Blackwater's Base and the California Wildfires

[courtesy of The California Majority Report]

As I write this, massive fires are raging across Southern California. While it is quiet and normal at my house in Los Angeles, I can see smoke in the distance and smell it in the air.

And I keep thinking about the good people of Potrero -- a serene small community in East San Diego County -- that I met just a few weeks ago as we rallied together to block Blackwater from building a base in their tiny, beautiful town.

These concerned community members have been working for months to stop Blackwater from building a mercenary training facility on 824 acres, consisting of 11 firing ranges, a helipad, and an emergency vehicle operator's course covering the equivalent of 10 football fields. As we watch the fire burn across the area today, one can only imagine what might have happened if an armory full of ammunition and explosives were located inside this box canyon.

I was inspired and proud to march with the good folks of Potrero, people who are not usually political, but who know that if they do not stand up against Blackwater in their own community, then no one will.

We need to show our support for the people of San Diego County at this difficult time. Click here to send a brief message to Potrero residents expressing your support and then consider sending a donation to the San Diego Foundation's "After the Fires Fund." 

Beyond the damage and destruction to life and property, the timing of this wildfire could not be much worse. This fire exploded just as the people of Potrero were preparing for a recall election on December 11 to kick out the planning group members who approved Blackwater's base. With ballots scheduled to be mailed in early November to less than 600 registered voters in this historic vote-by-mail recall, Potrero residents were preparing for an intense campaign over the next six weeks.

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