Nyhedsanalysen
Bygget til at brænde
Bygget til at brænde
Voldsomme naturbrande har i den seneste tid fået USA’s vestkyst til at ligne noget fra en dystopisk science fiction-film. Himlen over storbyen San Francisco har fx været malet helt orange, og brandene har både kostet menneskeliv og fået hjem til at gå op i røg. Hvordan kunne det ende så galt? Der Spiegel har talt med brandhistorikeren Stephen Pyne, der ud over at have en fantastisk titel også giver et spændende indblik i, hvad der sker i Oregon og Californien. Ifølge Pyne er vestkysten ”bygget til at brænde.” Om ikke andet kan man læse artiklen for at nyde, at Pyne lige får irettesat danske Bjørn Lomborgs udsagn om, at klimaforandringerne ikke spiller nogen rolle i brandene.

Harold Postic/AFP/Ritzau Scanpix. TOPSHOT - CORRECTION - Cars drive along the Golden Gate Bridge under an orange smoke filled sky at midday in San Francisco, California on September 9, 2020. - More than 300, 000 acres are burning across the northwestern state including 35 major wildfires, with at least five towns "substantially destroyed" and mass evacuations taking place. (Photo by Harold POSTIC / AFP) / "The erroneous mention[s] appearing in the metadata of this photo by Harold POSTIC has been modified in AFP systems in the following manner: [Golden Gate Bridge] instead of [San Francisco Bay Bridge]. Please immediately remove the erroneous mention[s] from all your online services and delete it (them) from your servers. If you have been authorized by AFP to distribute it (them) to third parties, please ensure that the same actions are carried out by them. Failure to promptly comply with these instructions will entail liability on your part for any continued or post notification usage. Therefore we thank you very much for all your attention and prompt action. We are sorry for the inconvenience this notification may cause and remain at your disposal for any further information you may require."
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