Comments on: Fire Station Closure May Hurt Boise Service

By: TED

TED — Mon, 27 Sep 2010 19:27:45 +0000

Hey James, What are you earning a year from CALPERS?and why is that organization going broke? Oh yeah It would be because private enterprise has been taxed out of CA to pay for union contracts.

P.S. James I know it is damn close to six figures a year

By: Just a Thought

Just a Thought — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 04:10:01 +0000

Good to see the support Sean. The senseless arguments regarding full timers and unions drives me nuts!!

Take care my friend!!

By: Sean Spencer

Sean Spencer — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 03:39:32 +0000

James-In terms of your suggest of “visiting a fire station”, you are welcome to visit mine anytime.
Like “Just a thought”, I too am an experienced FF/medic, so your comments of being “uneducated” are inappropiate and inaccurate at best. In terms of Internet studies, I think rather than making hasty generalizations about cities not having the manpower or budgets for career vs. volunteer departs, your logic couldn’t be further from the truth. As a 5 year volunteer paramedic/FF with the Town of Canton (CT), I have the same standards and qualifications as my brothers and sisters in FT paid depts in surrounding cities. We have response times and quality of care and service that equal to surrounding FT paid departments. So how do you explain that?

By: Zippo

Zippo — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 02:42:11 +0000

http://www.nbcmiami.com/news/local-beat/city-to-employees–were-broke-so-were-breaking-your-contracts-101830903.html

By: Just a Thought

Just a Thought — Sat, 28 Aug 2010 21:15:49 +0000

James….let’s not be making assumptions here. First of all, I have been a Volunteer Fireman/Paramedic now for 20 years….So I have been there and I also know what it is like risking my life. I agree where training levels and proficiency are sporadic at best, but there are a number of us that have just as many credentials as a full timer does. In addition, there are many volunteer stations that are manned “ready to go”, equal to the initial response time of a paid department.

My statement to you is that I do support both a full time and volunteer departments. My reasoning, in this case, is to compliment the career staff while giving a cost saving benefit to tax payers in the form of less overtime, less call back, and additional staffing where there are stations within the same district that are cost prohibitive to staff. An example would be planned communities that are away from the core city, however still in the fire district. This is the case for North Ada Co’s third station in the “Hidden Springs development” This area is a 11 +/- minute response from the next closest engine from NACFR. Volunteers were used to staff this station part time…a huge benefit to the taxpayers and citizens that live there.
I do support career departments, I just believe the career departments do not support the volunteers in the same manner.

This day and age of budget disasters….It just makes economic sense to utilize a lesser expensive but qualified individuals to help alleviate fiscal strains most…….if not all departments are facing. If NACFR would have continued with what they had before…It would be realistic to believe that this station would not be closing.

By: Zippo

Zippo — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 20:49:40 +0000

No not fire department specific; although they do spend a lot of time and money marketing themselves as special in an effort sell us on the huge costs relative to years gone by. There are many jobs just as dangerous etc. Most people in this country work hard and do important things without near as much horn honking. I’m happy they are there, but don’t forget it’s what we pay for too.

No, my comments are directed at the gross disconnect between bureaucrats and the citizen/economy. Government has grown beyond the ability of our economy to support it. This is not personal, this is fact. It’s why our bond ratings are in danger of slipping. It has occurred because the powers that be have refused to place reasonable and prudent demands on the taxpayer while also giving away the store to the rest of the world and those who don’t work. They have failed in the leadership role we entrusted them with. We will go through a period of time were government acts like a bully and takes what they want, but when they have exhausted those sources the expensive services will vanish.

The only solution is to restart the core economy based on new technology/ideas, durable goods manufacturing exports, and special services exports, while reducing government drag. The alternative is a very different looking America, many examples of which litter the world and history. Even the pay checks to the Roman Army bounced in the end.

By: james Scott

james Scott — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 18:27:56 +0000

Zippo, I guess there’s not much reasoning to do when someone has obviously made up their mind, however wrong it may be!! It appears you have a lot of animosity towards the fire dept, and firefighters in general. Maybe you are bitter as you are unable to do such a physical job, or maybe you have been unable to pass the testing process????? I don’t know and frankly I don’t care!!!! But to sit back from wherever you are writing from and to say too “expensive and overpaid” is just plain naive. Is there “crazy spending” going out there yes, and unfortunately that is why were in the position were in now. Maybe I’m misunderstanding you but it appears you point the finger primarily at the fire dept. I for one and am willing to pay my taxes knowing that in the unfortunate event I have to dial 911, I will have the best possible trained personnel show up at my door to help either my family or I. And to say firefighters are “overpaid” I don’t know if I should even justify that with a comment!!! That is just plain ignorant. Firefighting as you know is one of the most dangerous jobs in America, never truly knowing if they are going to make it home to their family & kids the next day, the traumatic events they have to be part of and take home each and every day, for this I am also talking about Ambulance services!!!! And to put a price on that, I guess tells me alot about the person you must be! There are not many jobs in America where I would say they should make more money, but this is one. Time and time again wether it is a movie being made, a documentary, or even just a plain old interview, the census is the same. Firefighters are underpaid and undermanned for the job they are having to do!!!!!!

By: Zippo

Zippo — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 07:09:21 +0000

James, In a few years we will not have the money to continue to have the expensive departments. That means pensions too. And no, you can’t make me pay. As you will see a few years after those who are funding your retirement can see now, we’ve reached a turning point on expensive and overpaid. 100 times? BS and you know it. Lots of BS to justify the 100 time the cost of the past. The days for this kind of crazy spending are over, I promise.

By: james Scott

james Scott — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 00:56:51 +0000

Wow, after reading some of these posts it’s actually scary how “clueless” some of these so called postings are. As a Firefighter/Paramedic from out of state I was privileged enough to have served and retired after 30 amazing years. For some of you to say “well there’s not as many fire’s” or “why don’t we use more volunteer’s these days” it just brings forward how uneducated some of you really are. Are there less fire’s these day’s, yes but firefighting has never been more dangerous. Homes/buildings of the past were built to last and we were able to go into homes without the worry of immediate collapse, deadly gases, and numerous other dangers we never had to worry about. Firefighting of today is a 100 times more dangerous than the past, and I can honestly say I would second guess a career in firefighting if I had to do it in todays world. As for ‘just a thought/sean Spencer” you gan get a “study” from anywhere that says whatever you want about whatever you want or slanted anyway. Trust me the only reasons any city has a “volunteer dept” or volunteers is because they can’t get the manpower, or they are just too small of a town. Not to take anything away from the incredible job volunteers have to do. But there is a reason the astronomical number of firefighters that die every year is. If you look at the #’s a huge percentage comes from them, 1 because of their shear number, but also for the lack of training, the amount of time it now takes for engines (manpower) to arrive location, and numerous other things. Like everything in this day and age we progress, hopefully for the better. Moving from a volunteer dept to a career dept is truly the best decision a city can ever do for its citizens. This city is privileged enough to have one of the better dept’s in the united States and for people for to constantly try and add their “2 cents”into everything it just gets old. Maybe you should visit a fire station sometime and talk with some firefighters instead of reading garbage articles from the internet, maybe you’ll actually really learn something then!!!!!!

EDITOR NOTE–I don’t think most people would disagree. Our problems here are political rather than “tactical.” We are a class 3 department, but it has become a contractual business with Boise providing service to other areas. These rural areas find it cheaper to pay Boise to provide service, but their patrons pay lower taxes than if they lived in the city. Firefighters are well trained, talented and dedicated. Politicians are not.

By: Sean Spencer

Sean Spencer — Sat, 21 Aug 2010 06:43:15 +0000

I can’t wait for the BFD union to jump on “Jump a Thoughts” comments from above, criticizing the quality of service of “vollies
vs. paid/career FF. Before they do that, let me remind them that of the 30,000 or so Fire Departments in the U.S. today (86% are either mostly volunteer or all volunteer. That comes your own US Fire Admin organization. (http://www.usfa.dhs.gov/statistics/departments/index.shtm). There are entire departments on the east coast that are 100% volunteer and opportunity at the same quality of service as BFD or any other FD in the U.S. To “Just a thoughts” comments, I am not sure why we have erradicted a completely solid method for amending our FF force with North Ada County Fire with high-quality volunteers that would not only service their community with honor (and have in the past) but also offer a cost advantage to the tax payer.