Frayserrboi, do you even know how much a Firefighter in Memphis makes a year? Did you know that there are lots of other positions with the city of Memphis that make more than Firemen? When I say Firemen aren't payed enough for what they do, we don't. Am I complaining? No, I'm stating a fact. I loved being a Fireman & was blessed to be able to do it for 15yrs but unfortunately I can no longer do it anymore. Probably 99% of Firemen have to work a side job because the pay they make from the Fire Dept. isn't sufficient enough.

When people claim they "don't do it for the money", believe me, they do it for the money......SMH....

Missy22 all I can say is WOW!!You have NO IDEA what you are talking about. I was just recently forced to retire out of the fire service due to injuries that I sustained on the job & now 5 back surgeries later I'm blessed to still be able to walk. Do you have any idea how much money Firefighters make? Trust me it's not enough, but we don't do it for the money, we do it because we love to help people. As for public servants keeping the public scared you are SORELY misinformed. It's the politicians that are trying to scare the public when they say that they are going to have to close fire stations, lay off Firemen & Policemen unless they raise taxes. I think I'm safe in saying that every Policeman & Fireman want to be able to do their job safely & with the right equipment. We have families that we want to go home to at the end of the day. If your house were to catch on fire & you or your loved ones were trapped inside you would want us there ASAP. If stations are closed down & Firemen are layed off it would greatly reduce response time to your house fire. And if equipment was put out of service(that's what it's called when it's no longer used) it'll take even longer for them to respond to you. Volunteer dept's are good for the small towns they are in, but almost every volunteer dept has at least one full time person to man the station to bring the equipment to a scene. Now having said all of that you still haven't answered the questions I asked you earlier so I'll ask them again. How many Firemen do you know? Do you know what Firemen do? And it's pretty obvious you're not a Fireman. I'll even ask this, how many children have you had die in your arms while doing everything possible to save that childs life? How many parents or family members have you had to tell that their child or loved one is dead? I've had too more times than I'd like to remember & it still haunts me to this day. So please, think before you speak.

Many fire departments are actually volunteer, and do a great job. The idea that private companies couldn't compete and do a better job at less cost is selfish and ridiculous. I think the public is sick of being held up by supposed "public servants" who want to keep people scared to keep their nice pay and benefits coming.

Libertyfirst, I'm glad to see that we agree that the people who should be making the decisions on the equipment used, purchased etc are those in the field using it. However that's generally not the case for the MFD. Yest there is a committee of diff ranks & people that are consulted but when the director wants a certian thing, he does what he wants. Director Benson wasn't in the field long enough to really know what is & isn't effective. Plus when most of the folks who get in the higher positions like that tend to forget what it was like out in the field & what we deal with on a daily basis. Now as to privitizing fire services. Could it be done? Sure. Would it be done safely? Not in my opinion. The NFPA(national fire protection association) has set standards to keep those of us in the streets safe. Plus you would have companies trying to undercut each other bidding on the job, which in turn would put the Firefighters at risk because they wouldn't have the equipment they needed etc. Trust me, I'm all for the private sector growing but there are certian things that just wouldn't be wise. When the safety & well being of people is on the line it's not real wise to have a bunch of companies competing. Those companies only care about the bottom line & not the well being of their employees. Talk to some rural metro employees & see what they say.

Liberty so you're saying we don't save houses when on fire? I hate to bust your bubble in Utopia where ya from , we do save property and life.

The experts in firefighting are firefighters. Those that use the equipment should be involved in the design and use of the equipment, or be involved in the purchasing of those products provided by the market for use in performance of their duties. Why wouldn't private firefighting work? I'd love to hear why, because if private security firms can protect private property, and private garbage collection services can compete to provide a service to Shelby County, why should fire protection be any different? Firefighters basically exist not to protect my house when it catches on fire, but to respond and prevent my neighbor's houses from burning by putting my fire out....

The experts are the ones on the street not the ones in nice cushy offices all day that forgot where they came from.

Libertyfirst, who would those so called experts be in your opinion? As for trying to privatize fire services it would not work & I can tell you why if you like. Missy22, are you a Fireman or have you ever been a Fireman? Do you know any Firemen? The reason I ask is due to the statement you made. Do you know what Firemen do?

The experts in the job should be the final say on the tools required to do the job in the safest, most efficient way. If fire fighting services were private instead of a one-size-fits-none government system, the individual companies that provide this service would solve this and any other problem....