OT: getting to know the people behind the posts

[isz]

i'm gonna have to say that you can't judge all cops by what most of them do, i think i'll share a story about one good cop i met.
first a little more back story. i've been driving for about 8 years now and i've been pulled over 28 times, and only gotten 4 moving viloations. why do i get pulled over so much with out doing any thing wrong? take a look at what i drive
any way, so i'm on my way to work one night and get pulled over. officer niceguy says WTH happened to your doors?! i look around trying to find my doors, and say something witty. he laughs and tells me one of my brake lights is out and that i need a driver's side mirror. then i ask if it's legal to not have doors. and he says "i guess so, have a nice night" i head on to work. 8 hours later i leave work. i see a bike cop hiding in some ones driveway on my way home, so i wave and smile thinking "crap he's gonna pull me over for something stupid. soon as i pass him he pulls out behind me so i pull over. first thing he says is its not legal to not have doors. so stupid tired me says "yes it is. officer niceguy who pulled me over no less than 9 hours ago said its fine as long as i get a driver's side mirror." he turns beet red then poceeds to walk very slowly around me. comes back and says "i would have given you more violations but i ran out of room" i look it over and it says "no front license plate (which i had) so i tell him and he says "oh i guess you do, but i'm not taking it off" which cost me an extra 15bucks
i think all the cops in town talk about me at the water cooler, because i haven't gotten pulled over in like 2 months. but with my luck i'll be pulled over tomorrow.
i was bored, hope you enjoyed it

 

[isz]

bah forgot this

 

[broomer5]

I've rented and I've owned.
Owning has always been better for me.
I'm 43
My wife is 30
I still have what it takes ( at least for her I guess )
When I need a police officer - I'm always glad they're there for us. When I don't need one - I'm still glad they're around doing what they do. My life is not on the line everyday at work, these guys and gals take risks most everyday - and never know for sure what may happen on their shift. That's worth a lot to me.
I don't do illegal stuff - so I don't worry about that
Most people are okay in my book.
All cops are people.
Therefore:
Most cops are okay in my book
Not all - but most.
( plus I use a radar dectector )
Big house - little house - rent - own - I'm glad we don't have to live in a cardboard box.

 

[isz]

i finally figured out what this post was missing

 

[broomer5]

LOL isz !
Getting to know the kitchen sinks of the people behind the posts !!!
Or
Everything but the kitchen sink !
good one !

 

[mal]

Being a cop is no different than any other job. There are good and bad people in every occupation.
When is the last time a firefighter had to call someone's family or go to their house and tell them their son was killed in a DUI crash, and the wife had been driving? I did last week, right after I cleared the crash. After the crash I went to another, where the driver was DUI, suspended license and the car was stolen. After that I went and took a theft complaint. Did tyhe guy reporting theft know what I had been doing earlier? No, how could he. Did I treat him nice? I think so, but my interpretation of "nice" that night and his might have been different. I'm not defending anyone's behavior, just giving a look at one of my nights. Thank God they all aren't like that.
How often do firefighters get spit on or punched for doing their job?
99% of traffic ticket money goes into the city / county / state general fund, NOT to the police agency budget. Those government officals then decide where the money goes.
Judges are the ones who decide if people are guilty of violating the law, cops just decide if there is enough evidence / information to charge for a crime / infraction.
Don't forget who writes those laws....that would be your elected officals / legislators. Don't get me wrong, I love firefighters, I have more friends that are firefighters than cops. I also love my job, I wouldn't do anything else.
As I said before, there are cops out there that shouldn't be, but there are many more that should be. I hope the next time you meet one it's one of the "should be's."
I'll get off my soapbox now.
This thread is complete now that we have the kitchen sink.
isz,
Nice ride. My buddy in college had a truck like that. He'd drive around in the winter with shorts and a t-shirt. He was fun to hang with!

 

[snowbear]

Cops - Yeah, sgt_york, you're right (and no, not sorry I asked) - cops pretty much do get the negative image 'cause of what their job usually is - looking for and finding and catching people doing things that are "Against The Law." You're not kidding either about the wanting to use some of that training - get a "shots fired" call and the whole police force jumps the call and blocks access so the fire engine and ambulance can't get within a block!! You're also right about the attitude, although as one who often works along side them, I am learning that many of them (in this town at least) aren't so bad. Especially the newer officers who were actually taxpaying civilians in their former lives (as opposed to getting hired fresh out of HS, college or the military). The police academy here is also teaching more community support and interaction stuff as well as less confrontational ways of mitigating situations in addition to the usual "combat training" and "how to profile while cruising around town."
It's taken the past 6 years for me to even start to come around from my former dislike of cops to being able to say there are a few who aren't so bad. I also don't think it's just because I work for the fire dept - I also say it 'cause I see tham every day interacting with the public and believe it or not, it's not all negative! There are still quite a few "bad apples" here, but if my only experience was with the ones in CA, and what I see on the TV show "COPS," I would whole-heartedly agree with you and continue to generalize my dislike.

 

[snowbear]

OK, guess I'm in a disagreeable mood tonight -
mal Being a cop is no different than any other job. There are good and bad people in every occupation.
sorry, mal - gotta disagree - Being a cop is very different from most jobs! Yes, there are good and bad people in every occupation, but most occupations do not give the job-holders the power (actual or percieved) over the general public that these jobs do. Factoring in the high stress levels, bad-ass attitudes and power trips seems to produce a higher percentage of the "bad people" part of your statement actually being seen by the public.

 

[mal]

snowbear,
I guess I wasn't clear, I re-read the quote. I didn't mean to say that the job wasn't different. Obviously being a cop is different than a bankers job. What I really meant was there are good and bad people in every profession. If a person is a jerk, they will be a jerk in whatever they do. I don't think there is a higher percentage of bad apple cops, I think you hit it right on, the bad ones are just much more visible in the general public than say a banker. MHO
O.K. NOW, I'm off my soapbox.

 

[benj420]

I still don't like cops, still don't want to be a cop, but that being said, I can understand some of the negative attitude that many officers carry around with them. Hey, I work on computers all day.... not very stressful in the overall scheme of things. Let's face it, nobody calls the police and says "I had a great day!! Why don't you come over so I can tell you all about it". No, it is usually "My husband just threw me through a plate glass window and has locked himself in the bathroom and is smoking up all my crack. Can you come arrest him and get my crack back?", so I can understand a built up distrust and frustration over time. Yes, I am critical of cops, but I wouldn't want that job, that's for sure.
When I was in college, they had their own police force that were deputies of the county, so they were real offices (even though we used to say that they were armed with a quarter to call the "real" police). It was a dramatic difference between the way they treated students and staff/faculty. I worked my way through school and was a contractor for the school and consequently had a staff parking pass (nice). I got pulled over once for loud music, something that a county sheriff can't enforce because loud music is a city ordinance. I asked why he pulled me over and he (thinking I was a student), said "Like you don't know", then rambled on about how I didn't pull over far enough. I said "just for fun, why don't you tell me anyway". He told me it was for loud music and I said "That's a city ordinance isn't it??" Again, the beet red reaction and admission that is was. Then he noticed my parking pass and said "Oh, I didn't realize you were staff.... ", hands me my license back and says "Have a nice day sir". When I asked for his badge number I got beet red face number two. He very reluctantly gave it to me and again apologised for pulling me over. What a joke. Just one of many encounters I had with the college rent-a-cops.
As far as the tax collector thing. In my area at least (and back on that college campus), the police were able to keep 100% of the revenue generated by ticket writing (parking and moving violations). It just stands to reason that they are going to write as many tickets as humanly possible and will be encouraged to do so by their superiors to generate more revenue. There is just something fundamentally wrong about this. Last year that school had 29,000 students and wrote and collected 5.3 million dollars worth of parking tickets alone (published facts). That's interesting since they claim to be broke as a department.
Plum, I have a "nightstick" too..... just ask Itchy....
isz, That looks like my sink AFTER doing the dishes. You don't want to see the "Before"... Also, I can't believe you drive a truck like that ..... and will admit it....
ENOUGH OF THE COP TALK... MORE PICTURES OF WOMEN!!! (sorry to shout)

 

[chainsaw5vent]

ok. that's it. f/f's have had to tell the families that their loved one's is not going to make it. grannies, dads, lil babies, etc. we've even had to keep the "lookieloos" out of the scene from stealing the victims stuff. yes there are some bad cops out there, but most are pretty cool
i work in what used to be the "murder capitol" of the west coast, and as a f/f, on fri,sat, sun, you used to expect to go on shootings, stabbings, assaults w/ intent to commit major bodily harm, o/d's, family disturbances, etc. sometimes multiples of the above list in the 24 hr shift. we call it "body count". as a result, p/d guys become hard and cynical (a little or a lot) because of what they have to deal with.
the "power trip" is enhanced by the fact that many of them have to ride by themselves in a patrol car (even in a graveyard shift) and roll into an area and "secure it" while waiting for backup. heck, in my city (pop. 190k), sometimes we only have 6 "call takers" on patrol because the city does not fill sickies/vacation w/ overtimers.
people, please teach your children to wave at the policeman w/ a smile and ALL 5 fingers up. it will help the officer's day become a little brighter.
and as a f/f, i have learned (and believe) that you always protect the guys w/ the badges and safety gear, whether they're wearing gunbelts or turnouts, because in this dangerous world that we work in, they're all i got when the stuff is hitting the fan and getting spread out.
i.e. on nov 1/02, 0500hrs,we were told to leave the burning building. one moment later, the roof collapsed. my latest son Josiah was born on 0307am nov.2/02.

 

[fusd71]

Benj, I have to agree with your last statement, "ENOUGH WITH THE COP TALK".
Just think of how much worse this country would be without cops. It seems as though the only people that hate cops are the BAD APPLES themselves. Don't do anything against the law and you'll be fine.
MORE PICS!!!!!!!!!

 

[fireeater]

Well I was going to have some say in this police officer debate, but after reading what mal and chainsaw5vent had to say, I will just have to agree with them. They took the words right out of my mouth.
I've learned a lot about police officers since becoming a firefighter.
Stay safe....Mark

 

[tracklighter]

Next topic please. Although the cop talk was pretty cool.

 

[fireeater]

Updated photo after I HAD to start growing my hair back due to my fire chief. He thinks having a shaved head will give the department a skinhead image and as of now does not allow it.
Long story short, he has agreed to let a committee of firefighters decide if it is appropriate to shave ones head at the first of the year. So there is a light at the end of the tunnel!
This is the gym at the fire station I work at.

 

[moraymike]

Where are you Kathy?

 

[slick]

She is dreaming about me.

 

[10k]

MAN! This really is the neverending thread! Blondenaso hit the JACKPOT on this one!

 

[wrassecal]

1. I like cops
2. Isz, kitchen sink funny this thread is like an unsantioned "The Aquarium"
3. JWTrojan can we get that data on a spreadsheet, with graphs and pie charts?
4. Rye and Benj, the cops would throw me jail if I had any relationship with you other than foster parent.
5.I'd still like to see more pics of people

 

[broomer5]

Here ya go Wrassecal
As of JWTrojan's last count ( I'm too lazy to count )