Dear HCN, Normally
informative and refreshing, the paper stepped in a hole with
“Anatomy of Fire” as a cover article (HCN, 7/8/02:The anatomy of
FIRE). As a wildland firefighter and Forest Service employee, I had
hoped for the arrival of some scientific (“anatomy” made me think
we were really going to get into it) exploration, and I never
thought HCN would read like an extended evening
news piece. I’ve seen this article at the IMAX, on every news
channel, and in every newspaper across the country. This is the
typical propaganda that supports the disappearance of massive
public monies, replete with a running crown fire of bad metaphors
consuming any useful information in their path, and no promotion of
letting the fire burn. There is so much more to the fire picture
than this piece allows.
Obviously, one piece
cannot contain it all, but why keep addressing the same portion of
the monster known as fire management? It’s a disappointment for a
recent convert to your paper and more importantly, it’s a dangerous
continuation of misguidance and repetition. Looking forward to the
next issue.
William Shoutis Lander, Wyoming
This article appeared in the print edition of the magazine with the headline Fire story was propaganda.
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