Small posts on climate and related issues by Iman Safi , January 6, 2020

 The 2019-2020 Australian fires are a natural disaster of great proportion, but I wouldn’t say unprecedented. The 2009 fires were smaller in magnitude, but led to more loss of life. That said, we don’t know what will the final life loss tally be for a while, and as we brace and snuggle, we pray for the least final count.

What is pertinent here is the fact that the underlying reasons behind the fires are numerous and almost countless. Simply put, and without going into details, the human factors, if any, are highly likely to be the cumulative outcome of the inconvenient marriage of neglect (blamed on conservatives) and political correctness (blamed on the Left).

Instead of investing in hi-tech firefighting gear, our governments opted to spend billions on wars on countries that don’t threaten us, and only to please our international allies so we can count on them if and when invaded by Indonesia or China. How short-sighted they have been turning the blind eye to the imminent threat; and both major political parties have been equally responsible.

Even if investigators prove that the fires have all been the outcome of human activity, then more than likely no political group within Australia will be vindicated. In fact, they may end up equally responsible.

Until proven otherwise, politically-speaking, all sides of the political divide should be potentially perceived with equal accountability, but in the middle of the disaster, it is the Left narrative that has the media listening to. They are having a field day.

Turning the disaster into a political football for political gain is cheap and immoral.

In my humble view, it’s time to put this whole debate, at least within Australia, about climate and human activity away from politics. We need a Royal Commission. We have an international opportunity to lead the world into putting science ahead of politics on this matter.