Choi Min's World Chronicles Carrying a 'Financial Straw' Instead of an Oxygen Tank: Firefighters Want to Come Home Alive

Choi Min's World Chronicles—Episode 10

What hung on the firefighter's back was not a life-sustaining oxygen tank. It was a 'straw'—a symbol of the unjust treatment as an entity draining national finances and the heavy burden of harsh reality.

In the heavens flows a sublime 〈Prayer of the Firefighter〉 that says, "Give me the strength to save a life," but the true cry from firefighters on the frontlines is far more concrete and urgent.

"We are not a financial straw." "We do not want to be promoted after death."

Whenever a disaster occurs, the state awards medals to fallen firefighters, posthumously promotes them one rank, and expresses its regret. Yet when it comes to budgetary support, personnel expansion, and reinforcement of safety equipment to help firefighters survive the flames and return to their families, the nation wields the measure of 'fiscal burden'.

How can firefighters fully protect the lives of the people when the state does not protect them? More urgent than a promotion received after death is a firm safety net from the state that ensures firefighters can safely return home every single day. Firefighters are not a 'straw' draining finances, but a 'lifeline' supporting the nation's very existence.