Earlier this month, a small town in northwest Tennessee made
national news. The town’s fire department stood by and allowed a
house to burn to the ground because the owner didn’t pay a $75
annual subscription fee for fire protection. Despite the complete
loss of property, no human lives were lost in the blaze; however,
three dogs and a cat perished.
Earlier this month, a small town in northwest Tennessee made national news. The town’s fire department stood by and allowed a house to burn to the ground because the owner didn’t pay a $75 annual subscription fee for fire protection. Despite the complete loss of property, no human lives were lost in the blaze; however, three dogs and a cat perished.
Outrage followed when it was learned that the home owner had forgotten to pay his fee and had pleaded with the firemen to put out the fire, opening his check book and saying that he would pay any price to save his home. His pleas landed on deaf ears.
Those that support the decision to allow the house to burn argue that if the firefighters had extinguished the flames, it would have discouraged others in the community to pay their annual fire protection fee.
The debate that followed the fire incident in Obion, Tenn., is indicative of the political discourse we face today. Over the course of this election season, there have been references by groups to “Take back our county,” implying that we must return to the principles of our founding fathers. Some television ads have even used actors depicting American revolutionary leaders shaking their heads. Another ad asks the question, “What would our founding fathers say about the current state of the nation?”
One of America’s most influential founding fathers was Benjamin Franklin. When making a reference to the firefighting efforts in Philadelphia in the early 1700s, Franklin stated, “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.”
Benjamin Franklin knew a little bit about firefighting. He founded our nation’s first volunteer fire department in Philadelphia.
The Union Fire Company was made up of town leaders and businessmen. Those first volunteer firefighters formed bucket brigades when fires broke out, forming a human line between the fire and a water source, transferring filled buckets of water down the line. Volunteers could easily store their buckets and respond to an emergency.
With the advancement of better and larger equipment like fire hoses and portable pumps, the need for additional storage became apparent and expensive. The storage location of the equipment became crucial and cities were forced to construct fire houses with public funding.
Over time, wealthier businessmen stopped volunteering. As a result, fire departments were comprised of working class volunteers. Resentment grew between the larger public that paid for storage and maintenance services and the limited few that actually received fire-fighting services. This eventually resulted in fee-based firefighting services.
In 1752, a fire insurance company was established, the Philadelphia Contributionship, for “Insuring of Houses from Loss by Fire.” To indicate a house had fire insurance, and therefore could be covered in the event of a fire, the insurance company affixed a metal fire mark above the front door entrance of each residence that paid the insurance fee.
Not unlike the fire policies of modern-day Obion, if a homeowner in old Philadelphia didn’t have the fire mark and a fire broke out, the results would have been the same – no service.
As election day approaches, can we learn from Franklin’s wisdom that “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure?” Two measures on the ballot, Measure A and Measure B, both require an initial investment that over the long run will save money.
Measure A levies a $29 parcel tax property owners will pay for the next 10 years to partially fund health insurance premiums for otherwise uninsured children or children who do not qualify for a public program. Disease, viruses, pandemics make no distinction between those individuals that are insured and those that are not. Children are the most vulnerable. Here an ounce of prevention is literally worth a pound of cure.
Measure B authorizes the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority to impose an additional $10 on each vehicle registered in the County of Santa Clara. The purpose of the additional fee or tax is to help fund road repair and street maintenance. This additional fee will help defer indirect costs vehicle owners would otherwise have to pay for damage done while driving on poorly maintained roads, such as front wheel alignments caused by hitting potholes.
There are groups that argue for less government and more tax breaks. This election, voters can use Franklin’s maxim about an ounce of prevention to determine which public investments are worth supporting and can ponder the results of fee-based services such as what occurred in Obion, and what impact this would have on their community.
Mario Banuelos has lived in Morgan Hill for 21 years. He has served on the south County Dayworker Committee and is a member of the Morgan Hill Community Foundation. He is married and has four children.
