Editorial: Just put out the fires

Tribune-Review | Monday, August 26, 2019 6:01 p.m.

Nothing makes priorities more obvious than a fire.

You don’t call the insurance company and file a claim before you call 911. You do the most important thing until it’s taken care of and then move to the next one.

That is why everyone needs to take the Amazon rainforest fire seriously and act swiftly but with priorities.

The fires have been ripping through Brazil and into neighboring nations for more than two weeks.

The fires threaten the entirety of the Amazon’s 2.14 million square miles — more than 50 times the size of Pennsylvania. There are thousands of fires burning simultaneously.

The trees burning right now are often described as the world’s lungs, and that’s not an exaggeration. As every kid learns in science class, plants take in carbon dioxide and give back oxygen. The bigger the plant, the more carbon dioxide is scrubbed and returned as the oxygen that we breathe.

The fires are damaging that balance, using the oxygen as fuel and belching out thunderclouds of smoke.

It seems like an obvious problem. There’s a fire. Put it out. Get professionals. Get the neighbors to help. Do whatever you have to. Just stop the burning.

But two weeks in, the fires still burn. On Sunday, the Group of Seven world leaders announced they were preparing to help. French President Emmanuel Macron said they were nearing an agreement on technical and financial support “so that we can help them in the most effective way possible.” President Trump said the U.S. is “ready to assist.”

Just spoke with President @JairBolsonaro of Brazil. Our future Trade prospects are very exciting and our relationship is strong, perhaps stronger than ever before. I told him if the United States can help with the Amazon Rainforest fires, we stand ready to assist!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 23, 2019

Even fire has become political as Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro has been accused of foot dragging and has in return accused anti-government groups of setting the fires. Others claim the blaze was set by farmers and ranchers to clear land.

There are calls for investigations. There are cries about the environment. Macron has called Bolsonaro a liar. And the fires still burn.

When the Notre Dame Cathedral of Paris caught fire, the world watched and wept and mobilized, with hundreds of millions committed in days.

Our global lungs deserve that response.

Put out the fire. Figure out the politics later.