Do The Math!

The phrase “Do the math” gained popularity in the 1980s and 1990s in the United States. It was commonly used in conversational and media contexts to encourage someone to consider logical or obvious conclusions based on available evidence. The phrase often conveys a sense of urging straightforward reasoning or pointing out something self-evident. Its exact origin is unclear, but its rise in popular culture can be linked to its frequent use in TV shows, movies, and casual discourse during this time.

Like most Americans, I’ve been watching the fires in Southern California with great interest, and also like most empathetic Americans who view the matter from a humanitarian perspective, the pain, suffering, and heartbreak must be unimaginable.  And I candidly admit the scope of this disaster is beyond my ken to fully comprehend.  Meanwhile, I have a daughter, a grandson and a son-in-law living between two of the major fires, so when I look at this matter I do so not as an unaffected observer.

Like most observers I listen to the news and watch the interviews and as with any natural disaster where there’s significant the loss of life and property with its attendant evacuations there’s always plenty of finger pointing.  And what’s occurring in Southern California is no different.

Southern California wildfires and Santa Ana winds aren’t like a random once-in-a-millennia meteor strike; wildfires & winds have been occurring in Southern California for hundreds of years and are eminently predictable – they’re not a matter of if – rather they’re a matter of when, and it’s the elected officials in those jurisdictions who have the responsibility to ensure such eventualities are prepared for – that’s why they get paid with our tax dollars!

There will be investigations into every aspect of this tragedy and assigning blame in politics always devolves into name calling.  I’m not going to go down the rabbit hole about what fire hydrants did or did not go dry or what reservoir was or wasn’t filled or what insurers were doing or not doing.  Rather, when assessing public policies that were in effect during a natural disaster the first two things that must be evaluated are A) the results of those policies and B) who created them.  And basic civics teaches that the prime responsibility of elected officials is to represent their constituents, create laws, allocate resources, and oversee governance.

And since politics in one form or another enters into all aspects of society, any and all discussion about this catastrophe must examine who created the laws, allocated the resources and oversaw its operation; and if it doesn’t, then the discussion degenerates into laying blame and covering one’s butt rather than finding solutions and redressing the matter.

So, when looking for answers to ensure there’s no repeat of this heart-rending tragedy perhaps the people of California should re-read the title of this blog post, look at the following, and then do the math!

• The governor of California is a democrat
• The secretary of State of California is a democrat
• The Attorney General of California is a democrat
• The California State Assembly is comprised of 60 democrats and 19 republicans
• The California State Senate is comprised of 31 democrats and 9 republicans
• The Mayor of Los Angeles is a democrat
• The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors is comprised of 4 democrats and 1 republican.
• Both of California’s senators to the U.S. Senate are democrats, and
• 43 of the 52 congresspeople in the U.S. House of Representatives are democrats.

Quote of the day:  “When will they ever learn; when will they ever learn?” – Pete Seeger from his 1955 folk classic, “Where Have All the Flowers Gone?”