Actual conversation, paraphrased:
Me: Hello, I’m calling because my mother just received a fine for $X under your false alarm “cry wolf” policy, and you’re saying she needs to register the alarm.
Toady: Yes, it’s the fire department’s way of recouping funds for false alarms.
Me: My mother has a medic alert and I’m positive no one ever came out on the date in the letter.
Toady: The fire department has records and they say they responded.
Me: Impossible. This was X:XX on X night and she was home. How do I know? Because she can’t go anywhere unless I come pick her up. She doesn’t drive.
But there’s another reason I know they didn’t show up.
Toady: What’s that?
Me: I haven’t fixed a broken front door.
Toady: What do you mean?
Me: They showed up for medic alert response and knocked on the door and then drove away when no one answered?
Toady: Let me put you on hold.
(shitty music)
Toady: This was for a fire alarm.
Me: She doesn’t have a fire alarm hooked up to the fire department.
It doesn’t fill me with a lot of faith that her medic alert bracelet was activated and the fire department responded to it as a fire, then drove away when she didn’t answer the door.
Theoretically, she’s still on the bathroom floor listening to the sound of her help driving away.
Toady: We’re going to waive the fine today sir.
~~~~~~~~
The left likes to point to the fire department as an example of socialism. I’m starting to believe them.
An example of socialism? No, it is the government doing one of those things government is supposed to do.
But any group of people that point to the bible as calling for socialism when it is really calling for people to voluntarily be charitable is a group of people that should be ignored.
The one we hear so much about is the private, for-profit prisons. As if because they are a private company, adhering to government requirements, they are somehow more expensive and more evil than government-run prisons. But that really applies to any government-run function vs. private-run.
A friend who was the only Republican in recent time running for Santa Monica City Council (lost of course) made the comment that you always support the police and fire unions. In other words they get whatever they want, no matter how they perform, because they are ensuring our safety. Right. I’m sure they all go out of their way to do everything they can, for altruistic reasons.
knock, knock, knock: We are from the Xxxxx Xxxxx Xxxxx Xxx Xxxxx and want to inspect your wood stove
Get the fuck off my property – slam
I hope your mom’s doing better, now, Fur.
They pull trash like this all the time thinking that most people will meekly pay up.
Whatever town that was is lacking decent civil servants.
What the hell happened to the notion of ‘civil service’ in this country? Our politicians and most of our government hires don’t seem to know what that is.
Fire departments in my county are all volunteer
Recently, the county tried to put paid EMT’s in the rescue squads, causing a shit-storm throughout the county
I had friends in MN who had an ADT home security system. I was their emergency contact if they couldn’t be reached. I got a call from them that the alarm was tripped and could I check it out before they called the police. Without thinking, I said yes and I’d call them after I got there. When I came in, the alarm was sounding and their poor doggie was howling. I shut off the system, consoled the poor doggie and checked out the house. I called them and said all was well.
I called my friend and she yelled at me for going over there! She said, “What if there had been a break in and you walked in on them!?” I said, “Duh, I was worried about Fido.”
We have since laughed about it, but they fired their security company for not calling the police when they should have.
Oh, and my friend forgot to turn off the motion detector when she left that morning. Fido tripped it.
P.S. Fur, you are a good son!
Fur – I’m surprised there weren’t a few F bombs in there…
I spent a life time volunteering on fire departments and ambulances and both a Paramedic and basic EMT. It was fun. Seems like the unions are making it all paid departments and the new generations have no desire to volunteer. It’s all a thing of the past. Along with compassion.
That any first responder would knock and leave shows how low our standards have dropped. Hurry up and get back to the station to watch game shows is the bar they have set.
I know, I still work in EMS as a supervisor and it’s a daily struggle with SOME of the younger generation.