Firefighters let house burn down

So you're saying people are too dumb to insure/protect themselves (as in paying for the fire fighters help tax), so the government must hold their hands and force them too. *cough so you support the health care thing that everyone must be covered whether they want it or not cough*

No. That's how laws are created. For example, in New Jersey someone put a small television screen on their driver windshield and subsequently got into a horrible accident. Due to this action, nothing is legally allowed to be attached to the windshield, even though a lot of hand-held GPS systems are conveniently created to be placed on the windshield. Due to one person's mistake in placing an extravagant luxury device where it has not practical value, they have inhibited everyone else's ability to legally improve their functionality and ability to operate in society. Health care is an entirely separate issue that I haven't invested enough time to form an accurate opinion. Especially in a global sense, much less a personal sense. I'm simply stating how things ARE in the United States. The whole point of insurance is that you pay before you actually get into an accident. If you payed one-time for a life-long service the moment AFTER you got into a serious accident, then insurance companies would be out of business and unable to operate. For this town, the firefighters were a type of insurance service that they were OFFERED to pay. After 20 years, one mistake will probably lead to it being revised, even though it worked for everyone else for a prolonged amount of time. I could be entirely wrong. Perhaps the mayor will keep to the status quo. But with the city aware of the news situation, they will most likely ask for reform and for a tax system to be implemented to protect their homes in case their neighbors make a mistake out of neglect and their own homes suffer the consequences of a close fire.