BOSTON -- If the normal human response is to flee a fire, who doesn't have respect and awe for firefighters who risk their lives, running into burning buildings to save others? We don't envy Mayor Menino or the Firefighters Union who are deadlocked over the task of putting a price on such sacrifice, but one thing is certain: any contract must accept mandatory drug and alcohol testing and not be used as a bargaining chip.

Back in 1999, the agreement with the Boston police officers mandated drug and alcohol testing. That same year and since the Firefighters Union has rejected it.

There have been plenty of studies that state what we already know: Citizens should expect and demand that our firefighters --and all first responders and public safety workers -- come to work clean, sober and fit for duty.

The Firefighters' Union is right to distance itself from the recent arrest of veteran firefighter Anthony Gaston, allegedly caught smoking pot in uniform and in a department vehicle. Timing is everything. The fallout cannot be simply dismissed as just another attack by the media.

Chicago, San Francisco, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Houston, Miami and New York -- all have instituted random testing for firefighters. This issue is one, if not the main topic that has led to 22 months of protracted negotiations. If the Union continues to resist testing, their credibility may soon resemble Gaston's 26-year career.....on the verge of going up in smoke.