calhobs

We idolized and memorialized Whitney Houston, yet looked the other way concerning her well known substance abuse and tumultuous life with singer Bobby Brown.
Charlie Sheen is 45 and his story is all over the news because he is a
substance abuser, an adulterer, sexually promiscuous and obnoxious.
Lindsay Lohan is 24 and her story is all over the news because she is a
celebrity drug addict and thief.
Something as frivolous as Kim Kardashian's stupid wedding [and
short-lived marriage] was shoved down our throats, While........
Justin Allen 23
Brett Linley 29
Matthew Weikert 29
Justus Bartett 27
Dave Santos 21
Jesse Reed 26
Matthew Johnson 21
Zachary Fisher 24
Brandon King 23
Christopher Goeke 23
and Sheldon Tate 27...
Are all Marines who gave their lives last month for you. There is no
media for them; not even a mention of their names.
Young Men who most likely came from rural America seeking a chance
to better themselves and to serve this county.
Rest In Peace, and THANK YOU,TROOPS.
This was an email i got and wanted to share it

With all due respect I'm not at all of the opinion we owe the Iranian people or their rabid dog regime anything other than our condemnation. Installing and supporting the Shah does not justify taking American citizens hostage for 444 days and trying to use them as pawns to extort concessions from us. They could have and should have just kicked all Americans out of their country back in 1979, but they chose to pursue a government sponsored criminal act instead. And that mentatlity of resorting to criminal behavior and terror as a means of "defending" themselves has continued unabated since. Add to that their avowed mission to spead the "Islamic Revolution" regardless of whether or not anyone else wants to be party to it and that further exemplifies just how much of a danger they are in this world. Countless lives have been lost or ruined due to their actions in support of jihadist terrorists far beyond their own borders and their own "freedom from tyranny". A freedom by the way which they do not offer their own people and would happily take from others as well given the chance. And aquiring nuclear weapons will give them that chance.
I too wish for a non violent solution, just as I'm sure any sane person does, but as history amply demonstrates appeasement doesn't work...just ask the 50+ million killed in WW 2 after Hitler was appeased. The blood of those 50 million is on the hands of those who sought to accomadate Hitler and his criminal regime in an effort to prevent bloodshed, but which in the end cost far more in blood and genocide than a firmer stand ever would have. As the saying goes "those who forget history are doomed to repeat it" and with the potential for a nuclear holocaust causing bloodshed on a scale far beyond that of even WW 2, IMO that quote holds true no more so than in this case.
Cogs

Thanks all for the input thus far.
SECTMB has answered the questions almost verbatim to my own views. Thats said I think there are variables here that expand the situation from the political to the geopolitical. Both Russia and China have vested interests in Iran, not the least of which being weapons sales. Added to that is the fact that both Russia and China have become more bellicose in their dealing with us recently. Now of course the risk to China in terms of losing it's primary trading partner are enormous, but as in times past a costly war in terms of lives and money can bring new powers to the forefront....think the U.S. after WW I as the European empires started to crumble or go bankrupt. And of course the vast majority of the products we rely on now come from China thanks to those who sold out our manufacturing base to line their own pockets. When push comes to shove the risks may be viewed as acceptable if it causes a retreat of American influence and power around the world, leaving a vacuum that both China and Russia would be more than happy to fill. So much so that they may view direct involvement as in their best interest. But far more likely I think would be either Russia, China or both using Iran as a proxy to drag us into a long, costly war unlike anything we've seen since WW2 opening the door for them to pursue their own geopolitical aims without our interference.
Then of course there is the spectre of jihad that would undoubtedly be called as the major supporter and sponsor of Islamic fundamentalist groups comes under attack by the "Great Satan" or our "lackey" Israel. It is almost assured that whether Israel is directly involved or not they will be a target just as they were in the first Gulf war. Except this time the enemy is far larger than Iraq and has it's tentacles firmly pulling the puppet strings of the myriad of terrorist groups operating in Gaza, the West Bank, Syria and Lebanon...all of whom want to see Israel wiped from the face of the earth. This also leads to my question about a 9/11 type attack here at home. It may not be the Iranians themselves, but more likely their proxies that plan and try to carry out massive terrorist acts on our soil to help their benefactor.
What we must also remember is that as far as Iran is concerned a de facto state of war already exists between us. They may soon find themselve more alienated and going broke and thus becoming more desperate and reckless as their options dwindle. As a student of history I can see that although very different this situation does bear more than a passing similarity to the state of the our relations with Japan prior to Pearl Harbor...and it was oil then too that was the catalyst for war.
I do not advocate war as the first means to resolve the crisis, but I do support entering into it to protect ourselves or prevent attacks against us. Should Iran aquire nuclear weapons, how long do you think it would be before a terror group got hold of a bomb, put it on small boat and eradicated southern Manhattan? IMO a nuclear armed regime in Iran that has called for the extermination of Israel, denies the Holocaust, and is a sponsor of worldwide terrorist activities, of which we are the main target, is an unacceptable alternative....even if that means war.
Cogs

Cogs
Some very important questions you bring up. IMO I think Israel will do a premptive strike before we do, I do think we should back them. I also think we should sit down and talk with Iran. I am a frim believer that you keep all channels of communaction open at all times to prevent a war. I do not think another 9/11 type attack will happen in the near future, I see more of smaller attacks happening such as the plot that was spoiled yesterday on the Captial, the Times Sq incident etc.but nothing on the scale of 9/11 anytime soon.
Now the big question. Is it a threat to us here at home? At this very moment no, what it can lead to down the line where the serious threat comes in.
IMO if we do any thing it will be Covert Ops with assasinations of scientist and sabotage of facilities. If we do bombing strikes I think that will be a result of Covert Ops failing. I dont think we should encourge our allies to do Covert Ops on our behalf but I do think they should be encourged to help us in them.
Very interesting topic .

Cogs
Some very important questions you bring up. IMO I think Israel will do a premptive strike before we do, I do think we should back them. I also think we should sit down and talk with Iran. I am a frim believer that you keep all channels of communaction open at all times to prevent a war. I do not think another 9/11 type attack will happen in the near future, I see more of smaller attacks happening such as the plot that was spoiled yesterday on the Captial, the Times Sq incident etc.but nothing on the scale of 9/11 anytime soon.
Now the big question. Is it a threat to us here at home? At this very moment no, what it can lead to down the line where the serious threat comes in.
IMO if we do any thing it will be Covert Ops with assasinations of scientist and sabotage of facilities. If we do bombing strikes I think that will be a result of Covert Ops failing. I dont think we should encourge our allies to do Covert Ops on our behalf but I do think they should be encourged to help us in them.
Very interesting topic .

An Angel In The Sky Must Leave His Place Of Rest,
Gently Tucking His Wings Beneath His Armored Vest.
For Duty Has Called, There Is Much Work To Do
Little Did He Know, This One Is Dressed In Blue.
Arriving On The Scene, He Knows Just What To Say,
............"Follow Me, Fallen Brother, I'll Show You The Way."
"Your Duty Has Ended, Your Work Is Now Through."
"Come Hang Your Hat Beside Mine, I'm A Cop, Too."

Feels like I've been on the road for years. Actually, I have been. Since retiring from the job in '06, I left NY for South Carolina, and eventually wound up in Florida. It's been too long since I've been home. But I came home for a funeral of a beloved Great Uncle of our family. Uncle Vince served in the U.S. Army during WWII, and saw action in Europe for which he received recognition. He passed away at age 93. He was laid to rest in St. Raymond's Cemetery in the Bronx.
Being back in NY after such a long time, is an incredible experience. First thing one realizes, is the scale and perception of this area changes when you're away for a long time. Westchester is tighter and smaller than ever. It makes me shake my head even more when I realize this small place has such a problem with combining fire service protection.
Then my Brothers from my former job caught a two-alarm fire in an OMD at two something in the morning the other night. They did a great job with aggressively attacking that fire, and keeping the damage to a minimum. The mutual aid companies also helped out. Great job by all.
Seeing family and friends has been such a wonderful experience. If you take all the people in your life for granted, go on the road for four or five years, and see how your perspective changes. Seeing Brothers I worked with has been an amazing time.
To wrap it up, there really is no place like home; especially when home is the greatest metropolis in the world; New York. I'm loving every single minute of this visit, every single minute spent with my dad, my uncles, all retired firemen. Thank God for family and friends.
Special thanks to Brother E. Lynch and the entire crew at 28/11 for their hospitality in my time of urgent need of a restroom! lol
Stay well everybody. Hug your family today, shake your friends hands, enjoy this world and the people God chose to be your family and friends. They are literally irreplaceable.

This has to be one of the most asinine threads on Bravo in a long time. Way to hit rock bottom!

The problem is that the City of New York already has fire protection in the form of FDNY. These volunteer fire companys are nothing but freelancers...what do we call the guy on the fire scene who doesn't listen to any orders, ignores accountability, and does what he wants(besides ahole), yeah that's right, a FREELANCER. The same applies here, this company is basically buffing jobs off of a scanner(their not dispatched by FDNY), they don't follow FDNY SOPs/SOGs, they may have their own. I'd like to see what the response would be if I bought my own firetruck and started responding undispatched to jobs in Mamaroneck...I'm sure I'd turn a few heads.
On the training aspect, FDNY has their academy/training set up the way that they want their personnel trained. I'm going to guarantee that the AVFD doesn't attend the FDNY academy. What happens if one of these volunteer members gets injured in the line of duty? I bet that they would go after the City for it. This opens up a huge liability to NYC with organzations like this freelancing around the city. How about the unprofessionalism that is displayed when these guys show up and a dispute takes place?
Don't always take the "Paid guys are just causing trouble" approach. Look at things from the other side a little bit, and try and see that doing the right thing isn't always doing the right thing.

Ahh to be young and naive. I might be young too, but I know that there is a huge difference between what OFPC's recommends on volunteer training (remember NYS is a home rule state, so FF1 is not required), and FDNY's career academy. The volunteers do not go through the FDNY academy, which would make is almost impossible for them to fit seamlessly into the FDNY's operations. The last thing the FDNY is worried about, are these volunteer companies taking away their jobs. They're worried that their standards and training requirements are not kept up as adequately as the FDNY's, which could endanger the lives of the citizens and responders even more. They "pick on them" because the fail to produce training requirements, or certificates of their members to the FDNY to show that they are all adequately trained.
Everyone might love cake, but that doesn't mean cake is good for you.

There is a plan for mutual aid to NYC and I'm sure the same holds policy for credentialing and accountability applies to Long Island resources and New Jersey resources just with different mobilization points (Citi Field and Staten Island as mentioned above).
The new Commissioner's comments aren't so much about us going to NYC but rather the incident victims relocating to Westchester and points north...
How prepared are we to deal with a train load of 1500 injured or contaminated people arriving at ANY station in Westchester?
The points about us not being able to cover day to day calls is significant. What will we do about it? Tune back in to this thread 5 years from now and I'll bet you'll hear almost all the same discussions.

While I may not have several thousand posts or hundreds of popularity points, I've been around this place long enough to know that had this been a FF under that bus this incident would be a non issue. Being that it was a PO cast in a positive light by the media, his actions are scrutinized and criticized by the "brothers" on here.
There is an inherent disdain for cops on this site, especially when it comes to them performing any sort of rescue work. It is plainly obvious to see. How come there is zero criticism on the part of FD using spreaders to lift the bus? Wasn't too long ago when ESU was crucified by many on here for attempting and failing a lift with spreaders. Granted these guys used cribbing and took their time but nonetheless the majority on here condemned that technique as a whole... When cops were doing it.
With that being said, good job to the PO who put himself in harms way to comfort a fellow human being and FD for safely extricating the victim. Hopefully she makes a full recovery.

Sometimes, and it may just be once in a career, emergency workers are confronted with a situation that isn't "in the book" so they can't "go by the book". Officer Peck wasn't under the bus as a "rescue technician", he was under the bus as a HUMAN BEING giving comfort and support to another injured and frightened woman.
When the crane toppled and pinned Bridget Gurney in NYC, there was a monster response and the FD/PD/MD did the same thing Officer Peck did. They put their lives at risk to save her. If I recall correctly there were no guarantees that they wouldn't be killed or injured in a secondary collapse. We've all heard stories like it and it is one of the most compelling characteristics about our profession. In the face of obvious, and sometimes not so obvious, danger, we do something compassionate and caring for a total stranger.
Hopefully the first arriving rescue units insured that the bus was off, in park, wheels chocked and placed cribbing to protect them both.
I don't commend Officer Peck as a rescue technician and I'm glad the FD arrived promptly to extricate the victim; I commend him for doing something selfless and compassionate. We're reminded daily of all the negative things people in our profession do. This is a nice reminder about the positive things.

While I think the "get the job done first, safety second" statement is absolutely ludicrous, I think what's even more ludicrous is how individuals on here have to nitpick this officers actions as if he did something so egregiously dangerous, instead of applauding him for his actions on a job well done.

Another problem is damn near every town "demanding" a Con Ed rep at Town Hall or the local PD/FD/EOC/ABC/LMNOP every time there's a major storm. That's ridiculous and a colossal waste of money. No wonder their expenses are so high; they need to keep 100 liaisons employed so every little fiefdom has their own personal ConEd whipping boy.
It does nobody any good at all to have a rep in Town Hall or the PD when restoration is regional and doesn't necessarily coincide with jurisdictional borders. Seems to me those 40-50 reps would be better served supervising field work and let the rep in the County's EOC coordinate local needs with ConEd services.

Personally I don't think they should have to worry about the hits they took from the past few storms. Problem is people are just too damned spoiled and really don't understand the dynamics of power grids particularly when the damage is vast and to primary infrastructure. People think they are more important then the next and that power should be on in 45 minutes. Its getting ridiculous.
As far as more workers...if that's a significant issues...I say absolutely. I would imagine the union would be taking up that issue as well...and I'll be flat out honest...I would say I would support them..but I don't see their union stepping up for their members who like to come in and do my job.
If anything...they are using money on the backs of their customers. Times aren't getting any easier...they should do their best to find a way to lower costs for customers.

Not even just getting away. Imagine being the sanitation worker on that job. What a surprise and what a potential for disaster.

Can you imagine what would happen if the State Comptroller Mandated an annual FD report as part of your required budget. Make it available on the Comptrollers, your depts. (if applicable) and your town (city, village) web sites.
Required info:
Budget breakdown
Number of career ff's and training received during the year (if any)
Number of volunteer ff's and training received during the year (if any)
Minimum career on duty staffing: per shift & per apparatus (if any)
Minimum response of career personnel to reported fire (if any)
Minimum response of volunteer personnel to reported fire (if any)
Average response of volunteer personnel to reported fire (if any)
Maximum response of volunteer personnel to reported fire (if any)
If above 3 vary more than 10%, list time of day/day of week
Number/type of apparatus.
Condition of apparatus, equipment, stations, etc.
Other services provided.
Mutual aid given & received
Injury summary
ISO rating
Even if the community does not react, maybe....just maybe if departments measure their performance, they might try to improve it. Or maybe the politicians will just be embarrassed enough to fund us to the level needed to fix it.

Luckily Mahopac probably doesn't have a different procedure for Line of Duty vs Active Duty. They haven't had enough members pass where that distinction has to be made. How about who gives a rats a** how they did it so long as his friends and even more importantly his family were given some infinitesimal level of comfort. If the family wanted clowns and jugglers and the dept could provide it, then what more could anyone ask? This kind of s*** stirring goes right along with the people who question weather all LODD deaths are equal. It serves no benefit and only distracts from a department's attempt to honor the service of a member.

After these misguided individuals finish with OWS maybe they should go and protest outside all of the Universities and Colleges who charge astronomical tuitions to attend putting individuals in debt up to their a** before they even graduate and find a job. There's something nobody has any control over and won't say s*** about.

The exercise of the first amendment is a wonderful thing; we're one of the few places in the world where you have that. But just because they're opposed to things that I'm opposed to doesn't make them an ally so I have the same right to protest against their methods - not necessarily their message. I don't think "camping" in a park is the kind of protest that will effect change but that's just me and my first amendment talking.
It's refreshing to see that activism is alive and well but the "Occupy Wall Street" movement could take a few lessons from some of the great activists of our time who were articulate and convincing in their message. The double-talk gibberish that they use with the media further alienates me.
And I seriously doubt that any of these protesters want to see our wages increased and our pensions protected. That is part of the hypocrisy.
My two cents.

Dont start celebrating just yet, Bloomberg has stated they will be allowed back in after the park is cleaned up. http://www.cnn.com/2011/11/15/us/new-york-occupy-eviction/index.html?hpt=hp_c1

They should do the same to him as he did to that poor family. Hopefully this brings some peace and some closure to Dr.Petit. God bless the Petit family may they suffer no more.