Editor’s Opinion ❘ By BOBBY HALTON
There is a lot of talk today about privilege; most of it is nonsense, political garbage. However, the privilege of being an American firefighter is one of the most precious accomplishments one can achieve. This statement, “the privilege of being an American firefighter,” is not a casual, political, or offhanded remark. I have visited many other countries and, in my opinion (this page is the “Editor’s Opinion”), America’s firefighters set the standard globally. And, to be fair, I like all firefighters, even the firefighters who were not lucky enough to be born here. They are great folks, no doubt about it, but America’s firefighters are the world’s best—not bragging, America’s bravest back it up every day.
The “job” is demanding, dangerous, and complex and requires physical and emotional skills, intelligence, creativity, courage, and moral clarity. The position is influential locally, personally, nationally, and internationally. It is a privilege to belong. So, how did we get here? Simple: We exist to serve others. We put others before ourselves in very dramatic, open, and specific ways. We enter structures; environments; and places that can, and often do, prove to be fatal.
Everyone fears a violent death—everyone. Often, firefighters’ deaths are violent and sudden; sometimes, the exposures plant diseases that linger and hide. Then, after some time, they attack our hearts; our lungs; our bones; and our other organs in painful, cruel, and devastating ways. Sometimes, the wounds are invisible, and we have firefighters who struggle internally with emotional and mental demons that torment their every waking and sleeping moment.
The traditional vintage firefighters, about 98.5% of us, agree that we have one unifying and simple precept: We exist to serve others. Oh, to be sure, we have some pretty fancy mission statements out there that wax poetically about all kinds of things and objectives. And, in our ranks, we have our fair share of outliers, weirdos who should be working in some deranged HR Department somewhere giving vapid moral lectures, virtue signaling, and telling folks how to do things they have no clue about how to actually do. But, hey, God bless their hearts, they found a way to make a living with that degree in the history of Bolivian underwater interpretive dance.
But, the vintage traditional firefighter is fundamentally who we are. Justice Clarence Thomas, while speaking at Hillsdale College, defined his personal vintage character this way: He stated that he was “unapologetically Catholic, unapologetically patriotic, and unapologetically a constitutionalist.” That definition works for me, too. For most vintage firefighters, you could transpose Catholic with Jewish, Christian, Muslim, Episcopalian, Baptist, or whatever religion but, by and large, firefighters recognize a higher power, an all-powerful and loving God. Ergo, we view all others as equally valuable in the eyes of God.
I mentioned on a call with an acquaintance that I had adopted Justice Thomas’s description for myself. My friend, who missed his calling to ruin peoples lives by joining the HR Department somewhere, was perplexed. He said that made no sense to him and that it would be like him stating that he was unapologetically Jewish but he also admitted that he was not a practicing Jew. Earlier in the call, he had mentioned that he hadn’t even read the Bible since he was a kid. He was born into a Jewish family but did not practice Judaism.
I explained that that’s the difference: Being unapologetic means that I practice the Catholic faith, attend Mass and confession, participate in the sacraments, and follow as best I can the rules and dogma of my Catholic faith. I do not intentionally or willingly do anything that is forbidden by my faith. That is not to say that I have not done things that are forbidden—I have, but within Catholicism is the sacrament of Reconciliation or confession, where we are forgiven of our sins.
Vintage firefighters are patriotic. We unapologetically love America and all she stands for. We know our American history, warts and all. We respect and honor the sacrifices made, the accomplishments achieved, the fundamental goodness of our nation and her people. We embrace the effort to be a more perfect union and hope the better angels of our nature will guide us.
Vintage firefighters recognize and acknowledge that when they joined their local fire department, they swore an oath to protect and defend the Constitution of the United States, their state constitution, and local and state laws. Vintage firefighters are constitutionalists. We exercise our God-given rights, enshrined in our Bill of Rights. We use our vote to select representatives to our republic democracy who we feel best reflect our values and concerns. We defend our God-given rights to free speech, to our own thoughts and opinions, and to the rights of others to disagree with us and have their own thoughts and opinions.
It is a privilege to be an American firefighter to serve with and among such people; it always has been and always will be. One of my favorite personalities, Jason Whitlock, an American sports journalist, columnist, and host of the show “Fearless,” recently commented that if a 9/11-type event were to happen today, would today’s American firefighters rise to the challenge, as did our forbearers in 2001?
He was skeptical; I am not. We will, you will, America’s firefighters will. We are unapologetically American firefighters. We have endured the ebb and flow of popular culture. We have endured the ever-changing whims of society. We have endured in good times and in bad, in absurd times and disturbed times. We continue to frustrate HR people, bless their hearts. America’s firefighters remain as we began, committed to a simple fundamental unifying principle: We exist to serve others.
When asked how things are, irrespective of the turmoil and chaos surrounding us, we say, “Outstanding, happy to be here and proud to serve.” When called on, we respond; when challenged, we accept; when threatened, we endure. When all is said and done, we are vintage in character; we are unapologetically American firefighters.
