On Sunday, we published a piece about the Los Angeles wildfires, written by Leighton Woodhouse, which drew a strong reaction from our readers. Leighton argued that although we should hold city authorities accountable for their failures amid the disaster, the fact is LA was constructed on grasslands that routinely dry out—making the entire place susceptible to wildfire. In short, as the headline said, “LA Was Built to Burn.”
One of our fundamental aims at The Free Press is to invite discussion and even disagreement. We are so grateful to all the readers who shared their perspectives in response to this piece. Today, we’re publishing three of the most insightful counterpoints to Leighton’s story. —The Editors
Leighton Woodhouse’s essay is a revolting example of the defeatism that permeates far too much of civil society today. It is the same philosophy animating low birth rates, climate inevitability, and racial determinism. Taken to its natural conclusion, Woodhouse’s argument is that because the earth is part of a solar system that faces black holes, asteroids, and the eventual implosion of the sun, we should merely hang our heads and mutter goodbye to our lineage as the natural process of destruction takes place.