Since the BBC has just informed me that the Australian New South Wales town of Koolewong is in danger of forest fires "fuelled by climate change" I thought I'd better do a bit of checking.
Sure enough both state and federal regulations, as usual fuelled by eco-nuttery, place strict limits on the removal of underbrush - even though they allow underbrush removal within a certain distance of housing since it is a recognised fire hazard!
Underbrush growth takes nutrients and - crucially - moisture from the ground, which has knock-on effects on the surrounding trees, which themselves become dry, producing hard fire-friendly outer bark to protect whatever moisture remains in the tree.
Nature's solution to this, the world over, from the Amazon rainforest to the Siberia Taiga, is the same.
Fire.
It returns nutrients to the soil and allows rainfall to reach the ground. The trees generally survive, that hard outer bark burning away, and for many years they will thrive until the underbrush builds up again.
When Captain Cook arrived in Australia in 1770 he noted how some aboriginals "farmed" the forest with fire, while others followed the natural fires to take advantage of the new growth which quickly sprang up. He wrote that removing underbrush (usually for kindling) was practice in England and the North American colonies. Local non-nomadic Indian tribes also knew that underbrush had to be removed to prevent fires.
The fires in New South Wales have nothing to do with "climate change" and everything to do with the regulatory prevention of underbrush clearance at the behest of the "green" lobby.
Looking at some Facebook and X posts concerning Koolewong, it seems some residents had been warning for some time that the soil in the forest was too dry and the underbrush too dense, and needed cutting back.
But who listens to sweet reason these days?
Congratulations to @heavyO. Your question was chosen for tonight’s Ask Greg and the Panelists
What TV game show would you be really good at?
Congratulations to @Missmommapanda. Your question was chosen for tonight’s Ask Greg and the Panelists.
@Missmommapanda Thinking back to your childhood: were you a ‘truth’ kid or a ‘dare’ kid - and what’s the funniest or most unforgettable moment you can actually share with us today?
We are so grateful to have found The Gutter and to be part of a place where we can meet wonderful people and feel a real sense of community. We truly have so much to be thankful for, and today we love to celebrate that together.
Please share your Thanksgiving moments with us—what you’re thankful for, what made you smile, or the simple joys that made today special.
As for me, I’m thankful that my family is healthy and happy, that the kids have their homes and their jobs, and that I can pause during the day to notice something in nature I don’t see every day…..flock of starlings murmuring around our refinery.
Those little moments mean everything.
Happy Thanksgiving from my heart to yours.
I'm sorry I haven't been on here for a couple of days. It's basic laziness on my part, but then I haven't had a lot of rest, so I've been crashing out a bit. Tomorrow morning, though, I have church, and as soon as my pastor's wife picks me up that's where I'll be headed. Right now, though, I have a prayer request.
Benny Johnson broke the news on his podcast 3 hours ago that Tim Pool, another free speech activist, had the outside of his studio shot up. The video is attached, and Benny also talks about other conservative voices being threatened, like Matt Walsh and Catturd, as well as the attempts on President Trump and the murder of Charlie Kirk, and to me, it's a reminder of what Greg has been saying on The Five - there's only one side engaging in political violence in the United States, and that's the left vs. the right.
Prayers lifted for Tim and his family, and prayers for our country. 🇺🇸🙏🇺🇸🙏🇺🇸
And now...
Today is Saturday, December 6th, and Donald J. ...
