Politics of Springs Fire

FOX has reported that the FBI has been called upon to investigate the fire that is raging on the West Side.  This is a highly unusual thing.  Usually state and local investigations are all that go on, but evidently there is suspicion of criminal activity.  What else would you conclude when 19 fires are set almost all at once.

The President is scheduled to arrive on Friday and this may be just another photo-op, another speech about the bravery of the firefighters and a pledge to do something.  But it may not go so well for him.  We'll have to listen.  There are three problems which locals are steamed over.  First is the BLM.  Bureau of Land Management holds all the land in ravines and steep slopes surrounding housing developments.  And they don't manage very well.  They allow all manner of fallen timber to collect which then fuels, indeed makes it impossible to put out the fires and propagates the damage.  So Coloradans are asking if the federal government really needs all this land.  After all, those upscale neighborhoods are the ones where everyone xeroscapes and follows landscaping guidelines about not having bushes within 20 feet of your house.  And tile roofs and stucco walls.  Those guys should have escaped if anyone would, but when the canyon is spewing burning embers all over your house, you tend to ask who provided all those matches.  Maybe if Oblamer needs some revenue he could sell some property off and let private people take care of it.  They would.

Second controversy is the planes.  Air Force has something like 350 C-130s which can be equipped with fire fighting equipment.  Used to be that the feds had about 100 planes which did this.  Now there are a grand total of 8.  Oblamer has let practically the entire firefighting effort get mothballed.  Equipment is old and hasn't been fixed.  And embarrassingly enough, the Air Force Academy is threatened.  Now the defense budget will get rid of another 65 C-130s and all those guys at Schreiber Air Force Base and the Academy had a few sharp questions to ask.

And then there is the firefighting snafu.  Evidently the BLM told the Springs Fire Department in the first week that they didn't need their help.  CSFD was told to go eat a donut because BLM had it all under control.  A stitch in time might have saved 9.  The mayor better watch his mouth, however.  Else Oblamer will not cooperate like he is doing to AZ.

And will say this was all Bush's fault.

Asked Aaron if his staff had been affected, he told me sadly that his original BOA, who still works occaisionally when he gets swamped, had a house directly in the line of the burn front and he would be surprised if it survived.  But they were smart.  Filled the pickup and car with all their valuable personal things guessing that something bad might happen.  It did.  They were told they had 5 minutes to evacuate, so they drove over to their daughter's house.  They're safe and the rest can be replaced.

So suppose, I ventured, you were to find some of that Christmas tree fire retardent and could buy about 5 gallons and spray your house.  You know how a treated Christmas tree refuses to burn--even if you throw it onto a big fire.  He laughed.  That is a closely related chemical to the fire retardent they dump out of the C-130s.