On its own, a firefighter's helmet is a ridiculous piece of gear. It isn't particularly good at protecting the entire head, abysmal at protecting the face, and

On its own, a firefighter's helmet is a ridiculous piece of gear. It isn't particularly good at protecting the entire head, abysmal at protecting the face, and is top heavy. We wear the helmet as part of an ensemble that could use a makeover for strictly functional purposes, quite frankly. However, tradition and perception have kept the U.S. fire service in this outdated piece of kit for decades. Perception and caring about what others think is silly. It is the equivalent of school age children caring about what "little Tommy" thinks of his/her shoes on the playground. The fact is we can't control others perception. We can only control our thoughts and actions related to those thoughts. Society will not level up until we stop worrying about the perception others have of our stuff and/or the way we look.