WAKE UP America

From my forwarded E-Mail Box
"My great great grandfather watched as his friends died in the Civil War, my grandfather watched as his friends died in WW II, and my father watched as my friends died in Vietnam.
None of them died for the Mexican Flag.
Everyone died for the U.S. flag.
In Texas, a student raised a Mexican flag on a school flag pole; another student took it down. Guess who was expelled...the kid who took it down.
Kids in high school in California were sent home this year on Cinco de Mayo because they wore T-shirts with the American flag printed on them.

Enough is enough.
The below e-mail message needs to be viewed by every American; and every American needs to stand up for America.

We've bent over to appease the America-haters long enough.
I'm taking a stand.
I'm standing up because the hundreds of thousands who died fighting in wars for this country, and for the U.S. flag can't stand up.
And shame on anyone who tries to make this a racist message.
Let me make this perfectly clear!

THIS IS MY COUNTRY!
And, because I make This statement DOES NOT Mean I'm against immigration!!!
YOU ARE WELCOME HERE, IN MY COUNTRY!
Welcome!
To come through legally:
1. Get a sponsor!
2. Get a place to lay your head!
3. Get a job!
4. Live By OUR Rules!
5. Pay YOUR Taxes!
And
6. Learn the LANGUAGE like immigrants have in the past!!!
AND
7. Please don't demand that we hand over our lifetime savings of Social Security Funds to you.

If you don't want to forward this for fear of offending someone,
Then YOU'RE PART OF THE PROBLEM!

When will AMERICANS STOP giving away THEIR RIGHTS???

We've gone so far the other way... bent over backwards not to offend anyone. But it seems no one cares about the AMERICAN CITIZEN that's being offended!

WAKE UP America !!!"

The Shuttle Challenger disaster

Yesterday was the 25th anniversary of the Shuttle Challenger disaster. On Tuesday, January 28, 1986 at 11:38 a.m., the Shuttle Challenger broke apart 73 seconds into its flight, killing its seven crew members.


Moments before the Challenger disintigrated.

Onboard were Michael J. Smith, Dick Scobee, Ronald McNair, Ellison Onizuka, Christa McAuliffe, Gregory Jarvis & Judith Resnik. This was the worst 'space' disaster since the Apollo 1 fire in 1967, only equalled by the shuttle Columbia disaster on February 1, 2003.


Note the puff of grey smoke


In 2004, President George W. Bush conferred posthumous Congressional Space Medals of Honor to all 14 astronauts lost in the Challenger and Columbia accidents.



The Space Shuttle Challenger Memorial in Arlington National Cemetery, where some remains were buried.

Dan Emplit WBFD

Something way off my normal Beat...

In this economic climate, where we are all tightening our (money) belts, I'd like to point out a group who seem to take the brunt of this.
The ASPCA and local shelters are on financially rough footing. They are there to take in our discarded friends.
Like Ava


Or Cassandra



Or Higgins


or Lola


Or Ruby


Or Walter


A little money, basically change from your pocket could mean life for a pet like Hennessey


Even if you can't adopt then, please, if you are getting a tax refund, think about the pets with nothing, no one (except the good people at the ASPCA and shelters country wide), and no family. And give what you can dog food, treats, cat food, kitty litter, the change you throw on the counter, ALL would be a help.

ASPCA facebook
ASPCA website

Any replies Anonymous or not will be posted for this topic.
Thank you,
Dan Emplit WBFD

PS Today was the 25th anniversary of the Space Shuttle Challenger Disaster. More on that tomorrow.

Why California is broke and Wyoming is not

The Governor of California is jogging with his dog along a nature trail.

A coyote jumps out and attacks the Governor's dog, then bites the Governor.

1. The Governor starts to intervene, but reflects upon the movie "Bambi" and then realizes he should stop because the coyote is only doing what is natural.

2. He calls animal control. Animal Control captures the coyote and bills the State $200 testing it for diseases and $500 for relocating it.

3. He calls a veterinarian. The vet collects the dead dog and bills the State $200 testing it for diseases.

4. The Governor goes to hospital and spends $3,500 getting checked for diseases from the coyote and on getting his bite wound bandaged.

5. The running trail gets shut down for 6 months while Fish & Game conducts a $100,000 survey to make sure the area is now free of dangerous animals.

6. The Governor spends $50,000 in state funds implementing a "coyote awareness program" for residents of the area.

7. The State Legislature spends $2 million to study how to better treat rabies and how to permanently eradicate the disease throughout the world.

8. The Governor's security agent is fired for not stopping the attack. The State spends $150,000 to hire and train a new agent with additional special training re: the nature of coyotes.

9. PETA protests the coyote's relocation and files a $5 million suit against the State.

Wyoming:

The Governor of Wyoming is jogging with his dog along a nature trail. A Coyote jumps out and attacks his dog.

1. The Governor shoots the coyote with his State-issued pistol and keeps jogging. The Governor has spent $0.50 on a .45 ACP hollow point cartridge.

2. The Buzzards eat the dead coyote.

Total costs California = $7,304,400
Total costs Wyoming = $0.50

And that, my friends, is why California is broke and Wyoming is not.

Add on edit: Change the Wyoming part to Texas and this is true!!!

Oh, a shooting buddy and his son took this picture, in the mid-west, Neither knew The 'kitty' was there until the flash scared it!

Are my parents being punished?

These are pictures of my parents street. It is a dead end street in Wilkes-Barre. Theses pictures show that the street was not touched after a snow storm.... They were taken Jan 8th 2011, 2 DAYS after a snow storm. Now I know that the main streets have a priority, But ... 2 DAYS!!!! And the city couldn't spare a plow for the 5 or 10 minutes it would have taken? They pay taxes and aren't getting the services they payed for!!



You can see where my front wheel drive car lost traction. What if the ambulance was needed on this street? Or the Fire Engine?




That hill on top of the turn is a killer. It will stop a 4 wheel drive in really bad weather.



The pictures Below were taken today. They show the city's' plow and salting STOPPED just BEFORE my parents house.
Why? Any ones guess is as good as mine. They have plenty of room to turn around past my parents house.




Here you see where my parents neighbor, a retired Firefighter, plowed enough, using his quad, for them to get out. But AGAIN, he shouldn't have to.



You can see where they stopped salting. Why does MY parents tax dollars get them less than, say Barney Farms?




These 'Games' are either someones laziness or spite. They need to stop.

Dan Emplit WBFD

WTF?

"‘Gun’ Hand Gesture Gets Oklahoma 1st-Grader Suspended

Posted on January 21, 2011 at 5:01pm by Meredith Jessup Print

An Oklahoma 1st-grader was reportedly suspended from school earlier this month after making a gun gesture with his fingers.

The boy’s mother, Lydia Fox, says the principal at Parkview Elementary called her earlier this month to tell her that her 7-year-old son had misbehaved during a school assembly by pretending to shoot a gun. As a result, the principal said the young boy would be placed in in-school suspension and face a more harsh punishment if it happened again.

Midwest City-Del City Schools spokeswoman Stacey Boyer confirmed to the Associated Press that the incident took place and said the district’s policy is to “address the disruption of the learning environment.“ The young boy ”has repeatedly used his hands to simulate a gun,” Boyer added."


"Oklahoma 1st-grade boy makes gun gesture with fingers, lands in trouble at school

12:02 p.m. CST, January 20, 2011
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — The mother of a first-grade boy disciplined after making a gun gesture with his fingers while at school says the district overreacted.

Lydia Fox says the principal at Parkview Elementary called her earlier this month to tell Fox her 7-year-old son had misbehaved during a school assembly by pretending he was shooting a gun.

Fox says the principal told her the boy would be placed in in-school suspension for the rest of that day and threatened a longer suspension if it happened again.

Midwest City-Del City Schools spokeswoman Stacey Boyer confirmed the incident and says the district's policy is to "address the disruption of the learning environment." Boyer says Fox's son "has repeatedly used his hands to simulate a gun."

Radio station KTOK in Oklahoma City initially reported the story."

Honestly, I can't believe this kind of moronic crap is going on here. I've said it before, "There is not much you can say about someone so obviously divorced from reality and any rational thought." HE'S SEVEN!!!!! What is wrong with people today? We want more action in our movies but when children 'make a gun' with their fingers we go ape $hit!!? This politically correct crap is killing our minds.

Dan Emplit WBFD

Link to another Firefighters Blog

"Why We Need Firefighters
Jan 13, 2011

By Christopher Brennan

You awake in the middle of the night to your smoke alarm. As you roll out of bed, your heart begins to race and panic sets in. There is smoke in the air.

My house is on fire, you realize this as you are waking up. You reach over and shake your wife’s shoulder while yelling out, “The house is on fire! We have to get the kids!” You try to walk but you cannot see. You cannot breathe. You get low to the ground and begin to crawl. You reach out for the door knob, and, opening the door, you allow inky, choking smoke into the room.

Your wife yells, “Get the kids, get the kids!”

You try to crawl down the hallway. You cannot; the smoke too thick, the heat growing in intensity. You are forced back into the bedroom and shut the door. You make your way to the window. You will have to jump. The only chance you or the kids have is if you can get outside and try to find another way in. You leap from the window, twisting your ankle. Your wife follows. You manage to arrest her fall enough that she is not hurt.

You make your way to the front of the house and now see the flames that have broken the picture window and are pushing out, illuminating the night sky. You can feel the heat as you stand on the curb. The kids! Oh, God, the kids! The thought of your children trapped in the building is all you can think of.

You hear a siren. Turning towards the sound you see a fire engine pulling down the block. You feel a sense of hope. They’re here! They’ll get the Sarah and Claire! God, please keep my kids safe.

The engine pulls just past the building. One firefighter gets out, and then another.
“My daughters are in there!” Your wife’s scream is filled with fear.
One firefighter stretches a hoseline to the front door, and then goes to walk around the building. The second starts the water into the hose.

Why aren’t they going in to get my girls? It’s not enough to think the thought--you scream it at the firefighter operating the controls of the engine, “My kids are in there!”

The firefighter looks at you, with genuine concern and says, “Sir, it’s just the two of us; we have to wait for help before we can go in.”

Your heart sinks as more windows break from the heat and the fire begins to push out. The lone firefighter with the hose begins to spray water on your neighbor’s house, which has begun to smolder. You have no choice but to confront the horrible reality that you are watching your children die.

Fire department staffing has become a hot-button issue for municipal leaders across the country.
Given the struggling economy, many municipal and county fire departments, along with their fire protection district brethren, have chosen to reduce staffing to close a their budget gaps. At face value, this may seem to be a reasonable thing; after all, how big of an impact can eliminating a single person per apparatus have?

Firefighting is a dangerous profession. The American fire service suffers approximately 100 firefighter line-of-duty deaths (LODDs) each year. In addition, approximately 80,000 firefighters are injured each year, with roughly 50,000 of those occurring on the fireground, according to statistics from the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) and the United States Fire Administration. In contrast, the United States military suffered roughly 30,000 wounded-in-action casualties from October of 2001 until August of 2008 while fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan, according to Department of Defense statistics.

However, when mayors and city managers close a budget gap by eliminating fire protection resources, there is rarely a frank conversation about how that reduction will hinder the fire department’s ability to achieve its objectives? save life, stabilize the incident, and conserve property. When these elected officials choose to eliminate firefighters, close stations, shut down apparatus, or in any way increase the workload on firefighters, they are reducing the ability of the fire department to respond effectively and efficiently.

Fire doubles in size roughly every minute. This exponential growth is why small, seemingly manageable fires quickly and aggressively can consume a home. It is why an unattended candle can bring ruin to your home in minutes, or why a child playing with a lighter can cause a fire that displaces dozens of people from an apartment building. With this knowledge, why would you choose to reduce or eliminate fire protection?

The fact is that fire departments are consumers. Fire departments consume tax dollars. Personnel cost money in salaries and benefits; apparatus cost money to buy and maintain; training requires instructors and curriculum; and equipment, tools, and protective clothing must be replaced continually because of wear and damage. A small community can easily spend several million dollars in tax money each year to maintain quality fire protection. The downside is there is rarely a splashy headline that political leaders want to point to when elections come around. Police departments rarely have the same challenges fire departments do because they are able to generate revenue through citations, and the fear of crime motivates people to vote. It is easier for elected or appointed officials, when a community suffers fire deaths and property loss, to say, “These things are unavoidable.” Fire is inhuman, it is impersonal, and as such is easy to dismiss as uncontrollable.

These dismissals are falsehoods. They are lies. A properly trained and equipped fire department is more likely to be able to rescue trapped occupants and extinguish a fire with minimal loss of property. In October, the Oak Park (IL) Fire Department rescued a teenager from a fire in a supposedly vacant building. Days later, in downstate Decatur, crews rescued a toddler from a house fire? the mother was unable to get inside to rescue her child. These rescues are timely examples of the impact that having enough properly trained people available can have. With longer response times or fewer firefighters on the front lines, these two successes could have easily been tragedies.

Recent studies by the National Institute for Standards and Technology have shown that firefighter staffing directly affects how quickly and effectively a fire department can perform the critical fireground functions of locating and confining the fire, search and rescue, ventilation, extinguishment, and salvage and overhaul. Fewer firefighters means less gets accomplished.

We hear the phrase “do more with less” from corporate leaders and government officials all the time. The fact is you cannot “do more with less” unless you have developed a technology or a process that reduces the number of tasks a person must perform. Henry Ford was able to do more with less because he created the assembly line. Because of automation and technology, the Boeing 777 requires two pilots in the cockpit, rather than three.

Firefighting is a physically demanding task that requires accomplishing specific actions in a demanding, rapidly changing environment. NFPA 1710, Standard for the Organization and Deployment of Fire Suppression Operations, Emergency Medical Operations, and Special Operations to the Public by Career Fire Departments, states that 14 personnel should be on scene “within an eight-minute response time to 90 percent of the incidents” they will be called to. Can the fire department that protects you and your children do that?

It is incumbent on political leaders to have the courage to step up and say, “We feel the risk to your family is worth having only two or three people on a fire engine.”

It is incumbent on the political leaders to say, “We feel that it is a reasonable choice to rely on surrounding departments to provide manpower for first response. Yes, there may be times that a house burns to the ground or people die because we only have three people on the engine, and that other departments are unavailable because of their own responses. But we don’t think that situation is likely to occur often enough to justify spending your money on firefighters.”

It is the moral responsibility of political leaders to gauge the values of their community and provide for it or make honest statements about what will and will not happen if they are forced to reduce services. So I say to all you mayors, council and board members, city managers, and department administrators, “Be honest. If you believe that cutting fire protection is a reasonable way of reducing a budget shortfall, explain it to your citizens. Explain in clear and plain language that you have weighed and measured and found that the risk to the safety of their homes and their lives is less valuable than another project you are choosing to keep.”

Christopher Brennan is a 14-year veteran of the fire service, a certified fire instructor, and the author of numerous articles. He is the author of the textbook, The Ready Position, which will be available from Fire Engineering in Spring 2011. Chris’s Blog can be found at
http://www.thefireservicewarrior.blogspot.com"

There are a whole lot of questions here that Leighton needs to answer. Of course, He won't. It would wreck his chances at re-election.

Dan Emplit WBFD

Cat's New Year's Resolutions

My human will never let me eat the pet hamster, and I am at peace with that.

I will not puff my entire body to twice its size for no reason after my human has finished watching a horror movie.

I will not slurp fish food from the surface of the aquarium.

I must not help myself to Q-tips, and I must certainly not proceed to stuff them down the sink's drain.

I will not eat large numbers of assorted bugs, then come home and puke them up so the humans can see that I'm getting plenty of roughage.

I will not lean way over to drink out of the tub, fall in, and then pelt right for the box of clumping cat litter. (It took FOREVER to get the stuff out of my fur.)

I will not stand on the bathroom counter, stare down the hall, and growl at NOTHING after my human has finished watching The Exorcist.

I will not fish out my human's partial plate from the glass so that the dog can "wear" it and pretend to be my human. (It is somewhat unnerving to wake up, roll over in bed, and see the dog grinning at you with your own teeth.)

I will not use the bathtub to store live mice for late-night snacks.

I will not drag dirty socks up from the basement in the middle of the night, deposit them on the bed and yell at the top of my lungs (Burmese LOUD yowling) so that my human can admire my "kill."

I will not perch on my human's chest in the middle of the night and stare into his eyes until he wakes up.

We will not play Herd of Thundering Wildebeests Stampeding Across the Plains of the Serengeti over any humans' bed while they're trying to sleep.

Screaming at the can of food will not make it open itself.

I cannot leap through closed windows to catch birds outside. If I forget this and bonk my head on the window and fall behind the couch in my attempt, I will not get up and do the same thing again.

I will not assume the patio door is open when I race outside to chase leaves.

I will not back up off the front porch and fall into the bushes just as my human is explaining to his girlfriend how graceful I am.

I will not complain that my bottom is wet and that I am thirsty after sitting in my water bowl.

I will not intrude on my human's candle-lit, romantic dinner and singe my bottom.

I will not stick my paw into any container to see if there is something in it. If I do, I will not hiss and scratch when my human has to shave me to get the rubber cement out of my fur.

If I bite the cactus, it will bite back.

It is not a good idea to try to lap up the powdered creamer before it dissolves in boiling coffee.

When I am chasing my tail and catch my back leg instead, I will not bite down on my foot. This hurts, and my scream scares my human.

When it rains, it will be raining on all sides of the house. It is not necessary to check every door.

Birds do not come from the bird feeder. I will not knock it down and try to open it up to get the birds out.

I will not stuff my rather large self into the rather small bird feeder (with my tail hanging out one side) and expect the birds to just fly in.

I will not teach the parrot to meow in a loud and raucous manner.

The dog can see me coming when I stalk her. She can see me and will move out of the way when I pounce, letting me smash into floors and walls. That does not mean I should take it as a personal insult when my humans sit there and laugh.

Yes, there are still two very large dogs in the backyard. There have been for several years. I don't have to act as if I've just discovered the Demon Horror of the Universe each time one of them appears in my window.

I will not play "dead cat on the stairs" while people are trying to bring in groceries or laundry, or else one of these days, it will really come true.

When the humans play darts, I will not leap into the air and attempt to catch them.

I will not swat my human's head repeatedly when he's on the family room floor trying to do sit ups.

When my human is typing at the computer, her forearms are *not* a hammock.

Computer and TV screens do not exist to backlight my lovely tail.

I am a walking static generator. My human doesn't need my help installing a new board in her computer.

Any critter that lives in the house (hamsters), stay in the house and any wild critters (frogs and earthworms) stay outside. I am not allowed to set the hamster free in exchange for finding a frog to put in the fish tank.

I will not stalk the deer in the apple orchard next door. They have sharp hooves and could hurt me if they weren't laughing so hard.

I will not watch the guinea pig constantly as the guinea pig likes to sleep once in a while.

The goldfish likes living in water and should be allowed to remain in its bowl.

I will not put a live mole in my food bowl and expect it to stay there until I get hungry.

I will not eat spider plants and hallucinate behind the toilet.

I will not drag the magnets (and the papers they are holding up) off of the refrigerator and then bat them underneath it so that they adhere to the underside.

I will learn to relax at the vet's office so they will start writing things in my records like "Good Kitty" and "Sweet Kitty" instead of the stuff that's there now like "MEAN!!" "BITER!!!" and "GET HELP!!!!!"

I will not be miffed at my human all day and then kiss him on the nose at 2:00 a.m. to tell him that he is forgiven and can now pet me.

I will not scratch the children of lawyers, no matter how much they chase me or how hard they pull my tail.

If I MUST claw my human, I will not do it in such a fashion that the scars resemble a botched suicide attempt.

If I must give a present to my human's overnight guests, my toy mouse is much more socially acceptable than a big live cockroach, even if it isn't as tasty.

I will not soak my catnip toy in the water bowl to make tea. I will not get high and sit there drinking my tea and kneading the floor afterwards. I will not then get delusions of grandeur and make tea in the toilet bowl or the tub. And I will not try to make tea with used socks or dirty undies when my humans take the catnip toy away from me.

A warm pepperoni pizza is not a good place for a nap.

Desert Storm + 20

Yesterday was the 20th anniversary of Desert Storm, I was there in '91. I'm posting about it today because it was 20 years ago today that I stepped off the plane. We were going in. A multi-national force (Made up of MOSTLY Americans) Against the worlds fourth largest army. An army of largely untried kids (us) against an army of veterans (The Iran-Iraq war ran from 1980 to 1988).

Members of the Coalition included Afghanistan, Argentina, Australia, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Belgium, Canada, Czechoslovakia, Denmark, Egypt, France, Greece, Honduras, Hungary, Italy, Kuwait, Malaysia, Morocco, Netherlands, New Zealand, Niger, Norway, Oman, Pakistan, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, Romania, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Syria, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and the United States of America.

Germany and Japan provided financial assistance and donated military hardware, but did not send direct military assistance.

Some estimate that Iraq sustained between 20,000 and 35,000 fatalities.

The DoD reports that U.S. forces suffered 148 battle-related deaths (35 to friendly fire), A further 145 Americans died in non-combat accidents. Total Coalition deaths 379 (Not including at least 605 Kuwaiti soldiers still missing). The largest single loss of life among Coalition forces happened on 25 February 1991, when a local version of the Scud missile hit an American military barrack in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, killing 28 U.S. Army Reservists from Pennsylvania.

Not a word was mentioned in either of our news papers about our 20th anniversary.

To the soldiers who did not come back, Rest well, you are Heroes, One and All.

Dan Emplit

Martin Luther King Day

A little history about today,
On November 2, 1983, President Ronald Reagan signed a bill creating a federal holiday to honor King. Observed for the first time on January 20, 1986, it is called Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. Following President George H. W. Bush's 1992 proclamation, the holiday is observed on the third Monday of January each year, near the time of King's birthday. On January 17, 2000, for the first time, Martin Luther King Jr. Day was officially observed in all fifty U.S. states.

"Nothing in the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity."

"Rarely do we find men who willingly engage in hard, solid thinking. There is an almost universal quest for easy answers and half-baked solutions. Nothing pains some people more than having to think."

"The tough mind is sharp and penetrating, breaking through the crust of legends and myths and sifting the true from the false."

"You know my friends, there comes a time when people get tired of being trampled by the iron feet of oppression"

"On some positions, Cowardice asks the question, "Is it safe?" Expediency asks the question, "Is it politic?" And Vanity comes along and asks the question, "Is it popular?" But Conscience asks the question "Is it right?" And there comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe, nor politic, nor popular, but he must do it because Conscience tells him it is right."

"True peace is not merely the absence of tension: it is the presence of justice."

"Who accepts evil without protesting against it is really cooperating with it"

Martin Luther King, Jr.(January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968)

The Right to Gripe

A local blog "The Right to Gripe" has 2 articles about the FD. You should give it a look.

A Firefighters comment on "Russian Roulette"

A Firefighters comment on "Russian Roulette"

"nice job and great posting the past 9 1/2 months we somehow,someway have been in the right place at the right time. there would have been many clusterf##ks on calls if we were delayed in anyway, but we gave it our best shot and did it and continue to do it. my concern is... when does this luck run out and on who?" ~ Ralph Graham

The press rarely talk about close calls and almost bads, So most people think they don't happen. If anyone wants to post something here, just email me or put it on my FB page. I think people might like 'hearing' from other Firefighters (I'd be sick of reading my rambling writings).

Dan Emplit WBFD

Russian Roulette

Last night Dictator Leighton almost burned a family out of their home. Not that he did it personally but that his non-leadership would have. Let me tell the story...

Last night was one of the times that we DID have Engine 3 in service.
Around 8:40 a lady (I don't know if I can use her name or any other specifics that didn't go over the air, so lets call her.... Tam) came to South Station and asked us to take a look at her familys wood burner (They live VERY close to the station). We Quickly determined that there was fire extension into the wall and called for a full alarm. The wall was opened up and the fire quickly put out with pressurized water (called a PW).
The moral of this story? If Engine 3 had not been in service, a family with 3 children would NOT have slept in there own beds last night and may have lost EVERYTHING. Remember fire DOUBLES in size every minute. Don't walk across the street to your neighborhood fire house, call 911 first, 'cause Leighton may have close yours next. And this can happen.

"Any fire can be extinguished with a 2 1/2 gallon PW............................... Either at the very beginning or the very end.

This fire is a perfect example of the need for every Fire Station having a staffed Fire Engine in service 24/7.

If Engine 3 was not in service and the time it will take for Engine 1 to be dispatched from County 911 and respond from Fire Headquarters, this fire surely would have been at least a room and contents fire if not a first and second floor fire.

This fire incident as well as the earlier EMS response from South Station are real life examples of the need to have our manpower level restored and apparatus in service as before the latest reduction." ~ Asst. Chief Thomas Makar

Oh, "The Earlier EMS response" was someone moments away for a MAJOR cardiac incident. And seconds counted. Last I heard, he was doing well.

We are paying for services that Leighton is not providing. He is responsible for taking our tax money and leaving us with LESS than the MINIMUM protection. The city's own study says 17 men per shift. Dictator Leighton says 12. When asked about it he says the city doesn't have the money. But it has the money to give tax breaks to his campaign contributors, or to sell them property at 8 cents on the dollar.
Remember his Senate ad said he "brought safety and prosperity" to Wilkes-Barre.....
Maybe if you define Wilkes-Barre as his campaign contributors because he sure doesn't give a damn about our safety.


Dan Emplit WBFD
AKA Don Quixote

4 Parachutes

An airplane was about to crash; there were 5 passengers on board, but only 4 parachutes.

The first passenger said, "I am President Obama, the chosen one. The world Needs me, I can't afford to die." So he took the first parachute and left the plane.

The second passenger, Nancy Pelosi, said, "I am the Speaker of the House. And I am the smartest woman in American history, so America's people don't want me to die."
She took the second parachute and jumped out of the plane.

The third passenger, John Kerry, said, "I'm a Senator, and a decorated war heroof the United States of America." So he grabbed the parachute next to him and jumped.

The fourth passenger, ex-President George W. Bush, said to the fifth passenger, a 10-year-old schoolgirl, "I have lived a full life, and served my country the best I could. I will sacrifice my life and let you have the last parachute."

The little girl said, "That's okay, Mr. President. There's a parachute left for you. President Obama took my schoolbag."

We few, we happy few, we band of brothers

We have lost a true hero.
Major Richard D. Winters, born Jan 21, 1918, has passed away. Most know him from the HBO mini series "Band of Brothers" where he was portrayed by Damien Lewis. He was born in Ephrata, Pennsylvania and moved to nearby Lancaster when he was eight years old.
Major Winters had a distinguished military service, being involved in the Battle of Normandy, Operation Market Garden and the Battle of the Bulge.
His awards include:
Distinguished Service Cross
Bronze Star (2)
Purple Heart
Presidential Unit Citation
American Defense Service Medal
National Defense Service Medal
European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal
World War II Victory Medal
Army of Occupation Medal
Croix de guerre
French Liberation Medal
Oorlogskruis (a military decoration of both France and Belgium)
Belgian WWII Service Medal
Good Conduct Medal
Combat Infantryman Badge
Parachutist Badge
Major Winters was recommended for the Medal of Honor for his leadership at Brécourt Manor, but due to the quota system this was downgraded to the Distinguished Service Cross, the U.S. Military's second highest award for combat valor.
Despite his numerous awards Major Winters was humble about his service. When people asked him if he was a hero, he liked to answer the way his World War II buddy, Mike Ranney, did. “No,” Ranney said. “But I served in a company of heroes.” That became the tag line for the miniseries.
Ambrose, the author of “Band of Brothers,” said in a 2001 BBC interview that he hopes young people say. “I want to be like Dick Winters.”
“Not necessarily as soldiers, but as that kind of leader, that kind of man, with basic honesty and virtue and an understanding of the difference between right and wrong,” Ambrose said.

Winters died on January 2, 2011. He had requested a private, unannounced funeral service, which was held on January 8, 2011.

"A nation reveals itself not only by the men it produces but also by the men it honors, the men it remembers." ~ John F. Kennedy

Good Bye Sir and Thank you for your service and your example,

Dan Emplit WBFD
US Navy (1986-1992)

I don't care about party or politics; no one shoots a United States Congressman

Yesterday, a mentally disturbed 22 year old (Identified as Jared Loughner) attacked a 'Meeting with the voters' outside a supermarket in Tucson, Arizona. Six are dead, including Arizona’s chief federal judge (John McCarthy Roll), a 9-year-old girl (Christina Taylor Green, Born on 9/11) and Gabriel "Gabe" Zimmerman (a congressional aide responsible for community outreach who was engaged to be married). Thirteen are wounded including U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords of Arizona who was shot in the head. Initial reports seem favorable for her recovery. Giffords, 40, is a three-term moderate Democrat who won re-election against a tea party candidate.

The suspect’s exact motivation was not clear, but a former classmate described Loughner as a pot-smoking loner who had rambling beliefs about the world. The Army said he tried to enlist in December 2008 but was rejected for reasons the military did not provide.
Loughner, according to CNN Justice, used a Glock 19 with 30 round magazines. This is a SEMI automatic weapon, not a fully automatic weapon. Not a submachine gun. Not an assault weapon.

Reports are still a little confusing, but it seems that while Loughner was reloading a woman slapped the magazine from his hand and a local man, with a concealed firearm and permit to carry, was there on scene and helped pin Loughner down but never drew his weapon.

House Speaker John Boehner, speaking briefly on Sunday morning said the shooting of the Arizona Democrat was an "inhuman act" that "should not and will not deter us from our calling to represent our constituents and fulfill our oaths of office.",
"An attack on one who serves, is an attack on all who serve," and "Such attacks have no place in our society."

We are praying for the recovery of Rep. Giffords and I offer my sincere condolences to the family of Christina Taylor Green and the other victims.

I hope that politicians do not use this tragedy to try to take our freedoms away and I hope that Christina Taylor Green's parents get to beat this Piece of $hit to death any way they want.

Dan Emplit WBFD

Remember, We gave since 2004

You can't look at a paper without seeing that dictator Leighton finally payed the award on Thursday. People are reasonably angry. But before you set your mind, let me take you back to 2004 when the FD thought our Emperor was actually the golden child. He asked all the city unions to help the city financially in their contracts. the fire union did (concessions = approx 3.5 million dollars over 7 years). Mayor Leighton said "By making (these) substantial concessions, the firefighters' union has agreed to become partners with the city in its revitalization plan" (04-27 2004 Times Leader).
The Fire Fighters Union did more than their part (what did the other unions do?), and since then we have been demonized, had 3 engine houses closed, 3 fire engines taken out of service, the publics health and safety ignored, been threatened, down 19 men, and (this one you should write on your calender, It's not 'official' yet) by the end of the year (whether Leighton wins or loses re-election) South Station will be sold. To who? I don't know, but I bet it will be a campaign contributor.


Dan Emplit WBFD

Tomorrow will be Kristi Capel's last day at WBRE

She posted this on facebook this morning
"Tomorrow will be my last day here at WBRE. I want everyone to know that I have had a wonderful time in NEPA the past 3 years! Thank you for all the messages, notes and Christmas cards over the years, they have really meant a lot!
As for my next journey... I have a wonderful opportunity to move to Cleveland and work for the local Fox station!
All the best ;)"
Good luck Kristi

Just want to point out

Our Dictator and council is trying to cut back on the pensions of the city’s police officers. I find this hypocritical. Lets look at him.

our dictator was a councilman for 12 years, a part time job. If he had remained a councilman, at 20 years he would have gotten about $6,000/year pension.
But with only 8 years at a full time job, he will have the 20 years he needs to get a pension of $40,000+/ year plus benefits. Remember, he makes as much as the mayor of our state capitol and is one of the four highest paid mayors in the state.

Yet the police, who risk there LIVES and welfare to protect us, are going to get shafted.
"Mayoral assistant Drew McLaughlin further explained when the city’s police officers retire after serving 20 years or more they will no longer be eligible to receive a percentage increase in their annual pensions, under the new ordinance and as stipulated by state law. Rather, the increase will be capped at a maximum of $500, McLaughlin said. This applies only to officers hired after 2001." Jan 05, 2011 Times Leader

This hypocrite, with 12 of his 20 years being part time, now wants to cut the pensions of people who actually do work for 20 years before they retire.
Tomorrow the council votes on this. It would be nice if for once, we showed up to protect them.

Dan Emplit WBFD
AKA Don Quixote

Scarey invasion of privacy

"There's a site called Spokeo.com that's a new online USA phone book w/personal info: pics you've posted on FB or web, your approx credit score, home value, income, age, etc. You can remove yourself! Search for yourself on their site (don't buy the access), copy that URL of your page, and then go to the bottom of the page and click on the PRIVACY button to remove yourself. This is not a joke!!!"

This is real! I deleted mine and I NEVER gave permission for anyone to publish ANYTHING!!!!
Thanks to my niece Alyssa for letting me know.

Add on Edit: A lot of people are saying this is a trick to get your E-mail address. Well they already had mine, plus my UNLISTED phone number was there.

I was sent this, Haven't checked it out yet

It's a good heads up and worth the read.


"I, Gene Hackemack, received this email from my good friend Tedd Petruna, a diver at the NBL facility [Neutral Buoyancy Lab], at NASA Houston, whom I used to work with. Tedd happened to be on this same Flt. 297, Atlanta to Houston.

In my opinion, the Muslims are all getting very brave now..read Tedd's story below.
Semper Fi

PS: Can you imagine, our own news media now are so politically correct that they are afraid to report that these were all Muslims... unbelievable.
Thank God for people like Tedd Petruna.

One week ago, I went to Ohio on business and to see my father.. On Tuesday, November the 17th, I returned home If you read the papers the 18th you may have seen a blurb where a AirTran flight was cancelled from Atlanta to Houston due to a man who refused to get off of his cell phone before takeoff. It was on Fox.

This was NOT what happened.

I was in 1st class coming home. 11 Muslim men got on the plane in full attire. 2 sat in 1st class and the rest peppered themselves throughout the plane all the way to the back. As the plane taxied to the runway the stewardesses gave the safety spiel we are all so familiar with. At that time, one of the men got on his cell and called one of his companions in the back and proceeded to talk on the phone in Arabic very loudly and very aggressively. This took the 1st stewardess out of the picture for
she repeatedly told the man that cell phones were not permitted at the time. He ignored her as if she was not there.

The 2nd man who answered the phone did the same and this took out the 2nd stewardess. In the back of the plane at this time, 2 younger Muslims, one in the back aisle, and one in front of him, window, began to show footage of a porno they had taped the night before, and were very loud about it. Now - they are only permitted to do this prior to Jihad. If a Muslim man goes into a strip club, he has to view the woman via mirror with his back to her..(don't ask me.. I don't make the rules, but I've studied) The 3rd stewardess informed them that they were not to have electronic devices on at this time. To which one of the men said "shut up infidel dog!"

She went to take the camcorder and he began to scream in her face in Arabic. At that exact moment, all 11 of them got up and started to walk to the cabin.

This is where I had had enough! I got up and started to the back where I heard a voice behind me from another Texan twice my size say "I got your back." I grabbed the man who had been on the phone by the arm and said "you WILL go sit down or you Will be thrown from this plane!" As I "led" him around me to take his seat, the fellow Texan grabbed him by the back of his neck and his waist and headed out with him. I then grabbed the 2nd man and said, "You WILL do the same!" He protested but adrenaline was flowing now and he was going to go..

As I escorted him forward the plane doors open and 3 TSA agents and 4 police officers entered. Me and my new Texan friend were told to cease and desist for they had this under control.. I was happy to oblige actually. There was some commotion in the back, but within moments, all 11 were escorted off the plane. They then unloaded their luggage.

We talked about the occurrence and were in disbelief that it had happen, when suddenly, the door open again and on walked all 11!! Stone faced, eyes front and robotic (the only way I can describe it). The stewardess from the back had been in tears and when she saw this, she was having NONE of it! Being that I was up front, I heard and saw the whole ordeal.
She told the TSA agent there was NO WAY she was staying on the plane with these men. The agent told her they had searched them and were going to go through their luggage with a fine tooth comb and that they were allowed to proceed to Houston. The captain and co-captain came out and told the agent "we and our crew will not fly this plane!" After a word or two, the entire crew, luggage in tow, left the plane. 5 minutes later, the cabin door opened again and a whole new crew walked on.

Again...this is where I had had enough!!! I got up and asked "What the hell is going on!?!?" I was told to take my seat. They were sorry for the delay and I would be home shortly. I said "I'm getting off this plane". The stewardess sternly told me that she could not allow me to get off. (now I'm mad!) I said "I am a grown man who bought this ticket, who's time is mine with a family at home and I am going through that door, or I'm going through that door with you under my arm!! But I am going through that door!!" And I heard a voice behind me say "so am I". Then everyone behind us started to get up and say the same.

Within 2 minutes, I was walking off that plane where I was met with more agents who asked me to write a statement. I had 5 hours to kill at this point so why the hell not. Due to the amount of people who got off that flight, it was cancelled. I was supposed to be in Houston at 6pm. I got here at 12:30am.

Look up the date. Flight 297 Atlanta to Houston.

If this wasn't a dry run, I don't know what one is. The terrorists wanted to see how TSA would handle it, how the crew would handle it, and how the passengers would handle it.

I'm telling this to you because I want you to know.
The threat is real. I saw it with my own eyes.
\ -Tedd Petruna"

If it's true, I'd ask all of you who fly to keep both your eyes open.
Add on Edit: according to Snopes this could go either way on truth

Dan Emplit WBFD