Not unexpected - from FOX News:
Federal land management to blame for out-of-control fires, say critics
Wildfires are continuing to plague drought-stricken California and federal funding to fight them has dried up like parched El Dorado County farmland, leading critics to say the real problem lies nearly 3,000 miles away, in Washington.
For the year, more than 6 million acres -- an area the size of New Jersey -- have been burned, according to the National Interagency Fire Center. For the first time, the U.S. Forest Service will spend more than half its budget, some $1.2 billion, on fighting fires on the vast acreage it manages from the nation’s capital.
There is a better way, according to some experts, who believe more private ownership of land would divert the responsibility and cost from taxpayers.
“The federal government has shown itself to be a poor steward of its massive land holdings,” said Chris Edwards, director of tax policy studies at public policy think tank the CATO Institute. “The issues with Western lands are far too complex and sensitive for far-away politicians and bureaucrats in Washington to be able to solve.”
Absolutely! The problem in a nutshell:
“Private owners cannot afford to let their forests die of disease, insect infestations or wildfire,” Smith said. “They are on the job 24 hours a day, unlike 9-5 government bureaucrats. If private owners fail they go bankrupt. If Forest Service managers fail, at worst they are transferred to another forest.”
No accountability. Time and time again, when a Federal bureaucrat fails, they are removed from office and public scrutiny for six months and then they are quietly given a same level or higher post in some other branch of the agency - frequently with a pay raise "for the inconvenience".
We need to break this cycle and make Washington accountable again. Demand that our representatives work for us and not their special interests.
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