"Effective control of forest fires may prove crucial in the fight against global warming since blazes from Alaska to Indonesia spew out vast amounts of heat-trapping gases," reports Reuters.

"Forests are a wild card in the debate" about rising world temperatures, said Brian Stocks, a forest fire expert with the government-run Canadian Forest Service.

Annual fire damage in countries from Russia to Canada varies hugely, and many of the most destructive blazes are lit by lightning in remote regions.

What they don't mention is that a key component of forest management is logging. If forests are not properly thinned, devastating forest fires spew tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. And since environmentalists severely limit the farming of trees it can be said that they are directly culpable.

I say to loggers, the next time one of these wackos ties himself to a tree, keep on cutting. Remember, the whole planet is counting on you.