By Asish Samson

In an another stunning display of political opportunism California governor Jerry Brown used the southern California fires to further his political agenda by claiming the fires were caused by “Climate change” and blaming the Republicans and President Trump. He had also previously used the same rhetoric during 2015 fires asking the then Republican Presidential candidates about it while completely leaving the Obama administration which was in power for since the last 7 years by then. But he has been time and time again been refuted by scientists and experts about the cause of the fire.

According to the relevant experts these fires are being caused by several factors chief of which is high wind, dry conditions, excessive plumage due to heavy rains the past winter and building homes in the fire prone areas. Climate ecologists have previously declared that climate change had no connection to the fire frequency and the dry weather that causes the fires. “ There is insufficient data” according to Forest Service ecologist Matt Jolly. Land management policies have the greatest influence in prevent the fires. Forest fires spread faster and grow larger when there is an abundance of fuel to burn that is foliage and plumage from the previous rainy season. Current weather models predict a decrease in future fires in southern California.

The then President Barack Obama too had falsely claimed in 2015 that Climate change was responsible for the fires breaking out across the country. Scientists and experts have termed this as a “ Noble-cause corruption” and have shown their disapproval to it. Jerry Brown had last month said that the world needed “ Brain washing” about climate change. The problem is that the democrats blaming Trump for climate change makes no sense. The democrats have been in power for 8 years while Trump hasn’t yet completed a year in the Oval office. While Trump did pull the USA out of the Paris Climate accord this has no bearing yet on any fires. The Paris accord which claimed to reduce global warming by 1 degree in the next hundred years while closing hundreds of factories across the USA and thereby costing thousands of jobs for American workers has been high on Obama’s agenda. While Trump pulled out of the deal he still held the door open for the US to enter if a better deal was renegotiated.

The present southern California fires are at various stages of containment according to the authorities. The Lilac fire was fully contained while the Creek fire was 80% contained and the Skirball fire was 75% and Rye fire 65% contained. The Thomas fire the largest fire at present, spread over more than 150,000 acres is just only 15% contained. Meanwhile Chelsea Handler the comedian and self proclaimed “psychic” has claimed that Trump was somehow responsible for the fires though she didn’t know how on her Twitter handle. As expected she was roundly ridiculed.