I'm sorry to hear that Martin. A friend of mine last year quit his local volunteer fire fighter's unit for similar reasons and differences of opinion. Maybe the Chief will move on, or you will - its hard to lose anyone who is willing and skilled to respond to fight fires and medical emergencies.

Speaking of which, if you're looking for closure or another opinion on quitting the volunteer fire fighting profession, I read a really interesting book by an ex-fire fighter from Newfoundland, who writes a very accessible and moving account of what its like to be on call and respond to fires and motor vehicle accidents, every day for 6-7 years. In his case, his reasons were self-preservation, a form of post-traumatic stress, no personality conflicts - but anyone who has been in the line of duty for a while might recognize his feelings and views on the work. I'm not sure how big the catalog of real-world accounts on fire fighting is, its also pretty good for folks who want one view of the life.

Russell Wangersky, Burning Down the House, ISBN-10: 0887623298. You might need to get it from amazon.ca, but its very cheap there - http://www.amazon.ca/Burning-Down-House-...126&sr=8-1.