JM15

Merry Christmas to all that celebrate it.
Happy Holidays to everyone else
Stay safe

A couple of days ago, while mulling around the house trying to think about something interesting to write about, I pulled out a soft cover book from under the coffee table. It’s a little cookbook, and I’ve had it for so long I know quite a few of the recipes by heart, so I hadn’t really looked at it for some time.
So here I am holding “The Firefighter’s Cookbook”, John Sineno. “Award Winning Recipes From a Fire-Fighting Chef.” The book is a compilation of recipes, submitted by members of the FDNY. It contains drawings of firehouse scenes, sketched by one Robert Paul Scudellari. The first one is so simple and peaceful on page 2; two turnout coats hanging on hooks, two pairs of folded down rubber boots beneath.
Only a couple of pages in, and there’s some info:
A Vintage Original
First Edition August 1986
by John Sineno
It dawns on me; I bought this book about five months after I got on the job. This soft-cover book that has somehow stayed quite intact, save the rounded corners, and the dripped clam sauce on page 77‘s recipe, “Linguine with Clam Sauce” submitted by a Lt. J. Shea, of the Brooklyn/Queens Holy Name Society.
An Introduction
John Sineno was appointed to the New York City Fire Department on October 2, 1962. He describes his attitude as “cavalier” and his wife worrying, when after graduating probie school he get’s assigned to the “Fire Factory,” home to Engine 58 and Ladder 26, in the heart of Harlem. He is concerned on his first day reporting for duty. Can he live up to the job? The only question asked of him was from the then Captain of Ladder 26, Raymond Kelly, “Can you cook?”
I slump back into the couch, realizing this book had become much more than a cookbook. It’s also become a history book. A very gracious look back in time, when fires were constantly raging, but within the firehouse a calmness, decency and Brotherhood.
I remember looking at the illustrations and thinking they were kind of boring back in 1986. Just simple sketches of daily firehouse life:
A child visiting the firehouse with his mom, and the chauffeur standing next to the open door of the cab, having lifted that child behind the wheel.
A probie standing at the slop sink, wringing out the mop.
On page 46 a dish entitled “A Polish Farewell To Lent.” Sketch of a hook and a leather helmet, hanging on the railing of the engine cover in the open jump seat.
There are numerous sketches of men working in the kitchen of the firehouse.
But now I see the beauty in these drawings. The purpose of this book obviously, was not to convey the horrors of fire, or the danger these men faced, working in the busiest firehouse “on earth.” There are plenty of other books written about the fire service, particularly the FDNY, that have all the tension and seriousness of the business a fireman is faced with.
No, this one is special. It’s about the kitchen, the hub of life in any firehouse. It’s about the in-between time, the before time, and the after time in a very dangerous profession. The prep time for meals; “some good, some not so good, some great.” It’s about the chops busting and laughter that goes on in a firehouse kitchen. And it’s about the food. Recipes.
Smiling on the cover, wearing their gear with a table load of prepared dishes on a red tablecloth, and a Mack fire engine behind them; John Sineno E-58, and three Brothers, all from different firehouses around the city; E-202, E-248 and L-156. Sineno, who referred to his Italian grandmother in the introduction, is holding his award winning cheesecake, coupled with an appearance on the Phil Donahue that actually set the wheels in motion for this book to be made.
I stare at this cover. I can almost hear laughter in the background coming from behind the rig. Members joking around. What a great day this must have been. What a great day later on, for John Sineno to see his cookbook published.
There was however a greater purpose described within this wonderful book. It started with the Harvard Business Club visiting the Fire Factory; eighty people. John and company fed them well, even though they had no idea how many people would show up that day.
John and two fellow firemen, Jack Meara and Joe Hickey, were trying to establish a Burn Center in New York city. They felt “too many people were succumbing to burn injuries, and something had to be done about it.” That connection with the Harvard Business Club ended up with the formation of The New York Firefighters Burn Center Foundation.
The book states that “persons receiving third-degree burns in excess of 25 percent of their anatomy were for all practical purposes dead, unless transported to a burn center.” Do you relate to the compassion and dedication, to want to do something so incredibly humane? Not only did they pull the victims out, but now wanted to establish a state of the art burn center, so the victims might live. And they did it with New York Hospital-Cornell Medical Center, establishing what firemen referred too as “The Miracle on 68th Street.”
John gave away half the proceeds of the book to the Burn Center.
In the book there’s a request to make a donation to the Burn Center Foundation.
I started out not knowing where this entry would end up. But I think we should acknowledge with extreme gratitude, the work these men did in helping get the first Burn Center in NYC established. Something I imagine today, with Level One trauma centers here and there, might not have the same meaning it did back in the days when burn victims were “the most neglected of hospital patients.”
Thank you John Sineno, who passed away on April 2, 2003, and all the Brothers that fought those fires, made the saves, and then helped get a hospital built for the victims. And thank you for the cookbook. I think tonight I’m going to make the Shrimp Parmesan, page 12, and continue to think about this great little book and the heroes behind it. A cookbook that literally saved lives.
NEVER FORGET!

Book is out of print, Vintage publishers out of business, but still available from some on-line bookstores.
Photo and description of book from my own purchased copy.

I posted this on another site , but it fits just as well here.
Just want to take a moment during this holiday season to pass along the following thoughts............
To all:
Although we disagree, sometimes fiercely, and each of us harbors our own views and defends them staunchly, during this Holiday season let us all take a moment to stop and reflect on just how lucky we are to be able to serve in good health and with the true spririt of the service in our hearts. I may not agree with any of you but I do respect your commitment to the Fire Service and to those you serve faithfully. No matter how opposite your views may be from mine, I just want to take the opportunity here to thank each of you for your insight and opinions expressed on these many pages.
Merry Christmas and a Happy and Healthy New Year to you and your families in and out of the firehouse.....
Cogs

Again, good info. As I noted I'd not recommend ignoring threats, but I have to say I'm torn between watching our country let these bastards win the easy victory, by forcing us to change to the point that our citizens are protesting each other. We're federally funding huge dollar amounts to combat a very small percentage of threat compared to the number of persons affected by common crime and fires, yet we continue to see fire and police departments slashed to less than bare bones levels. It is a fine balancing act to adequately protect ourselves from the threat of terrorists, and maintain our open society where utilizing mass transit or attending prolific events is not so complicated that we'd rather stay home.
As for the IRA, they learned to warn people as in their earlier years they lost huge amounts of support when so many innocents died. This in no way changes their acts as terrorism, but somewhat puts them on a different level than Al Qaeda, et als. The radicals we fear today are much less likely to share common Christan values such as not taking the lives of children.

I am increasingly disgusted with the way the media is portraying this guy as the victim in this case. The victims are the cops who were involved, end of story.
As for these so called " minority law enforcement groups" who are so concerned with this case, the majority of them are corrections officers who have no clue what it's like to be a street cop. They should be embarassed to have held that press conference and said the anti cop things that they said. It's funny how they come out of the wood work when a cop shoots someone but when gang members are killing each other and people are getting robbed, beaten, raped, burglarized and shot each and every day, they say nothing. These jerks are opportunists and nothing more. Everyone ran to back up this guys family and his friends version of what happened and now that his BAC is back at a .13 everyone is quieting down a bit. It kind of reminds me of the tawana brawley case all those years ago... everyone ran to her defense and just like the witnesses in this case, she was a LIAR.
I pray that our brothers are doing well as they try to come to terms with the actions that they were forced to take. These cops made the right decisions and did an outstanding job given the circumstances. Just think, you have a large crowd and an out of control drunk driver, if the officer didn't take the action he did, imagine what the outcome could have been if the car sped into the crowd. This cop not only did the right thing, he is a hero in my book.

We have the "no one turns us around but us" policy. It's not a slap int he face to our PD, but basically an acknowledgement that they are there for other reasons than we are. We slow our response, even call off multiple units, but one bus always continues if injuries were reported at any point. This does a few things: one it absolves the city of liability incurred when a non-EMS provider(LEO) agrees with a victims' self-assessment and is wrong about their medical needs; and two, we're been called countless times to "PD Only" accidents where the LEO is onscene for 20 minutes and suddenly the pain sets in and EMS is called. Of course we do not have 4 units responding or even multiple houses, so mass confusion at the scene is very rare. We don't give criminal advice, LEO's don't give medical advice, and everyone is capable of reporting fire or smoke showing. And we do not respond to all MVA's by any stretch, PD handles probably 60% without us, we only respond when injuries are reported or fire/fluids/etc. are an issue.

Many many FD's in Westchester have very little regard for OSHA regulations. This year I can think of over 35 violations issued in Westchester (and thats just 3 depts). How many depts. respond to "fire calls" with fewer than 6 firefighters (at least 4 being interior)? I can think of about 20% of Westchester FD's (I know there are many more from reading the IA's) that violate the respiratory protection program by lack of manpower on at least a portion of there calls.
And the wrath from PESH is not strong enough to convince depts to change thier ways. I hope that the litigation that is coming will hurt enough to convince many depts that they need to follow the rules. Its sad to think that firefighters and officers don't fight for this because its the right thing to do and it will protect us.
Deputy Chief Billy Goldfeder has a great line, he asks: "WHO IS IN YOUR WALLET"? If you do not care for the people whos photos you carry in your wallet then dont follow the rules, they are there so that at the end of the day you go home to them.

This part of the story is very critical of TFD. I dont see how in this day and age you dont have a respiratory protection program? Do fire departments think they are immune to the wrath of OSHA or PESH? Once again condolences to the families and Tarrytown FD.... Hopefully we all can learn something from this tragedy.

I was wondering that also... 4 helicopters?

My oh my how the times they have a-changed. First thing, I personally want to give the original poster a pass (just my opinion) for the way this thing got broken out into a new topic. I admit he did overreact to what was done, but I personally understand his point. I also understand the moderators point, so lets let it go everybody? There's more important things going on right now than to bicker over how this became it's own thread.
But now that it is, let's take a look at what happened. The chief in question, it's my understanding he wasn't the most popular of chiefs, but who ever is? He put basically his whole life into an organization of 10,000, and rose to the top. But because we are all so conditioned to think firefighting/policing/EMSing are SERVANT careers, it's done for free in so many places too, etc., it brings peoples' blood to boiling when they read something like this.
Yet the payouts to the bankers who have made such a mess of the economy; nobody blinks when they see 50 million dollars, 20 million dollars to this or that executive of an investment bank. We are conditioned to accept the fact that bankers make huge money, but somehow firefighters should be "kept as servants."
The pension costs are going up for the NYCP&FPS (different from the state) because of how many 9/11 ailments the Brothers are contracting. The FDNY does breathing tests. If you can't pass it, you're out. So, the city has to pay for the additional costs. and is that so much to ask for the sacrifices the FDNY members have made since 9/11? How many of you personally know a Brother with 9/11 related illness? I happen to know two.
You know what Zadroga is about from an FDNY member's standpoint? It's about those sick members wanting to see to it that their wives continue to get their pensions if their ailments turn into cancer and they die.
Think about that.
Is that so greedy? Is it so greedy that a chief who served over 40 years of his life, probably had more than his fair share of risky moments during his career, probably saved a few lives along the way, which is more than you can say about the banker walking out the door with a 20 million dollar severance package, that he gets a quarter million a year?
Why the outrage? Why have so many forgotten so quickly? In the aftermath of 9/11, there were the famous people out there talking about how the FDNY was going to get better pay and compensation going forward. You know what Rudy gave them in the two years after 9/11? ZERO and ZERO percent contract. Where did the talking heads go? They had their moment in the spotlight, on the deaths of hundreds of Brothers backs, and where did they go? What did they accomplish? Where are they now when the FDNY needs them badly?
They want the Engine officers to start doling out tickets for car fires and accidents. They are going to be trained in A.I. They are going to wind up in courts in the middle of battles.
And yet, the department readies plans to shutter and brown out companies at night.
Where did the RESPECT go? Time.......leads people to forget. And then add in an anti-union rag like the NY POST, making a big deal about the chief, enraging people against the fire department. Nice job Mr. Murdoch, now please return to the Land Down Under from which you came and belong.
Listen guys and gals, the working class people in this country are under attack. I posted a link here recently showing the average payouts from the NYSP&FRS. It's NOWHERES near what this city chief is making. The State fund is 107 percent funded right now, the healthiest in the country. Good planning, now just watch your politicians don't go and screw with that, which is what they are trying to do.
Whenever politicians see money sitting there, set aside and invested for the working people, they can't resist trying to get their greedy little hands on it. Well hands off the pension system, and you know what? New York city residents are going to have to PAY UP for the pensions that the Brothers need, especially the sick ones. It's the least they can do in the aftermath of our country's worst homeland attack in our history. and i'm sure Manhattan real estate is still going to rise past the average million dollars for 600 square feet. They'll survive. The chief gets to live good for his remaining years; why begrudge him? Why vilify him?
NEVER FORGET, we all love to say it, wrap that Flag around our shoulders. Yet do we forget when we vilify some FDNY members because the NY POST says we should?
Think about it.

Just to be fair...
Another candidate's site:
http://www.vote4arena1214.com
I don't believe the third candidate has a site.
I can't comment on any claims made on either site nor do I endorse any candidate. Simply posting FYI.

One of the best things about our job (volly, carreer, paid on call, whatever) is the blind admiration that the kids have for us. If you don't wave back shame on you. So that's why the addition of the balls was a bad move. The small interactions you have with the public when out and about can have great benifits down the road in budget or staffing battles.
Plenty of tricks still go on but PPE, apparatus, and equipment should be off limits.

Thaks for the clarification Cap your knowledge of ISO is amazing.... I am not very knowledgeable about Rye's operations so someone correct me if I am wrong. They have Engines 191,192 as frontline and Engine 193 as a spare? According to Bnechis they need 4 engines to meet their ISO requirements.

I can understand Florida having a law for that, the state is full of older gentleman who's own set hang that low to start with. Why would they want to see it in public. LoL

Sorry for jumping in so late in the discussion. but irish fire is right. I was on the job for 34 years and went to schools,seminars, etc. right up to the time I retired. Some of us go to these classes just to get certificates and unfortunately forget the course material in a week or two. On the other hand, you could have irishfire's attitude: Learn it from those who have been there> remember it> and put it in your back pocket because you might need it some time in the future when you least expect it. It should also come out of that back pocket every now and then for a review. Irishfire, Tommy Brennan would be proud of you.
And Barry: Mofire is young. Don't jump on him when he asks a question. All your information is absolutely correct, but as soon as you jumped on his case, you turned him off.
Cids (or whatever you may call buildings' info database) is a very time consuming effort and takes a lot of work by all members of a FD to initiate and then to keep current. Not a knock, but it is something that volunteer FDs just don't have the time or people to devote.
Everyone, paid or vol should find time to do company inspections, at least of your area's target hazards if nothing else. Wouldn't it be nice if your first time in a building is during a company inspection as opposed to 3an on your hands and knees?
And about that back pocket irishfire talked about...It's like a magic pocket. No matter how much "stuff" you put in it, it never gets full.
There...you got my two cents. Take it to heart and it may be worth a lot more to you

I wonder if the Meth lab across town sent in it's 209-u?

Come on Barry. With all due respect, planning and training are all good and well. But you know, as well as i, that alot of these commercial occupancies may change what they are storing on a daily basis. Even a Career department (such as the one you are affiliated with) with Inspectors/Marshalls may not be able to keep up with whats going on in these places.
Responding to ANY emergency, we must always be on alert and prepared for ANYTHING. However, there are times when things are out of our control.
Happy thanksgiving to you sir and your family, stay safe.

This is a really difficult situation the surrounding departments are put into as well. It would be very easy to say boycott going to the City if the layoffs occur. However, those who are still working there might need assistance. It would be devastating to find out that a brother firefighter died or was injured due to a department's refusal to respond because of a contract issue. I have quite a few lifelong friends in NFD and I sympathize with what they are going through but I wouldn't make a bad situation worse by not responding; it honestly puts the FF's lives at even more risk.

It makes me sick to my stomach to know that Pace University held a campus sponsored vigil for the perp. I can understand holding a moment of silence for a fallen student, or a candle light vigil for someone who pereished in a tragedy, but to hold an entire ceremony for someone who was in the process of committing multiple felonies makes me wonder how a$$ backwards this Country is becoming. While we're at it, lets hold a vigil for Diane Schuler as well.

I'm stating 'facts that I dont have exact statistic for, but a majority of all FF removals are made from the initial companies making entry, not the FASTeam. Why shouldn't every FF be trained in FAST techniques? My personal belief is that is should be required, along with survival and FF 2 in the inital firefighter class. A majority of other states mandate that it is. Florida for a fact does it this way as well as I wanted to go through their class, but didn't due to time constraints. They wanted everyone, regardless of whether they were career or volunteer, trained the exact same. Why should there be differences between career training and volly training? Fire doesn't give a crap about who you are or what you do for a living, its all the same beast.
If you have objections to this, then you need to think about the brotherhood you joined. If you don't want the training for yourself, what about for your downed brother that's trapped?

It was an Open Book Test - What part of that escapes you ? Why are you taking something like this and right away saying " It's terrifying " and " What about my rights " Do you have anything to hide ? Are you engaged in any anti American or pro terrorist organizations? No I didn't think so .. so I don't really think you have anything to worry about.
Is this a bad thing to have happen ? Yes of course it is .. will affect the great job the FBI does everyday to keep up safe ? No of course it won't. In the post 9/11 world the 4th amendment can't be hidden behind. We all have to understand that in the name of national security, there are certain things that the government may have to do to keep us safe, I say go for it, do what you have to do.
Thank you for taking the time to read my rant, from time to time some things just need to be said !!! :angry:

Just a few things, first off I think that the majority of us agree that any additional warning lights on any vehicle to keep members safe is a great thing. Second, I think it is a COMPLETE waste of time to pass laws that regulate what color lights go on which emergency vehicles, each department should put whatever color lights they deem necessary for the safety of their members.
As far as the posters who were complaining about the local PD's not following "the law" You guys are kidding right ? Why would you even care what color lights the PD uses, the fact is that we have had blue lights for years and we will continue to use blue lights because as we have established in this thread, blue lights give advanced warning to drivers. Do you really think a cop would walk up to the driver of a fire truck and give him a hard time for the color lights on his light bar, NO because we have better things to do besides worry about the color of a light and so do you guys.
The best example of PD using blue lights is the NYSP. The went from all red to having some blue lights on their bars and to me it makes a huge difference when you see them on the highway.

I think that overall Fire/EMS is going to become neglected by DPS and more priority given to "Police issues." DES has done a great job with training and special services and built up the level of services they can provide. To me this seems like a full 360 degree turn and will ultimately hurt the fire service and the public. In regards to the special op's teams run by DES, how can you save money by cutting volunteers and using overtime to pay and backfill for police to perform the same job?

The bigger question I have is why did 4 of the 7 officers step down?

I just don't get how they can hope to accomplish their goals of more minorities without discrimination. If they lower the aptitude required to ace the test, which is pretty much where you have to be to make the list, do they think that more whites won't be able to pass the easier test? Then how do they choose without discrimination? This country is out of hand with these types of issues. For one I see this as the one issue that makes me feel racist in any manner. I can't help but be angered by folks who argue that the tests need to be changed so they can pass them. I'd like to think these were rare individuals but instead, they make it a race issue. It really should cause other member of said minorities to be outraged that they're being "proven" to be less intelligent by their peers and the courts.