Arson

When I was a child Smokey-the Bear taught us that only we could prevent forest fires. We all knew playing with matches was wrong and no normal child wanted to be responsible for causing a fire. Sadly, that doesn’t seem to be the case for many residing in Israel nowadays. In some circles arsonists are even glorified heroes.

It would be interesting to know what happens when arsonists accidentally burn themselves. Do they accept the responsibility for their actions or do they rant and rave against their suffering? Are they good patients or do they fight the doctor’s instructions? Once healed are they scared inside and out?

Burns are painful. I know from experience. Forty-seven years ago I was burned in a cooking accident, with the emphasis on accident. Except for the fact that the kitchen was poorly designed, the only address for blame was my poor judgement and carelessness. Thankfully my burns were only second-degree and I healed with barely any visible scars.

Many are not so blessed and spend months in the burn unit, require skin grafts, rehabilitation, and emotional counseling. Others die. If their burns were caused by arson then those who lit the fire become accomplices to murderer.

Even when no humans are physically harmed by fire and “only” possessions are damaged or destroyed the costs are immeasurable. There’s the ruined environment, devastated topsoil, destroyed crops, lost homes and possessions, as well as memories, sentiments, and feelings of safety.

In our politically correct world where we so often try to excuse the deviants, arsonists should never be excused. It doesn’t matter if they had a troubled childhood or suffer from post-trauma. It doesn’t matter if they’re called freedom fighters or soldiers in a civilian war. It doesn’t matter their skin color, religion, or nationality.  Every arsonist is a criminal and he should be held accountable for his actions. Smokey-the-Bear would have condemned him and so should we.