If we look around, then, at the crucial problem areas of our society—the areas of crisis and failure—we find in each and every case a “red thread” marking and uniting them all: the thread of government. In every one of these cases, government either has totally run or heavily influenced the activity. — Murray N. Rothbard, For a New Liberty [emphasis mine]
As I write this wildfires are still burning around Los Angeles, and social media posts are aflame about the $770 payments government is offering to victims of the disaster. Further igniting their rage is the fact that billions of their former dollars continue to flow into contractors pockets to fight wars almost anywhere except here. Adding to this was the discovery that fire hydrants had no water, the LA fire department had ignored “extraordinary warnings of life-threatening winds,” and the reservoir in Pacific Palisades was dry.
And where was LA mayor Karen Bass? Attending a cocktail party in Ghana when the Palisades fire erupted.
Hellbound and Down 