California
Commentary: Southern California forests are burning. Protect them from their biggest threat — people
Every hiker in Los Angeles knows that sinking feeling.
You stare at the mountains (because that’s what we do when we have a moment) and see a dark column of smoke. Almost instantly you have a good idea of which trails might be burning and, depending on if it’s hot, dry and the right time of year, whether the fire will eventually reach your spot.
In 2020, the Bobcat fire blowtorched a few of my family’s beloved spots in the Angeles National Forest. Now, four years later, the 55,000-acre Bridge fire is taking out a few of our remaining L.A.-adjacent mountain retreats, upending lives in forest communities such as Wrightwood and imperiling mountain lions, bears, bighorn sheep, frogs and other wildlife.
To call this heartbreaking grossly understates the loss. Imagine if an earthquake wiped out Disneyland or Dodger Stadium — devastating, yes, and thankfully rebuildable. But when a mountain forest burns in the kind of extreme fires of late, nature probably won’t rebuild it in my lifetime. That most of these disasters have preventable human causes makes the loss obscene.
Human causes? Though climate change gets the attention, simple human recklessness or malice often lights the first spark, then drought and extreme heat take over.
Investigators haven’t determined what started the Bridge fire. But, police arrested an arson suspect in connection with the Line fire in the San Bernardino Mountains (39,000 acres), and the Airport fire in Orange County (24,000 acres) was sparked by a public works crew moving boulders with heavy machinery.
Other major fires have had more innocuous origins. In 2018, the Carr fire near Redding burned more than 1,000 structures and an area of forest roughly the size of the city of San Diego, killing eight people. That fire started on National Park Service land after a driver’s trailer had a flat tire, causing a rim to scrape the road and shoot sparks into tinder-dry brush.
There’s no argument: Humans present the clearest and most present fire danger to wildlands. And in the L.A. area, roughly 18 million of us live near more than 2 million acres of government-managed forests.
So here’s what the U.S. Forest Service, the National Park Service and California State Parks ought to do when conditions are predictably ripe for cataclysmic fire: Close their forests.
When a major heat wave bears down on us — as one did before all the fires burning around us now, and before the Bobcat fire in 2020, and before the Carr fire in 2018 — tell drivers, hikers, hunters and everyone else looking to the mountains for relief: Don’t come here, because it’s too dangerous, and we don’t want you starting another fire.
This wouldn’t be without precedent. Just before Labor Day weekend in 2021, the Forest Service temporarily closed nearly all of its land in California. Though the mountains around Los Angeles were quiet at the time, the rest of the state was experiencing its second-worst fire season on record — second only to 2020, when more than 4% of California’s total land area burned. At a time of extreme danger, the Forest Service wanted to ensure resources could be used fighting fires rather than evacuating visitors.
For Southern California and other places spared another year of catastrophe, the closure was preventive. The Forest Service said as much when it announced its order: “The closure order will also decrease the potential for new fire starts at a time of extremely limited firefighting resources.”
I don’t recommend such preemption lightly. Access to public lands is soul food for outdoor-minded city dwellers like me, not to mention the right of every American. That we in Los Angeles have so much accessible wilderness in our backyard is an immense privilege.
Nor do I believe this would prevent every fire, or even most fires. The Line fire in San Bernardino County has burned mostly Forest Service land, but investigators believe an arsonist started it in an adjacent suburb. Power lines and lightning strikes have also wreaked havoc on our forests.
But managing access to forests needs to reflect the reality of climate change. That includes telling people to stay out for a week or two when the foliage is bone-dry and another hellish heat wave appears in the weather forecast. We’ve long had the tools to predict the conditions for extreme fire dangers; it’s a shame not to use those tools to better protect our struggling forests from us, and our way of life, from going up in smoke.
California
Federal homelessness data says California homeless population grew to 187,084 – Washington Examiner
(The Center Square) – Newly released federal data says California’s homeless population grew to 187,084 at the start of 2024, up from 181,399 in 2023, raising questions about the efficacy of the state’s tens of billions of dollars in recent homeless spending.
Most of the state’s increase in homelessness can be attributed to growth in the state’s unsheltered homeless population, which is nearly half of the nation’s total. However, the state’s homeless population did grow much less than the national average, suggesting some of the state’s programs — albeit costly — may finally be making an impact.
In September, California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office brushed off a CalMatters estimate that the state’s homeless population grew to nearly 186,000, telling The Center Square the organization’s reporting was based on incomplete data that analyzed only 32 of the state’s 58 counties.
“California and other officials use official confirmed data published by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, and not CalMatters’ estimates, which are unverified,” said a Newsom spokesperson to The Center Square in September, when CalMatters released its report.
Now, the verified count from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development recommended by Newsom’s office shows that homelessness is even higher than CalMatters estimated. This 5,685 individual increase in the state’s homeless population could suggest the state’s homelessness efforts — and tens of billions of dollars in recent state funding — have been unable to stop the growth of the state’s homeless population.
Earlier this year a state auditor looked into $24 billion of state homelessness spending, finding “the State lacks current information on the ongoing costs and outcomes of its homelessness programs” because it has “not consistently tracked and evaluated the State’s efforts to prevent and end homelessness.”
Newsom vetoed two widely-supported bipartisan bills to better track and evaluate homelessness spending and outcomes, saying his own directives to increase accountability make the measures redundant.
The state is now home to 123,974 unsheltered homeless individuals — up from 117,424 the year prior — or nearly half of the nation’s total. In 2019 — before the COVID-19 era — California had 151,278 homeless individuals, 108,432 of whom were unsheltered.
Good morning, and welcome to the Essential California newsletter. Here’s what you need to know to start your weekend:
The best movies that capture the essence of California
The Essential California team this year expanded opportunities for readers to directly engage with the newsletter. Each week we ask readers to answer a question — from the best local restaurants to favorite books.
One question in particular got a lot of attention and sparked some debate: What is your favorite movie that captures the essence of California?
Below are the most mentioned movies and comments from readers about what makes these films special to California. We hope this list will help find something to watch this weekend. Enjoy!
“Chinatown”
Adelaide writes: “It doesn’t get more iconic than a film noir that tackles tremendous geopolitical issues that still affect us to this day.”
And Jim writes: “How can you talk about movies that capture the essence of California and not mention one of the greatest movies of all time, ‘Chinatown’? Today, despite the state’s beauty and glorious climate (most of the time), it is still as corrupt and morally bankrupt as it was back in the days of stealing water from the Owens Valley.”
Paul Giamatti, left, and Thomas Haden Church in the 2004 movie “Sideways,” directed by Alexander Payne.
(Searchlight Pictures)
“Sideways”
Raymond Ballesteros writes: “One of my all time favorite movies to see that truly captures the essence of California, hands down, is ‘Sideways.’
“Alexander Payne seizes the beauty and majesty of California’s Santa Barbara wine country, including a handful of wineries that encapsulates the hearts of fellow wine lovers across California and the country. Of course, not to be watched with a glass of Merlot!”
Keanu Reeves, left, and Patrick Swayze in the 1991 film “Point Break.”
(20th Century Fox)
“Point Break”
Fritzi Lareau write: “I am a tour guide and when touring the Golden State I show my guests ‘Point Break’ (the original with Keanu Reeves and Patrick Swayze) or ‘Hollywood Homicide’ starring Harrison Ford.”
Edward James Olmos stars as Garfield High School math teacher Jaime Escalante in 1988’s “Stand and Deliver.”
(Warner Bros. Pictures)
“Stand and Deliver”
Robert Reul writes: “One great film that is 100% California is ‘Stand and Deliver,’ with Edward James Olmos and an amazing cast of young actors. I have found few, if any, films that capture the absolute magic that can happen in the community of first-generation Americans, descended from hard-working Mexican immigrants.”
Jeff Bridges as the title character in the Coen Brothers’ “The Big Lebowski.”
(Merrick Morton / Gramercy Pictures)
Honorable mentions
“Top Gun”
“The Birds”
“The Parent Trap”
“The Big Lebowski”
“Fast Times at Ridgemont High”
“La La Land”
Want to wade into the debate over which movie captures the essence of California? Feel free to email us at essentialcalifornia@latimes.com.
The week’s biggest stories
President-elect Donald Trump, shown at his Mar-a-Lago estate in 2023, is stocking his cabinet with Floridians.
(Evan Vucci / Associated Press)
Florida is winning the political battle with California as Trump takes office
- Trump is stocking his cabinet with Floridians. And his plans to reverse California’s policies on the environment, crime, homelessness and education are facing far less pushback than they did during his first term.
- Gov. Gavin Newsom has vowed to continue the fight against Trump’s policies but without what he called “a resistance brand” that defined his earlier clashes.
- Meanwhile, healthcare is Newsom’s biggest unfinished project. Trump complicates the governor’s task.
Destructive waves keep thrashing Santa Cruz, causing millions of dollars in damage in recent years
Scientists say we are fighting H5N1 bird flu with one hand tied behind our backs
- Scientists and health officials fear we’re on the precipice of another global pandemic as the H5N1 bird flu virus steamrolls its way across the globe. But when that could come to pass is hard to predict.
- Just one mutation can make the bird flu a threat to humans, California researchers found.
- L.A. County health officials are warning pet owners to avoid raw cat food after a feline died of bird flu.
California is growing again
- The Golden State’s population grew by almost a quarter of a million residents in 2024, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, a rebound that brings California almost back to its pre-pandemic numbers.
- While California’s population gain of 232,570 people from July 1, 2023, to July 1, 2024, represents the largest numeric population increase in the nation’s West, it lagged behind Texas, which expanded its population by 562,941, and Florida, which grew by 467,347 people.
More big stories
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This week’s must reads
(Emiliano Ponzi / For The Times)
A California inmate recruited “wives” to spread fentanyl across Alaska, federal authorities say.
The prisoner, Heraclio Sanchez Rodriguez, oversaw a sprawling drug ring that spread death and addiction to the most remote corners of Alaska, prosecutors say.
More great reads
How can we make this newsletter more useful? Send comments to essentialcalifornia@latimes.com.
For your weekend
Refresh yourself on “Squid Game” before starting Season 2 on Netflix.
(No Ju-han / Netflix)
Going out
Staying in
How well did you follow the news this week? Take our quiz.
(Times staff and wire photos)
Which creature gets top billing in the title of the Barry Jenkins–directed “Lion King” prequel that hit theaters last week? Plus nine other questions from our weekly news quiz.
Have a great weekend, from the Essential California team
Hunter Clauss, multiplatform editor
Check our top stories, topics and the latest articles on latimes.com.
Winning $1.22B Mega Millions ticket sold in California
One Californian has plenty of dough to ring in the New Year after drawing the winning number. After three months without anyone winning the top prize, a ticket worth an estimated $1.22 billion was sold for the drawing Friday night.
One Californian has plenty of dough to ring in the New Year after drawing the winning number. After three months without anyone winning the top prize, a ticket worth an estimated $1.22 billion was sold for the drawing Friday night.
According to the California State Lottery, the jackpot ticket was sold in Cottonwood, within Shasta County limits. Two other 5 out of 5 winning tickets were sold in California; one in Roseville and another in San Bernardino.
The winner matched the white balls 3, 7, 37, 49, 55 and the gold Mega Ball 6. The identity of the winner was not immediately known.
The total amount of the Mega Millions jackpot would only be distributed to a winner who chooses an annuity paid over 29 years. Nearly all grand prize winners opt to take a cash payout, which for Friday night’s drawing is an estimated $549.7 million.
Despite the game’s long odds of 1 in 302.6 million, players continued to purchase tickets as the size of the grand prize grew. Until Friday, the last time a Mega Millions player hit the top prize was Sept. 10.
The largest-ever Mega Millions jackpot ticket worth $1.6 billion was sold in Florida in August 2023. Two prizes for its compatriot Powerball lottery have been larger.
Mega Millions and Powerball are sold in 45 states, as well as Washington, D.C., and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Powerball also is sold in Puerto Rico.
KTVU contributed to this report.
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