As you rise in rank within the fire service, your participation in decision-making increases, and your involvement in the politics of your department grows accordingly. You may try to distance yourself from personal and collective politics, but you know deep down inside that such talk is falling on deaf ears – yours.
As a working firefighter sworn to serve and protect, you may view politics as unethical behavior – too conniving in nature to be truly effective. But denying the existence of politics in the fire service is narrow-minded, and the resulting naive behavior is counterproductive for you and your department. Put simply, being politically unaware means you cannot participate at the next level of authoritative power, whether it’s driving a rig, directing a fire or leveling budgets, grants or the sustainability of your department.