by Greg Walcher, E&E Legal Senior Policy Fellow
The Daily Sentinel
Bonnie Sue Hitchcock, critically acclaimed author of “Everyone Dies Famous in a Small Town,” says people always want someone to blame in a tragedy. It is pearl of wisdom universally and invariably true. This year’s wildfires, including two catastrophic fires in Rio Blanco County, are no exception. Like last spring’s heartbreaking fires in California, there are plenty of people standing around pointing fingers — all of whom should remember the old adage that when you point your finger at anyone, there are three fingers pointing back at you.
Possibly the most uncalled-for finger pointing in the annals of forest fire history was a recent post in a liberal online mouthpiece called Colorado Newsline, blaming the Meeker area fires on Congressman Jeff Hurd, who was visiting first responders in the area to offer help. The thanks he got, at least from that corner, was a demand that he apologize for the fire — because he supports American energy independence. As if those fires have anything to do with whether American energy comes from the U.S. or Saudi Arabia.
The piece was written by a former Boulder Daily Camera reporter who now edits the online site, part of a national chain of similar sites called States Newsroom. That’s a $22 million group funded by the Wyss Foundation, Rockefeller Family Fund, Google, Pew Charitable Trusts, National Public Radio, New York Times, environmental activists, and others. The same writer thinks there is “no right way or wrong way to immigrate.” He thinks opponents of the new transgender law are “schoolyard bullies,” says the Taxpayers Bill of Rights “comes from the same place as MAGA,” and calls the Trump administration “lawless,” Energy Secretary Chris Wright a “climate arsonist,” and Gov. Jared Polis an extension of Trump’s immigration policies.
OK, so the website is biased, no surprise. But this piece about the West Slope fires is beyond one-sided. It is irrational, suggesting that Rep. Hurd is to blame for wildfires — including the two in Rio Blanco County that were started by lightning — because he doesn’t think the U.S. should rely on imported energy.
