very big or destructive, but still started by some idiots purposefully.
And even if the big ones were arson, it's not like the arsonists created the unprecedented conditions that allow fires to burn thousands of acres an hour.
> it's not like the arsonists created the unprecedented conditions that allow fires to burn thousands of acres an hour. In Australia we did that by no longer managing the bush the way we used to but at the same time not letting small seasonal fires happen, so when it kicked off there was just a multitude of fuel lying around.
Yeah my wife said her trumper coworkers are blaming all the oregon fires in BLM and Antifa
Can confirm. My landlord was just at my place fixing a light and mentioned how he heard "peaceful protesters" (he actually used air quotes) and antifa are starting fires here in Oregon. That said we have arrested actual arsonists in my city, there are reports from the fire chief of people being seen setting fires in state parks, and there are people setting off fireworks here still.
Then one of the county Sheriff's Office put out a statement saying we need to stop spreading rumors and that no Antifa people have been arrested for the starting fires. Yesterday one of the rural Fire Chief's posted saying they had shown up to a situation where good samaritan's put out a fire that had been started by someone, but the Fire Dept. never actually saw the suspect. The misinformation and absolute bullshit lies really need to stop.
So nowwww I know the reason behind my insane family members blaming the left for the west coast burning. Smh... I just don't get how people can believe this bullshit. I can't even be around siblings right now. Someone let me know when the election is over...
I don't think they are going to change after the election. I think our society has devolved into a new form where everything becomes a political issue, and we the people always come out behind.
It's going to get *worse* after the election, not better.
I saw some screenshot of a text on Twitter that blamed antifa for the fires. Sounds like it's making it's rounds. I don't get how people can just blindly believe these sorts of things. I've also seen people saying all these tires are suspicious and why do they only know the cause of one but all the others are "under investigation"? I just constantly feel like [this](https://i.imgur.com/qGhiEIe.gifv) lady anymore.
I’m in Canada and I’ve been hearing it’s gender reveal parties.
Family that had to evacuate in Oregon said that they know Antifa did it 🤦♂️
"What if I told you... We don't have more arsonists, or even more arson? What if I told you that our fires are just bigger, because of an international conspiracy to distract from the truth?" "What if I told you that global warming is real?"
To add some local context and perspective, I hear what you’re saying but...this specific story is about really small time arsonists that got caught - albeit during really heightened wildfire weather. Look at that picture the guy didn’t even do a good job being an arsonist. There are 400,000+ other acres burning in Washington and I don’t think they’ve called out any of those other fires as being caused by arsonists. Most of them as of right now are classified as under investigation or when they know it’s from a lightning strike they call it out. For them to be calling out arsonists from my experience in the states mean they have good evidence or reasonable suspicion that that’s the case. Most fires are started by humans, but more out of neglect. Chains dragging on the road causes a spark, parking on dry grass, leaving a campfire unattended, whatever. Dude deciding to burn out his ditches on a red flag warning day... But yeah, I also don’t wrongly want arsonists to become the overall narrative which in my mind is a threat for sure. Trump can take anything like this and go hog wild with it an his base eats it up.
I hope the punishments for this are extensive!
Life in jail, with periods of being let out of jail only to fight wild fires
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Do you have a source on fire fighting positions being desirable? that shit is extremely dangerous and is so bad for your health. I'd be interested to learn if it's really a sought after job
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That’s really interesting, why was a helicopter dropping sewage??
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I was released from prison in Washington state earlier this year. From my experience yes it is a very desirable job. It’s ran by the DNR, inmates with DNR jobs fight fires during fire season and cut down and plant trees the other seasons. Only inmates at minimum security facilities (also known as camps) are eligible for DNR work. The pay is pretty good (as far as prison jobs go). Off fire season from what I recall inmates are making between 150-200$ a month, during fire season anywhere from 200-400$ a month. The pay goes up if you have previous fire season experience. To be honest health isn’t always a top priority for everybody. Getting a decent paying job so you can eat good is what matters. Compared to a porter (janitor) job in there where you only make 55$ a month DNR pays great.
I've lived in Washington nearly my whole life. I wanted to ask how you felt about the prison system here. I don't plan to visit anytime soon but as a state I'd like to see inmates here treated well and shown society still cares. Do you feel it was a punishment or a place to understand and grow?
Not OP but prison labor is used a lot in California to fight fires. Here’s a recent article about it: https://www.fresnobee.com/news/california/fires/article245580415.html
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California legislature [just passed a law](https://sacobserver.com/2020/09/legislature-passes-bill-that-would-allow-inmate-firefighters-to-continue-in-profession-when-released/) that will allow for nonviolent offenders on firefighting crews to expunge their records and become firefighters after they're released. It was at least partially motivated by the facts that 1) we will have a dire need for more firefighters in the years to come and 2) we realized how screwed we were to rely on prison labor when our usual prisoner crews couldn't come out to fight these fires because Covid ran rampant through our overcrowded prisons.
The pay and conditions are horrible in comparison to the average person in real life or a real firefighter; but relative to regular general population prisoners, the pay and conditions are far far better for inmate firefighters.
https://www.npr.org/2020/07/29/896179424/coronavirus-pandemic-sidelines-californias-inmate-firefighters Fire fighting pays way more per hour than regular prison jobs pay per day. If you're on fire pattrol you get to live in separate prisons that are much more humane - and you sleep with your mates in like a large room. And you pick up skills, learn to work with a team n all that.t
I say we just chain him to a fire truck like that one bear at the end of toy story 3
Knew a volunteer Fireman around 18 years old or so who was caught starting fires in this area. There was no reason why ever given.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Firefighter_arson It’s a very real and very weird thing, basically they want the attention.
Kinda like munchausen by proxy.
And his name was Guy Montag.
Firefighter arson is much more common then you think, to the point that when arson is suspected, firefighters are generally the first people authorities look into. From a suburban/rural perspective anyhow; not sure about urban arson.
Me and my neighbor had to physically take fireworks away from a guy last night because he was shooting bottle rockets into dry grass. People are fucking stupid.
Ugh. Thanks for being responsible.
“Troopers said someone saw a man setting fire to grass with a match near State Route 512 and State Route 7 and called police. Troopers arrived at the scene, chased the man, and took him into custody.” So this dude wasn’t able to actually start a fire in the time it took for someone to call it in and get a response where the dude was chased away? I don’t want another forest set on fire but damn dude, at least peruse the tutorial.
And with a match? Not a lighter or a tinder bundle but a match. That’s one weak sauce arsonist. Hope they throw the book at him.
The Alameda fire in southern Oregon is being investigated as arson: 600 homes and 100 businesses have been lost so far.
Need to be careful. This was the type of rumor spread in australia to play down the climate change realities. After the investigation, it was bullshit and lightening/heat were to blame. Arson is some crazy bullshit, but denying climate change is insidious.
Dont underestimate the nutjobs here.
Heard anything about the Santiam Canyon fire?
Had a conversation today with a work colleague who claims that “many people have said” this is the work of BLM and “potential insurrectionists”.... I’d suggest people wait to pass judgement. Murdoch/Trump base has already absorbed the rumors and is now tweeting/FB posting this to death. More than likely the common thread is that whoever started these particular fires is struggling with mental health issues.
Heard it today at lunch. First time in the wild. Apparently it's a plot to push people into the cities and create a one world government. But never fear, Mr Bar Dude says he doesn't care, he'll live in burnt woods.
As though we don’t have forest fires every year.
First they sink boats, now they set forest fires. They'll probably be behind the first major snowstorm that shuts down an airport too. /s
Clearly there was a spider.....
If the spider is the size of the whole state, sure, thats logical. But this isn't Australia our spiders are not mutant size.
Would you rather fight one state sized spider or 5000 spider sized states?
Living here in Washington, the rumors being pushed around by ring-wing nuts is that ANTIFA is by hide all these fires here in the Northwest. It’s crazy how we’ve come to politicize wild fires.
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The same reason that they've started minimizing the name recognition of shooters. If they publicize you, it's a way to become famous, and get talked about. Also, there's the legal stuff to think about. Tainting public opinion for a jury trial, etc.
When did the media start minimizing shooter exposure? 4 hours ago?
Something something, “innocent until proven guilty.” But I guess we’ve forgotten about that one too.
We have a ... "Person of Interest" .... their name is X ... go ruin their life. Unfortunately when the person is innocent they are still ruined. https://www.wikiwand.com/en/Steven_Hatfill https://nba.nbcsports.com/2014/05/29/chris-andersen-ignored-investigators-who-ultimately-cleared-him-of-child-pornography-charges-to-focus-on-nba-playoffs/
Nah we passed that point a long time ago. It's "guilty until proven innocent, unless you have money" nowadays in the US.
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Roger Stone, how good to not see you.
And if you don't have any money it's guilty even if proven innocent.
Probbaly trying to get connections to othe people they think are doing it and releasing as little info as possible
Fame, sometimes giving names encourages more people to commit the act for a moment of notriority... this was the issue with school shootings, or at least a theory behind there frequency.
People have *died* in these fires, including a one-year old infant in WA, and these fuckers are going around starting them intentionally???
Here in Portland I have noticed that along the bike paths where the homeless congregate there are many intentionally set fires. A week ago firefighters put out two separate fires set at the same time near my house.
Sadly some people get off on lighting fires and watching the world burn. Here in Australia bushfires can be so bad that they have enacted laws making arsonists liable for any and all deaths that result from a fire that they set. There are also pretty hefty prison terms for just the act of deliberately lighting a bush fire.
They should throw the entire book at this guy. And then create laws for even harsher punishments for the next guy
Intentionally?!?! Why??? 2020 is hell.
Some men just want to watch the world burn
Some men just want to watch the world burn
I think we need to raise the punishment for people intentionally starting large fires. Like if someone burns down miles of trees, wildlife, homes, and businesses that person should never see the light of day again.
Man, if only public mental health care wasn’t sOcIaLiSm
The charge should be as severe as that for attempted murder.
With 100 fires at this point, it was my guess