Firemen ignore burning house over unpaid fee

[Jen23514]

Yep. Because the city is smart enough to include this and not make it an option.

It's a city funded fire department. The county doesn't provide fire protection. The city would have no jurisdiction to collect a tax on persons residing outside of the city limits. Hence, they seem to have extended their services, FOR A FEE. (And a reasonable one, at that.)

 

Fallon, get out of here with all your troublesome logic & sense. It's not welcome here!

 

obviously not since my explanation of how sales tax works was ignored and then another red herring introduced

[orangecrush]

 

obviously not since my explanation of how sales tax works was ignored and then another red herring introduced

 

Perhaps we need to support people who are trying to be Great! and failing miserably at it.

[JetTeach]

 

Like about $696million? We already have that...

 

So they are taxing stupidity? Is your assessment large?

I deserve that, I read it wrong. If people were taxed on stupidity, Florida and Texas would pretty stinkin' rich. Michigan, too.

 

[Jen23514]

I'm not sure how "smart" a city is or isn't is part of this?

 

Obviously from your posts you think everyone should be covered even when they elect not to be?

 

If not in form of sales tax, then a mandatory fee, or through property taxes?

Meh, I don't think they should be given the choice. Something like fire shouldn't be an option. There are so many things that AREN'T an option, I don't see why this gets left out. Bad ju-ju.

 

I choose whether or not to have water hooked up to my house, whether or not I want electricity, and gas. Maybe I want to live with as little government interference as possible, and that may/may not include fire protection. It's one of the reasons people move to rural areas, to GTFO. In fact, I think that is why the whole state of Montana exists

 

As for this particular family though, it looks like non-buyer's-remorse.

[Jen23514]

 

obviously not since my explanation of how sales tax works was ignored and then another red herring introduced

 

Perhaps we need to support people who are trying to be Great! and failing miserably at it.

 

shame on me for not being more supportive of such epic-ness.

[orangecrush]

They told the firemen that they would pay the costs to put the fire out. I'll bet they would not have paid the city after they put the fire out.

 

I don't know why, but these people annoy me.

[Bad Doctor Frost]

Last time I was in Montana I hit the "seek" button on my radio and it kept going. Over and over. Nothing. There.

 

 

It was pretty beautiful, though

[Tigz]

Fine, disagree, this is the united states, thats your right. Me? They can kiss their 75 dollars from every other house goodbye. If they dont pay their monthly fee, THEN CHARGE THEIR INSURANCE COMPANY FOR YOUR EXPENSES like any reasonable person would do. And the insurance company cant mouse because its bound to be cheaper then paying to completely replace a house and everything in it!

 

I could point out the hypocrisy going on here, in that if one minor little detail were changed about this situation, people would be losing their damn minds over this, but my warning level is quite high enough as it is so ill keep exactly what i mean to my self. It is amazing how one or two small things being present or absent change a cinder to a conflagration...

 

 

You really don't know what you are ranting about.

 

Ugggh! hold on, I lost my reply....let me retype it.

Edited October 4, 2010 by Tigz

[Fallon]

They told the firemen that they would pay the costs to put the fire out. I'll bet they would not have paid the city after they put the fire out.

 

I don't know why, but these people annoy me.

Heh. Kinda like the old adage, ain't no atheists in foxholes? When their house was burning, $75 looked very reasonable. Even a couple hundred would've probably been OK with them.

[orangecrush]

 

Heh. Kinda like the old adage, ain't no atheists in foxholes? When their house was burning, $75 looked very reasonable. Even a couple hundred would've probably been OK with them.

 

They could pay the "costs" for putting out their fire, but they wouldn't pay the $75 fee? They need to sit down!!!!

 

They would probably be on here talking about how they were getting collection letters from their local fire department.

[orangecrush]

 

Ugggh! hold on, I lost my reply....let me retype it.

 

I was wondering what that was about.

[zx10 guy]

I think I can speak a little more authoritatively about Fire/EMS than most here being I used to be a volunteer EMT. The costs of providing Fire/EMS services is not free. These are usually assessed at some level by specific taxes which the covered residents would pay. These can be in the form of property taxes and other specific taxes. Maryland institutes a cell phone tax where there is a 911 tax fee applied to every account based in Maryland. I can tell you this is still not enough money. My former station still had to fill the gaps with fund raisers sent out to the local community. I have a question for many of you. How many of you actually donate to your local fire/EMS department even though you are not required to pay any extra assessment fees? From the stand point of my station, we owned our own apparatus which means the ALS/BLS ambulances and the two heavy rescue squad trucks. We have to pay out of our own pool of money to maintain these vehicles. Any supplies which don't get replenished from the hospital comes out of our supplies fund. The associated costs of the building and the property it is on comes out of our budget. We even have our own liability insurance and lawyer on retainer due to the high potential of liability lawsuits even though many of the situations we can be sued for are covered under the Good Samaritan Laws.

 

As budgets get pinched and people cry foul about their taxes being raised, expect more of these things to happen even in the traditional urban areas where you didn't get billed separately for these services. If you all don't want this to happen, think twice about not sending in a donation to your local fire/EMS department.

 

Mm... So.. The fire chief got his flowers handed to him... Good... Frankly he is lucky that the man didnt pull out a gun and shoot him, or better yet, take his head off its shoulders by a fire axe, as would have been more suitable in the situation.

 

Or perhaps had a bucket of petrol thrown on him and set ablaze, i wonder if he would remember to "stop drop and roll"...

 

All I am saying is there is a special place in hell for people who sit by and twiddle their thumbs while they watch someone lose everything they own, simply because they don't HAVE to do something. This situation is not failure to perform your duties. It was a failure to be human beings. If the firemen had proceeded to IGNORE orders and extinguish the blaze anyway, and been in any way penalized for it, this fire chief's head would be mounted on a pike in the center of town by the local media. They could have helped, they just happened to be shaven apes wearing fireman outfits.

 

Further, it serves the public interest to extinguish any blaze before it can spread. That is why we have fire departments, to keep CITIES from catching fire, like they had a habit of doing in by gone eras...

 

It's really big of you to make a life or death situation decision for someone else.

 

I wonder how many times you've helped anyone in need?

 

I have my opinions of my fellow fire fighters and peers which I sometimes share or keep to myself. But I can tell you I just don't spout out about being bigger than someone without actually backing it up. I've helped people both on and off duty. And have risked my life in the process a few times where one of those times I had to deal with a combative patient in the back of a confined ambulance who was HIV positive and a contaminated needle thrown in the mix.

[Tigz]

Fine, disagree, this is the united states, thats your right. Me? They can kiss their 75 dollars from every other house goodbye. If they dont pay their monthly fee, THEN CHARGE THEIR INSURANCE COMPANY FOR YOUR EXPENSES like any reasonable person would do. And the insurance company cant mouse because its bound to be cheaper then paying to completely replace a house and everything in it!

 

I could point out the hypocrisy going on here, in that if one minor little detail were changed about this situation, people would be losing their damn minds over this, but my warning level is quite high enough as it is so ill keep exactly what i mean to my self. It is amazing how one or two small things being present or absent change a cinder to a conflagration...

 

 

You really don't know what you are ranting about.

 

Ugggh! hold on, I lost my reply....let me retype it.

 

He might not, but I see his reasoning. If EMT's respond to your house and transport you, your health insurance is charged (or you get the bill if you don't have insurance). If they can charge your health insurance for services, then why can't they also charge your homeowners insurance for putting out a fire?

 

Of course, to answer that question, the $75 isn't really a fee...it is "insurance". The FD (or city govt rather) is banking that most everyone in the "county" will pay the annual fee but not need emergency services. Therefore they make money. (well, not actually, it goes back into the Fire Dept...but the concept is the same). If they moved it to charging the insurance (or property owner) on an "as needed" basis, they are looking at losing possibly hundreds of thousands of dollars because no one would want to pay the fee.

[Snork Maiden]

Dear Tigz,

 

Please come get your boy. And may be grab Frosty while you're here.

[Bad Doctor Frost]

Dear Tigz,

 

Please come get your boy. And may be grab Frosty while you're here.

 

Oh go have a be-...wait.

[orangecrush]

 

He might not, but I see his reasoning. If EMT's respond to your house and transport you, your health insurance is charged (or you get the bill if you don't have insurance). If they can charge your health insurance for services, then why can't they also charge your homeowners insurance for putting out a fire?

 

 

That is included in most health insurance plans. Paying for a firetruck to come out is not included in homeowners' insurance plans.

 

Of course, to answer that question, the $75 isn't really a fee...it is "insurance". The FD (or city govt rather) is banking that most everyone in the "county" will pay the annual fee but not need emergency services. Therefore they make money. (well, not actually, it goes back into the Fire Dept...but the concept is the same). If they moved it to charging the insurance (or property owner) on an "as needed" basis, they are looking at losing possibly hundreds of thousands of dollars because no one would want to pay the fee.

 

That is pretty much what the city said.

[Snork Maiden]

The FD (or city govt rather) is banking that most everyone in the "county" will pay the annual fee but not need emergency services. Therefore they make money. (well, not actually, it goes back into the Fire Dept...but the concept is the same). If they moved it to charging the insurance (or property owner) on an "as needed" basis, they are looking at losing possibly hundreds of thousands of dollars because no one would want to pay the fee.

 

Why isn't anyone talking about how these people were banking on their house not burning down? And they lost! Whatever happened to accountability. Why does everyone think if they build their house in BFE, USA, and it catches on fire, someone will surely come and save them in case of emergency? Even if they turned down earlier the option to have it. It's a luxury to have fire service that can reach you and put your sht out. And if you're silly enough to turn them down, you can't be mad at the world.

[Snork Maiden]

 

Oh go have a be-...wait.

 

Bite me. Meanie.

[Fallon]

That is included in most health insurance plans. Paying for a firetruck to come out is not included in homeowners' insurance plans.

Here, $1,500 in coverage is typically included. IDK about elsewhere.

Edited October 4, 2010 by Fallon

[Bad Doctor Frost]

 

Oh go have a be-...wait.

 

Bite me. Meanie.

 

Since Rom seems to be off lately (probably making that nursery or something...)

 

You're beautiful.

[Fallon]

The FD (or city govt rather) is banking that most everyone in the "county" will pay the annual fee but not need emergency services. Therefore they make money. (well, not actually, it goes back into the Fire Dept...but the concept is the same). If they moved it to charging the insurance (or property owner) on an "as needed" basis, they are looking at losing possibly hundreds of thousands of dollars because no one would want to pay the fee.

 

Why isn't anyone talking about how these people were banking on their house not burning down? And they lost! Whatever happened to accountability. Why does everyone think if they build their house in BFE, USA, and it catches on fire, someone will surely come and save them in case of emergency? Even if they turned down earlier the option to have it. It's a luxury to have fire service that can reach you and put your sht out. And if you're silly enough to turn them down, you can't be mad at the world.

I agree. It's like living in a flood plain, and not buying flood insurance, then wailing and moaning when you lose everything in a flood.

[Snork Maiden]

 

Since Rom seems to be off lately (probably making that nursery or something...)

 

You're beautiful.

You know he sniffs these posts out, and starts polishing his guns..

[Bad Doctor Frost]

 

Since Rom seems to be off lately (probably making that nursery or something...)

 

You're beautiful.

You know he sniffs these posts out, and starts polishing his guns..

 

Yeah well, polishing his gun is what made you not able to drink beer so...

[Snork Maiden]

[quote name='Bad Doctor Frost' timestamp='1286225488'

 

Hmm. Back to burning houses and you being wrong. Did I read something about you admitting contributing the Dakota's stupidity assesment?

[romadant]

 

Oh go have a be-...wait.

 

Bite me. Meanie.

 

Since Rom seems to be off lately (probably making that nursery or something...)

 

You're beautiful.

I'm never THAT far away. She is beautiful, but... see below.

 

 

 

 

Since Rom seems to be off lately (probably making that nursery or something...)

 

You're beautiful.

You know he sniffs these posts out, and starts polishing his guns..

True. The Platinum Elite is looking a little dusty. Tonight, clean & polish... and load.

 

Edited October 4, 2010 by romadant