Overstatement of the year and we barely into its second week

Washington Post:
‘Like a World War I battlefield’: At least 15 dead as mudslides wipe away Southern California homes

A storm of mud descended on the coastal community of Montecito with no warning, said officials, who expect the number of deaths to increase as rescue workers continue to look for people who are missing.
Not to diminish the casualties in a mudslide, but the Battle of the Somme had over a million casualties total.  The British lost over 57,000 men on the first day alone.  In World War I, 14 casualties would be a relatively minor skirmish.  The casualties were so high in World War I because the machinery of warfare made past tactics obsolete.  It was not until planes and tanks came into play that combined arms operation made advances less of a bloodbath.

California has had a tough year of weather.  It needs to focus more on fixing its infrastructure than pushing so many money pit social programs.

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