6 ms·

Sounds like we should tax senior homes to fund increased staff for fire departments, basically de-privatizing senior homes...

GaryTang 5y ago
Or firefighters can continue doing their job like the rest of us, seeing that they’re some of the highest paid members of our society… I think they’re just bitter they can’t use their lazy man recliners as much as they use to. I for one am glad they are finally experiencing what it’s like to work for any private organization.
- dls2016 5y ago
  You know there are a lot of places in the US with volunteer fire departments, right?
  - commoner 5y ago
    > NFPA estimates there were an estimated 1,115,000 career and volunteer firefighters in the United States in 2018. Of the total number of firefighters 370,000 (33%) were career firefighters and 745,000 (67%) were volunteer firefighters. https://www.nfpa.org/News-and-Research/Data-research-and-tools/Emergency-Responders/US-fire-department-profile https://www.nfpa.org/News-and-Research/Data-research-and-too...
    - mod 5y ago
      Where I live (quite rural) the entire department is composed of volunteers. The "fire chief" even is a volunteer. We like to say they'll get there just in time to save the foundation.
  - GaryTang 5y ago
    To volunteer implies you are already well off enough to have housing and food, thus have the luxury of being able to donate your time to volunteering.
    - dls2016 5y ago
      Be my guest, go to a small town fire hall and see how “well off” the volunteers are compared to the median HN poster.
      - GaryTang 5y ago
        I have been. Not one of them are forced to be firefighters. They volunteer
        stickfigure 5y ago
        ...and FYI, those volunteers get to pick and choose which calls they respond to. Not sure what axe you're grinding, but I'm glad you don't live in my district.
        GaryTang 5y ago
        If there was a scale representing job difficulty — firefighter would be among the lowest difficult. I can respect those that volunteer but the ones who are career have no sympathy from me seeing that they are easily in the top 5% of society for doing something that 80% of us can do.
- notwedtm 5y ago
  I'm going to wager a guess that you didn't read the article. They are being called to change bandages and replace IV's. This is NOT a firefighters job.
  - BuyMyBitcoins 5y ago
    I suspect firefighters are being called because firefighters tend to also be EMTs. I can understand how the practice caught on, but it does seem inappropriate.
- john_yaya 5y ago
  This is 100% true. Firefighters were preposterously lionized after 9/11, and in that insane fanfare we gave them everything they could think to ask for. The ones in my city make more, on average, than a mid-career software engineer and rarely work at all. And, many firefighters’s unions have made certain that they are the first responder for medical calls - as a way of keeping their staffing levels high. Sounds like that particular scam is coming back to bite them in Oregon.
- elil17 5y ago
  The firefighters are finding it hard to do their jobs because they're being called to help do chores for senior homes. That is what the whole article is about. It sounds to me like they wouldn't mind helping the elderly if it didn't prevent them from fulfilling their primary job of, you know, fighting fires.
  - nradov 5y ago
    Modern fire prevention techniques and building codes mean that firefighters don't spend much time actually fighting fires. Most of their calls are for vehicles crashes and medical emergencies. (And I don't intend this as a criticism of firefighters, someone has to respond to those incidents.)
    - elil17 5y ago
      Sure, but whatever they're supposed to be doing, it's not chores at an old folks home
fighterpilot 5y ago
Just charge a call-out fee for the homes that use it. No need to punish well-run homes or pass new tax laws for something very easily addressed and internalized.

GaryTang 5y ago

Or firefighters can continue doing their job like the rest of us, seeing that they’re some of the highest paid members of our society… I think they’re just bitter they can’t use their lazy man recliners as much as they use to. I for one am glad they are finally experiencing what it’s like to work for any private organization.

dls2016 5y ago
You know there are a lot of places in the US with volunteer fire departments, right?
- commoner 5y ago
  > NFPA estimates there were an estimated 1,115,000 career and volunteer firefighters in the United States in 2018. Of the total number of firefighters 370,000 (33%) were career firefighters and 745,000 (67%) were volunteer firefighters. https://www.nfpa.org/News-and-Research/Data-research-and-tools/Emergency-Responders/US-fire-department-profile https://www.nfpa.org/News-and-Research/Data-research-and-too...
  - mod 5y ago
    Where I live (quite rural) the entire department is composed of volunteers. The "fire chief" even is a volunteer. We like to say they'll get there just in time to save the foundation.
- GaryTang 5y ago
  To volunteer implies you are already well off enough to have housing and food, thus have the luxury of being able to donate your time to volunteering.
  - dls2016 5y ago
    Be my guest, go to a small town fire hall and see how “well off” the volunteers are compared to the median HN poster.
    - GaryTang 5y ago
      I have been. Not one of them are forced to be firefighters. They volunteer
      - stickfigure 5y ago
        ...and FYI, those volunteers get to pick and choose which calls they respond to. Not sure what axe you're grinding, but I'm glad you don't live in my district.
        GaryTang 5y ago
        If there was a scale representing job difficulty — firefighter would be among the lowest difficult. I can respect those that volunteer but the ones who are career have no sympathy from me seeing that they are easily in the top 5% of society for doing something that 80% of us can do.
notwedtm 5y ago
I'm going to wager a guess that you didn't read the article. They are being called to change bandages and replace IV's. This is NOT a firefighters job.
- BuyMyBitcoins 5y ago
  I suspect firefighters are being called because firefighters tend to also be EMTs. I can understand how the practice caught on, but it does seem inappropriate.
john_yaya 5y ago
This is 100% true. Firefighters were preposterously lionized after 9/11, and in that insane fanfare we gave them everything they could think to ask for. The ones in my city make more, on average, than a mid-career software engineer and rarely work at all. And, many firefighters’s unions have made certain that they are the first responder for medical calls - as a way of keeping their staffing levels high. Sounds like that particular scam is coming back to bite them in Oregon.
elil17 5y ago
The firefighters are finding it hard to do their jobs because they're being called to help do chores for senior homes. That is what the whole article is about. It sounds to me like they wouldn't mind helping the elderly if it didn't prevent them from fulfilling their primary job of, you know, fighting fires.
- nradov 5y ago
  Modern fire prevention techniques and building codes mean that firefighters don't spend much time actually fighting fires. Most of their calls are for vehicles crashes and medical emergencies. (And I don't intend this as a criticism of firefighters, someone has to respond to those incidents.)
  - elil17 5y ago
    Sure, but whatever they're supposed to be doing, it's not chores at an old folks home

fighterpilot 5y ago

Just charge a call-out fee for the homes that use it. No need to punish well-run homes or pass new tax laws for something very easily addressed and internalized.