Thursday, March 14, 2013

Another Home Allowed to Burn

December 2011

For the second time this year, in Obion County Tennessee, the fire department stood by and watched a home burn to the ground. Why? Well, the folks who lived in the homes hadn't paid the annual $75 fee.
The residents of the county are required to pay the fee so that the South Fulton Fire Department is compensated for providing the service.
The following is from Yahoo news.
South Fulton Mayor David Crocker defended the fire department, saying that if firefighters responded to non-subscribers, no one would have an incentive to pay the fee. Residents in the city of South Fulton receive the service automatically, but it is not extended to those living in the greater county-wide area.
"There's no way to go to every fire and keep up the manpower, the equipment, and just the funding for the fire department," Crocker said.

Crocker, went on to say that the firefighters would have acted if anyone was in danger. I'm not sure what his definition of danger is. The article also reported, “However, Bell and her husband were forced to walk into the burning home in an attempt to retrieve their own belongings.”
It would seem that the other absurdity is that the fire department responded, in both instances, and stood by. What would the additional cost be to spray water?
Regardless how you look at this and argue it, it's just not right for this to happen. Period. There can be no excuse for this, or any reasonable or logical argument to allow a citizen's home to burn to the ground.
I guess I could make the comment, fairly or not, that we, the United States, crossed oceans and are spending billions of dollars to invade a sovereign country, blowing things up, bombing, and yes, setting things on fire; all done on the premise of there being
weapons of mass destruction, which of course there weren't.
Spending billions in a foreign country to set things on fire because of a lie and, not putting out a fire here in our country because of $75.


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