The Conservative Cave
Current Events => The DUmpster => Topic started by: MoshMasterD on September 07, 2011, 11:40:33 AM
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LINKO (http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x4986465)
RamboLiberal Donating Member (1000+ posts) Journal Click to send private message to this author Click to view this author's profile Click to add this author to your buddy list Click to add this author to your Ignore list Tue Sep-06-11 06:11 PM
Original message
Texas cut fire department spending by 75% this year
Edited on Tue Sep-06-11 06:43 PM by RamboLiberal
Source: Raw Story
Under Gov. Rick Perry (R) this year, Texas slashed state funding for the volunteer fire departments that protect most of the state from wildfires like the ones that have recently destroyed more than 700 homes.
Volunteer departments that were already facing financial strain were slated to have their funding cut from $30 million to $7 million, according to KVUE.
The majority of Texas is protected by volunteer fire departments. There are 879 volunteer fire departments in Texas and only 114 paid fire departments. Another 187 departments are a combination of volunteer and paid.
For that reason, aid from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) could be more important than ever to the state where wildfires have recently been raging.
Read more: http://www.rawstory.com/rawreplay/2011/09/texas-cut-fir... /
video from local TX tv station at link. http://videocafe.crooksandliars.com/david/texas-cut-fir...
From March 2011:
State funding for volunteer fire departments is taking a big hit. It is going from $30 million to $7 million. Those departments are already facing financial strains.
The State Firemen’s and Fire Marshals’ Association of Texas represents 21,000 state firefighters. The Association says more than 80 percent of volunteer firefighters are reporting taking a personal hit in the budget crisis. They have started using their own money to help pay for equipment and supplies.
“We've seen budget cuts, but this is the worst time that we've ever seen,†said Executive Director Chris Barron. “As far as the budget crisis and the fuel cost stuff for example continues to go up and it doesn't help us out any whatsoever, so with the rising fuel and the budget cuts from the state it's taken a great effect. I think the citizens and the public is going to see that.â€
VFDs are privately funded (like PBS should be) and stationed in rural areas. So not much really goes on. But what surprises me though is the DUchebags complain about this. The IAFF hates them because they can't have them in their grip, and those guys and gals of the union are MAJOR Democrat party donors.
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I'd think a real democrat would want to abolish volunteer fire departments.
After all, doesn't every VFD fireman take a job away from a union fireman?
And so what if they're in rural areas where fires are rare?
Union firemen are great at sitting and waiting.
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I'd think a real democrat would want to abolish volunteer fire departments.
After all, doesn't every VFD fireman take a job away from a union fireman?
And so what if they're in rural areas where fires are rare?
Union firemen are great at sitting and waiting.
Actually, the dems and the IAFF have been trying for decades to get VFDs reclassified as State Fire Departments (like state police). Therefore, the state would have to pay the firefighters and thus would have to be unionized under the IAFF doctrine depending on their state's collective bargaining agreement.
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Actually, the dems and the IAFF have been trying for decades to get VFDs reclassified as State Fire Departments (like state police). Therefore, the state would have to pay the firefighters and thus would have to be unionized under the IAFF doctrine depending on their state's collective bargaining agreement.
Well, that would make for some interesting scheduling. In the little town where I grew up, there would only be maybe one or two guys at the firehouse. When a call came in, they'd turn on a siren that could be heard for miles.
The volunteers, most of whom were young guys with hotrods, would drop what they were doing, turn on the flashers they put on their cars, and go screaming through town a hundred miles an hour to the firehouse, so they could jump on the fire engine.
They eventually got radios, so they could head for the fire instead of the firehouse, but regardless, that siren would set a half-dozen hotrods flying through town like rockets.
Those firemen were a lot more dangerous than any of the little grass fires and kitchen grease fires they put out.
But they always had the best equipment, because every time they put a levy on the ballot it would pass in a landslide. Had there ever been a real fire, I would have every bit as much faith in them as any paid department.
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I'd think a real democrat would want to abolish volunteer fire departments.
After all, doesn't every VFD fireman take a job away from a union fireman?
:werd: