Looking at the fire maps (from two different tools below; click to enlarge) reminds us of the fires here in San Diego County in October 2007. Sends shivers down our spines.
Both of these maps are derived from satellite-based thermal imagery.
The good news is that so far the fires haven't massively invaded areas with homes, as they did here. And we are not having a Santa Ana wind storm, so there's some hope that the firefighters can get it under control.
There's something particularly disgusting and disturbing about a government that trades its first responsibility – protecting its citizens – for money. It appears that this is exactly what the British government has done (via the London Times):
The British government decided it was “in the overwhelming interests of the United Kingdom” to make Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al-Megrahi, the Lockerbie bomber, eligible for return to Libya, leaked ministerial letters reveal.
I first heard rumors about this a few days ago, but dismissed them...saying to myself “Nah – the Brits would never do that!”
