Posturing politicians and uniformed fire generals should confine themselves to posing for photos, baking scones and boiling billy tea for fire-fighters
No one should be surprised that our bush is ablaze and our cities are smothered in smoke.
For decades now we have been locking up land, banning burn-offs and encouraging eucalyptus fire-trees.
On a hot day, the blue haze on distant timbered hills is caused by highly-flammable eucalyptus oil vapour, waiting for a spark.
The Australian landscape of open forests and treeless grasslands was developed and maintained under an aboriginal regime of continual small fires. This was followed by planned cool-season burn-offs by European graziers.