Ads on Fire Trucks

ballen0351

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Baltimore City is broke and are closing a bunch of fire stations. One council member proposed to sell Ad space on the sides of the city Fire Trucks. Ive looked and dont see any other city that does this. I guess its thinking outside the box. PETA already offered to buy some space:
peta-ad-on-fire-truck.jpg
 

Big Don

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I like it. It is a way to fund public services WITHOUT taxing the public.
Politicians ought to be forced to wear racing suits with their corporate/union/major donors logos/names etc.
 

K-man

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Advertise companion products. Fire lighters spring to mind! :)
 

Jenna

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Is this kind of commerce not demeaning to dedicated professionals? I do not know.. sounds a little off to me.

I am sorry Miss Shaw and but your boyfriend was in an lift accident at work.. and THIS housecall was brought to you by Dan's Hydraulic & Tool Mart, For all Your Workshop Needs! uh.. Sorry again..
 
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ballen0351

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Thats the thing you go to a house fire where a bunch of people have died and the surviving family see the burnt out house on the news with a bunch of taco bell fire trucks. Looks a little heartless.
 

Shuto

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State Farm currently has an advertisment on Maryland State highway emergency vehicles (think tow truck).

eta - our taxes still went up ;-)
 

MJS

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IMO, I dont think it looks professional at all. On a bus, billboard, taxi...sure. A fire truck....not so much IMO.
 

billc

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Much like Samurai who had to sell their swords to pay off their debts, I don't think pride can be allowed to get in the way. Living in Illinois where just the pension debt is 80 billion dollars, I think the state may force people on state aid to wear clothing with advertisements. What else can these debt ridden states do to get the money. Raising taxes isn't working here because the people and businesses simply move across the border to Wisconsin, and Indiana, two well managed states who have their financial houses in order. Put up the advertisements, we need the money just to pay the interest on the debt.
 

trubblman

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Baltimore City is broke and are closing a bunch of fire stations. One council member proposed to sell Ad space on the sides of the city Fire Trucks. Ive looked and dont see any other city that does this. I guess its thinking outside the box. PETA already offered to buy some space:
peta-ad-on-fire-truck.jpg


Does this have something to do with Martial Arts?
 

Cryozombie

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Raising taxes isn't working here because the people and businesses simply move across the border to Wisconsin, and Indiana, two well managed states who have their financial houses in order.

Well, now, lets be honest here... Raising Taxes isn't working because they are already some of the highest in the nation and still being mismanaged by Crook County (oops Did I say Crook, I meant Cook) and you just can't get blood from a Stone. And remember Billcihak, Rahm and Quinn both told us that no businesses would actually leave.

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA.
 

Omar B

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Stuff gets paid for and it's not tax money, I'm all for it. But then objectivist I am I think stuff like this can be privatized (yeah, I just made that leap!).

I will say though that in Jamaica companies frequently give to police, fire and emergency services. It's not uncommon to see a "Donated by" decal or even a trunk lid ad for whoever is sponsoring.
 

seasoned

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Does this have something to do with Martial Arts?
A unique part of martial talk, is that it not only has serious threads pertaining to many different styles of martial arts, but also caters to news worthy topics.
Along these lines there are humorous threads, womens topics along with religious and political threads. Something for everyone.
Since your new to the site, you may not have had time to look around and investigate.
Have a look see, and I will see you else where on the boards. :)
 

Carol

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After what I personally had to experience on 9/11, I've made a small donation to my city's PD and FD every year in September. If the local (say) Taco Bell wanted to show financial support for the local FD, there are no regulations that would prevent it, yes? I suspect they could even put up lettering on their sign saying "We support (this town's) FD" simply by stopping by the stationhouse, writing a check, and asking if the sign was OK.

Some FDs have fundraisers, others don't. Politics even at the municipal level can get icky...I've heard that some PDs and FDs aren't fond of fundraisers out of concern that fundraisers could reduce their negotiating power with City Hall. I don't know how true this is? If this is true, then I can't see how selling ad space on the trucks would be an improvement.

If nothing stops a business from making a routine donation to an FD, the sale of ad space means the business wants more than just community goodwill....they specifically want their ad to be seen. (I think the PETA example makes this point clear).

Fire trucks are not out in the community for routine matters, the way a police cruiser would be. If the ad space (the truck) is seen by the target audience, that means ad space is most likely involved in an emergency.

This means the municipal government is now profiting from its citizenry's misfortune.

Is this wise?
 

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