Dear Nozzlehead: It’s time the fire service made an example out of those who seek to destroy our credibility with the American public. If I read one more news piece about a member of the fire service under investigation for or charged with arson, I am going to puke. I am tired of these dirt balls basically crapping all over me and the rest of the fire service.
I am proposing a nationwide effort by the fire service to show the country that this noble profession will not be subverted by slugs and scum. And I want your help to start a grassroots effort with our elected officials to modify criminal sentences so they call for an automatic doubling of an arsonist’s sentence if that individual is connected to the fire service. If the normal arson sentence is 5 years, and you’re a firefighter who’s been convicted, you get 10.
There needs to be a clearly understood message that resonates from the fire service that we hold ourselves to higher standards and will not tolerate those who so blatantly trash them. Hell, I haven’t even started in on the outrage all of us should feel for our “friends” who have no problem risking the lives of our fellow firefighters who must extinguish these crimes.
Nozzlehead, I’m mad enough that I have a tough time making a coherent point, and I apologize for rambling. All I know is that we have to get out in front of this … and fast. It’s almost to the point where I debate going to fire service Web sites because it seems like every week there’s another story about some so-called firefighter who has been charged with setting fires.
So, what do you think? This must upset you. Do you think this could get some traction or am I whistling in the wind? I’d really like to get your two cents on this.
-Angry about Arson?
Dear Angry,
Why is EVERYONE who writes me always so angry? You people really need to calm down. Didn’t you read that recently published study claiming that anger may trigger life-threatening rhythm disturbances in the heart? I’ve had several disturbing and not-so-disturbing rhythm disturbances in my heart: There was this one girl back in 1975; we were dancing at the disco, and we ended up in … uh, well, never mind. Let’s get back to the heart thing.
Doctors studied the relationship between emotions (anger) and heart rhythms in a group of?folks with heart disease who had special devices implanted near their hearts. The devices monitor heart rhythms and deliver a shock when necessary to correct any potentially fatal disturbances. Researchers studied 200 patients whose?devices delivered a shock, and the results showed that people were more than three times as likely to experience a rhythm disturbance after they had become at least moderately angry, and more than 16 times as likely to get a shock after they had become furious! Sixteen times! That really pisses me off!?Heart specialists say this underscores the importance of counseling patients with cardiac health problems to try to reduce stress (read: anger)?in their lives. These findings were presented at the 2006 American Heart Association meeting in Chicago.
Wow! Who would have thought that anger could do you in? We all need to really calm down and relax a bit. OK, let’s now take a look at your issue.
Firefighters starting fires makes you angry? My solution: Give them the death penalty. Limit the anger time. Absolutely KILL the fire-starters. Jail civilian fire-starters, but kill firefighters who do this. Can’t get that passed in your community? Chickens.
This is just like many other issues we face in the fire service. We talk a lot but then wimp out. OK, so don’t kill ’em-I understand that some folks don’t support the death penalty (even though any arsonist is attempting to kill you, directly or indirectly). How about a life sentence without the chance of parole? Can you live with that? If not, what do you want to do-award the bastards? Give them some wimpy-ass psych treatment??Firefighters who are?fire-starters are?always fire-starters. They are attempting to murder you … even in the best light.
“But it was just a small fire.” BS! Almost EVERY WEEK we read in the news about another firefighter charged and convicted for arson. Small fire? Tell that to those who suffered the loss. How about the firefighters who responded to the fire? We run around telling the public and elected officials that we risk our lives. Sure we do. So why make it worse by accepting arsonists as members of your fire department? If they are there-even if you think they are there-smoke them out like rats.
Solution? Well, besides death and life imprisonment, start at the beginning. Start with your fire department’s psych testing before anyone is allowed to become a member. How in-depth are your background checks??If your background check forms are less than 20 pages long, odds are your background checks are inadequate. Remember, these people who want to join your fire department are entrusted with your life, your property and maybe your kids. We go into people’s homes and they TRUST us. Shouldn’t we first make sure that we can trust our own?
And then there’s that issue of suspicion. Think you may have an arson problem within your department? Act on it. Notify someone you can trust with your observations. Maybe?you’re wrong … but maybe you’re right.?We both know that in so many cases, the “firefighter arsonist” was under suspicion long before they were finally stopped.
Want to learn more? The U.S. Fire Administration released a report on this issue and what’s being done to prevent it. Although there’s little data available on how often firefighter arson occurs, the report looks at issues such as motives, signs an arsonist may be a firefighter, how the arsonist’s crimes?increase over time and the impact of firefighter arson on?your department and community. To download the report, go to www.usfa.fema.gov/downloads/pdf/publications/tr-141.pdf.
So there you go. Get rid of the scum within our ranks, and we have one less thing to worry about. Now we can get re-focused on issues like some departments not getting good?firefighter training, the so-called firefighters who don’t want to train, fire officers who are more worried about upsetting their firefighters than actually doing their jobs, politicians cutting funding, firefighters who drive apparatus like lunatics?and other stuff that may get you angry all over again.
Still angry? Try these simple and convenient?Nozzlehead tips to managing your anger:
- Breathe deeply from your diaphragm and blow it out; breathing from your chest won’t relax you. Picture your breath (Hey Slick, chew a breath mint first) coming up from your gut … but just your breath.
- Slowly repeat a calm word or phrase like “relax,” “take it easy,” “city managers and mayors are clueless”?or “why is it so hard to get apparatus with seatbelts that actually work with SCBAs?” Repeat it to yourself while breathing deeply. Very nice.
- Visualize a relaxing experience, using either your memory or your imagination. Picture when that mayor lost his re-election because firefighters lobbied hard to dump the clown. Ahhhhh … there you go. Isn’t that better?
- Non-strenuous, slow yoga-like exercises can relax your muscles and help you feel much calmer. Or simply pounce on the closest firefighter arsonist. Calmly.
There now, don’t you feel so much better?
