Firefighters in Tennessee have become the target of threats because they stood and watched Gene Cranick’s home burn to the ground because Cranick had not paid a $75 Obion County fire service fee.
“A rural Tennessee fire chief says Obion County firefighters are being unduly demonized for letting a man's home burn because he hadn't paid a $75 municipal fee,” according to MSNBC.
The Huffington Post said,“The Obion County fire incident is symbolic of the moral and economic bankruptcy of the Tea-Party-Republican vision of government and the economy. And it poses the stark choice facing American voters in the Mid-Term elections.
Keith Olbermann called the incident, ‘government a la carte,’ quoting Glen Beck’s comments on how Cranick did not deserve fire protection he had not paid for in advance. Beck said, “If you don’t pay your $75 then that hurts the fire department.” He added, “As soon as they put out the fire of somebody who didn’t pay the 75 bucks, no one will pay the $75.”
According to the Huffington Post, “The Tea-Party-Republicans -- including the Republican Congressional leadership - talk incessantly about how government services should be slashed. They believe that society should maximize the extent to which each individual is responsible to fend for themselves. They claim that is more "efficient". The Obion County fire illustrates clearly why that assertion is simply wrong,”
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Comments
Gene Cranick gambled and he lost. He stated he thought they would put out the fire and hit him with a fine or something. I guess he didn't pay his insurance either, are they going to cover him. Olbermann's analogy doesn't make sense. Most City/Town fire protection is built into your taxes. This is a rural area that has to rely on neighboring counties for fire protection. The house is gone. Why doesn't Olbermann ask the Insurance company to build him a new one? This has nothing to do with the TEA Party. Keith is spinning this story to demonize the TEA Party (what else is new) Fortunately there are more intelligent people than dumb. As indicated by his ratings.
Cranick's home was in fact insured (and his insurance will pay for the rebuilding), and he claims that he simply forgot to pay the $75 bill. Assuming that is true, what is left of this meandering rant?
This is actually more like obamacare than the tea party, isn't it? I don't get the analogy. It's about health care a la carte.
Yo, Unspun:
where were the religious people who believe in all the charity during the fire? Who drove to the burning house and said in the name of insert deity here let's put out the fire. Where were the bucket brigades, or neighborhood volunteers. The fire was at night, lots of people heard, saw and smelled that blaze. Neither citizens or communitee friends, family and neighbors gave any aid, and the fire department was ordered to watch the house burn down even though two different bank account holders had empty checkbooks available to pay such fee then and there. Many Republicans, whether associated with T-party or not claim that government should not provide public good services such as fire, police, 911, roads and bridges, water, sewer, electricity or telephone. I do not know what the political climate in Obion Co, Tennessee is, but the true religious climate must be shoddy, because only 1 man did his Pagan/Hindu/Buddhist/Jewish, Christian, Islamic/Bab or Bahai/Mormon/Wiccan TRUE spriptual duty of CHARITY, that night and that 1 man, like Lot of Soddom, had a motivated self interest. Where were the God-Fearing, God-Loving avoiders. The county/city fire service relationship you wrote of is funded by Carick's taxes, but the state still let his house burn, per libertarian tenets of profit and amorality. If person just stops paying taxes since they won't put out the fires anyway that person will be incarcerated. Our governments can afford to house, feed, treat medically, and imprison us, but not put the fire out when our homes and other property burn down. Well, we should all rob banks, when we get cancer then, shouldn't we?! Republicans are ofter much more libertarian than all other people of a political bent in this nation except when it comes to providing pre pregnancy contraception and Republlicans donate the most money for that, ironically. Feels like Kitty Gionavezze in Bost Ma all over again, only this time somebody DID call 911.
Yo Grand Papapupu,
I've never seen a Church group that owned a fire truck. I've never heard a Republican advocating to abolish any Fire Dept. I did read that this was in a rural area that relied on hired fire protection for a fee of seventy-five dollars a year. That's one bill you don't want to forget to pay. I feel bad for the guy but a previous responder says he was insured. While he may have lost some irreplaceable personal items at least he'll have a new roof over his head. What's left, Olbermann is dishonest and this is another desperate attempt to smear the TEA party.
“A rural Tennessee fire chief says Obion County firefighters are being unduly demonized for letting a man's home burn…” – and rightly so.
Glen Beck said, “...As soon as they put out the fire of somebody who didn’t pay the 75 bucks, no one will pay the $75.” – And no one should!
The sad fact, and a sign of demise of our country, is that so many actually believe it was okay for the family's house to burn down for lack of paying a fee of $75. Where is the charity that our country was founded on in helping one's neighbors in crisis? No one should have allowed a law to pass in the first place that would jeopardize someone's life, home or property. The $75 fee law might have been written with a clause that states that "if you fail to pay your annual $75 fee, you will be charged for the costs involved for the fire department's services of your home and or property in case of fire." That would encourage people to pay their fees on time, and also cover costs incurred, especially after someone had to pay those costs.
What if high winds had blown the fire out of control? Because they let the one house burn it might have taken out a whole neighborhood of "paid" homeowner's homes. That's not protecting anyone adequately. Put on your thinking hats people.
Only the liberal parasitic party demands free services paid for by tax paying conservatives. Because we all know liberals are all tax evaders.
I would love to buy my government ala carte. I would stop paying for police, the military, and homeland security. Those lazy parasites have been leeching money off taxpayers and we get nothing in return. The ACLU is the true protector of freedom - no foreign dictator ever passed a law to restrict our freedom - only the republicans in congress try to take our freedom.
You are a nitwit. Tell you what don't pay anything and just get the hell out of the USA. Go to Cuba or North Korea...more your style..lol.
No YOU get out of America and move to the Nazi State of Arizona!
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