bigrig77

By saying Officer Hess is "far" from a hero you are implying (in the impersonal world of Internet chat) that he did something wrong.
So... Tell me sir, what would you do if someone ran you down and you were lucky enough to end up on the hood of the car and not under it and your sole means of neutralizing your life safety situation happened to be your firearm.......? Are you saying that you wouldn't pull the trigger?
Officer Hess is a hero because he chose a job that requires him to protect people like you and I every day. Officer Hess didn't jump on that car like Bo and Luke Duke but rather he was struck by the driver who was intoxicated and leaving the scene of an incident that Officer Hess was called to as part of his sworn duty to respond.

What do you all mean Jay-z and Kanye are rapping about some Perp who got shot? Um isn't that what rap is? Bunch of perps singing over a beat about their homeys who ain't with us no more. Standard formula isn't it? Why not get the shopping center renamed after him since it was such a "travesty". Better off letting the family pick the wing in the prison back in MA and naming it after him there, since that was were he was gonna end up if brave Officer Hess had not saved all those lives out there.

P.O. Hess was engaging an armed advesary, DJ henry was armed with a 2 ton vehicle and was using it as a weapon against officer Hess. PO Hess thankfully put down the threat but was severly injured in the process having his knee cap pushed up into his thigh.
P.O. Hess saved countless lives that night by putting himself in harms way instead of letting a highly intoxicated driver drive through a crowded parking lot. P.O. Hess acted heroically and selflessly. He is a hero in my book and is deserving of a lot more than a medal.

What do you all mean Jay-z and Kanye are rapping about some Perp who got shot? Um isn't that what rap is? Bunch of perps singing over a beat about their homeys who ain't with us no more. Standard formula isn't it? Why not get the shopping center renamed after him since it was such a "travesty". Better off letting the family pick the wing in the prison back in MA and naming it after him there, since that was were he was gonna end up if brave Officer Hess had not saved all those lives out there.

Lohud Article
I am at a loss for words. I understand that a young man's life was taken, but it was taken because he was drunk and struck a police officer with his car as he tried to drive away. I can only see this causing problems in the near future for Police Officers.

Bravo. Now lets take it one step farther. NYS Labor Law is crystal clear on this; The employer is responsable for providing and certifying all employees in any and all applicable OSHA training requirements. The courts have held that volunteer fd's are "employeers" and volunteer ff's are "employees". The training required is listed in the following standards:
Fire Brigade
Respiratory Protection
PPE
Confined Space
Hazmat
Traffic Safety
Bloodborne Pathogens
Control of hazardous Energy
Thats a very large % of Firefighter training.
Technically that means that unless you work for OFPC or Westchester County, they can not "certify" you. Only your agency can do that. And for your agency to certified you they need to activly participate in your training.
As an example if you take OFPC Hazmat ops and bring the certificate back to your dept. unless they provide another 2-6 hours of in house training and testing you do not meet the requirements under NYS Law to be certified and the law says you can not respond to any calls without this.

also what i am about to say will be unpopular with many but i really do not care. this pertains to volunteer departments of which i belong to one.Since nYS and WC have many many FD's and EMS agencies to please it is the onus of these towns and villages to bridge the gap on training needed and not wait for 60 control to pick up the pieces. The AHJ (Authority having jrusidiction) IE the town or village has every right to book accredited standardized training (of which there area zillion companies out there who will come and do it) and as long as the training hours and curriculum covered is logged and stored then their members are trained. This training has to be considered more important then the $3000 LED light bars and otherfrivilous items that are bought with taxpayer money. I am painting the taget on my back as we speak so feel free to fire back those who do not agree but ask yourselves this: how can you disagree with training whether it be in house or at valhalla ?

Let me clarify that it is not the instructors who are watering down the info. The instructors are actually all some of the best i have ever been trained by and worked with, all with a vast knowledge of the fire service. I meant from the state curriculum stand point. The amount of info and having it reenforced over the entire career academy is what sets it apart from the FF1 and FF2 classes.
Also the career academy is much more structured with the falling in at the start of the day and at the end. (Raising the flag, saluting the white shirts, etc.)

I have a few gripes with the way the system currently is, and I don't see it changing in the near future. Feel free to comment/agree/disagree with me.
Gripe #1: I would have no problem making the training the same for both. HOWEVER, since building inspections are not part of our requirements, those 63 hours could be scratched from the program. Also, since we have jobs and other responsibilities, allow us to complete the training over a period of time, say two years. Get the basics out of the way up front, then require the remainder to be completed within a certain time frame. That would better entice folks.
Gripe #2: I don't see Survival and/or FAST as required for either. This is a must.
Gripe #3: Some of these courses could be consolidated, since many classes harp on lessons learned in pre-requisite training. For example, EVOC and Pump Ops could be made into one course for less time, as could Firefighter I and II.
Gripe #4: I'm only lacking the building codes stuff and Wildland Firefighting training. BUT WHEN IS THIS EVER OFFERED TO ANY OF US? I'll never get into these programs locally, which isn't going to attract most of my fellow volunteer brothers.
Gripe #5: Include the CPAT into Firefighter I, this would weed out the guys who may pass, get their FF I cert and go back to their FD barely able to function on the fireground!
For those of you unaware of the state's certification process, in order for a volunteer firefighter to receive the NYS "Firefighter Certification", they must complete the following (first step is Recruit Firefighter II, followed by Recruit Firefighter I, than Firefighter). This "Firefighter Certification" is what the career men accomplish in their 450 hour academy.
Again... some of these courses are rare or never seen here in Westchester (or nearby) except when incorporated into the career academies.
Want piety for all of us? Convince the county to offer the same training to both sides of the fence. It's not like many of us aren't in favor of it!
Recruit II Certification
Firefighter I (87 Hours) OR
Basic Firefighter Training (42 Hours) & Intermediate Firefighter Training (18 Hours) OR
Firefighting Essentials (39 Hours), Fire Behavior / Arson Awareness (12 Hours) and Initial Fire Attack (18 Hours)
Plus Right To Know and Local Rules, Regulations and Laws (No given amount of time)
Recruit I Certification (Must be Recruit II certified)
Firefighter II (27 Hours) OR
Truck Company Operations or Ladder Company Operations (24 Hours)
Apparatus Operator - Pump or Pump Operator (24 Hours)*
Accident Victim Extrication Training (16 Hours)
Hazardous Materials First Responder Operations (16 Hours)**
Firefighter Certification (Must be Recruit I certified)
Inspection Practices of Existing Structures (21 Hours)***
Rescue Technician Basic or Rescue Operations (24 Hours)
Incident Command System (12 Hours)
Basic Wildland Firefighting (12 Hours)
First Aid & CPR
CPAT Exam
* - Prerequisite training is Apparatus Operator - EVOC (18 Hours)
** - Now included in Firefighter I program
*** - Two prerequisites Intro to Code Enforcement Practices (42 hours)

10 Days for FFI & FFII...................... Thats the same certifications that the career accademy takes 60 Days to get (yes they get a few more certs.....but lets be real here). I wonder are they leaving something out, or does anyone think the career accademy is 50 Days too long?

So wait, whats the right answer? It was not circled for me.
Besides this test is bias, it is not in Spanish, German, Italian, Latin, Arabic, Chinese, Japanese, Yiddish, Vietnamese, Swahili, Russian, Hebrew or in Braille.

That test question is racist, city residents dont live in buildings that look like the ones drawn for the question. WHere are the fire escapes, urine pooled in the hallways and trash hanging in the trees. Only people from the suburbs (whites) live in such structures, and would be able to figure out which one is on fire.

Ya I know it is a funny little comic but it represents a bigger issue. How many things do you see everyday that are 9/11 related for sale? The magazines, magnets, stickers, pins, shirts, patches, etc.. The list goes on forever. But you think any of these companies really are giving to the funds? Nope. They use a tragedy as a way to make more money. Guys are dying from illnesses that come from working down there. They get nothing but a "hey that sucks". Most people really have forgotten. It is nothing to them anymore. They were all flag waving and ready to pitch in 10 years ago. But now they are all numb to it. Sure the big 10 year anniversary is coming. BFD. Where were they for the 7th, the 4th, etc.? I guess these people just will never know what we, as emergency personnel, had to go through. Some people were down there, some people were back protecting the home turf. Some did Fill the Boot others had spaghetti dinners. I think we should stop buying this crap and just go on and remember them the right way, by getting on the rigs and keep pressing on. I miss the people who are gone and I am sure you all do to.
God bless and stay safe out there

Thanks to the guy who passed this my way. Hopefully everyone can hunker down, and study their rears off for this, because from the looks of it, it's going to be a doozy...

My wife and I both watched " There something wrong with Aunt Diane", in fact I watched it a couple of times to read and see between the lines. The questions I think of is
1. Is Daniel having sex with his sister-in-law?
2. It sounds like he wants nothing to do with his son and his care?
3. Daniel stated he works at nights as a security guard, but Jay( sister-in-law) says hes home all day?
4. How can abscessed tooth cause a stroke?
5. If she wasn't a drinker how can she guzzle vodka and not throw up?
6. I thought the medical report shoold levels of THC is the children that passed away? Why didn't the HBO documentary talk about this?
It felt like HBO was leaning on the Schuler side. Daniel looks like a real piece of S**T
May the children and the innocent men rst in peace, and may our first responders on scene have peace in their heart knowing they did the best they can do. God Bless all of You

I don't have HBO, so I couldn't watch it. Bottom line, Daniel Schuler is a total piece of crap!

Saw it and thought it was a very well put together documentary. With that said I think everyone in their heart wants someone to say that it was something medical that occurred but the facts keep pointing otherwise. Something went very wrong that day and unfortunately the only ones that know what truly happened all perished on that day. The only one is the boy and all he can remember is that she was in some sort of pain. Who knows what actually happened to cause the events that did.
Now in regard to some of the other comments.
1. I love how everyone blames him for taking out lawsuits when he wasn't driving or in the car but yet is getting sued via the "estate" of his deceased wife. He has been found liable in a couple lawsuits already and from what I have read elsewhere and others who stay up on that case...he is flat broke. He is suing the very brother in law whom sued the estate and from what I understand either has won or word is that the lawsuit is going to go through as appropriate. Like him or not he still has his son to care for both physically and emotionally.
2. Some of you say they were trying to "sugar coat" her as a person. How many of you actually knew Diane Schuler personally? If you don't..you can't make any comments on what she was as a person. You want to paint her with a broad brush because of one day that was extremely horrendous. ONe that I have no respect for either...that's fine. But for all extensive purposes she probably was an excellent loving mother who did something unexplainable and extremely grossly negligent in our eyes.
3. If they wanted to the pictures in there..maybe its to remind people that despite the actions that caused the incident..she was a human being in the end, just like the kids who lost their lives way to early and with such loss of potential. How can some of you even say it was in bad taste when persons from your own agencies take pictures of others in similar circumstances. And for what? To keep them on a computer or to show other buffs carnage? Ever watch european and latino news stations, they show much of the same. Don't let your predisposed tight a** puritan american press and censorship guide your feelings. I can see eve worse in make up on CSI or NCIS. Like someone said this was not TV...it was HBO and as with everything else you can just turn the channel. They've showed similar pictures on Dr. Baden's autopsy shows they did of crime scene/environment photos of cases he re-did.
I feel bad for the rest of the family who is left to pick up the pieces following this tragedy. And what the family is doing is an extreme form of denial during the mourning phase. Its sad..but no matter what is sent their way they can't accept what the facts in front of them are. That's their mindset and choice and I'm not going to judge them as I'm not in that situation. I'm sure what they are not letting on is that somewhere in their mind they doubt what their feelings are and I'm sure they are battling the anger they feel with that towards her. That I can understand and have dealt with on a personal level with a loss in my close family. The bottom line is 8 people died in a horrific manner which defies much of the logic we know. But she was also a human who just might not have been all that bad of a person...other then one singular moment in time. One with cost 7 other people their lives and left several families in shambles. That I can't forgive...that I won't forget. But I hope somewhere the kids are rested in peace...and that just perhaps she did enough in her normal life to get there with them when she repents for the actions of that day.

There wasn't much to the photos, just a dead body. I can understand how this may disturb some, but she did seem in pretty good shape considering the kinetics involved (externally, that is - she had some pretty extensive internal trauma according to the ME report). In all honesty, i find the images less of an issue then the crap that we see on commonly available cable channels. I would rather have teenagers view this documentary and see the end results of poor decision making then have them view the glorification of teenage pregnancy on MTV. Thats just me, however.

I'd like to know what construed as "torture?" And I'm willing to bet 99% of them I wouldn't shed a tear over if they did get some for what most did in return to other people lives.
I love when fellow Americans talk about "torture" in Abu Ghraib. Really...standing naked...having a dog in your face. But speak of nothing about beheadings and bombings..and whine over criminals being waterboarded. I sleep well...and now so does Osama.

Sorry but there isn't very many functions as or more rigorous then structural firefighting. If you can do that then you can work and earn your money not mine.

Lets throw another wrinkle into this. 1st its not that Pelham will not provide additional taxes, in reality they can't. Because the population is so small, the per capita costs to improve are never going to happen. The real issue for Pelham, Pelham Manor and any other small community FD or understaffed FD (career, combo or vol.) is ISO's plan to change the rating system this year.
Under the new plan, any dept that responds to fire calls with fewer than 6 firefighters (2 in / 2 out, MPO & IC) will automatically become an ISO 9.
What does this mean for Pelham?
Annual insurance premiums for commercial and residential properties in Pelham is approximately $5.1 million. In Pelham Manor the premiums are approximately $5.9 million. Combined, the property owners in Pelham and Pelham Manor pay roughly $11 million per year in premiums.
Both PFD & PMFD are ISO PPC 4's. If the 2 depts do not restructure the way the respond to fire so the have at least 4 interior qulified members + an MPO & IC, Both villages will see the ISO change them to 9 and the insurance premiums will go up by 40% per year. Thats a combined increas of $4.4 MILLION.
This increase is more than the current combined budget of the 2 fire departments.
Meanwhile the Pelham Village Mayor and Board are considering reducing manning.
I suspect nothing will change until the ISO rating does and then the finger pointing at village hall will begin.

I'm starting to go through some of the documents I brought back from my Fathers' house, and came across this - thought I'd share....the responses by FDNY to the WTC bombing.....I have lots more documents, need to check if they are 'public' first....

Congratulations to Officer Hess, on receiving this prestigious award from his colleagues, well deserved, I might add.
Regarding the expected (over)reaction and orchestrated response from the Henry family, que sera sera.
Let me go way out on a limb, here, if I may... I often wonder...
if anything would have wound up any differently in regards to this entire incident, if the police officers involved with the shooting , were black? Or the alleged assailant, white?
I'm going to go out even further... I bet nobody involved in this is going to be having a cold beer with President Obama, anytime soon.

I can't believe people are shocked at the Henry family being pissed at this. Lose a child and see how reasonable you become. The family is pissed and will always be pissed. Their kid did something stupid and got himself killed. This wasn't a malicious or pre-meditated attack on Officer Hess. So the family has to come to grips with that. They have no villain or clear reason to hold on to and explain the loss of their child. Any number of things happen differently that night, Officer Hess never has to kill anyone, he never gets his leg broken, and DJ goes home alive.
Wait, so we're expecting the Henry family to essentially say, "Thanks for shooting my son and saving us the stress and burden of a wrongful death suit in the event that he might have stuck and killed someone that night."
The DOJ will eventually exonerate Aaron of wrong doing, he should enjoy his award, and we should write off the Henry's claims as irrational and the result of emotional trauma.