Continuing Saga of the CA Fires

http://news.yahoo.com/s/time/20071107/us_time/willachildbechargedinthefires

That is the latest story about the 10 year old attributed with starting one of the worst of the fires, accidentally while playing with matches. While I have trouble believing that he couldn't appreciate the danger of playing with matches, I don't think anyone would have thought their actions would have sparked something as catastrophic as the fire he is accused of starting. 21 homes were completely destroyed in the LA county fire he's associated with, and 3 people injured. People are angry, especially those who lost everything. I get it, they have that right. But punishing this kid by possibly holding a multi-million dollar bill over his head at 10? Whatever.

As I posted before, I reassert now that the true cause of the fires is the environmental state resulting from extreme drain on local natural resources. It's fine to identify the points of origin, especially if they are intentional, but holding a 10 year old accountable for a debt he couldn't dream of repaying is shifting anger and blame away from the responsibility people share for continuing to be the cause of their own problems.