The fires burning down the West Coast have become yet another contributing factor to the political and social division in Oregon — and our country as a whole. All around us is indisputable evidence that humans are profoundly harming the earth’s climate, yet some conservatives and right-wing politicians still refuse to acknowledge it. It is time climate change is looked at as a fact of life rather than a politicians talking point. There is no room for dissenting opinions as we burn our world to the ground.
In the wake of the fires there has been a desire to place blame on an individual or group. Residents of a town in Oregon called Corbett have been taking matters into their own hands.
In Corbett, located east of Gresham, there have been reports of armed civilians creating roadblocks to catch antifascists on their way to light more fires. It is unsettling to think that liberal extremists or anyone would intentionally start forest fires to prove something, but this is the narrative that has been sold to the angry and uneducated.
Trump never explicitly said the fires were started by antifa, but throughout his presidency he has wrongly pinned crimes and violence on them feeding into his perspective that white nationalists are victims of liberal violence. There were a number of arrests for arson during the fires, but none of the perpetrators have political affiliation and almost all of the fires they started were put out immediately.
Worse yet, these roadblocks in Corbett were operating under the blessing of local law enforcement. This is a symptom of the same problem. By frequently intentionally disregarding facts, Trump has made feelings and individual justice more important than reality, empowering people like the armed citizens in Corbett to take their own “justice.”
Luckily the sheriff of Oregon’s largest county, Multnomah, was quick to release a statement decrying the actions of these individuals.
This kind of thinking has the potential to infect people with high political and cultural clout as well. One of the most popular podcasts in the world, “The Joe Rogan Experience,” came under fire after spreading misinformation about the fires in Oregon in an interview with author Douglas Murray.
With an audience of millions who respect his opinion, host Joe Rogan said: “They have arrested left-wing people for lighting these forest fires. You know, activist, and this is also something that is not widely being reported.”
The reason this information isn’t being reported is because it is false.
Thousands of people believe that these fires were caused intentionally by a left wing activist rather than years of climate change and greed. For those who need someone to attribute blame to, look to the ongoing battle between logging companies and environmentalists.
The logging companies want free reign to clear-cut as much timber in Oregon as possible, but environmental regulations that protect water sources and habitats hold them back. These regulations are in place to make sure the entire ecosystem is not destroyed by logging, but they also lead to wood and organic debris being left on the forest floor, ready to ignite in a fire.
The dispute between logging companies and environmental regulations has contributed to the fires, it is our neglect of climate change that takes the blame. Summer days in Oregon are only getting hotter, increasing the likelihood of wildfires.
If we continue to treat climate change as an issue that can be debated, it will be far too late to do anything about it. There is no room for discussion.