I've had it with people complaining about civil servants, police, fire, EMS. If you hate us so much, why don't you try doing my job? I see more horrible things in a couple of months at work than the average person sees in a lifetime, and we are the ones who must mitigate them. We respond to over 2,800 calls a year and risk our lives each and every day whether it's fire, disease, violence, job-related dangers, etc. We leave the safety of our homes and family not knowing our fate at shifts' end. This is in no way a Macho explanation, just fact. Think about that next time you want to bash.