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  The Straits Times, 27 Feb 05
 What bush fires mean

BUSH fires are supposed to break out in places like Australia, really bad floods occur in underdeveloped countries, and the haze is but an imported hazard.

Some Singaporeans view the world through the comfortable prism of such generalisations. They can be forgiven their benign view of their place in the natural scheme of things. Economic development, efficient urban planning and a First World infrastructure have transformed the self-perceptions of Singaporeans - which is all for the good.

But the record number of bush fires that have broken out here is a reminder that human habitation is never too far away to be completely safe from the uglier moods of nature, in this case a scorching dry spell. The fact that military helicopters are needed to be put on standby to help firemen battle the fires underscores what a threat nature can be. The recent tsunami disaster that struck Asia was in a different league: It left Singaporeans, like others, stupefied by how quickly things can go badly wrong.

The bush fires, which represent a far lower level of lethality, are instructive precisely because they are cause for introspection, not panic.

They should encourage more Singaporeans to develop a deeper understanding of issues that some may consider faraway, if not arcane: global warming and rising sea levels, for example.

These issues matter humanity as a whole. At all times and in all places, there is a need to take nature seriously, understand its moods and respect its rhythms. Such an attitude deepens empathy as well, for people in far-flung parts of the world who live with nature's mood swings as a matter of course.

Nature was at work long before globalisation turned the world into a single village, and it continues its work today. And developed Singapore is but a part of the global village.
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