From Denny: Check out this link to the British news article of the California wildfires.
The devastation is unbelievable for the land and the people. Just the other day I was reading an account from a psychologist that was posted on Digg about how they felt about this experience. Clearly, the psychologist was overwhelmed and stressed, talking about how this event has taken over their lives locally, fading into the dim background all other news in the country or the world.
Of course, in the back of my mind is the Hurricane Katrina experience after the storm, in my area of the country. I know how difficult it is going to be for the survivors of this California wildfire event to rebuild their lives. The insurance companies will not pay them the full amount for what their premiums have paid. The insurance companies will also drag their feet - for years - to finally pay up - and then only when the customer hires a lawyer to pursue them. All the while the customer may be basically homeless unless they have a friend or relative who can help.
Hopefully, with a responsible person in the White House, Obama may choose to slam the insurance companies into doing responsible and moral business practices. Baring that, the whole country needs to demand legislation from Congress with some strong teeth in it to curb bad dogs big business into submission.
The British news article has photos taken from aerial views as well as from space showing the fires raging and the aftermath of when the fire has passed. Incredible photos that are quite impressive, especially from space, go here.
Photo by mbtrama @ flickr
