NationStates Jolt Archive

Eternal flame only lasts until gas bill arrives

Jan 10, 4:57 AM (ET)

BULLHEAD CITY, Ariz. (AP) - An "eternal" flame at Bullhead City's new veterans memorial park that only lasted until city officials received a $961 gas bill has been re-lit following complaints by veterans groups.

The Medal of Honor Memorial at the Arizona Veterans Memorial Park alongside the Colorado River was lit on Veterans Day in November. When the bill arrived in late December, city officials were stunned.

"It caught us by surprise," City Manager Tim Ernster said Thursday. "What we decided to do for the time being is to turn the flame on ... for special events, for Veterans Day, Fourth of July, Memorial Day - those types of activities."

The flame was extinguished on Monday. The Mohave Valley Daily News published a story Friday quoting city officials and disgruntled veterans who had worked to pay for and build the memorial before turning it over to the city.

The flame was back on by midmorning Friday following a meeting of city officials.

"What happened was really a miscommunication," city spokesman Steve Johnson said. "The issue came up one day and it was never intended to be shut off."

Johnson said the flame is impressive, but city parks officials are looking at ways to put a smaller burner in place and only use the larger one at special events.

"We're looking at alternatives, because $1,000 a month in these economic times is certainly a consideration," Johnson said.

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Information from: Mohave Valley Daily News, http://www.mohavedailynews.com

Link (http://apnews.myway.com/article/20090110/D95K749G0.html)

Well comon, how much do you think it was going to cost to keep a flame going 24/7? It certainly wasn't going to be cheap!

But I guess this shows that this recession is hitting everything hard.

$1000 a month? That's shit-all for a city, no?

That's really eternal.

$1000 a month? That's shit-all for a city, no?

that's what i thought

Colossal waste of resources. What, the granite monument isn't enough? I think this is an outdated mode of hero worship that needs to go.

Maybe they can put a grill over the flame and sell hamburgers and hot dogs to help pay the gas bill. Waste not want not. ;)

Maybe they can put a grill over the flame and sell hamburgers and hot dogs to help pay the gas bill. Waste not want not. ;)

Can you cook tacos on a grill?

that will learn them for not using biofuel

Maybe they can put a grill over the flame and sell hamburgers and hot dogs to help pay the gas bill. Waste not want not. ;)

the veterans already have those silly hats :)

Can you cook tacos on a grill?

You can season and grill meats like chicken, steak and fish for tacos. Yep. :)

You can season and grill meats like chicken, steak and fish for tacos. Yep. :)

We have a winner!

What about the shells, though?

We have a winner!

What about the shells, though?

It's Arizona. You probably don't have to go far for decent tortillas.

Colossal waste of resources. What, the granite monument isn't enough? I think this is an outdated mode of hero worship that needs to go.

This. Oh man, this.

So they can afford a salaried "city spokesman" but not a $1,000/month gas bill?

So they can afford a salaried "city spokesman" but not a $1,000/month gas bill?

Hey, gotta have your priorities in order man.

$1000 a month? That's shit-all for a city, no?
Yeah, but it is $12,000 a year (at the moment, if natural gas prices go up, so will the bill) that is, literally, going up in smoke. In any other situation, this would be called a "gas leak," and it would be corrected as quickly as possible.
I agree with Intangelon. He is a clever duck.

Yeah, but it is $12,000 a year (at the moment, if natural gas prices go up, so will the bill) that is, literally, going up in smoke. In any other situation, this would be called a "gas leak," and it would be corrected as quickly as possible.

I agree with Intangelon. He is a clever duck.

Nah, see, I would just make the mayor give up part of his salary to cover it. He wouldn't want to be seen as not supporting veterans, would he?

Nah, see, I would just make the mayor give up part of his salary to cover it. He wouldn't want to be seen as not supporting veterans, would he?

We just need a Monument Bailout package.

We just need a Monument Bailout package.

I am confident that there will be requests like that in the bailout. After all, it's every American's right to burn fossil fuels fully subsidized by the federal government.

Well comon, how much do you think it was going to cost to keep a flame going 24/7? It certainly wasn't going to be cheap!

I keep my pilot light lit year round......how big is this flame?

We have a winner!

What about the shells, though?

Tacos are not crustaceans and do not have shells. They are seasoned meat served in a tortilla.

Yeah, but it is $12,000 a year
Crikey. £7k a year. Why, that's nearly a third of the salary of one average council employee!

Crikey. £7k a year. Why, that's nearly a third of the salary of one average council employee!

Why do you think veterans deserve a big fuck off huge flame, when a small flame, or even no flame at all, is more than enough?

Why do you think veterans deserve a big fuck off huge flame, when a small flame, or even no flame at all, is more than enough?
Because veterans deserve a modicum of respect, especially when they paid for the damned thing themselves.

Because veterans deserve a modicum of respect, especially when they paid for the damned thing themselves.

Well perhaps they should pay for the gas bill themselves then. Why do they deserve respect?

Well perhaps they should pay for the gas bill themselves then. Why do they deserve respect?

Well, considering most of them were probably from WWII, quite a bit. Those guys volunteered to fight a vile enemy that attacked us, and their sacrifice deserves our utmost respect. Without their sacrifices to defeat the Axis powers I don't even want to imagine how horrific our world would be today...even Soviet victory in the Cold War would have been orders of magnitude better than life under a victorious Reich.

Perhaps if people did not tend to glorify the "sacrifice" and "honour" of both veterans and the military the fascist militarism, and by extension WWII, could've been avoided.

Perhaps if people did not tend to glorify the "sacrifice" and "honour" of both veterans and the military the fascist militarism, and by extension WWII, could've been avoided.
What kind of idiocy is that?

"Aye if people just stopped loving the military, Hitler would never have invaded Poland after making massive territorial gains all over Europe through diplomacy".

I don't think so, sunshine.

Next time you feel the need to design a memorial, keep maintenance costs in mind.

Perhaps if people did not tend to glorify the "sacrifice" and "honour" of both veterans and the military the fascist militarism, and by extension WWII, could've been avoided.

The thing is, we're not glorifying it. Anyone who glorifies war is an idiot beyond compare, and has probably never seen a battlefield in person. Seeing your friends blown to pieces by artillery shells or ripped apart by bullets, or having to kill another human being whose sole difference is the side they fight for is something that changes a person forever and not in a good way. Only a true monster and sadist could find joy in doing that. That's definitely the sentiment I've heard from veterans, especially those who fought in horrific places like the Pacific or Eastern Fronts of WWII. The point of these memorials is to remind people of the sacrifices that others made so that they would not have to live their lives under oppression, or even more importantly to never experience the horrors of war again.

The eternal flame is a funerary symbol meant to be a sign of respect and mourning for those who lost their lives. Anyone who takes it as a symbol glorifying war is badly, badly mistaken.

1. "Eternal Flames" are stupid. What's the point?
2. How big is this flame???
3. Why wasn't the cost of fuel considered prior to construction?
4. I sure as hell wouldn't want my tax dollars paying for this despite my respect for most veterans.
5. I approve of the city selling the monument to LG so he can run the taco stand. Who's up for a ballot measure?

Well, considering most of them were probably from WWII, quite a bit. Those guys volunteered to fight a vile enemy that attacked us, and their sacrifice deserves our utmost respect. Without their sacrifices to defeat the Axis powers I don't even want to imagine how horrific our world would be today...even Soviet victory in the Cold War would have been orders of magnitude better than life under a victorious Reich.
And that's why they have a monument; they don't need a huge fucking fire too. Especially since most of the time it is burning, there is probably no one around to enjoy it (or whatever you're supposed to do to eternal flames. wave your hand really fast through it, or roast hot dogs).
Although . . . Maybe they could save on the gas bill if the eternal flame were motion activated? Like a public urinal, when someone is in the area, the flame burns. When there is no one around to care, the gas cuts off and only the pilot light has to remain on 24/7.

$1000 a month? That's shit-all for a city, no?

For a city of 40,000 that's a bit. Also, American cities generally have far smaller budgets than their British counterparts.

Anyway, as to the memorial I think it's a bit excessive for a city that size to have an "eternal flame". I live in a similar sized city and we have four memorials, but none of them have an "eternal flame" that costs us $1,000 per month.

Cripes, if the mayor and his staff forgo their daily doughnut, it would pay for that.

Maybe they can put a grill over the flame and sell hamburgers and hot dogs to help pay the gas bill. Waste not want not. ;)

Dude that is GENIUS!!! I want one....NOW!!! lol

Cripes, if the mayor and his staff forgo their daily doughnut, it would pay for that.

Perhaps in a city the size of NYC. In a city the size of the one being discussed it's a fair bit of money that could be better spent.

I keep my pilot light lit year round......how big is this flame?

Then you need some insulation.

And that's why they have a monument; they don't need a huge fucking fire too. Especially since most of the time it is burning, there is probably no one around to enjoy it (or whatever you're supposed to do to eternal flames. wave your hand really fast through it, or roast hot dogs).
Although . . . Maybe they could save on the gas bill if the eternal flame were motion activated? Like a public urinal, when someone is in the area, the flame burns. When there is no one around to care, the gas cuts off and only the pilot light has to remain on 24/7.

You know who needs an eternal flame? William Thomson, Lord Kelvin.

And it should say, in every known language, "Eternal Flame" right on it. In big ass letters.

Anyone else reminded of Shostakovich's classic Novorossiisk Chimes/The Flame of Eternal Glory?

$1000 a month? That's shit-all for a city, no?

You'd hope so.