I Condemn The Cops When They Do It…

… so it's only fair that I condemn the same behavior in my fellow EMT's.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wyonoKjBT6k&feature=player_embedded#at=110[/youtube]

Let me spell this out real clearly for you, young lady: You have no expectation of privacy on a public street. Shut up, do your job, and try to project a professional image of your agency to the nice cameraman.

At best, this incident demonstrates weapons-grade stupidity on the part of the EMT, both in her lack of knowledge regarding freedom of the press, and in resorting to physical force for something so trivial as filming a house fire. At worst, it's a symptom of deeper character issues that make her wholly unsuited for EMS. If her agency is smart, they'll subject her to some pretty harsh discipline, apologize profusely to the reporter, and disavow such behavior from any of their other crews.

As for the EMT, she's lucky the reporter was more professional than she was. I know plenty of otherwise chivalrous men who are totally gender-blind when it comes to defending themselves. That Star of Life and a double dose of X chromosomes doesn't earn you a Mulligan when you strike the first blow, Miss. Strike an unprovoked blow on a man, don't be surprised if you earn a man's ass-whipping.