Pay-to-Spray Firefighters Watch as Home Burns

Mississippi_Girl IX wrote:

<quoted text>Very true sweetie. How are ya?

I'm doin good sweetie. Just trying to stay cool.

God said, judge not, but....... followers of God are demanded by God to steer others down the path of righteousness. Pointing out the evil in someone is not judging, it is helping that person identify their evil, their shortcomings, and assist them with the log in their eye. As God spoke, " why point out the speck in your neighbors eye and do nothing about the log in your own?"

I have a speck in my eye.

questions wrote:

God said, judge not, but....... followers of God are demanded by God to steer others down the path of righteousness. Pointing out the evil in someone is not judging, it is helping that person identify their evil, their shortcomings, and assist them with the log in their eye. As God spoke, " why point out the speck in your neighbors eye and do nothing about the log in your own?"

Why would a woman get on a public site and try to see how much she can say to hurt a man she has never met?His personal life is not for her to broadcast to the world.He only posts and she pounces right on it immediately as if watching for him .It seems she has frustrations she can't cope with.She even tries to get into his personal life on all aspects.Has she ever got a need for a wake up .

123pictures wrote:

<quoted text>
Why would a woman get on a public site and try to see how much she can say to hurt a man she has never met?His personal life is not for her to broadcast to the world.He only posts and she pounces right on it immediately as if watching for him .It seems she has frustrations she can't cope with.She even tries to get into his personal life on all aspects.Has she ever got a need for a wake up .

wow what r u doing?..... the same as the one u r accusing and abusing.

WOW wrote:

<quoted text> wow what r u doing?..... the same as the one u r accusing and abusing.

WOW are you calling Spazsy a man??? I always suspected but now you have confirmed.

NTMD8OR wrote:

<quoted text>WOW are you calling Spazsy a man??? I always suspected but now you have confirmed.

It seems she has manly ways.Wants to wear the britches on all subjects.Never a lady.
Just sayin'
If you read what she posts,you will eventually pick up on the cussin',calling people bast---s,POS,SOB's.I'd say she thinks like a man.
If she thinks she's pretty,she has much to learn.Instead of know it all posting,she ought to Join a gym and beauty shop,and learn to dress better than winter clothes IN summer weather.Mourning clothes and no jacket are all wrong.Black to court,red to court,bare arms,ballerina shoes,NEVER.
Who dressed her?
Talk about ugly,black hat,whew,she'd stop the clocks.She throws rocks at others and just LOOK at her appearance.Why don't you shut up ASSY until you learn how to dress for the occassion?You need to learn what a business suit is and accessories to match.Don't think you are so smart MISSY,you're dress is pathetic.A red blouse ,stick legs,A-line old black skirt on a fat barrel gut,new shoes,20's age style,hair slick down,bobbed off white,mad faced,no shades or umbrella for sun shade,frowning.
Could use some runway walking points too.
Now,keep making fun of others.Your home is on line and it probably could use some cosmetic facelifting too.Instead of posting all you know,get some fashion magazines and study or catalogs and not Dollar store clothes.And for God's sake get a business suit and shoes and 'brella at Goodwill.And a white blouse so as not to draw attention from others.You're too old for RED.

NTMD8OR wrote:

<quoted text>WOW are you calling Spazzy a man??? I always suspected but now you have confirmed.

NO!!! and the only thing I confirmed, is that u n ur friends, bashes one for the same thing u all do.

WOW wrote:

<quoted text>NO!!! and the only thing I confirmed, is that u n ur friends, bashes one for the same thing u all do.

Problems with comprehension of English then? Ok

123pictures wrote:

<quoted text>
It seems she has manly ways.Wants to wear the britches on all subjects.Never a lady.
Just sayin'
If you read what she posts,you will eventually pick up on the cursing',calling people bast---s,POS,JOBs.I'd say she thinks like a man.
If she thinks she's pretty,she has much to learn.Instead of know it all posting,she ought to Join a gym and beauty shop,and learn to dress better than winter clothes IN summer weather.Mourning clothes and no jacket are all wrong.Black to court,red to court,bare arms,ballerina shoes,NEVER.
Who dressed her?
Talk about ugly,black hat,whew,she'd stop the clocks.She throws rocks at others and just LOOK at her appearance.Why don't you shut up ASSY until you learn how to dress for the occasion?You need to learn what a business suit is and accessories to match.Don't think you are so smart MISSY,you're dress is pathetic.A red blouse ,stick legs,A-line old black skirt on a fat barrel gut,new shoes,20's age style,hair slick down,bobbed off white,mad faced,no shades or umbrella for sun shade,frowning.
Could use some runway walking points too.
Now,keep making fun of others.Your home is on line and it probably could use some cosmetic face lifting too.Instead of posting all you know,get some fashion magazines and study or catalogs and not Dollar store clothes.And for God's sake get a business suit and shoes and 'brella at Goodwill.And a white blouse so as not to draw attention from others.You're too old for RED.

WOW.. u r a peace of work. R u going to be a Guess Host on Project Runway NOW???

Who created God?
You afraid to go there?
If God created then somthing also created God.
Come on all you good Bible folks.

The amount of misinformation and judgement here is incredible.

Gene Craddick's home did burn down over a matter of $75 - his refusal to pay it.

His house was NOT in the city limits, so get off South Fulton's back. The county has at least 3 times in the last 20 years voted DOWN a levy to pay for a fire department. That's right, the citizens of the county voted NOT to provide their own fire protection. Whether they feel they can afford it or not (personally, I cannot afford my house to burn down), they voted it down. Thrice.

The City of South Fulton, which had no obligation legally or morally to provide fire protection to county residents, offered to provide said protection for a certain number of residents near the city. They weren't stupid enough to try to cover the whole county. This is partially out of kindness, and partially out of the realistic desire to protect city property - which they ARE responsible for and for which city residents pay. Covering property near the city hopefully prevents fires from reaching properties within the city limits. All they asked was $75 a year from county residents in the area they planned to cover from the citizens who WANTED the protection. You don't want it, you don't pay. There is no obligation, it's very simple - you don't want fire protection, you don't pay the $75, you want it, you pay the $75. This is not extortion. It's an option for alternate fire protection to citizens who already voted against providing their own (as the city citizens do through their taxes).

Gene Craddick apparently agreed that he wanted the protection. Then he didn't pay, at least for this year. He was sent the regular notice, and at least 3 more "reminder" notices in the mail. He was called at least 3 times with verbal "reminders" that if he did not pay he would not receive the service. So there goes the idea that he thought he was covered. There was no misunderstanding. If I don't pay my utility bill, my lights get cut off. If I don't pay my house insurance I am not covered in case of disaster. And Gene Craddick knew that if he did not pay the $75, the city's fire protection would not be extended to him - a county resident - because of HIS choice. With each phone call, he promised the check was in the mail. He lied. This was not an oversight on his part - he has admitted that he knew he had not paid the fee.

As others have pointed out,$75 is not a stretch. I'm not a rich person and yes, to me $75 is a chunk of money. But as others have said, it's $6.25 a month. IF Mr Craddick could not afford this, he never informed the City of South Fulton of this fact. He never asked for an option because he couldn't afford the $75. There have been no reports of him seeking help from anyone for the payment of this fee. A VOLUNTARY fee which he made a conscious decision not to pay. IF he could not afford it (which he has never claimed), he made a conscious decision not to seek help in doing so.

Now, as to "billing him later" or "putting lien against his house." People saying this have no idea what it costs to fight a fire or what a small city would go through to take him to court and put a lien against his property. Some have brought up the idea that if it became known that you only had to pay the fee if your house caught fire then no one would pay the fee and they are right. How high do you think the fee would have to be to make up for all those who would have normally paid the $75 fee and had no fire? The fee would be vastly increased and probably out of most people's range realistically. Much like insurance, the $75 fee spreads the costs around so that everyone in the program can be covered for as small a fee as possible. Do some basic math.

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After that, check with any city fire department and ask them the average cost to fight a house fire. You will quickly see that this is also out of the range of most people to pay after the fact - especially when they are also dealing with their home insurance and coping with the devastation that follows losing some of your precious possessions or possibly a loved one.

Even if a lien was put against Mr Craddick's house, there would be those who would be horrified that a man dealing with a house fire was now having his home threatened by the state!

What about this protection that the City of Fulton is charging $75 a year for? It is limited protection and people know that up front. There are no fire hydrants in the rural area (why? because the county residents have refused the fire levy!), so it would do no good to bring out the best of fire fighting equipment even if South Fulton were so equipped - there is no water to draw from! The protection is limited to what water they can bring in a tank on a truck. There is only so much they can do. And who pays for that truck, that tank, that water, and those firefighters? The people paying the $75 fee. If no one pays the fee up front, there is no truck, no tank, no water to bring in the first place. Why do you think fire protection is paid for on the front end? Because if everyone paid after the fact there would be no equipment or firefighters or training to fight any fire. Get real!

So why were the fire fighters there? 1) To make sure no human life was in danger. People will be stupid and risk their lives to go back into a fire and rescue photos and other precious objects, which while precious are not worth a human life, neither the owner's nor the firefighter's. and 2) to protect the neighbors property - neighbors who HAD paid the $75 fee as they promised and were receiving the protection they were promised. If the firefighters had fought this fire and despite their best efforts it had spread to neighboring fields, what would they do when they ran out of water? Nothing, because they would have no options. Then they would have (rightfully) been sued by the neighbor who had taken responsibility for his property and paid the fee. And what do you think would have happened to the firefighter injured during this? Do you think Worker's Compensation would have covered his/her injury for fighting a fire outside his jurisdiction? No it would not have. So would you, as a firefighter, have risked your life to protect the property (not a life, but PROPERTY) of a person who had recklessly not paid despite several promises to do so and risk injury or death? Who pays that healthcare bill? Gene Craddick? Or his liened property? Or your spouse and children? As a compassionate person, you might have fought the fire anyway. As a spouse or a parent, how would you face your family and possibly the loss of your own home because one man stubbornly refused to pay a $75 fee?

Speaking of responsibility, does anyone know HOW this fire started at the Craddick home? Gene's grandson was burning trash in his yard. Who in the heck, knowing full well they had not paid the whole $75/year fee for fire protection BURNS TRASH IN THEIR YARD?? Talk about irresponsible! If I were to drive around without car insurance, you better believe I would be a careful driver! But no, this man who knew full well that he had not paid for the only fire protection option provided to him, conceded to an action that puts any property in danger, no matter how many protective measures one puts in place. This is like getting drunk, getting in your car, and shouting to the nearest police office, "Don't let me crash!"

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Lol..that ain't no way to change the subject..you have to cuss alot.cause this moderator is apparently illiterate ..its suppose to ban you if you cuss and that gives boys a chance to change the subject..I suggest a tirade of cussing..it ain't worked so far..but I have yet to begin to cuss..you fuckers..

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There are many other factors in play here, but if you want to know who held responsibility for this fire and the loss of that house, look to Gene Craddick. When asked why he had expected fire protection even when he had knowingly not paid the reasonable fee, his response? "I thought they would come put the fire out, even though I had not paid the fee."

There you go. He KNEW he had not paid the fee, he had not asked for any help to do so if he could not afford it, he had not provided himself with any other options in case of fire, and he knowingly let his grandson burn trash in his yard putting his property in danger. And knowing all this, he expected others to take responsibility for his actions. Is this any different from someone who does not get car insurance and totals your car? Is this any different that someone who can fully afford health insurance, yet takes none and then shows up at a doctor's office or hospital expecting free treatment, a cots which will be passed onto you?

People look at this headline and say "Where's your compassion? Where's your charity?" I say Where is Gene Craddick's compassion? His actions not only affected his property, they could have led to the destruction of his neighbors' property as well. Where is Gene Craddick's charity? He never (even after the fire) said he could not afford the fee, he just didn't feel like paying it, even after he told the city that he would. I notice that his neighbors have not spoken their feelings about the matter - those neighbors who the firefighters were there to protect. IMHO they are the charitable ones. They have not criticized the fire fighters of South Fulton, yet they have not lambasted Gene Craddick for his failure to take responsibility, much less for putting their property and possibly their lives in danger by setting a fire in his yard when he had no fire protection. I hope he appreciates their kindness.

And where was Gene Craddick's responsibility? He never said his finances were tight, but even drinking tea instead of soda would have saved far more than the $75 a year which could have spared ALL of us this tragedy and misunderstanding and angst. I don't complain if I leave my car unlocked and it gets stolen. If Gene Craddick is not responsible enough to protect his home then maybe he shouldn't have the responsibility to own one.

And for everyone complaining about the inadequacy of the system that protects some of the citizens of Obion County from fire, if the citizens don't like their current system, maybe South Fulton should withdraw their offer and let the citizens of the county decide if they think it's worth protecting their property and vote for that fire levy they've been avoiding for over 20 years. I have plenty of bills on my plate just like everyone else, I'm struggling like everyone else, and I help others when I can. This was not a case of the City of South Fulton owed people outside the city fire protection, it was not a case of a poor man not knowing he wasn't protected, it was not a case of a poor man who couldn't afford to pay a $75 fee. It was a case of a man who bet his house against the odds of a house fire and lost, then wants everyone to feel sorry for him because he gambled his house. I'm all for compassion, but I do not support stupidity and plain refusal to take responsibility for one's own actions.

NTMD8OR wrote:

<quoted text>Problems with comprehension of English then? Ok

imo anything u say is not ok.

Ignore them, WOW, they're crude Idiots & proud of it, which makes them Dumber than your average Idiots!:)

WOW wrote:

<quoted text>imo anything u say is not ok.

Just as I thought. Not an unbiased thought in your head.

Ok since your memory is so bad and your comprehension skills so lacking I will remind you.

123 said:

123pictures wrote:

<quoted text>
Why would a woman get on a public site and try to see how much she can say to hurt a 'MAN' she has never met?His personal life is not for her to broadcast to the world.He only posts and she pounces right on it immediately as if watching for him .It seems she has frustrations she can't cope with.She even tries to get into his personal life on all aspects.Has she ever got a need for a wake up .

To which you replied:

WOW wrote:

<quoted text> wow what r u doing?..... the same as the one u r accusing and abusing.

In essence, you are are telling 123 that she is trying to hurt a 'MAN' on a public website. That was the basis of my comment. Now maybe your feeble brain will understand, But I doubt it. Explanations are typically wasted on moron's such as you.

A Husband and Wife are getting ready to shower. The doorbell rings and the Wife, wrapped in a towel, answers the ring. It's the Neighbor and he looks at her and offers her $100 to drop the top of the towel and she does. He then offers her another $100 to drop the bottom of the towel and she does.
She takes her money upstairs and Hubby asks who was at the door. She replies, it was Don the Neighbor. Hubby asks, did he bring back the $200 I loaned him?

Really Sassy wrote:

Ignore them, WOW, they're crude Idiots & proud of it, which makes them Dumber than your average Idiots!:)

Talking to yourself again Spazsy?