Fire capt. demoted for alleged Trayvon rant

[IDemo]

Source: CBS News

A Miami Dade fire captain was demoted to the rank of firefighter after making alleged remarks on Facebook regarding the Trayvon Martin case, CBS Station WFOR Miami reported.

Miami-Dade County Mayor Carlos A. Gimenez issued a statement Tuesday about Captain Brian Beckmann's demotion, saying he backs the action taken by the fire department director.

"The comments made by Captain Beckmann were reprehensible and will not be tolerated. We can't have our employees, especially a supervisor, making such disparaging comments about any member of our community, much less one of our own employees," said the mayor through a statement.

"In order to avoid this from happening in the future," he continued, "I have directed my staff to revise the appropriate policies dealing with this issue. It is important to reiterate my position that public servants have a responsibility to uphold the highest levels of integrity and decency, especially when you consider our multicultural, multi-ethnic community. There's no such thing as being off-the-clock; we are public servants 24/7 and must conduct ourselves with the utmost professionalism at all times."

Read more: http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-201_162-57434612/fire-capt-demoted-for-alleged-trayvon-rant/

[patrice]

1. Fire departments MUST be trusted by those whom they serve in order to do the best & safest job

possible.

[freshwest]

2. This isn't about being PC toward minorities, either. It's about the willingness to do a hard job

That is by definition stressful and dangerous, with long hours and not discriminating against any living being that they are charged to protect. It's fortunate that this was a public employee who was held accountable.

Those with private fire service discriminate based on money alone, like the fire making the news in which there was a mistake made by the homeowner in paying his yearly dues, which were small. His home was destroyed and his pets burned alive while the neighbors begged them to help.

But the fire department stood by because their records didn't show he'd paid. He didn't know he hadn't paid. They had the resources there and could have billed him later, but instead they just watched it burn. Their action was widely supported by right wing media pundits.

I give credit to the bureaucracy for their reprimand in this case and hope the citizenry have their trust restored. I'd much rather have this argued out than leave these essential services in private hands.

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

5. Do you have a link to the story about firefighters ignoring a fire? nt

[freshwest]

9. Libertarian Utopia - Firefighters watch as home burns to the ground

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x9245518

National Review Writers Defend County Whose Subscription-Only Firefighters Watched Home Burn Down

http://thinkprogress.org/media/2010/10/04/122416/national-review-firefighters/

Humane Society Condemns Subscription-Only Firefighters For Standing By And Letting Animals Die In Fire

http://thinkprogress.org/politics/2010/10/08/123297/humane-society-obion-county/

http://www.firehouse.com/article/10466294/iaff-condemns-tenn-depts-decision-not-to-fight-fire

Tennessee Firefighters Let Mobile Home Burn Because Couple Didn't Pay Protection Fee

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/12/06/tennessee-home-burns-as-f_0_n_1132120.html

Firefighters let home burn over $75 fee -- again

http://usnews.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/12/07/9272989-firefighters-let-home-burn-over-75-fee-again

Some links may be redundant, but I'm guessing you don't have the time or the DU search option or you wouldn't have asked. It was quite a buzz for a while, including among the right wing who said if the man hadn't paid the fee, even if he and his family died, it was his own fault.

But this could have also been a failure in paperwork or data not properly input into a system. The main point for me is that we have people who are willing to stand by and watch others die for money. The OP was about a guy who it appears some people felt he was implying some weren't worth the time or risking himself. That's dangerous.

This is a question for each person's heart. Firefighting and other professions are not just money making jobs. I know how heartbroken I was by the death of the fire and police people who died September 11th because they had a commitment to save others.

Whether it was because of their religious beliefs or just love of life, was in each person's heart before they went in and died there. As far as standing by when there was little risk to themselves for lack of $75, firefighting groups have condemned what they did, in the name of firefighting. It's not a business deal.

Believe - Yellowcard

Think about the love inside the strength of heart
Think about the heroes saving life in the dark
Climbing higher through the fire
Time was running out
Never knowing you weren't going to be coming down alive

But you still came back for me
You were strong and you believed

Everything is gonna be alright
Everything is gonna be alright
Everything is gonna be alright
Be strong believe

Be strong believe

Think about the chance I never had to say
Thank you for giving up your life that day
Never fearing only hearing voices calling out
Let it all go the life that you know
Just to bring them down alive

And you still came back for me
You were strong and you've believed

Everything is gonna be alright
Everything is gonna be alright
Everything is gonna be alright
Be strong believe

Everything is gonna be alright
Everything is gonna be alright
Everything is gonna be alright
Be strong believe
[radio voice]
again today,
we take into our hearts and mind
Those who perished on this site one year ago
and also,
those who came to toil in the rubble
To bring order out of chaos,
to help us make sense of our despair

Wanna hold my wife when I get home
Wanna tell the kids they'll never know
How much I love to see them smile
Wanna make a change right here right now
Wanna live a life like you somehow
Wanna make your sacrifice worthwhile

Everything is gonna be alright
Everything is gonna be alright
Everything is gonna be alright
Be strong believe

Everything is gonna be alright
Everything is gonna be alright
Everything is gonna be alright
Be strong believe

Everything is gonna be alright
Everything is gonna be alright
Everything is gonna be alright
Be strong believe
(background voice):
Think about the love inside the strength of heart
Think about the heroes saving lives in the dark

Everything is gonna be alright
Everything is gonna be alright
Everything is gonna be alright
Be strong believe
(background voice):
Think about the chance I never had to say
Thank you for giving up your life that day

(radio voice): The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here.

N/T

[DocMac]

12. People shouldn't call 'bullshit' on you. n/t

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

14. I'm not calling "bullshit" on freshwest

... I'm only calling "bullshit" on the one sentence that claims the homeowner didn't know he hadn't paid the fee. I wanted to find out if this is some guy who paid for the last ten years, and forgot to make the recent payment, or is it some guy who lives outside the taxed community and feels it's his libertarian duty to not pay for a common good. Unfortunately, this wasn't entirely clear.

It is indeed horrible that firefighters had to stand around watching a house burn. But there's some simple economics at play. If they put out the fire, then nobody would pay the fee. So the fire department would be paid for entirely by people inside the taxed community.

The simple answer is to expand the tax base to include all areas that the firefighters will respond to. This area is, of course, the entire country. There should be no boundary that the firefighters are not allowed to cross to fight a fire.

[DocMac]

17. I should have put an lol in there.

It was just like freshwest to supply plenty of information. I'll be a member here next month for a year and there are a number of posters that I like to read and respect, freshwest is one of them.

It wasn't really calling bullshit, but he/she sure had a good reply, no.

[jeff47]

11. They knew they hadn't paid.

Sorry, but those folks knew they hadn't paid. The fire department sent them multiple letters and called them twice. They hadn't paid in previous years either, even after another fire destroyed an outbuilding when the FD would not respond.

As for the pets: the fire burned across the yard and then to the house. It took quite a while to get to the house, and they didn't get the pets out when they had plenty of time to do so.

But at least that county doesn't have the evil of a government fire department for 1/3rd the cost.

As for watching people die, that FD's policy is to respond if a person's life is in danger, and then try to collect after saving the person. Since this fire was started by the homeowner outside the house, and there was plenty of time to evacuate the house, it wasn't life-threatening.

[musiclawyer]

3. Good

I do public agency personnel law for a living. This is a textbook case of a public employee going off the deep end. You can say almost anything in your private capcity as a public employee. Even saying otherwise slanderous things against your own elected officials and superiors. But if what you say brings real discredit to the agency, you have no case , none whatsoever, in a court of law.

[cindyperry2010]

4. should have been fired

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

6. If we fired every firefighter who made a dumb racist remark ...

... then we'd all better buy some buckets.

[myrna minx]

7. The First responders I know are professional and dedicated to their community.

Your implication is insulting.

[IDemo]

10. Was this a "Boys will be boys" moment?

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

13. No, it was a screw-up

and it got him demoted.

Not enough?

[Blue_Tires]

8. funny how all his defenders from the original thread are absent now...

[SemperEadem]

15. GOOD!

numbskull.

[GeorgeGist]

16. alleged?

/small