jt1stcav Posted August 25, 2007 Share Posted August 25, 2007 Has anyone heard from our illustrious forum member MaxG out of Athens lately? I'm only curious if he and his family are alright due to the horrible forest fires raging in and near Athens, Greece: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20423441/ I don't know where Max lives...hopefully nowhere near the blaze. Just wondering if others here on the forum have heard from him at all. Amy, sorry if this thread is posted in the wrong forum...just thought since Max usually hangs his audio hat here this would be the best place to get his attention. If you feel it needs to be moved to the General section, please do so at your convenience. Hope to hear from you, Max! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Islander Posted August 25, 2007 Share Posted August 25, 2007 Hope he's not camping in the forest... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arfandbark Posted August 26, 2007 Share Posted August 26, 2007 Hopefully he is just reviewing some ultra expensive amps and therefore is very busy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Timmikid Posted August 26, 2007 Share Posted August 26, 2007 I was thinking of him yesterday, when I was looking at the fires on the news. Scary stuff! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maxg Posted August 26, 2007 Share Posted August 26, 2007 Alive, well and back today. Mark was spot on. Was off on holiday on the island I always go to - no fires there thankfully - but the rest of Greece smells somewhat singed. Been a bad time all round here - and a shock general election has been called which has sent whatever was working into total chaos. Such is life. Thanks for the interest though.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jt1stcav Posted August 26, 2007 Author Share Posted August 26, 2007 Just glad to hear you and yours are out of harm's way[]...hopefully the blaze will be contained soon so the whole entire peninsula doesn't go up in flames! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jt1stcav Posted August 27, 2007 Author Share Posted August 27, 2007 It doesn't look good for Greece: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20423441/ The fires are growing, more citizens are found dead, and now the US is looking for ways to help out in fighting the continuously spreading blaze (other countries are also helping out). I'm sure Max is keeping an eye out for any developments his way... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maxg Posted August 27, 2007 Share Posted August 27, 2007 Keeping an eye on it is kinda unavoidable right now - it is on every TV station and many radio stations and its one of those things you dont want to watch but cant help it. At the same time Greek Paranoia is at an all time high and theories abound as to the perpertrators of the fires. Most of the theories are pure hokum with the most popular one (unscrupulous developers) being pretty unlikely as the areas where the fires are burning are not exactly potentially high value real estate in the near future (neither the Peloponese nor Evia have particularly large or expanding populations). Fires that have occured around Athens are more likely canditates - but even there the likliehood of development ever being allowed on Imitos (the mountain behind Athens) is somewhat unlikely. Could be political motivations of course - there is a general election called for September 16th but it is a bit extreme (although extremism is rather popular globally these days). Simple put - a combination of incompetance in forest management, coupled to negligence and an unusually hot summer with high winds in a country of avid smokers and you have what we have today. Temperatures did rise again recently - everything is tinder dry - it is an accident waiting to happen. None of this is to say that some of the fires were not started deliberately but I think there were crimes of opportunity more than anything else. Of course the government is screaming political motivations to make them look bad - but frankly they do look bad - the response was too little too late (ring any bells? Thank God we dont get hurricanes) and the political appointements they made to head up the fire service highlights the lack of experience and competance in their choices. Will be quite impressive if they do manage to lose this election - they had a 7 point lead from the last one and the alternative party (PASOK) are not all that appealing except as a choice to these monkeys. I guess that was more than any of you wanted to know - and wildly OT for 2 channel.....er......the new Klipsch flagship speaker looks nice (Palladium?) [:S] I just hope they dont make them from wood from Greek forests.... PS - now would be a good time to stock up on Olive Oil - the Peloponese is a major region for growing olives here - and much of the "Italian" Product you get over there is actually from over here - exported to Italy and then re-badged to go to you (old Mafia thing apparently). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Islander Posted August 27, 2007 Share Posted August 27, 2007 Here in BC, provincial governments usually get voted out, not in, meaning it's rare for any political party to get into power for two terms in a row. Luckily, we have three mainstream parties, plus a few hopefuls, so we have some choice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LarryC Posted August 27, 2007 Share Posted August 27, 2007 PS - now would be a good time to stock up on Olive Oil - the Peloponese is a major region for growing olives here - and much of the "Italian" Product you get over there is actually from over here - exported to Italy and then re-badged to go to you (old Mafia thing apparently).The New Yorker article, Slippery Business: The trade in adulterated olive oil discusses what is virtually worldwide olive oil fraud! Not exactly like French control over wine-making, AFAIK. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jt1stcav Posted August 27, 2007 Author Share Posted August 27, 2007 Well, I don't know much about provincial governments and olive oil fraud, but this satellite image of the Greece forest fires is pretty damn alarming to say the least! In the meantime, Max, I hope you and your family have everything in order just in case you ever need to evacuate (hope it never comes to that...I survived 3 major hurricanes all in a row back in '04 and you still don't always have everything planned out in case you ever need to leave your home. It's a scarey proposition all the way 'round)! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maxg Posted August 28, 2007 Share Posted August 28, 2007 PS - now would be a good time to stock up on Olive Oil - the Peloponese is a major region for growing olives here - and much of the "Italian" Product you get over there is actually from over here - exported to Italy and then re-badged to go to you (old Mafia thing apparently).The New Yorker article, Slippery Business: The trade in adulterated olive oil discusses what is virtually worldwide olive oil fraud! Not exactly like French control over wine-making, AFAIK. Good link Larry - nice to see the Romans had better control over quality than the Italians do today.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boom3 Posted August 28, 2007 Share Posted August 28, 2007 Keeping an eye on it is kinda unavoidable right now - it is on every TV station and many radio stations and its one of those things you dont want to watch but cant help it. At the same time Greek Paranoia is at an all time high and theories abound as to the perpertrators of the fires. Most of the theories are pure hokum with the most popular one (unscrupulous developers) being pretty unlikely as the areas where the fires are burning are not exactly potentially high value real estate in the near future (neither the Peloponese nor Evia have particularly large or expanding populations). Fires that have occured around Athens are more likely canditates - but even there the likliehood of development ever being allowed on Imitos (the mountain behind Athens) is somewhat unlikely. Could be political motivations of course - there is a general election called for September 16th but it is a bit extreme (although extremism is rather popular globally these days). Simple put - a combination of incompetance in forest management, coupled to negligence and an unusually hot summer with high winds in a country of avid smokers and you have what we have today. Temperatures did rise again recently - everything is tinder dry - it is an accident waiting to happen. None of this is to say that some of the fires were not started deliberately but I think there were crimes of opportunity more than anything else. Of course the government is screaming political motivations to make them look bad - but frankly they do look bad - the response was too little too late (ring any bells? Thank God we dont get hurricanes) and the political appointements they made to head up the fire service highlights the lack of experience and competance in their choices. Will be quite impressive if they do manage to lose this election - they had a 7 point lead from the last one and the alternative party (PASOK) are not all that appealing except as a choice to these monkeys. I guess that was more than any of you wanted to know - and wildly OT for 2 channel.....er......the new Klipsch flagship speaker looks nice (Palladium?) [:S] I just hope they dont make them from wood from Greek forests.... PS - now would be a good time to stock up on Olive Oil - the Peloponese is a major region for growing olives here - and much of the "Italian" Product you get over there is actually from over here - exported to Italy and then re-badged to go to you (old Mafia thing apparently). Gee, This sounds familiar...the conspiracy theories, the finger-pointing, the incompetence, the crimes of opportunity...and the second anniversary of Katrina is tomorrow. Sorry yall are going through this, Max, maybe we can help out! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mas Posted August 28, 2007 Share Posted August 28, 2007 One wonders if Greece has been victim of the same flawed "no fire is a good fire" philosophy advocated by the same myopic environmentalist and forest management community that has dominated the US thinking for the past 50+ years, resulting in forests loaded with understory tinder primed to support massively destructive fires rather than the more frequent smaller less destructive fires, including controlled burns, that burn off under-story combustibles, adding to the soil fertility, supporting the more mature growth while also supporting the germination of additional trees. Of course, after the early 1990 fires in Berkeley where most homes burned specifically due to the use of combustible shake roofing and siding, where use of non-combustible materials would have resulted in a dramatic reduction of home fires (as the fires were spread primarily by oil rich eucalyptus trees spreading the fire through flammable ash), the same eco-wackos in Berkeley who complained that the government did not do enough to stem the fires, after codes were revised to require the use of non-combustible roofing and siding building materials, fought and had the codes overturned in order to allow rebuilding with the same combustible materials. Yup, when are "they" going to do something... But then Yellowstone will take 100's of years before growth is restored to pre-fire conditions. Oh wait, that nonsense was the mantra from the same folks who brought you the "no fire is a good fire" nonsense. Isn't it ironic how the very well meaning folks who seek to save us from ourselves and view humankind as a separate invasive entity and refuse to see man as an integral part of nature, and who simply believe that man, being invasive, should simply refrain from reasonable management programs, cause more harm than they seek to solve. I fear we as a race get exactly what we deserve. Be safe, Max. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Islander Posted August 28, 2007 Share Posted August 28, 2007 Some fire pictures from Greece: http://www.ctv.ca/gallery/html/greece_fire_20070827/photo_0.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jt1stcav Posted August 29, 2007 Author Share Posted August 29, 2007 Wow, the devastation is mind-numbing.[] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maxg Posted August 29, 2007 Share Posted August 29, 2007 Well the good news is that we finally appear to be winning this thing and the fires are dying down. Amazing number of international supporting fire-crews are to thank and I understand the largest contingent was from Israel. The damage is staggering - much of what was once rather nice forrest, woodland, village and farm is now a moonscape - heaven only knows how long the region will need to recover - decades probably. Heres to praying the death-toll rises no further - its in the mid sixties now but there are a lot of missing persons yet to be accounted for. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arfandbark Posted August 30, 2007 Share Posted August 30, 2007 Glad to hear you and yours are safe, Max. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rivendell61 Posted August 30, 2007 Share Posted August 30, 2007 PS - now would be a good time to stock up on Olive Oil - the Peloponese is a major region for growing olives here - and much of the "Italian" Product you get over there is actually from over here - exported to Italy and then re-badged to go to you (old Mafia thing apparently).The New Yorker article, Slippery Business: The trade in adulterated olive oil discusses what is virtually worldwide olive oil fraud! Not exactly like French control over wine-making, AFAIK. Good link Larry - nice to see the Romans had better control over quality than the Italians do today.... Re those Romans....a few years prior to the yuppie introduction of drizzled olive oil and granite topped kitchen counters to Slough and the Edinburgh suburbs the Romans were importing and enjoying the extra virgin at leafy places like Chichester, Cirencester, and even northern Haltwhistle. After the Romans left, c.410AD--in the so called "Dark Ages"--someone was still importing ship loads of the stuff (along with mediteranean wines, etc) via Tintagel in Cornwall. Then it was back to lard, sausage, beans and chips for 1400 years. Mark Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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