[Feyd]

America. Where complacency meets stupidity.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/39516346...ife/?GT1=43001

"Firefighters did eventually show up, but only to fight the fire on the neighboring property, whose owner had paid the fee."




*edit* for the obligitory Team America Video.

[Tondtar]

[TK-421]

Fuck that. Living in civilization FTW

[Feyd]

Originally Posted by TK-421

Fuck that. Living in civilization FTW

It has nothing to do with civilization... The fucking FD was there, they just sat around and watched this dude's house burn down. I mean what if there was a kid in there burning to death and the fire department just stood there watching because of the $75 fee. WTF?


Instead of putting it out, they let it burn... nearly catching the neighbors house on fire and who knows what else in the process. IMO, by putting the fire out the FD/City could have limited their liabilities, etc. So what if the dude didn't pay the $75 fee... send him a bill for $2000.00 for the fire department to be dispatched and call it a day.

[TK-421]

Originally Posted by Feyd

It has nothing to do with civilization... The fucking FD was there, they just sat around and watched this dude's house burn down. I mean what if there was a kid in there burning to death and the fire department just stood there watching because of the $75 fee. WTF?


Instead of putting it out, they let it burn... nearly catching the neighbors house on fire and who knows what else in the process. IMO, by putting the fire out the FD/City could have limited their liabilities, etc. So what if the dude didn't pay the $75 fee... send him a bill for $2000.00 for the fire department to be dispatched and call it a day.

I meant I live in an area where you don't pay that straight forward fee and the FD has no authority to pick and choose what to save

[Feyd]

Originally Posted by TK-421

I meant I live in an area where you don't pay that straight forward fee and the FD has no authority to pick and choose what to save

No I know what you meant.... wasn't a stab at you or anything.

I know that laws are black and white, but at some point legally someone had the obligation to make the call that letting this guys house burn down was easier/better/safer than potentially letting the whole neighborhood burn up.

If that is what took place then so be it, but I'd be willing to wager that the person who's house was destroyed wasn't exactly "liked" in the town.




I grew up in a very small town... I know the kinds of political BS that can take place because of peoples attitudes towards other people.

[FStop7]

Sounds like a bunch of backwoods politics to me.

Why not put the fire out and then charge the guy the fee? Stupid.

[Hawkeye]

Holy crap. If they wanted to F them they could say the fee is $75 every year or if you haven't paid it will be $5,000 or something like that. Don't let animals and possibly people die over a mere $75!

[scollins]

Originally Posted by FStop7

Sounds like a bunch of backwoods politics to me.

Why not put the fire out and then charge the guy the fee? Stupid.

Then why would ANYONE pay the fee up front, when all they'd have to do is take the chance of not needing the FD, then only paying the $75 when they have to show up? I ask you, would you pay the $75 every year, or just "when needed to save my house"?

I guarantee that most people would skip paying the fee if they could just pay it at the time of service. The FD does have a point in that regard (it was pointed out in the story.)

And if they had put out the fire, what recourse would the FD have to make the homeowner pay anything? None! Hell, they probably couldn't even get the $75 fee. Having a fee-based service suggests that the two parties enter into a contract for services. He didn't pay, thereby initiating the contract, so he could claim to own nothing.

How about car insurance? "Sorry, I forgot to pay my car insurance bill, but they should cover my loss anyway, as long as I pay the premium after the fact, right?" Name a company that would accept those terms...

Guy paid nothing, so he should get nothing. Had someone's life been in jeopardy, I'm sure the FD would have done something then, but to save "stuff"? Sorry, don't "forget" to pay your bill next time.

[Kroy]

Originally Posted by Hawkeye

Holy crap. If they wanted to F them they could say the fee is $75 every year or if you haven't paid it will be $5,000 or something like that. Don't let animals and possibly people die over a mere $75!

+1 I think they should have just charged him a ridiculous fee. Like when you call for an ambulance. That would have been fair.

Originally Posted by scollins

Then why would ANYONE pay the fee up front, when all they'd have to do is take the chance of not needing the FD, then only paying the $75 when they have to show up? I ask you, would you pay the $75 every year, or just "when needed to save my house"?

I guarantee that most people would skip paying the fee if they could just pay it at the time of service. The FD does have a point in that regard (it was pointed out in the story.)

And if they had put out the fire, what recourse would the FD have to make the homeowner pay anything? None! Hell, they probably couldn't even get the $75 fee. Having a fee-based service suggests that the two parties enter into a contract for services. He didn't pay, thereby initiating the contract, so he could claim to own nothing.

How about car insurance? "Sorry, I forgot to pay my car insurance bill, but they should cover my loss anyway, as long as I pay the premium after the fact, right?" Name a company that would accept those terms...

Guy paid nothing, so he should get nothing. Had someone's life been in jeopardy, I'm sure the FD would have done something then, but to save "stuff"? Sorry, don't "forget" to pay your bill next time.

I feel the same way. If there were human lives in danger, I'm sure the fire dept would have stepped in. And even if the department didn't step in, I'm sure individual firefighters would have stepped in to save lives.

[doc1911]

The guy gambled and lost. I can almost promise you that every year when the note to pay came he said "F-that, I'm not paying. What are the chances that we need that?" So sorry, you lost out.

[Chest Rockwell]

Originally Posted by scollins

Then why would ANYONE pay the fee up front, when all they'd have to do is take the chance of not needing the FD, then only paying the $75 when they have to show up? I ask you, would you pay the $75 every year, or just "when needed to save my house"?

I guarantee that most people would skip paying the fee if they could just pay it at the time of service. The FD does have a point in that regard (it was pointed out in the story.)

And if they had put out the fire, what recourse would the FD have to make the homeowner pay anything? None! Hell, they probably couldn't even get the $75 fee. Having a fee-based service suggests that the two parties enter into a contract for services. He didn't pay, thereby initiating the contract, so he could claim to own nothing.

How about car insurance? "Sorry, I forgot to pay my car insurance bill, but they should cover my loss anyway, as long as I pay the premium after the fact, right?" Name a company that would accept those terms...

Guy paid nothing, so he should get nothing. Had someone's life been in jeopardy, I'm sure the FD would have done something then, but to save "stuff"? Sorry, don't "forget" to pay your bill next time.

^this

Why do those that don't play by the rules always bitch when it bites them in the ass? You can bet that would be the first bill I was paying every year. IT sucks that the dogs died, but really they probably could have snagged them on the way out the door if they were thinking.

[Alexander]

Should have payed the fee.

[shamoo]

It's a terrible situation to be in, but you know what? I totally agree with what happened. The owner probably complained about the fee, and with some terrible luck....his house caught on fire.

Well....too bad. Think about this, if the firefighters did go in, the homeowner could legally sue them for water damage. What if a firefighter was injured or even died? The homeowner would most likely be responsible for a lot of it.

The firefighters were simply avoiding any potential lawsuits. It's how this country is, sadly, but you know what....you gotta look out for yourself.

[bosstones]

Originally Posted by Kroy

+1 I think they should have just charged him a ridiculous fee. Like when you call for an ambulance. That would have been fair.

Another article stated that he offered to pay the fee during his 911 call. Depends on what you believe, though.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_upshot...logical-debate

[aut0sh0cker]