Thread
Index
inquiry about California
Volleyballjerry
Jan. 15, 2005, 9:53 p.m. (Message 40312)
In a message dated 01/13/2005 4:57:26 PM Pacific Standard Time, xxxx.xxxx@xxxxxxxxx.xx writes: Hello again, Robb, You are right on Germany. I suppose that the main thread from which this fibre has become detached has come to an end. Not knowing where Thousand Oaks is in California, I send you my best wishes, and I hope that you have not been affected by the rain disaster you mentioned. Some 10 years ago, just back from a car trip to California, I saw on TV the overpass I had traversed, collapsed by the earthquake. Poor California! Are any Strathspeyers affected by the current disaster? Greetings, once again, Bert REPLY: Thanks, Bert, for the concern and good wishes. For you (and all), Thousand Oaks is on the eastern edge of Ventura County, about midway between downtown Los Angeles and Santa Barbara and about ten miles (sixteen kilometers) as the crow flies over the Santa Monica Mountains from the Pacific Coast. The disastrous and fatal mudslide that made the news around the world, I imagine, was at La Conchita, on the opposite end of this same county and closer to Santa Barbara. Despite the deluge we happily had no damage at home. Thanks again for the concern. Robb Quint Thousand Oaks, CA, USA
Glad to hear everything is OK at your location, as it is with my Mom in L.A. Story covered with graphic detail here in Mallorca, complete with maps and great footage. The one question I had trouble answering, and it came up a lot, in every bar I visit, is, "Why does the government let people build houses in "torrents", flood plains, etc."
Well, yes, maybe. At least in this "free country," -- the USA -- those who build their houses without government interference in flood plains, on top of fault lines, on shorelines, on the sides of unstable mountains and in flammable forests do not mind it when disaster strikes and the government gives them other people's money and services paid for with other people's money. Wishing I could bring this thread to an SCD close. Mike Briggs In sunny Wisconsin, where the temperature right now is -19.
Some other John wrote: | At 02:31 PM 1/15/2005 -0800, Richard Goss wrote | | > "Why does the government let people build houses in | | >"torrents", flood plains, etc." | | Because, in "A Free Country" it is none of the Governments | Business where people build their houses. Actually, it probably has more to do with the fact that very few of those houses were built by the people who live in them. Most housing in the US is built by developers whose primary motive is to sell them to whoever will buy. And when selling a house, there's little motive for the seller to be forthcoming about any local dangers that might exist. It's mostly "buyer beware", but the typical buyer has little if any understanding of the problems or how to find relevant information. Then, when the predictable disasters happen, the people who bought the houses (mostly because they were for sale and within reach of jobs) get blamed for being suckered into living there. There is a problem in that there is hardly any place you can live in the US that isn't susceptible to some sort of natural disaster. This is probably true of much of the rest of the world, especially since most humans live within a few km of ocean shores. I am constantly baffled by why anyone still lives in New Orleans. Yeah, it's a great place to visit. But it's all below sea level, protected by levees, on land that is sinking. I'd think that any intelligent person would be keeping a close eye on the weather forecasts, with an idea of getting out fast. Meanwhile, there are plans afoot to install tsunami warning equipment in the Caribbean and western Atlantic ...