5 ms·

What's the idea there? Insurance fraud, just causing chaos?

• justinator 7y ago
  I really hope it's just not an entire continent out for blood.
  • jb12 7y ago
    That's not really how it works in Australia. We're more focussed on (in order): 1. Helping the people who lost everything 2. Holding the country's leadership to account on why they refused to meet with fire experts before this season. 3. Prosecuting arsonists under the laws we have You'll note that their names weren't shared, and they will be dealt with in our legal system like any other offender, from underage drinkers all the way to Cardinals in the Catholic Church. But people starting fires (intentionally or not) is not new in Australia, sadly. What is different this year is the conditions that caused the scale of the destruction, funding cuts to fire services and the prime minister refusing to meet with fire experts, who were trying to warn him that this was going to happen.
• deleted 7y ago
  [deleted]
• Zenst 7y ago
  May be good intentions due too a little knowledge playout out bad. For example, somebody knows about firebreaks, seen on TV how easy it looks, do a controlled burn of an area to create that firebreak and they thought - I can do that. So without going thru court/statements of each case, hard to say for sure and certainly won't be the same brush for all, however the headline spins it. After all, some charges cover a multitude of sins and non-sins and have a stigma associated with them dependant upon the current social trends. So arson charges in the current climate(sic) of Australia would be less socialy popular than somebody charged with murder - least in some parts, that you can bet. Emotions are very high and always will be in any disaster of this scale. But whatever their level of guilt (or not), that is 24 people who are going to feel pariah.
• htfu 7y ago
  People light loose fires everywhere all the time. Overwhelmingly by negligence, sometimes on purpose, and then yes either from strategy or pathology. Though you'd think the former group might want to pick a better time, unless truly sociopathic. Easier to blend in right now, otoh.
• Vysero 7y ago
  Well I can't speak for the actual intention of the author. However, I do know that fire fighters are often paid well. I have heard (could be completely false) of people starting fires in order to produce work for themselves. I know it sounds ridiculous but when times get tough...
  • htfu 7y ago
    These are overwhelmingly volunteers. And regular firefighters don't work on commission lol And yes, times are tough right now. In the opposite sense of what you're saying.
  • mikestew 7y ago
    Though firefighters starting fires for something to do does happen (I went to high school with a guy busted for exactly that; he was not the type that I was shocked to hear the news), you are going way out on a Limb of Supposition there. And as sibling points out, there’s no monetary motive, they’re volunteers for the most part. (Then again, so was my high school buddy). And the paid ones, just like the paid crew down the street from my house, get paid the same if they’re fighting fires or playing Call of Duty at the station house.
    • Vysero 7y ago
      Hot shots can make up to 40 grand in one season. Some of the fire fighters at your local station could be hot shots but they might not be as well. When a forest fire erupts they (hot shots) are the first responders and are trained in a very different way from fire fighters trained to combat house fires.