Straight Talk

Residents in Boulder, Colorado got spanked by their sheriff this weekend, for their chuckle-headed behavior during a January 7 fire that forced the evacuation of 25,000 people. At a community meeting, the lawman chastised homeowners

who filled pickup trucks with numerous personal items and left them parked in front of their driveways until they had to evacuate. That delayed rescue and notification attempts by firefighers.

Touching on a problem all too common in the West, the sheriff also was concerned that Boulderites

aren’t taking preventive measures around their property to keep fires at bay, such as clearing brush and stacking firewood away from decks.

Boulder residents better wise up or they’ll be on their own next time around. “If you don’t want to help yourself, we’ll just walk away. I’m serious about it,” the sheriff warned, according to the Denver Post.

Yeah, right.

But the message may well have gotten through, if anyone is paying attention to the news out of Australia.