Back then the forest service tried to put out ALL those fires IMMEDIATELY.
Now, they decided to use their brains and realize that forest fires are natural events in nature. They have entire programs dedicated to explaining why it's STUPID to put them out or even try to control them. When I first saw this program I was brought to realize how complex the forest ecosystem is. Now, I see the light! AAAAmmmmeeeeen, BROTHERS and SISTERS!!!!! I see the light!!
Folks who live in those forest fire areas are just as stupid as the folks who built on the flood plains of the Mississippi River. Rivers with YEARLY flooding aren't going to STOP flooding because John and Mary Dumb-Butts wanna build on the river front.
Oh well, the culling of the species continues.
The problem is still mismanagement. Those fires that were fought so ardently in the past, lack of logging, and other greenie-weenie crap has reduced once-great forests to dregs.
We're no longer allowed to log like we used to. So too many trees fight for too little water, then get weak and are prone to beetle infestation. They die, and become tinder for the next little fire to blow up into a big fire.
There was a lot of reaction in the SW after the Rodeo-Chediski fire caused unprecedented damage on National Forest land, but had little impact on adjacent White-Mountain Apache forest land. The Apaches had allowed logging to thin the forest, and it suffered little damage in comparison.
Entire forests of dead/dying trees to become the next match-head to ignite.