flighht2k5
New member
There's a long history of fire brigades in this country.
They used to be private, and they would compete with each other to put out fires first, so that they could be paid the insurance money for saving a building.
However, if your building didn't have insurance, it was hard to get any of the brigades to respond, because they knew there was no money for them.
(See wikipedia, history section third paragraph )
So the point is, the current model of Police protection and fire departments IS socialized. If you call 911, the will police come or the fire department comes and puts out your fire. They don't stand out front, waiting to see if you can pay before they decide to help you.
Unlike earlier times in America, where (according to wikipedia)
"In the early days of the fire service, fire departments were, more or less, social organizations in the community. And, being an accepted member meant a certain social status in the community. Remnants of that social status can still be found today in the traditional style firefighter's helmets that resemble top hats worn by the early firefighters. Monies that were used to help fund the organization were obtained by insurance company payouts from fighting fires. Firefighters could easily tell just who had fire insurance and who didn't by fire insurance marks located on the front of the home. Often it was a problem for homeowners who did not have insurance to have the fire department respond to a fire in their home and effectively remove belongings and such because the firefighters knew that there wouldn't be any money in it for them."
Smh. Nice using gangs of New York as a reference