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richardhutnik on 07 October 2010
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HappySqurriel said:
richardhutnik said:
HappySqurriel said:

If the fire department puts out the fires for people who don't pay them why would anyone pay their fee?

Should police handle a crime done to someone who didn't pay for police services?  Hey, should police be like the fire department there?  You know, someone commits arson on your home but you didn't pay for police services, or another crime.  You didn't pay the bill.  So, the police don't do anything... particularly if they knew ahead of time and could of stopped it.

One thing about fires is you better get them put out ASAP because you never know what will happen if you just let one burn in an uncontrolled environment.

I don't think you understand ...

If you have a voluntary fee for something and people choose not to pay then the fee has to either increase for responsible people or the service disappears.Do you think that it is fair that a responsible person has to subsidize the irresponsible, or has to live without the protection of the fire department, because the fire department is reasonable?

One (major) element is being left out of this story to make this homeowner sound more like a victim which he talked about on CNN today. This home owner's son's home caught fire last year, his son didn't pay the fee, and the fire department did the responsible thing and put out the fire and allowed his son to pay the fee the next day. Having seen an example of how important fire protection was, and knowing the fire department would be reasonable, this home owner decided to "Game the System" and not pay his bill.

I place firefighting in with police, in that both are involved with public safety, and if you don't act when a situation shows up, things can get out of control.  The guy needs to pay the fees necessary to keep the fire department going.  This is not negotiable.  You can't make fire safety optional, because you risk a fire getting out of control.  In this case, several animals died because they sat back and did nothing.  To sit around and watch the fire is absurd also.  You put liens on the house, or whatever else is needed, because it puts people at risk.  It is like why they require people to have auto insurance if they drive, so that costs of accidents are covered.

Letting the fire burn puts the neighbors at risk.  That is the issue involved here.  You could also have laws where the fire could be put out and the individuals lose their home, if they don't pay the bills.  Yes, he tried to game the system, but the situation is greater than what they do or don't want to do.