"Last summer, a single fire killed tens of thousands of sequoias in the Sierra Nevada. And this month, blazes in and around Sequoia National Park are lapping at the bases of these massive trees, worrying the firefighters who are scrambling to protect them.
"The ever-increasing intensity of fires in California has become too much even for the sequoias, which evolved to survive — even thrive — in fires. The dangers prompted firefighters last week to wrap General Sherman, believed to be the largest tree in the world, in flame-retardant foil in a bid to save it from flames.
"Experts say the fires that sequoias endured for centuries were mostly low grade. Thick bark and sky-high crowns protected the trees from serious damage. Heat from the flames even helped them reproduce by releasing seeds from their cones.
"Last summer, a single fire killed tens of thousands of sequoias in the Sierra Nevada. And this month, blazes in and around Sequoia National Park are lapping at the bases of these massive trees, worrying the firefighters who are scrambling to protect them.
The ever-increasing intensity of fires in California has become too much even for the sequoias, which evolved to survive — even thrive — in fires. The dangers prompted firefighters last week to wrap General Sherman, believed to be the largest tree in the world, in flame-retardant foil in a bid to save it from flames.
"Experts say the fires that sequoias endured for centuries were mostly low grade. Thick bark and sky-high crowns protected the trees from serious damage. Heat from the flames even helped them reproduce by releasing seeds from their cones."
"Last summer, a single fire killed tens of thousands of sequoias in the Sierra Nevada. And this month, blazes in and around Sequoia National Park are lapping at the bases of these massive trees, worrying the firefighters who are scrambling to protect them. |
"The ever-increasing intensity of fires in California has become too much even for the sequoias, which evolved to survive — even thrive — in fires. The dangers prompted firefighters last week to wrap General Sherman, believed to be the largest tree in the world, in flame-retardant foil in a bid to save it from flames. |
"Experts say the fires that sequoias endured for centuries were mostly low grade. Thick bark and sky-high crowns protected the trees from serious damage. Heat from the flames even helped them reproduce by releasing seeds from their cones.
|
So the good news (for now) is that some of our largest and oldest trees have survived. Think of how much human history has occurred during the lifetime of General Sherman.
We are used to tragic stories of fires wiping away decades of memories from human lives; the classic question asked of residents in fire country is: "What would you take with you if you had to evacuate?"
But losing these big trees represents a collective loss of many more orders of magnitude. If the planet is a living organism, these enormous trees are among its most magnificent accomplishments. Just being among them is a spiritual experience.
The sight of firefighters wrapping aluminum foil around its base in a last-ditch effort to save it was touching but its also was a reminder of just how powerless we are against the magnitude of the challenges of global climate change.
Because aluminum foil won't guarantee us a future.
***
On Netflix: "Turning Point: 9/11 and the War on Terror."
This is a five-hour docuseries that recounts the past 20 years of war in Afghanistan, starting with the terrorist attacks in 2001, through the killing of Osama bin-Laden, all the way to the final withdrawal of U.S. troops in August and the Taliban takeover that has ensued.
It is not easy viewing but I recommend it to anyone wishing to take a thoughtful look at the momentous series of events that have shaped the early part of the 21st century.
We cannot allow ourselves to avoid the questions raised by this 5-hour series. There is too much to remember. As the people who funded that war, we do not have the license to forget.
THE HEADLINES:
* What likely saved the General Sherman Tree from the KNP Complex Fire (SFGate)
* Covid Vaccine Prompts Strong Immune Response in Younger Children, Pfizer Says -- Vaccinated kids aged 5 to 11 showed evidence of protection against the virus, the company said. The data must be reviewed by the F.D.A. before children can be inoculated. (NYT)
* U.S. reported deaths surpass toll of 1918 flu pandemic (WP)
* VIDEO: New York City Will Institute Weekly Coronavirus Testing in Schools (NYT)
* ‘The world must wake up’: Tasks daunting as UN meeting opens (AP)
* U.S. seeks to double climate change aid for developing nations -Biden (Reuters)
* Jeff Bezos pledges $1 billion to protect 30 percent of the Earth’s land and sea (WP)
* China is key to saving the planet from climate change. But it can’t quit coal. (WP)
* Australia has lost one-third of its koalas in the past three years (Reuters)
* Biden confronts extreme heat, now America’s leading weather-related cause of death (WP)
* Afghanistan's Taliban say working on reopening girls' high schools (Reuters)
* Taliban expand economic team as Afghan crisis deepens (Reuters)
* A Harsh New Reality for Afghan Women and Girls in Taliban-Run Schools -- Afghanistan’s new government is likely to severely restrict education for girls and women despite the Taliban’s claims that schooling will eventually resume. (NYT)
* Taliban appoint hardline battlefield commanders to key Afghan posts (Reuters)
* Democrats’ once-sweeping policy agenda continues to shrink -- An overhaul of voting laws was blocked by Republicans. An effort to strike a bipartisan deal on police reforms has lost all momentum. A plan to provide a path to legal residency for millions of immigrants is now all but dead. (WP)
* The Supreme Court scheduled Dec. 1 arguments in a case that challenges abortion standards set in Roe v. Wade. The Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization case gives the court's conservative majority a chance to advance a GOP culture-war agenda item. [HuffPost]
* Democrats to Pair Spending Bill With Raising Debt Ceiling, Pressuring G.O.P. -- The approach essentially dares Republicans to follow through on their threats to oppose increasing the debt limit, by coupling it with urgently needed federal spending. (NYT)
* Huge hack reveals embarrassing details of who’s behind Proud Boys and other far-right websites (WP)
* A lawyer representing Trump Organization CFO Allen Weisselberg said he has "strong reason to believe" others will be arrested in the Manhattan district attorney's tax fraud case. Trump's company is also charged in what the DA calls "a sweeping and audacious" tax fraud scheme. [AP]
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