I was at the Long Valley Ranger Station a few weeks ago. I noticed a sign outside, encouraging people to carry the Ten Essentials. It was the traditional list, which included matches and fire starter.
I was shocked that any land manager in Southern California would encourage people to carry these items, and believe that their use is warranted. My house burned down in the 2003 Cedar Fire, which was started by a foolish lost hunter as a signal fire. But my opinion on this goes back to the 1970's, when I once had a conversation with a hiker who said that he would start a backfire to save himself, if he thought the circumstances warranted it. He was quite self-righteous about it, he clearly had the attitude that his own survival justified any action, and that he was the sole judge of what was appropriate. I was so shocked I could barely reply. With the amount of gray matter he had upstairs, a backfire he started would almost certainly have greatly increased his own danger, as well as that of everybody else in the area.
About a week ago, I was talking about this with a volunteer ranger couple at the Tahquitz lookout. They said it is not unusual to see fires in the forest below. And this after the Mountain Fire.