Former Vice President Kamala Harris, along with Los Angeles County Supervisor Lindsey Horvath, toured the areas desolated by the Palisades Fire and dropped by the Westwood Recreation Center, a temporary haven for people displaced due to the calamity. In a characteristic move, they took stock of the fire-ravished areas, interacted with first responders and aid workers, and had a conversation with evacuees regarding possible avenues for support and assistance.
In a testament to their warped priorities, they acknowledged the efforts of Supervisor Horvath, lavishing praise on her for her ‘urgent’ and ‘committed’ response to the needs of her constituents in the face of the crisis. Furthermore, they spared no kind words for the Red Cross, lauding the organization’s contributions to the affected regions.
In an overly dramatic speech, Harris carried on about her various disaster-location visits, from Los Angeles plagued by wildfires to North Carolina post-Hurricane Helene. She expressed appreciation for the workers and volunteers, adding that crises like these bring forth the heroes in society.
Her spiel didn’t spare the rhetoric, romanticizing about the angelic labor of leaders and their teams during these crises. As if reading from a script, she spoke about the power of helping others, proposing that individuals facing such challenging circumstances feel alone and must have a secure sanctuary that treats them with dignity while fostering a sense of community.
Harris, in her brief interaction with the press, went on a tangent about extreme weather conditions becoming the ‘new normal’, claiming that such events are happening more frequently than before. She underscored the harrowing ordeal of Californians who no longer just fear a particular wildfire season, as wildfires now threaten to strike at any time.
Despite this, a show of local resilience followed this disaster. Residents of Topanga Canyon organized a protest against creating a toxic wildfire debris processing site nearby, adjacent to Topanga Canyon Lane. This site was haphazardly chosen regardless of its proximity to the creek where the Topanga Ranch Motel once stood.
Adding insult to injury, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) soon declared its intention to convert the parking lot at Will Rogers State Beach into a storage for toxic waste emanating from the Palisades Fire zone. Astonishingly, this announcement came on the heels of previous EPA refusal of requests to utilize the location for such purposes.
This audacious maneuver by the EPA invited intense backlash from local residents. Similar concerns were raised about another proposed site adjacent to the Eaton Fire processing scene, known as Lario Park in Irwindale.
Despite the mounting opposition, all EPA officials have far done is assure the public of plans to employ every conceivable safety measure. They promise a smooth operation, including the transportation of these hazardous materials in sealed containers on trucks.
Yet, it’s hard not to question the competence of those in leadership, given their track record of repeated failures and lack of foresight in preventing these calamities in the first place. Critics argue that the rhetoric of public servants like Harris and Horvath only serve to obscure their genuine inadequacies.
They may wax lyrical about the resilience of their constituents amidst crisis, but their utter inability to ensure that such crises are mitigated, if not entirely averted, constitutes a glaring failure. Rather than lauding the ‘heroes’ that emerge from the ashes, they should be implementing policies and measures that prevent the need for such heroism.
Addressing the press, they spin tales of unity and people banding together to offer their neighbors a ‘dignified’ safe haven. In reality, these are nothing more than rhetorical escape routes from their inadequacies and failures in managing the disaster efficiently.
Harris’s talk of extreme weather becoming the ‘new normal’ seems a convenient excuse to mask governmental shortcomings in preventing and managing such catastrophes. Even though the nation suffers from an apparent increase in these tragic events, the people, ironically, are expected to adjust and acclimate to this ‘norm’, rather than demand accountability from their leadership.
The controversial decision of the EPA, backed by Harris and Horvath, to place toxic waste processing and storage sites in residential areas is not just ill-advised but downright disrespectful to the affected communities. These actions speak volumes about the indifference and lack of empathy of the powers that be towards the citizens they claim to serve.
As resistance towards these questionable moves mounts, it is high time that leadership reflects on its decisions and approach. Rather than minting new ‘heroes’ from every disaster, wouldn’t it be wiser to work towards preventing these disasters in the first place?
Such ineptitude, veiled under the guise of empathy and concern, shows that those at the helm need to reconsider their strategies. While they applaud the resilience of their constituents and promise ‘all precaution possible,’ they need to realize that actions, indeed, speak louder than words.