Arson Ick

We didn't start the fire. But we know who did.

People. Yes, 88% of wildfires are linked to human activities.

So, why does the media insist on framing them as natural disasters?

Just because the blazes take place in nature (and are undeniably intensified by arid conditions) doesn't mean our news sources should gloss over what's creating them. The simple fact is that most of these infernos would not exist without mortal mistakes... and malice.

Smokey Bear has been doing his best to limit the accidental ones. Still -- if we truly want to help prevent forest fires -- it's up to the rest of us to quit downplaying arson in the great outdoors.

Burning Men

Pyros have been responsible for some of the biggest calamities in recent memory. Four weeks ago, Spokane experienced devastation due to the actions of one demented individual. Close to 70,000 area residents were forced to evacuate because of him; 700 of those folks came home to nothing but a pile of ash and rubble. Days later, a woman torched the mountains above Nevada's Lemmon Valley; her handiwork eventually contributed to the destruction of tens of thousands of acres in the vicinity.

This type of behavior is becoming an annual occurrence, often involving serial saboteurs. Last year, San Diego County needed to quickly douse two separate scenes set by a single perpetrator. And in 2024, a pair of incidents with matching fingerprints dealt the Inland Empire roughly $15 million in damage.

For the record, this trend isn't isolated to America. Greece has had its fair share of gasoline-toting rogues traipsing around remote weedy patches. Spain, too. [Including the demon behind a 12,000-hectare monster in Zaragoza.] If you think that's bad, check out what transpired in France this summer. At least 162 arsonists were arrested in the window surrounding Bastille Day.

While giant brushfires get cataloged for posterity, tons of contained events are either ignored or soon forgotten. To illustrate, think of the havoc that could've ensued if Jefferson County (CO) sheriffs didn't extinguish the flickering biomass ignited by a June firebug. Thankfully, their body cameras saved the evidence for all to see... not unlike the cell phone footage of ordinary citizens who corralled a creep in LA's Runyon Canyon eleven months prior.

Given extensive proof that these factors exist, why do journos refuse to address them head-on?

Snuffing Out Significance

In short, because very few thought leaders are willing to contradict the idea of climate change, even indirectly. Outlets like Axios far prefer to churn out a steady torrent of climate anxiety dreck than impart anything that has more than a perfunctory reference to arson. CNN will run a headline belittling climate change skepticism writ large in an article containing a quote from their own so-called 'climate crisis beat leader' which states point-blank, "To say that climate change caused the Spokane fires - no, absolutely that would be an incorrect thing to say." *

Academics are no better. Yale's Climate Change Communication program actually produced the research cited by Axios. Instead of asking respondents if global warming is the primary reason for wildfires, the university relies on vague terms like "affecting" to lock in the agreeable numbers they seek. Thinktanks and nonprofits ratchet up the fervor using fractionalization -- through emphasis on disproportionate suffering -- rather than trying to battle the problem we all face.

The climate-heavy psyche has even permeated organizations dictating wildfire policy. It's not exactly reassuring to learn that the next generation of minds on the front line are being taught that massive smoke-belching flames are "something to 'live with.'" Or that the National Fire Plan is funding NGOs who aim to wield social science to "build a path to fire adaptation."

Incendiary Impulses

Blind allegiance to climate change as the firestorm be-all end-all has dangerous consequences. First, it whitewashes or bastardizes triage and nuance. Worse, it apparently triggers imbalanced souls to touch off new fires they hope will be attributed to the cause.

There was an environmental sociology professor who copped to four CA backwoods burnings. The Golden State's most newsworthy fire of the 2020s also appears to fit the angry activist profile. Allegedly, a misanthrope with a penchant for posting eco-warrior content lit the spark that led to the annihilation of about 37 square miles in the Pacific Palisades.

Extremists on the opposite side of this issue are capable of snapping, too. One Quebec guy who grew weary of constant climate change chatter confessed to incinerating fourteen spots in 2023. [Predictably, CNN saddled the Canadian with the infamous "conspiracy theorist" descriptor... while they chose to focus attention away from the nutty professor's feelings on climate matters.]

Fighting Fire with Fire

For those who would argue the criminal angle is anecdotal, now is a good time to mention that every fifth combustible circumstance is arson. [Realistically, 20% is probably a lowball figure that fails to incorporate a fair number of mis- and unidentified affairs.] Looking at the whole picture, a mindblowing statistic jumps off the page: lunatics carrying accelerants are twice as likely to spawn wildfires than the top natural catalyst (lightning) is!

Yet scientists continue to claim it's "almost never the case" that "human villains" are culpable. And broadcasters still publish their easily disproven bunk while diluting eyewitness testimony. **

As depressing as stuff may seem, there is value in knowing who can't be trusted going forward. Luckily, there are plenty of figurative fire fighters willing to assist the literal ones in clearing the air. Stakeholder-driven groups, like the Intermountain West Joint Venture, that bring experts together with storytellers. *** Representatives of nimble special districts, akin to the Wyoming Weed and Pest Council, that operate outside the standard bureaucratic morass. Highly engaged landowners dedicated to serving as volunteer stewards for their regions. Even a senator or two!

Getting allies of this caliber to urge for honest coverage is critical. They have the power to reset the conversation around wildfire and what initiates it. They can demand reporters stop treating arsonists as afterthoughts. Those adjustments alone would boost overall clarity and, ideally, free up resources for natural dilemmas like the proliferation of cheatgrass and, of course, the climate.

Wouldn't that be an improvement?

Note: this post may contain commentary reflecting the author's opinion.

This site does not render legal advice, nor does it intend to replace legal advice.

* In typical fashion, this meteorologist points to "weather whiplash" as an irreconcilable issue. Isn't it interesting that the credentialed class has concluded that unless the perfect amount of rain falls in the appropriate intervals, our world is in "crisis?" Pretty sure humanity has survived countless climactic swings outside of the narrow goldilocks zone prescribed by men and women like him.

** It was undoubtedly just a coincidence that the synthesized version fit the Independence Day anti-fireworks narrative ;(

*** I witnessed this personally as someone given the honor of attending their June 2026 gathering in Thermopolis, WY. [Pictured below.]

Jim and Terry Wilson recount the urgency surrounding 2025's Red Canyon Fire, which began when lightning hit their ranch in Hot Springs County, Wyoming. [Photo taken on June 3, 2026.]