The city's firefighters have got balls, that's for sure.  Granted you need 'em in that line of work.  But training and certification are also helpful.

The battle over the recent award by a city arbitrator of a 19% retroactive raise (the city had already planned to offer 14%) has obviously only just begun.  Everybody loves them some Jakes, but something about a 19% raise in a time when the city's closing public libraries and sending the mounted police unit's horses to the glue factory to save some scratch, seems, I dunno, a wee bit excessive?

Especially when you consider part of it is a quid pro quo.  The firefighters are agreeing to random drug tests in return for another 2.5%.  They're saying, in effect, give us the money or we'll come to your next house fire all strung out on heroin, and you can kiss little Bonbon the cat, and Miss Beasely the miniature schnauzer goodbye.  

Look, I can understand why a firefighter would do drugs.  I can even understand why they'd want us to pay them not to. It's a hard life.  And the fact that all firefighters have a martyr complex (it's in the job description) just exacerbates the problem.  All saviors self-destruct.  They're wired for it.  And if they don't do it saving someone else, well, they'll find a way to do it somehow.

No amount of money could compensate them for their sacrifice.  And their sense of indignation over the obvious inability to ever adequately compensate someone for risking his life for others is also understandable. Not surprisingly it tends to come out in the negotiation process.

The city arbitrator who awarded them their most recent raise put it most memorably, in response to the outcry over the outsized amount: "I conclude that the City's proposal to skim the frosting, pocket the cake and avoid paying the fair, reasonable and affordable value of the meal is a hound that will not hunt." 

Um, ouch?  

Tortured trash talk aside, the BFD should probably back down and take the same already very generous 14% raise other public servants are getting.  Otherwise, you're just giving them an excuse to dig up dirt on you.  And is it really worth it to give up your coke habit for a measly 5% more? 

Here's a little free advice.  If you want to get your extra 5% and boost your image, here's what you do:

A little moonlighting never hurt anybody.