Posted on 02/16/2006 3:52:53 PM PST by LouAvul
Edited on 02/16/2006 6:43:01 PM PST by Admin Moderator. [history]
MONETT, Mo. (AP) - Rural firefighters stood by and watched a fire destroy a garage and a vehicle because the property owner had not paid membership dues.
Bibaldo Rueda - who was injured battling the flames Monday - offered to pay the dues as the fire blazed away, but the Monett Rural Fire Department does not have a policy for on-the-spot billing, Sheriff's Detective Robert Evenson said.
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You know, they could have put the fire out when the guy offered to pay and then billed him for it. Officious little pricks.
Bums come in all colors, denominations and occupations.
Tough luck....he should have paid the dues like others in the neighborhood.
I thought tax money paid the tab. I've never heard of a membership program to fund firefighters.
Is this for real?
I hope the owner didn't take the same approach with his homeowner's insurance.
There is one union that needs disbanding yesterday.
The little politicians playing god need to be out of there as well.
I'm guessing that taking the guy's money and figuring out the accounting later will turn out to have been a lot cheaper than either settling with or getting sued by him.
It is in our city, Burbank Ca. Optional. for paramedic services. not fire.
I guess our priceless welfare recipients are draining the public funds dry.
This isn't the first time it's happened. As a retired firefighter, I can't imagine this happening.
Yes, it is quite real. They are genrally volunteer fire departments which you join if you want fire service.
This is not the first time that this has happened and the courts have upheld their approach.
If you live in a rural area with a volunteer fire department it is a good idea to join, otherwise....
You're right of course. But the firebrigades in England in the 1800's, perhaps the early 1900's had the same policy. They believed in proactive payment. Sort of a pay me now because you can't pay me later. Didn't know some fire departments in our own rural America had the same policy.
In MO the motto is "Show me the money. First."
Any SOB that would stand by and watch a persons home or garage burn down and do nothing is unfit to call themselves a Firefighter. They are nothing more than Mafia protection racket thieves.
This system sucks to begin with. The Community should establish a Fire Tax and everyone be required to pay for it in their taxes.
The man who refused to pay the protection racket is probably a cheap bastid, but the Fire Chief who would watch this mans property destroyed is no better.
If this is the kind of neighbors I had I would find a new place to live.
Reminds me of the scene in Gangs of New York.
one might think if one penny of tax dollars supported this fd, they got a whole lotta trouble comin'.
"Volunteers"...but you better ante up. I was in a fire about 20 years ago in a county near where this occurred. We weren't paid members. Took the fire department over 2 hours to 'find' us after we called. Fought the damn thing with a garden hose in the middle of winter and spent a week in the hospital due to smoke inhalation.
Were it not for "Officious little pricks" there would not be any local volunteer fire departments.
Not an unusual story with these rural volunteer fire brigades. Since the volunteer department is not officially a part of the local government, there is no provision for supporting them through the county taxation authority, so no taxes are collected for that effort.
A similar mindset runs through mutual aid societies everywhere, that if you are not a member, you get short shrift from the association. Apparently, there is some enabling statute that spells put exactly what is allowed and not allowed in extending assistance to non-members, depending on local custom and the state code.
You are 100% correct.
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