One of my crews recently bought a new car, after changing his mind about a used one. He sounds like a good horsetrader. He hemmed and hawed, and hesitated. His wife, prompted beforehand, did her bit, and they walked off the lot to 'think about it'.

The dealer called him at home as he walked in the door with a REALLY good deal.

These are becoming good days for good horsetraders. But check the teeth first.

Sue

The Federal Reserve is no more a branch of the government than Federal Express is.

Wikipedia is hardly the source to cite for anything even slightly political.

The Federal Reserve is absolutely a branch of the federal government. What's that got to do with a survival forum?

The Federal Reserve
The Federal Reserve System is considered to be an independent central bank because its decisions do not have to be ratified by the President or anyone else in the executive branch of government. The System is, however,
subject to oversight by the U.S. Congress. The Federal Reserve must work within the framework of the overall objectives of economic and financial policy established by the government; therefore, the description of the System as “independent within the government” is more accurate.

Now back to the thread. I just spent a bunch on new equipment, and a new knife (a ANZA Knife ofcourse)

The Federal Reserve (the Fed) enjoys a unique public/private structure that operates within the government, but is still relatively independent of government to isolate the Fed from day-to-day political pressures in fulfilling its varying roles. As stated in The Federal Reserve System Purposes & Functions:

The Federal Reserve System is considered to be an independent central bank. It is so, however, only in the sense that its decisions do not have to be ratified by the President or anyone else in the executive branch of the government. The entire System is subject to oversight by the U.S. Congress….the Federal Reserve must work within the framework of the overall objectives of economic and financial policy established by the government.

The Federal Reserve is the central bank of the U.S. Government. Like may other branches (parts) of the federal Government it's supposed to be "relatively independent" to shield it from political pressure. But relative independence is relative. The fact is fed policy bends and sways to political pressure.

That has been very evident this week - and completely unrelate to this forum.

I'll be back to read the rest of your post right after I bury my life's savings in the back yard.

Evidently, things are different in your country than in mine. All I ever hear about from friends/family still in Fire/EMS/LE is about "The Budget".

Seems like "The Budget" has taken on a life form of its own, and is as big an enemy as arson, terrorism and the like.

Enjoy the cash cow while your department can, but don't forget to feed it. Once that cow stops giving milk, you might see things you don't like.

The last 5 years my brother-in-law was with the FD, they ran 3 man shifts. Yeah, that was in a major suburb of a large metro area. Every call became a multi-alarm situation just to get enough equipment on scene to block traffic.