Greenies Blamed for Disaster in Australia

(Victoria, Australia) Pope Benedict has expressed his sorrow at the Victorian fire disaster as the death count increases to 181 and bodies continue to be found. The devastation has been compared to Hiroshima.

Officials blame arsonists while others are putting at least partial blame on the "greenies."

And hard questions will be asked of Victoria's Department of Sustainability and Environment (DSE) about whether it has done enough to manage the state's forests.

Tinder-dry forests were consumed with a fury few people have witnessed before, and many people are angry there was so much fuel to burn.

As nervous Yarra Valley residents watched smoke rise from a fire on Mount Riddell outside Healesville, they placed at least some of the blame at the feet of the "greenies".

"I don't know if it's the DSE's fault," said Badger Creek resident John Hurren.

"It's the greenies' fault for letting all the forests grow up and not letting the Government clear it."

Interestingly, the greenies are also considered partially responsible for the devastation caused by regular fires on America's west coast. For the sake of human life and property, the philosophy of allowing forested areas to become tinder needs to be reevaluated.