No pay, no spray: Firefighters let home burn

[Asher]

Are you familiar with the concept of good Samaritans, HC?

Do you believe ERs should not help dying people if they have not paid for insurance, despite knowing the risks(!!!!) of not having insurance?

Do you think a doctor should demand payment or asses the likelihood of being reimbursed for his time before helping someone dying on the street?

Or do you think the fair thing to do -- the moral thing to do -- is to help your fellow man if you are there and capable? It's this lack of empathy, compassion, and civility which is why the US is the country it is today. You may think that's a source of pride, but it's a source of your crime rate, your class warfare, and your dog-eat-dog society. As far as Western societies go, it's pretty barbaric.

[DinoDoc]

I mean fairness in the sense of morality, humanity, and civilized people.

Why do free riders have a right to city services outside of the city?

[Asher]

What are decisions without consequences? He made his choice and he faced the consequences. He decided not to pay the fire department and his house burned down. I fail to see how the fact that it is possible to make critically stupid decisions in America means the American dream is a fraud.

The very fact that you are defending this implicates you as well, not just Tennessee. The very fact that many other otherwise sensible Americans in this thread are defending it also implicates American society as a whole.

There's some kind of moral compass Americans seem to be lacking, which is painfully amusing considering he selfrighteous crap the country pretends to spew about being a modern, free-thinking country.

[Asher]

Why do free riders have a right to city services outside of the city?

Who said anything about rights?

I'm talking about doing the right thing for my fellow man.

Here I am, the devout homosexual atheist, showing Christians what is meant by "Love thy neighbour".

[BlackCat]

Well, living in a contry that yankystani people would start wars against*, I'm a bit confused. It may be an advanced thought for yankys, but we make rural areas a part of the nearby city/town. It may sound complicated, but by this we manage to provide schooling, med care, fire and other kind of rescure to all areas.

* We have free medic, free edu, free speach, sex ed, don't have to pray to god to get elected and other benefits that seems to piss of yankystanis.

[Hauldren Collider]

Are you familiar with the concept of good Samaritans, HC?

Yes

Do you believe ERs should not help dying people if they have not paid for insurance, despite knowing the risks(!!!!) of not having insurance?

Yes, but they should attempt to collect payment from that person after saving his/her life.

Do you think a doctor should demand payment or asses the likelihood of being reimbursed for his time before helping someone dying on the street?

No, hospitals themselves have insurance for this.

Or do you think the fair thing to do -- the moral thing to do -- is to help your fellow man if you are there and capable? It's this lack of empathy, compassion, and civility which is why the US is the country it is today. You may think that's a source of pride, but it's a source of your crime rate, your class warfare, and your dog-eat-dog society. As far as Western societies go, it's pretty barbaric.

Class warfare? Dog-eat-dog? Is that a joke? Some law that I don't agree with combined with the poor decisionmaking of somebody who knew the system resulted in some dead pets and a burned down house, and I blame both the law and the victim and that makes America a heartless society?

Also, the crime rate has nothing to do with the fact that we don't have socialist healthcare. Sorry.

Given the system that IS IN PLACE in that county, I don't think the firefighters should break their rules and save the idiot's house. This doesn't mean I support the system they have, but I'm not a Tennessee voter.

[Felch]

I agree that the fire department should be willing to take a larger fee to add people who are in the midst of emergency. But imagine if there were a story about extortionate fees charged by fire departments taking advantage of these situations. Then y'all would be *****ing about that.

The real villain in this story is the ******* kid who didn't know how to safely burn trash.

[Asher]

Yes, but they should attempt to collect payment from that person after saving his/her life.

So how is this any different?

Why can't the fire department save the family's home, then bill them after for their expenses? This is what is the norm, isn't it? Ambulances, health care, search & rescue (if you ski out of bounds, etc).

No, hospitals themselves have insurance for this.

The hospital has nothing to do with the doctor out on his own time helping sick people. Like on a plane, for instance.

Class warfare? Dog-eat-dog? Is that a joke?

No, just your country.

Some law that I don't agree with combined with the poor decisionmaking of somebody who knew the system resulted in some dead pets and a burned down house, and I blame both the law and the victim and that makes America a heartless society?

Also, the crime rate has nothing to do with the fact that we don't have socialist healthcare. Sorry.

You're completely missing the point. This has nothing to do with "socialist" healthcare or "socialist" firefighting systems. It has to do with the attitude you possess here. You claim to not agree with the law, yet here you are defending what happened.

It's the attitude of Americans that I'm talking about, the attitude that creates contempt for eachother and a "watch your own back 'cause no one will ever watch yours" sense of paranoia and radicalism that's baffling to outsiders. Americans are at war with their neighbours, in a general sense. You look out for yourself first, who the **** cares what happens to the family down the street? The mom's got cancer? Too bad, so sad, hope they can pay for that. His house is on fire? Sucks to be him, maybe he should've paid that extra levy on time!

It's an attitude that, frankly, sickens me. It should be revolting to any enlightened individual.

Given the system that IS IN PLACE in that county, I don't think the firefighters should break their rules and save the idiot's house.

This is precisely the attitude I'm talking about. Lack of empathy. **** the neighbours.

[DinoDoc]

You're making the argument that got city officials to expand the coverage of their fire department in the first place after they felt bad a few years ago when a fire broke out and the city officials felt bad about not being able to help. They decided to greatly expand the service they offer for a very reasonable price making the rural homeowners much better off than before. Before that opt-in program happened, rural homeowners had no access to a fire department and now they do. This homeowner chose not to opt-in. I see little reason why this should be a moral issue.

[Asher]

You're making the argument that got city officials to expand the coverage of their fire department in the first place after they felt bad a few years ago when a fire broke out and the city officials felt bad about not being able to help. They decided to greatly expand the service they offer for a very reasonable price making the rural homeowners much better off than before. Before that opt-in program happened, rural homeowners had no access to a fire department and now they do. This homeowner chose not to opt-in. I see little reason why this should be a moral issue.

I've noticed you see little reason, in general.

The moral issue is you've got capable men with capable equipment standing next to a family's home burning down, and they're doing nothing. Over a $75 fee.

If you seriously don't see how morals play into this, God help you.

[Asher]

Question for DD and HC: Should the police only protect tax-paying citizens?

Eg, if an illegal Mexican immigrant was being raped in the street by another illegal Mexican, should the police do nothing? After all, these Mexicans do not pay any taxes or fund the police in any way.

[BlackCat]

Why does it have to be an illegal Mexican doing the crime ?

[Asher]

Because they don't fund the police, just like how this family didn't fund the fire department.

If you prefer, I could make it an illegal Dane...

As for why the guy DOING it is also illegal, it's just to ensure there's no ensuing argument (like this, I suppose...) about whether the crime is still the business of the police because the rapist is a taxpayer.

[DinoDoc]

The system which the city officials generously created for the benefit of rural homeowners only works if there are real consequences for opting out otherwise people will only pay fees in the event of a fire which will lead us back to the status quo that existed before city decided to expand fire fighting coverage past the city limits.

[Wiglaf]

Are we supposed to render gratuitous financial services to everyone facing foreclosure?