I also lit a campfire that way once, with similar results. Except the flaming logs came down in a somewhat orderly or at least campfire-like arrangement so all was well.
I felt bad for the dogs, but at least one looks like he knew something bad was coming, so they are probably used to giving this guy room.
Not even wearing safety glasses or hearing protection, but wearing flip-flops...of course.
I also lit a campfire that way once, with similar results. Except the flaming logs came down in a somewhat orderly or at least campfire-like arrangement so all was well.
I felt bad for the dogs, but at least one looks like he knew something bad was coming, so they are probably used to giving this guy room.
I also lit a campfire that way once, with similar results. Except the flaming logs came down in a somewhat orderly or at least campfire-like arrangement so all was well.
Donn Thompson was paid for more than 9,200 hours of work last year. But there are only 8,760 hours in a year.
Los Angeles firefighter Donn Thompson had a busy year in 2017. If his pay stubs are to be believed, he literally never stopped working.
Data obtained by Transparent California, a project of the Nevada Policy Research Institute, show that Thompson pulled down $300,000 in overtime pay during 2017, on top of his $92,000 salary. Over the past four years, Thompson has earned more than $1 million in overtime, according to Transparent California's database. Thompson's ability to work so many hours "boggles the mind," says Robert Fellner, director of research at the institute.
To earn that much in overtime pay, Thompson would have had to work more hours than actually exist in a single year. Either the highly paid firefighter found a way to stretch the space-time continuum or something fishy is going on.
Here's how the math breaks down. Thompson, like all firefighters in Los Angeles, works 2,912 hours every year. With a base salary of $92,000, that comes to an hourly rate of $31.60. That means Thompson would earn overtime pay at a rate of $47.40 per hour—that's one and a half times the base rate. But earning $302,000 at a rate of $47.40 per hour would require working more than 6,370 hours. Add that to the 2,912 hours he worked as a salaried employee, and you get more than 9,280 hours worked, despite the fact that there are only 8,760 hours in a year.
Thompson is probably taking advantage of contract provisions that boost overtime pay above the typical rate, says Fellner, though it's unclear for now how that affects the calculations. (Transparent California is awaiting more payroll data from the fire department.)
