said by fiberguy :

To be honest, I don't see the need.
turn. Fair is fair.
[...]
In many areas, they aren't having a problem getting fireman, and if $60 per month for cable TV is too much for the city to pay, then I've got a problem with that.

said by fiberguy :

They/you get paychecks for putting your lives on the line.

You didn't answer the question. "Why should CABLE COMPANIES bear the burden ..? Does Qwest? AT&T? Verizon? for phone? Do they offer DSL service for free? Answer - no. Know it for a fact.. it's not a standard.

Cable companies pay franchise fees. That's it! Cable is not an entity for the city to rape and abuse and it's own desire. If the city wants free cable for it's infrustructure, I want it for mine too.

As for free food or reduced rates.. discounts and goodies. That's not a law or an ordinance. That is done at the good will of the individual business to offer that.

And, before you jump all over me.. I'd put a number on it that 70% of my family is either fire, EMT, or police. When I was 18, I went through the fire academy as well.

And, it's a fact of life that not everyone views police as the good guys even those that don't break laws. In our city, the cops are often as*es and I am sure there are plenty of people in L.A. who aren't friends of the police either. Not everyone has a great relationship with police and not everyone feels that they need to give free to a public funded service.

NONE of my post here is to say my feelings towards fire and police, however, many will assume because I point out the other ugly side/facts to this argument.

said by fiberguy :

70% of all fire departments are volunteer? where do you get those facts. But... why don't you look at the number of fireman that are volunteer.

Major metros pay their fireman.. They also have larger staffs. Larger cities have larger crews. Boonie departments have far fewer people in the station and there are many of those.. sure, your numbers may work in your favor.. 70%? doubt it. Count the number of paid, .. your figures are off.

You quoted my entire post.. and the question still hasn't been answered.

Why doesn't verizon, qwest, at&t, et all, give away free phone service. Why isn't satellite stepping up to the plate to support the communities in which they take the money from. Why isn't gas and electric free to the stations? Why are the stations not built for free??

Shall I go on?

This whole thread is a BBR attempt to bash the cable company which they often love to do.

So how about it?? How about the "Telephone doesn't give first responders free phones! How dare they!" topic?

said by exocet_cm :

quote:

---

What do you do for a living? Are you willing to provide free goods/services to police and fire departments?

---

I am a police officer. Yes.

said by TraumaJunkie :

So you are saying you are willing to be a police officer for free? WooHoo! Take that to your HR tomorrow and ask them to hold the paychecks because you are doing it for NOTHING!

said by r81984 :

Teacher get 70,000 a year????? What???

Are you talking about a teacher with 25 years of service?

My sister is a new teacher who has worked 2 years, teachers start between 25,000 to 35,000 a year depending on the area and cost of living.

Please tell me the name of the school that pays 70,000 a year?

said by r81984 :

Please tell me the district because working in one of the riches areas in Indiana only pays around 30,000.

said by ret369 :

Teachers around here (Bucks County, Pa) average 70K per year, Firemen are volunteers and police get 45K. So don't go crying about poor teachers to me, how many of them get shot while they are working?????? and yes I;m a retired Law Enforcement Officer who got shoot in the line of duty and is now disabled from it

said by TraumaJunkie :

Ask the widow of the teachers at Columbine. LaFollette, Tennessee. VA Tech, other locations where teachers have been shot by students.

Yeah....try your next best argument because that one just crashed and burned!

said by CableTool :

Teachers that entered the field knowing that they would be putting thier lives on the line while educating children.
0%

said by Jeepster93 :

Well to be fair I'm a member of an all volunteer Department and we receive free basic cable from Mediacom.

Suppose you lived in my District and you called 911 and nobody showed up to bail your ass out of your predicament. No loss to me hopefully you have home, fire, automobile, health insurance.

We pay our bills just like every other business, private citizen.

You should think about the men and women who come rushing to aid you or your loved ones as we all are not paid and will risk our lives to save you and your property.

FYI: there are more unpaid Volunteer Firefighters in this country than there are Paid Firefighters.

We don't live in the station but it sure helps to have cable to keep track of approaching weather conditions.

JM2C

said by mocycler :

Well, to be fair...why should the cable companies bear the burden of "rewarding" first responders with free service?

What do you do for a living? Are you willing to provide free goods/services to police and fire departments?

Why not also demand local businesses supply them with free car washes, pizza, haircuts, oil changes, etc....

It's a legitimate expense of running an important public service, so let them keep their cable and bill the taxpayers.

mocycler

said by moonpuppy :

It could be they are just testing the waters to see what happens. That would be the smart thing to do. If it works in one place then try it in another. If it still works, then roll it out nationally in areas where there is no other real competition. Naturally, you hold off in places where you are still in negotiations for new agreements.

Now if a competitor were to come in behind and give the police and fire stations free or heavily discounted TV and internet, I can imagine Comcast crying foul and demanding to be let back in.

said by CableTool :

To be let back in where? There is no franchise agreement keeping them "out"
If another company comes in and offers free service, great. It doesnt mean Comcast will suffer. They will still hold a statewide franchise if that the way it all shakes out. Nothing lost at all.
And certainly nothing to gain by offering your service for free.