The Fire Next Time: California Burnin'

(KTLA) Chemical hazmat emgergency prompts evacuations in Garden Grove

The real reason California is burning: climate

(KTLA 5 News) Live coverage: Wildfires forcing evacuations across Southern California

Like LA Uprising, things blow up

Last near, a large part of Los Angeles County burned in the "LA Fires" -- Eaton Fire in the foothills of Altadena above affluent Pasadena and the Palisades Fire in the affluent coastal area of Pacific Palisades near Malibu -- but did anyone like the mayor learn anything? Not so far as anyone can tell. No official has read The Fire Next Time by James Baldwin?

OJ: Blame it on him. I'm the Juice

Granted it's about igniting social unrest (like the LA Uprising of 1992 triggered by racist LAPD cop and disgraced perjurer Mark Fuhrman, who died last week) rather than wildfires burning out of control, but whatever we've been through as a county, there's worse to come. There's the Big One, an earthquake to flatten the place, a tsunami to inundate the low lying areas of the basin, and there's a cosmic radiation solar emission to take out all the electronics and powerlines.

Fraud Fuhrman hired by FOX

What did the Buddha say about being in this sort of position? He once asked a king what he would do if messengers were to tell him that an adversary were approaching from the east, west, north, and south. The king replied, "What could I do but rely on the Dhamma?" The Buddha then said that there were four such enemies approaching so that whatever he was going to do, it would be wise to do it NOW. The thing is, the Buddha wasn't only talking to that king. Those same adversaries are approaching each of us. But do we notice, listen, pay attention, or act accordingly?

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  Murder in Brentwood

  In 1995, Det. Fuhrman was called to testify regarding his alleged "discovery" of evidence in the OJ Simpson case, including a bloody glove recovered at OJ's Brentwood estate. During the trial, witnesses claimed that in the 1980s, LAPD cop Fuhrman frequently described African Americans as "niggers," claims he denied. In response, Simpson's defense team produced recorded interviews with Fuhrman, and witnesses proved that he had repeatedly used racist language during those interviews [1]. As a result, the defense claimed Fuhrman had committed perjury and was not a credible witness. The credibility of the prosecution has been cited as one reason big Simpson was acquitted [2]. The defense claimed Fuhrman planted key evidence as part of a racially motivated plot against Simpson. When asked under oath (without the jury being present), Fuhrman declined to answer all questions, invoking his Fifth Amendment right. These questions included whether he planted or manufactured evidence. He didn't want to answer? Fuhrman "retired" from the LAPD in 1995. In 1996, he pleaded guilty by pleading "no contest" to perjury for his false testimony related to his use of racial epithets. Fuhrman claimed he was not a racist and apologized for his use of racist language [3]. He did not apologize for potentially starting the deadly "LA Riots" or the people killed, an uprising that was a long time in the making due to flagrant LAPD racism. More

The Mamas & The Papas must have known California burns: "California Dreamin'"

Coast Guard says Santa Rosa Island Fire was possibly started by flare from stranded boater

Bain Fire: Jurupa Valley, Ventura County next to Los Angeles County

(CBS LA) Riverside County firefighters battle 200-acre Verona Fire burning near Hemet

The Simile of the Mountains

Dhr. Seven, Pabbatopama Sutta (SN 3.25) based on Ven. Thanissaro (trans)

The Buddha was dwelling in Savatthi. Then King Pasenadi of Kosala approached the Blessed One in the middle of the day, bowed, and sat respectfully to one side. Sitting there, the Blessed One said to him, "Great king, where are you coming from in the middle of the day?"

"Venerable sir, just now I was engaged in the affairs of an anointed noble-warrior king, enjoying the intoxication of royal sovereignty, obsessed with lust for sensual pleasures, who has attained stable control of his kingdom after having conquered a great sphere of earthly territory."

"Great king, what do you think? Suppose a trustworthy and reliable man were to come to you from the east and say, 'If it please your majesty, know that I come from the east where I saw a great mountain, as high as the clouds, coming this way, crushing all the living beings [in its path]. Do as you see fit.'

"'Then suppose a second man were to come from the west... Then a third man were to come from the north... Then a fourth man were to come from the south and say, 'If it please your majesty, know that I come from the south where I saw a great mountain, as high as the clouds, coming this way, crushing all living beings. Do as you see fit.'

"Great king, if such great peril should arise, such a terrible waste of human life — a human rebirth being so hard to obtain — what should be done?"

"Venerable sir, if such great peril should arise, such a terrible waste of human life — a human rebirth being so hard to obtain — what else should be done but conduct in accordance with the Dhamma, right action, skillful deeds, meritorious karma?"

"Then, great king, I inform you, I announce to you, aging and death are rolling in upon you. Great king, when aging and death are rolling in upon you, what should be done?"

"Venerable sir, as aging and death are rolling in upon me, what else should be done but conduct in accordance with the Dhamma, right conduct, skillful deeds, meritorious karma?

"Venerable sir, there are elephant battles [fought by] anointed noble-warrior kings enjoying the intoxication of royal sovereignty, obsessed by lust for sensual pleasures, who have attained stable control of their kingdom and who rule having conquered a great sphere of earthly territory. But there is no use in elephant battles, no sense in them, when aging and death are rolling in.

"There are cavalry battles... chariot battles... infantry battles... But there is no use for such battles, no sense in them, when aging and death are rolling in.

"In this royal court there are counselors who, when the enemies arrive, are capable of dividing them by their wit. But there is no use for such battles of wits, no sense in them, when aging and death are rolling in.

"In this royal court there is abundant gold and silver stored in vaults and depositories, and with such wealth we are capable of buying off enemies when they come. But there is no use in battles of wealth, no sense in them, when aging and death are rolling in. As aging and death are rolling in upon me, venerable sir, what else should be done but conduct in accordance with Dhamma, right conduct, skillful deeds, meritorious karma?"

"So it is, great king, so it is! As aging and death are rolling in upon you, what else should be done but conduct in accordance with Dhamma, right conduct, skillful deeds, meritorious karma?"

That is what the Blessed One said. Having said it, the One Well-Gone [the Welcome One], the Teacher, went on to summarize:

Like massive mounds

mountains press against the sky

move in from all sides

crushing the four directions.

Just so aging and death

roll over living beings, be they

warriors, Brahmins, merchants,

workers, outcastes, or untouchables.

They spare no one and nothing.

They trample all underfoot.

Elephant troops cannot hold their ground

nor chariots nor infantry

nor can a battle of wits or wealth win out.

So the wise, seeing their own good,

steadfast, secure their confidence in

Buddha, Dhamma, and Sangha

[Teacher, Teaching, and Taught].

For one who practices Dhamma

in thought, word, and deed

is praised here on earth

and passing into the afterlife

rejoices in the many heavenly abodes.

• Prof. Andrew Olendzki: "Irresistible Force"
• CBS Los Angeles - Breaking Local News, Weather & Investigations
• How to deal with an enemy according to Buddhism - Quora
• Santa Rosa Island (Southern California)
• Channel Islands (Los Angeles, California)
• Ventura County, California is next to LA County
• Riverside County, California is next to LA County
• The Sandy Fire 40 miles north of LA is burning
• 2026 California wildfires (Wikipedia)
• (CBS Evening News) Multiple wildfires erupt across Southern California and western U.S.

It's Native American Heritage Month

Native Americans dancing used to be so beautiful in full regalia. Now we party nearly naked:

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White Indigenous tribes of Scandinavia (Sami)

Tell us more about Native American Heritage Month. National Native American Heritage Month celebrates the culture, contributions, and heritage of Indigenous populations called Native Americans or American-Indians.

In 1990 Pres. George H. W. Bush approved a joint resolution designating November 1990 “National American Indian Heritage Month.”

Decolonize Your Diet (vegan recipes)

Similar proclamations, under variants on the name (including “Native American Heritage Month” and “National American Indian and Alaska Native Heritage Month”) have been issued each year since 1994.

This month is a time to educate the public about Native American tribes, raise a general awareness about the unique challenges the Indigenous (First Nations) have faced, and to illuminate the ways in which tribal citizens have worked to conquer these challenges.

• Native American Heritage Month – LA County Library

Native American Food Sovereignty

Progressive plant based Native eating

In celebration of Native American Heritage Month, join the Los Angeles County Public Library in highlighting how Native communities are taking control over their food sources and production by revitalizing traditional, healthy [predominantly vegan], and localized food sources.

In this hands-on workshop, learn how to start a Salvia columbariae plant and explore its cultural uses among various Native groups. This event has multiple dates and locations throughout November. View events list below to find the program at the nearest location.

• Native American Food Sovereignty (LACL)

The Americas are home to many tribes

Tongva (Kizh) Cultural Classes

Main Altadena Library, burn scar, Los Angeles County

Altadena Library District

On Nov. 1st, 2025, we learned to make Cloth Medicine Bags with Councilwoman Neminski and Councilwoman Murillo of the Gabrielino/Tongva (Kizh) Nation, who taught the workshop for ages 10 and up.

Beaded Wire Wrap Bracelets Workshop

Saturday, Nov. 15, 2:00-4:00 pm: Councilwomen of the Gabrielino/Tongva (Kizh) Nation teach class for ages 8 and up.

Pine Needle Basket Medallion

Saturday, Nov. 12, 2:00-4:00 pm: Councilwomen teach class for ages 8 and up.

• Native American History Month Discussion, Thursday, November 20, 2025, 1:30 - 2:30pm - Programs — Altadena Library District

Indigenous Peoples' Day 2025

Toypurina: Los Angeles' Joan of Arc

(DemocracyNow.org) Julian Brave Noisecat has something to say about the Native experience

• Indigenous Peoples' Day (bing.com)
• Indigenous House: Blowing Up Indian News | Breaking History
• Decolonize: Junipero Serra toppled for good
• Gabrielino/Tongva Nation: First Aboriginal (Indigenous) People of Los Angeles

(KQED) Native writer Julian Brave Noisecat with Alice Woelfle

LA's Tongva Tribe and the Eaton Fire

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(lafirejustice.com)

A community conversation featuring prominent Tongva (Kizh, Gabrieleno) tribal members will take place on April 23, 2025, to foster understanding and solidarity with indigenous communities in Altadena, a burned-out community in the foothills of Los Angeles County.

• Panel was live streamed, but event is not listed in the Altadena Library Calendar of Events; it will be posted if available.
• Tongva leaders to share cultural knowledge at community dialogue (Altadena-Now)

The “Let’s Talk, Let’s Listen Community Series: Conversation with Tongva Women” event will bring together indigenous leaders to discuss tribal history, land rights, and recovery efforts following the Eaton Fire.

The dialogue is on Wednesday, April 23, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at the Altadena Library, located at 600 E. Mariposa St. in Altadena. It is free to attend.

The event features two distinguished panelists from the Gabrieleno Tongva San Gabriel Band of Mission Indians, daughter Samantha MJ Yang, an indigenous scientist and cultural preservationist, and mother Kimberly Morales Johnson, tribal secretary and Los Angeles City/County Native American Indian commissioner.

From the Ground Up: How Tongva traditions utilize California native plants

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Tongva Joan of Arc of California: Toypurina

John Williams, executive director of The Center for Restorative Justice (formerly the Center for Racial Reconciliation), moderates the discussion. Williams brings decades of experience creating what he describes as “a soft place for hard conversations” where individuals and communities can explore “the multifaceted and destructive narratives of race and racism within the American context with the hope of authentic reconciliation.” More:

• Tongva Leaders to Share Cultural Knowledge at Community Dialogue (Pasadena Now)
  

(Altadena Now) ...The event is organized by several community organizations, including Pasadenans Organizing for Progress (POP!), the Pasadena Community Job Center, the Clergy Community Coalition, and The Center for Restorative Justice.

This conversation continues the work of addressing historical injustices while building more equitable futures for indigenous communities in Southern California, particularly in light of recent challenges like the Eaton Fire. More

• 2025 Eaton Fire Emergency Resources — Altadena Library District
• Tongva.land
• POP PASADENANS - Home
• Pasadena Community Job Center
• Altadena Library on YouTube
• Altadena Revealed: Reflections of People & Place (#2 The History and Legacy of Altadena's Black Community with speakers Steven McCall, Carrie Chasteen, and Veronica Jones, Friday, April 25, 7:00-9:00 pm, Altadena Main Library, 600 E. Mariposa St., $10 donation requested)
• Gabrielino/Tongva Nation: First Aboriginal People of Los Angeles
• Tongva at Altadena Library
• California Trial Lawyers | Bridgford Law
• Pasadena Now, April 18, 2025; Dhr. Seven, Xochitl, Ananda (Dharma Buddhist Meditation) (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

"The Shaman" (poem)

Tibetan Bon Shamanism: Instruments of Power | by Hermes Astrology | Medium

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THE SHAMAN

Plant uses (Santa Monica Bay Audubon Society)

The shaman climbed the mountain, gathered sacred flowering herbs and berries along the way -- Datura moonflowers, toloache, Brugmansia angel's-trumpets, Salvia apiana kasiile sage, toyon, holly -- until delirium overwhelmed him with lurid and ecstatic visions of hell and heaven. Then he returned to the human world.

Tongva Culture Tour, Summer 2005 (Takwish)

Word spread of him. People asked, "Is it true, as they say, that you have seen hell?"

"I have."

"What's it like?"

"It's hideous, ironic, horror beyond imagination," the shaman winced to relive, nearly blinded by his recollection:

When do we eat? - We're eaten.

"There's food everywhere, but no one eats, and drink aplenty, but no one drinks. There are long wooden spoons with which to partake, but their bodies have only tiny appendages for arms, too short to bring such elongated spoons up to their shriveled lips. Parched slaver forms ashes in their mouths, and bodies waste away. Struggle as they might, everything goes to wrack and ruin. They bellow in agony."

The people shrank away, with growing acreage dedicated to burying their discarded surplus, collapsing under smoldering heaps of trash.

Forced conversion (Museum of the SFV)

"And heaven?" asked the hopeful. "Is it true, as they say, that you have seen heaven?"

"I have."

"And what's it like?" they pleaded.

"Heaven," the shaman revealed, "is exactly the same."

"What!?" cried the people. "The same? Surely that is no heaven!"

How they faced one another.

"There is one difference," the shaman went on to explain.

"In heaven, there is an abundance of food and drink, long wooden spoons, and bodies with tiny appendages too short to bring these utensils up to their mouths. But the beings there, without hesitation, use the long spoons to feed one another.

"There is no want. No request goes unanswered, no desire unfulfilled. Acts of kindness overflow as do the spoons. Spoon fed and cared for, there are continuous cries of gratitude and rejoicing as beings fall over one another to be the first to give.

Time to eat? - For us? - No, for them.

"There is food, and they eat. There is drink, and they drink, and they relish their bounty and diversity. They care for one another, nourish one another, thank one another. The sweetness of their caresses, gentleness of their words, and kindness of their eyes," the shaman wept to recall, "make the place so beautiful that I only wish I could show one world to the other."

Part III: The First Americans—culture and time of change (smbasblog.com)

• Seven (poem), Ashley Wells (ed.), CC Liu (graphic design), Wisdom Quarterly

Indigenous Peoples' Day Party (10/19)

We're still here even after our language was made illegal to speak
and our sustainable way of life was destroyed to assimilate us.

Party: Saturday, Oct. 19, 2024, 11:00 am-4:00 pm, Jerry Moss Plaza, The Music Center, DTLA

"Native American Day" in Berkeley, California, became the first Indigenous Peoples Day.

We're here to conquer, so get in line and wait for welfare checks, and say, "Thank you, sir."

Native American foods on Indigenous Peoples' Day: Three Sisters of amaranth, beans, squash

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The Music Center presents: The Chapter House Indigenous Peoples' Day Party

Native American blended beauty (Fiiliia)

Celebrate Los Angeles’ Indigenous communities on October 19th, 2024, at Jerry Moss Plaza at The Music Center. FREE.

The Music Center’s programming arm, TMC Arts, in partnership with The Chapter House, create a space on two Saturdays in October for cultural affirmation and joy among the county’s Indigenous communities.

We were the guardians of this land.

The goal is to foster greater awareness, respect, and understanding of the ongoing cultural contributions of Indigenous people among Los Angeles County residents.

These events are by and for Indigenous Peoples. ALL are welcome to join in.

Coinciding with Grand Ave Arts: All Access, one of L.A.’s longest-running, FREE open house experiences for arts and culture exploration in Downtown Los Angeles, The Music Center will host a live drumming performance, live DJ sets, art workshops as well as the return of the marketplace — on Jerry Moss Plaza at The Music Center.

Performances by:

Full Circle Indigenous Planning + Design (ABC)

• DJ Brian Frejo; Hale & Company Drum Group; Native Voices in residence with Center Theatre Group; comedians and storytellers: Joey Clift, Solange Aguilar and Gigi Modrich

Marketplace Vendors:

• Solange Aguilar, Joolie Fiveash, Sierra Edd, and Tekenya Sanchez

Art Workshops:

Native American march (photo by Dulcey Lima)

• Coloring with Blue Bird Flour design outlines with The Chapter House; block printing workshop with meztli projects; “Tovaa'ngar - Toongvey Tribal Ancestral Lands” workshop with Virginia Carmelo; Ethical Sage Harvesting workshop with Nolan Eskeets

Artwork by:

• Mercedes Dorame

Let us know you're coming: The Chapter House Indigenous Peoples' Day Party RSVP (typeform.com).

• More: Music Center | Indigenous Peoples' Day Party
• Teepee vs. log cabin: Native American identity in US

“All the Real Indians Died Off”: And 20 Other Myths About Native Americans

21 myths about American Indians debunked

Authors Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz and Dina Gilio-Whitaker have 4.7 out of 5 stars with 380 ratings. This book is part of: Myths Made in America (a series of nine books).

This book unpacks the 21 most common myths and misconceptions about Native Americans.

In this enlightening book, scholars and activists Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz and Dina Gilio-Whitaker tackle a wide range of myths about Native American culture and history that have misinformed generations.

Tracing how these ideas evolved, and drawing from history, the authors disrupt long-held and enduring myths such as:

• 

  The classic history explainer

  “Columbus discovered America”
• “Thanksgiving proves the Indians welcomed Pilgrims”
• “Indians were savage and warlike”
• “Europeans brought civilization to backward Indians”
• “The United States did not have a policy of genocide”
• “Sports mascots honor Native Americans”
• “Most Indians are on government welfare”
• “Indian casinos make them all rich”
• “Indians are naturally predisposed to alcohol”

We set the record straight for everyone to know

Each chapter deftly shows how these myths are rooted in the fears and prejudice of invading European settlers and in the larger political agendas of a settler colonial state aimed at acquiring Indigenous land and tied to narratives of erasure and disappearance.

Accessibly written and revelatory, “All the Real Indians Died Off” challenges readers to rethink what they have been taught about Native Americans and history. More

Giants lived on Catalina Island, L.A.

The Giants of Catalina Island | Prehistoric Mysteries on California's Channel Islands

(MegalithomaniaUK) This is a new documentary exploring the mysteries of Santa Catalina Island (Pimu) 25 miles from the mainland beach in coastal San Pedro, Los Angeles County.

• Santa Catalina Island (California)

Los Angeles' Channel Islands have turned up hundreds of controversial discoveries; not only thousands of giant skeletons (over 8 feet long), but a prehistoric stone circle, incredibly ancient carbon dating, and evidence of historic red and blond-haired white islanders.

Thousands of giant skeletons, Indian artifacts, and evidence of occupation going back as far as 9,000 years have been scientifically recorded on the islands, with human occupation possibly dating as far back as 30,000 years before the present.

The story is intriguing and controversial, and it stars amateur archeologist Ralph Glidden and his bizarre museum of bones and artifacts on Catalina Island. But a few years before that, a German naturalist got the story going in 1913.

• Avalon, California (city)
• The Island of the Blue Dolphins, where lived "Karana" (forced to convert in Ventura and christened "Juana Maria" before her untimely death at the hands of her meddling captors/saviors), is based on a very real Channel Island named San Nicolas Island 25 miles farther out from Catalina
• The Nicoleños in Los Angeles: Documenting the Fate of the Lone Woman's Community

Dr. A. W. Furstenan unearthed an 8-foot skeleton with artifacts such as mortar and pestles and arrow heads on Catalina. He was told of a legend while in Mexico of a giant and noble race that lived on the island that existed long before the white man (European arrival) and had since vanished.

The film features Hugh Newman and Jim Vieira, authors of Giants on Record, ancient symbolism researcher Jj Ainsworth and Native American islander Mason Sanchez Lassos, a member of the Tongva/Gabrielino Tribe.

Get the book or Kindle at Amazon US amzn.to/1MrVH5, Amazon UK amzn.to/1OxghHM, and other outlets. #giantsonrecord. Support us on Patreon: megalithomania

• Megalithomania (YouTube, March 31, 2020); Xochitl, Pat Macpherson, Dhr. Seven (eds.), Wisdom Quarterlly