Virginia’s President Mike Mohler: I was on the Constitution and Bylaws committee and it was one of my proudest appointments. I worked with people like Frank Montenaro who set a great example for younger leaders. When it became obvious that I am not a rubber stamp for anyone I was removed from the committee. I […]

Lt. Gordon Matthew Ambelas Lt. Ambelas, assigned to Ladder 119, was killed fighting  a high-rise fire in Williamsburg. His death barely makes the front page of the New York Times, effectively buried as a footnote. In the “New York/Region” section where you would surely expect greater notice it is the ninth story down under “More […]

Piercing the Veil of Ethical Secrecy Laurence Gold has been retained to assist in the review of the Schaitberger house purchase/conflict of interest. Mr. Gold: My name is Eric Lamar and I am a member in good standing of the International Association of Fire Fighters, AFL-CIO.  My membership number is 0293837.  I have been a […]

  Where's "Roland"?  “Roland” commented on my recent post when I was banished from the IAFF Blog Roll apparently for wandering outside the acceptable "thought boundaries."  In amongst "Roland's" meandering and bizarre commentary was this: “I’ve seen the current leadership support you on issues (dear to your heart) that many of our less progressive members find controversial.” That […]

  What Would the "Boss" do? Most by now have heard of the "shit-storm" enveloping New Jersey's governor and 2016 Republican presidential hopeful Chris Christie. Here's a quick synopsis relevant to the topic at hand: Christie wants to present himself as the Republican "Everyman" beloved by Dems, too.  In his bid for re-election, endorsements from democrats would prove […]

  When A Cattle Prod Is Sounding Good   The Reverend As Hillary didn’t say, “It takes cojones.” Randy and Teresa Stone, of Independence, Missouri,  were “childhood sweethearts” and married for 20 years with two children when the Marine was found murdered by his wife who then called police. In a touching, small town scene, the […]

  Three Bodies Found a Week After Bronx Fire That was the New York News headline last week when construction workers called into demolish a fire damaged structure in University Heights discovered three corpses.  FDNY had attended a fire there days earlier.  The building is being described as “vacant” and “occupied by squatters.” FDNY apparently […]

  Warning: May Offend Gays, Police Officers, Horses or Those Who Love or Hate Them Brit Sam Brown, a student at Oxford, was arrested a few years ago during a night out, when he ask a mounted police officer “Excuse me, do you realize your horse is gay?” He was charged under Section Five of Britain’s […]

There was an article in the New York Times recently reporting that the US Coast Guard has increased the average body weight calculation for passengers where commercial boating is concerned.  The old weight was 160 and the new one is 185.  Surprise:  people are getting bigger, fast. It seems that fire trucks  and ambulances are […]

Friendly Fire? ATF Agent John Capano was shot and killed in Seaford, Long island, on New Year’s Eve when he intervened in a robbery at a pharmacy. Agent Capano was in the pharmacy picking up a prescription when the assailant, who has a record of prior robberies, demanded money and medication. He followed the robber, […]