I remember an America where the fire dept would roll out their ladder truck to get a cat out of a tr

[Winterblues]

Now they won't even put a fire out with cats in the burning house.. The America I grew up in no longer exists..:shrug:

[Brickbat]

1. I remember when that happened in books and commercials, but I never saw it IRL.

[ZombieHorde]

19. My daughter saw a bird caught on a wire outside our apartment building.

Its leg was caught and the bird was dangling upside down. I called the fire department and they came and freed the bird. About eight kids watched and cheered them on. The firemen then allowed each of the kids to check out their truck.

[Clovis Sangrail]

2. thank a libertarian /nt

[joeybee12]

3. Damn freeloading cats need to pay their $75!!!!

KNR

[seabeyond]

22. or an owner that wont watch a fire "creeps" towards the house until engulfed and pets

die

[Speck Tater]

4. I remember a time when the popular myth was that firemen rescued cats from trees, but...

... It's highly unlikely that it ever actually happened.

[SargeUNN]

6. I saw one do it in my youth

of course that was back in the early 60s

[doc03]

12. I saw every fire and police department in the tri-state area a

few years ago trying to rescue a horse stuck on a rock ledge. Nobody asked if the owner paid his taxes.

[Hannah Bell]

52. you don't have to ask in obion county. *no one* pays taxes for fire service there.

[sabrina 1]

45. Not myth, it happens all the time.

Here's one example:

Children help firefighters rescue kitten from drain

According to Newnan Fire Captain Denise Freeman, several children were playing in their yard around 9:15 p.m. on Saturday when they heard the cries of a kitten trapped in a drain near their Helms Street home.


The children quickly realized they could not reach the animal and reported the problem to their parents, who in turn alerted authorities.

Newnan Fire Department Engine 1 and Command 5 arrived on the scene to find a very young kitten in a drain that ran underneath the roadway.

Driver Engineer Chris Eimer, firefighter Chris Calhoun and firefighter Jamie Pike removed the concrete cap that covered the drainage pipe and tried to lure the kitten out using a can of tuna supplied by the neighbors.

Once they could see the kitten, they realized its eyes weren't open yet and it was too far away to reach by hand.

Firefighters cleared the drain of all debris and used a broom to gently roll the kitten to safety.

The parents of Amy Ellis and Dakota Beavers, two of the children who discovered the trapped kitten, gave them permission to keep the kitty.

"In honor of the kitten's rescue by the Newnan Fire Department, the kids named the animal Smokey," said Freeman. "The name seemed to suit the kitten's pretty gray and white coat. It was fortunate for Smokey that the kids heard his cries or he may have drowned when the rainstorms came Saturday night."

"Thank you so much for the great work you and the other firemen did to rescue the kitten from the drain Saturday night," said Bryant Reese, a neighbor.

Smokey, seems like a great name for a kitten rescued by Firefighters. Happens all the time, my SO and his friends in the Volunteer FD would never refuse to go out and rescue an animal. That's why people love Firefighters.

[Joe Fields]

56. It has happened.

just because you've never seen it....

[ScreamingMeemie]

62. I watched a firefighter take a bunch of balloons (tied to binkies for the "binky fairy)

out of a tree with a hook and ladder truck just last week on "America's Funniest Home Videos". Based upon that, I'm going to guess that somewhere, at some point, a firefighter rescued a cat from a tree.

[TexasObserver]

5. It's Ronald Reagan and Ayn Rand's America.

If you don't eat your meat, how can you have any pudding?

Beatings will continue until morale improves.

[SargeUNN]

9. I could be wrong but

I think the point of the OP is being missed here but rather getting bogged down in the less important point. I remember posting here about a practice here in Arizona and started the post with the reason I had done the research. So many kept pointing to the reason of the research and totally missed the point of the post.

[BlancheSplanchnik]

69. that happens a lot around here

*sigh*

[Obamanaut]

7. Cat climbs tree. Cat gets hungry. Cat comes down. FD not needed. nt

[blondeatlast]

8. I remember an America where housewives wore pearls and lipstick and

moms and dads slept in twin beds. Wasn't it just DANDY?!

[Joe Fields]

57. were you stuck inside of a television in the '50's?

[Bluerthanblue]

10. it still exists-

a few months ago our small NH town the fire/rescue crew came to the aid of a beloved horse who was down, and worked for hours to help the owners (who are all long time volunteers) get the beautiful old beast back on his feet. He's doing fine now.

What happened in Tennessee shouldn't have happened.

It doesn't represent the actions of the majority of dedicated men and women who give their all for others in need in my experience and opinion.

:hi:

[Tesha]

11. You remember an America where people paid taxes.

Taxes are quite out of style these days.

Tesha

[Starry Messenger]

15. Beat me to it. n/t

[blondeatlast]

17. Word. nt

[applegrove]

20. Yep. It is those people who are against taxes that are the problem.

[seabeyond]

23. and blame others when they dont get their pet out of house. or endanger a community. nt

[Hissyspit]

34. The pet doesn't care who gets them out of the house!!!

Jesus christ...

[seabeyond]

40. sure would have been nice if the owner had so they didnt have to die. nt

[sabrina 1]

50. Would you pass by an animal in distress just because

someone isn't paying you to help it? Or because you don't like the owner?

Sometimes I wonder about this country, no a lot of times lately, I wonder and would give up all hope if in my immediate circle of family friends I know not a single person would ever allow an animal to burn to death, no matter what the politics of the owner was or no matter whether they paid their bills or not.


I sure am glad I have the friends and family I have, otherwise I would be looking for another country to move to.

What a sad place this is becoming where people are actually supporting letting innocent animals burn to death because they don't like the politics of their owners. Unbelievable.

[seabeyond]

54. no. i would not have. i would have felt the animal the same as kid. would have gotten out BEFORE

the fire started. i would not wait until the house is engulfed in flames and then be outraged the FD doesnt run in to save MY animals. with bullets shooting off

for being so compassionate, you are awfully loose with the firemens lives.

[sabrina 1]

55. I am far from being 'loose' with the lives of firemen considering

the most important person in my life was a volunteer firemen before being killed on the way home from a FD fund raiser not long ago. But I know that neither he nor anyone in that Dept, and I am friends with many of them, would ever allow those animals to die. That is why we call them NY's Bravest. I could not have stopped any of them from picking up a hose, regardless of what the Chief said, and putting out the fire. Afterwards they would have voted out the Chief probably unanamously since that is someone gets to be Chief.

And even if what you say about the owner is true, that is all the more reason why the animals needed someone else to rescue them. However, you appear to be wrong about the owner. Where did you get that information from? That they made no effort to get their animals to safety? That is NOT what I read. But I guess when you want to 'punish' people, anything goes so that's undoubtedly the story from the 'let them burn' crowd on the right who I'm sure would love to see all of America run this way.

[seabeyond]

61. let me ask you

by the time the fire got there to protect the subscriber house, do you know how far gone that house was as it was engulfed in flames? i know htey called fire to come out and fire said no, not a subscriber. i know time went by before they did get out there. was the house completely engulfed? did anyoen even mention the animals? the owners not thinking much of the animals before house was burning. did anyone even say anything to the firemen? was it possible for the fireman to do anything for animals even if they wanted to?

the thing... you say you are thinking about the firemen, but accusing them without even knowing anything about it.

people are starting threads about the dead animals, when the owner could have gotten them out.
the fire could have had the house totally engulfed before firemen got to subscribers house and no way they could have done anything

but on these thread after thread after thread, i dont hear a single consideration about the firemen.

my heart hurts that these firemen where ever put into the position by the owner, and the county, that they are allowed to be so vilified.

[sabrina 1]

70. No, I do not know the exact timeline. I do know that every second

counts though, when a call comes in to the FD. FDs time their response always trying to improve the time it takes them to get to a fire. If they had responded, they probably could have saved most of the house and the animals.

I was under the impression that when the fire began to go towards the house, the parents had come home and called the FD. How much time elapsed after they refused to come out, and when they did come to water down the second house, I don't know. I would think by then, it was way too late for the animals. However, I did read that the homeowner told them there were animals there. I do not know how true that is.

I agree about the FFs being put in that awful position. They chose to follow the orders of their chief, we still don't know if they wanted to.

[HuckleB]

13. 79...

[seabeyond]

24. you missed a couple. uh oh. what are ya gonna do. nt

[demosincebirth]

14. I seen them get a cat from a top of a power pole...what a waste time and $.

[Hissyspit]

36. Yes, it's all about time and money.

:eyes:

[nadinbrzezinski]

44. No, not really

it is treated as a TRAINING evolution.

After all, sooner or later they will have to deal with a pole and lines in an emergency involving a human.

Or for that matter, having to use that hook and ladder to get people out of a building.

It is a matter of perspective, and knowledge

[distantearlywarning]

16. I remember an America where taxes paid for fire departments

It's a pretty nice way to live, huh?

Too bad Mr. Homeowner's county doesn't believe in socialist models like that, and prefers instead to free-ride off their tax-paying neighbors for vital public services.

[LiberalAndProud]

18. I doubt that Obion County ever conformed to your memory of America.

This is a big country with many histories. In some places in America kittens are still rescued, in others they never were.

[seabeyond]

21. i remember when an owner would be responsible enough to open the door and let animals out of house

instead of waiting two hours for fire to get house and burn his pets.... dead.

[devilgrrl]

25. I remember an America where many of the local stores where family owed.

Now it's all franchises. :-(

[seabeyond]

26. this is fun. i remember an america where gas was .50 and pack of cigs .50.

and kids could buy the cigs for the parents.... lol

[RobinA]

29. I Remember An America

where you could sit in a bar and have that cigarette without getting arrested. Somehow civilization survived!

[seabeyond]

32. oh oh oh and your three kids all under 6 could line up against the bar while you drank....

maybe have a sip here and there and chat with the bartender

[Hannah Bell]

53. i remember an america where people smoked in theaters & grocery stores.

and at parties, people would put out ashtrays for the company.

i remember working at boeing in the engineering bay and half the people had ashtrays on their desks.

[Joe Fields]

59. gas 19 cents, cigs 25 cents here.

[seabeyond]

63. damn

you are older than me.

wink, lol

[Hannah Bell]

27. remember that america where people used to be willing to pay to support a fire dept?

i do.

[Diclotican]

28. Winterblues

Winterblues

Im not sure if it is in conteckst to what so many of DU have been talking about the last couple of days, and posible wil talk about in the weeks following.. Mostly becouse it is not happening in US, and I doubt that the "opt in" policy wil be acceptable anytime soon, as the firebrigade is a public duty in my country, as it is in most civilized country at the face on the earth..

But I do rembember, when I was in kindergarden (a long time ago!) that the firefighters was coming to where my kindergarden was, and was showing off their new firetruck. It was spankly new, big, and red I rembember.. I was bigger than my dad's truck, so it was really a big fire-engine. And we was shown all the wisles and balls the new truck had... It was a really cool truck, specailly becouse I got a little ride on it too, with some others who was siting in the back of the truck, and the firefighters was telling about what the different stuff was about. I do not rembember to mutch about it, but I rembember it was really cool.... And I and my friend was in totaly agreement, that when we got old enough, we wanted to be firefighters.. Oh wel time changes... And life sometimes gives you a challenge who turn you 180 degrees for what you wanted:think:

Diclotican

[seabeyond]

33. when my kids were way little, i tried to get them to chat with cops... and cops had no interest

i wanted them to not be afraid and see cops as part of the community. unfortunately, after three four five times of cops not being receptive and telling son, not all adults are into kids.... i started using the firemen at the grocery store. i see them there all the time. i would tell kids 2, 4 yrs old to say hi to mr fireman. they would stop shopping and were SOOOOO nice to my boys. always chat with them. if outside they would throw kids up into cab.

i loved the fireman every since. they are a real part of the community.

when the kids were a little older and had nephew who had a horrible experience in his house with parents fighting, cops came, i ran into two bicycle cops. all on their own, they stopped and chatted with the boys and gave them a trinket. best thing the policeman did for that nephew after what he had just experienced

[Diclotican]

39. seabeyond

seabeyond

Not every police men is into kids, that true, but at least they could try to say hey to the kids, at least just for give a child the idea that a police man is no danger to them... And is also a part of community. But it was a good idea that you was using the firemens as expemples på officals who also was part of the community. When I was a kid, it was cool if/when a man in uniform was talking to you - if it was just to say hello, and how are you. When you are 3, even the postman is cool, he is also going around in uniform;).. And many postmen is cool, if you just say hey. Some of them are not, but they are often on a tight scedule so I can understand.... And it was also nice that the firefighters was showing the little kids, what is was all about. This is thing they never forget - as I did with my experience with the new fire-engine they got when I was a mear 4 year old... I guess they had getting some new fire-engines since then, but I rembember the truck so wel, the smell of new truck is special, and it was clearly red, and big, for me, who was used to my dads Bedford flattruck it was defently a step up. Not that the old bedford was bad,it was also red, and i rembember is as a nice truck. Some of my earliest memories is from that old truck. And when I was really little, it was the only place they could get me to sleep when I was not sleeping wel. In fact my mom was traveling with my dad many times, before I was born, so I was somewhat experienced with trucks, before I was born:evilgrin:

Firefighters are really part of the community. Withouth them, it would be far more dangrous to live, they not just protect you when your house is on fire, they also do mutch other things.. It can be a part of "sivil defence" as they often have equipment that can be used when an emergency is up om us. That be from a nature point of wiew, or a big car accident. Police is also a part of the community, Have been stoped by them sometimes, as part of new police officers to learn in practis what they have been learn at the academy. For the most part it have been a pleasent experience as our officers for the most part is polite, and service minded. and as long as you is polite to them. And in our country, the police are not bearing weapon as part of the uniform, it have allways been that way in our country. And for the most part, even the crocks are not using weapon, becouse they know cops can fend you off by other means. As I have seen, a police officer can calm down a offender withouth using to mutch violence. At least not as shown at "cops" where 3-5 officers are yelling and jumping on a poor fellow..
On the other side I have also experienced the opposite, as one of my nabour got into a lot of problems, when he get "mad" on some pills, and was trowing out whatever he got his hand on, withouth opening his windows. And as he also was treating with using his gun (I doubt he had, but he treated with it) we had to call police. And after some waiting, they came, with chields, headgear - and weapon on their hips, something that I have never seen on a police officer before. And no less than 3 police cars with MP5 weapon and more police officers than I have seen on one place... The fellow got arrested, and was leaving for a long time.. For that, and other cases I wil leave for safer places sometimes down the road - proberly time as I have been living here for 12 year now, and the last 4 year it have been going downhill envirmoment speaking... The prize of living in "public housing" I guess (proberly different from "public hounsing" in US I guess, but some of the same idea after all.

Glad to know, that your nephew understand that police are not bad, but rather different. And I belive it was good for him, and for your kids to se that cops is not just there when bad things happend.. I know to wel about parents fighting, as my born parents often was figthing when I was little - it was a combining of alchohol and personal problems, who ended up often in a fight, mostly verbal, but to a little child it was hard enough. To this day I am scared dead when peopole is angry when drunk. I do not matter that I have been grown up for many year. I really FEAR when peopole is starting acting up when drunk.. Then all my instict tell me to go the hell out of it all.. When I was driving some friends of my home from a trip, I even stoped the car, told them to come to an agreement, and was leaving the car for 15 minutes as I really hated the bitchering who was happening with the two others.. If it had been my car, I would have trown them out of the car, and just leaving them at the road side.. (have been doing that before)

But it must be cool, for your kids, and your nephew, to se that police can be more than a bad experience, as the bicycle cops was showing so clearly. And it proberly was making your kids day, to be given a trinket from a cop. Even if it was nothing important, i was from a COP... A mans trinkets, is a other mans diamounds. And for you kids, and nephew, it was maybe diamounds rather than trinkets..

And it was posible a really cheap way of making kids safe around police.

Diclotican

[seabeyond]

43. ha

i love your post. what a treat.

yes, you remind me. the postalperson too, was a big item for the kids. and always friendly. i guess it si the uniform thing.

alcohol.... tough way for a kid to grow up and as you know, it does leave a lasting and hurtful presense always. i didnt grow up with it. my mom did. stayed with her always.

thanks for your post. was a pleasure.

[Diclotican]

46. seabeyond

seabeyond

Thank you. Sometimes I on my drive, sometimes I sucks;)..

Yeh, I guess it is the uniform things. And even a postal person can be cool, when you are 3-4-5 year old. When you got older, the postman often got into the dark again, but when you are just a kid, a postman is some of a hero. A police man is like showing the King, or in your case the president (I am told that I even was told a story by the then Princess Märtha Louise, but I do not rembember that one;) ) Oh wel, maybe as wel, it was maybe not important enough to rembember. A fire engine is FAR more important to rembember than a living real princess reading a story for you:evilgrin:

Yea, alcohol is not a nice thing around kids. I was quit old when I stoped been scared to death when it was a bottle of something where I was growing up. I and my brother ended up in foster care. My real Parents was not able to take good care of us, and it was maybe for the best. But the first cople of years I was allmoust terminally scared just becouse my foster parents had a small drink at cristmas. And they then discovered that their fosterkids did had some nasty past when it came to this thing.. Thankfully they learned both of us, by exemple that alchohol not equiall to fighting by grown up.. But it stays with you, even if you get out of it, it is experiences you hold in your spine and never really got away from I supose.

And often children of alcoholic tend to either be like their parents - or be the totaly opposite, and even that I have tastet it in grown up age, I have never really getting into the foundness of been drunk. The few times I have tastet it, I allways had been so really sick the day after. So, for many year now I have not tastet it at all. And would never do it again, it is not worth it

Allways a pleasure to swop memories.. Proberly not as old as you, but still I have some memories who are found. It was not JUST bad at my real parents, but they could/should have been doing so mutch better.. Oh wel, they have at least admited they did many things wrong, and we have managed to patch it over when we was grown up. But I also know, they maybe was not able to do it different, even if they had tried.. Both my mom and dad have their personal problems and they they got kids on top of it all... It is never an human right to have kids, even many belive it.

Diclotican

[Historic NY]

30. Tackleberry settled that......years ago.

[Diclotican]

41. Historic NY

Historic NY

Yea.. If all cops had been like Tackleberry, the crime raters worldwide would go down as a stone in water. He was a cool cops in the Police Academy. Even tho I belive they should have ended the series after movie 5.... the others really was thinning the plot..

Diclotican

[RobinA]

31. Only If

the cat owner paid the monthly "animal rescue from tall structures fee."

[flyarm]

35. Now Firemen and police and teachers are the first to lose their jobs with cuts! eom

[Strelnikov_]

37. Atlas shrugged n/t

[mindwalker_i]

38. You remember an America where...

people understood, at least to some degree, that having a society come with some big benefits, such as roads, trains, laws to protect people, police and fire protection. And they understood that in order to keep society running, everyone contributed to make it happen. Everyone gave some of what they earned through work to make society as a whole work for them.

No, you have a bunch of punks that don't want to contribute, who want government to be mom, or superman, and save them when shit goes wrong, but fight with all their hearts when it requires any sacrifice from them. These are the true freeloaders and welfare queens.

Eventually it comes to bite you in the ass. I'll go one step further and say this guy was lucky that only his house burned down, not killing him or his family (and yes, I'm really sorry for the animals). But if the fire department put this one out, what does he learn? It's ok not to pay for the services he needs, he'll still be fine. He learns to rely on everyone else and not put any effort into keeping him and his family safe. Then something worse comes along that he can't deal with and it does kill him. Sometimes a little tough love will save your ass down the road.

So he should be on his knees, lapping up their load saying "Please sir, can I have another," because their teaching his something that will safe his life later.

[Joe Fields]

60. the reasoning part of my brain agrees with you, but my conscience

says that to stand and watch a fire rage, while I have the means to put it out is a sin toward my fellow man.

[tblue37]

42. Cats can climb up and down trees without help. nt

[Diclotican]

47. tblue37

tblue37

They can, after their learned it.. A kitten is no expert of climbing down a trea, anymore than we are when we are kids.. It takes a lot of experience to master tree climbing.

A cat is no different.. I know, I have been up in the trees many times, to get a hysteric cat, who was scared about the idea of climbing down the dam thing he climbed up.. I once even had to climb up a telephone pole, to get the dam cat down, and got a rally nasty scratc for the problems.. The dam cat climbed up the same pole next day, and I had to get it down again.. And yes, it was up the next day again... And I had to do the same procedyre again, and again the whole summer.. Finaly the dam cat got it, and was able to climb down on his own.. The cat was dumb as a kitten!!! But as a grown up, he was to big to clim up in poles and trees, He was really the size of a little dog, and was fighting even a fox when nessesary, he was never afraid of anything.. And he got to be a old cat too... I belive he managed to be more than 10 year. Something that is not bad, for a cat who was living in the barn, and was un-castreted, so he was often into fight with other males.. Over the woman:P. I belive he got a few kittens in his days;)

After that, I have had a few cats, most of them females, they are more easygoing than the males, and have had many nice encounters with the cats over the years.. But thank to a nasty allergy I had to give up my last cat, it was not worth it been so ill... I miss a companion like a cat, but for the moment I am alone, and it is posible for the best I guess. I even got to be "dad" to 3 wounderfull kittens my last cat got, and was following them, from they was newborn, to the day I was giving them away. It was a experience I would not be withouth, even that the kittens often was demons in mascerade. But at the same time, so trustworthy, and kind..

Diclotican

Dicloticam

[Jamastiene]

48. K&R

The America I grew up in no longer exists.

[Zanzobar]

49. The America you grew up in also had...well...you know...

The America we all grew up in was better, more hopeful, and full of possibilities. Mainly because we were not yet jaded by the reality our elders understood. They too said the same thing, because they were also young once, and everything was better, more hopeful, and full of possibilities...

Romanticizing the past is counterproductive.

[Hannah Bell]

51. i remember an america where doctors used to take root vegetables in payment.

the america i grew up with no longer exists.

[Individualist]

64. and they made house calls.

[uncommon]

58. Getting a cat out of a tree doesn't endanger a human life to save a damn cat. I am sick of this.

A cat is NOT a person. I love my cats - they are wonderful companions - but I absolutely would NOT expect a human firefighter to risk his/her life to save my cats.

[ProudDad]

65. This was before 35 years of republicans and conservadems

have made it a crime to have community in the Corporate States of America...

Cohesive, resilient, sustainable communities are "constraint of trade" and therefore, UnConstitutional...

[MellowDem]

66. You remember wrong...

there never was a golden age in the US. The fire department use to be various ethnic gangs of thugs in most cities, where you had better be paying up and in with the political machine or they would let you die in the house fire. And this was when fires were happening much more often and were far more serious due to the lack of regulations or safetly precautions.

We've never had a socialist paradise here in the US. Maybe in some localities, but not as a whole.

[NNN0LHI]

67. I am kind of old and I don't remember that America ... except in movies or something?

All the real fire departments I can remember would ask the "cat in the tree callers", how many cat skeletons have you seen in trees?

Then they would hang up.

SOP.

Don

[snooper2]

68. I remember an America where people got off their ass and did something

now we sit on the Internets and post drivel :rofl: