Wednesday, January 27, 2010

Cops expect a discount

From the Hubcap Grill Twitter feed out of Houston:
Geez. LOL. 4 HPD officers didn't order cause I wouldn't give them 50% off. If I get a speeding ticket will I get 50% off?
Via The Defense Rests.
Posted by Gritsforbreakfast at 10:57 AM
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21 comments:

Charlie O said...

Just solidifies my opinion that all cops feel as though they are above the rest of us and are privileged and entitled.

1/27/2010 02:47:00 PM
Anonymous said...

Try working at a coffee shop like Starbucks. Cops come in and expect free coffee.

We almost always hooked them up for free because we hoped it would help us should we ever get a ticket (and it did once or twice).

But yes, they do see themselves as above the rest of us. They don't consider themselves civilians, and often speak the word "civial" with a tone of disgust...they are military, jack-booted badasses, and proud of it!

1/27/2010 02:56:00 PM
Don Dickson said...

I once had lunch with eight uniformed state troopers at an Olive Garden restaurant in Houston. I was the only person not in uniform, I was in suit and tie. The waitress left the check in the middle of the table, and I grabbed it and offered to pay it. It was twenty bucks. I left a twenty dollar tip.

My wife heard about this, and one day she was at a restaurant in Bastrop. Four uniformed state troopers were seated at a nearby table. Feeling magnanimous, and confident that it wouldn't inflict great pain to do so, my wife told the waitress she would pick up the check for the troopers eating nearby. The waitress brought the check. It was sixty bucks.

1/27/2010 03:27:00 PM
Anonymous said...

You are new to your beat. To avoid any suggestion of impropriety,
you prefer to pay for drinks and meals at area establishments.
You have learned from experience that people always expect
something in return. On this new beat, you stop by a convenience
store for a soda. The clerk refuses to accept payment. You
explain that you would prefer to pay. The clerk, now upset,
accuses you of trying to be better than the other officers. He
threatens to tell your supervisor, who also stops by
occasionally. What do you do?

1/27/2010 07:08:00 PM
Anonymous said...

Cops have brought this upon themselves. They think they are better than the average citizen and think they should get a free ride from many citizens. STOP it now, Pay you way and do your job right, w/o revenge, or go to hell. This should be part of cop training, no extra benefits for a job barely done in the first place.

1/27/2010 09:39:00 PM
Anonymous said...

Most police officers learn just enough about CJ to think they are experts after graduation. Most are relativly stupid but scare the common public since they have a gun and can hardly use it.

1/27/2010 09:43:00 PM
Hook Em Horns said...

Some cops are elitist bastards and some are not. I don't care if the cops get a discount, hell they deserve it, but they should not EXPECT it...and many do.

1/27/2010 09:56:00 PM
Anonymous said...

Anonymous said...

But yes, they do see themselves as above the rest of us. They don't consider themselves civilians, and often speak the word "civial" with a tone of disgust...they are military, jack-booted badasses, and proud of it!

1/27/2010 02:56:00 PM
----------------------------------
The militarization of American Law Enforcement. Wait till they kick your door down.

1/27/2010 09:58:00 PM
Gritsforbreakfast said...

7:08, I'd tell you the same thing I used to say to my daughter: follow your conscience and don't be pressured into behavior you perceive as improper - in this case accepting gifts where you assume something is desired in return - just out of peer pressure. I SERIOUSLY doubt your supervisor will be unhappy that you DIDN'T take freebies, even if all the other cops in your sector do.

One more thing: Given what you described, maybe you ARE "better than the other officers" who are taking gratuities on the side, and certainly better than the four who left a restaurant because no one would give them a discount! In Mexico cops bolster their salaries through La Mordida; US cops take goods and services instead of cash, but it's pretty much the same concept.

IMO officers should be required to report every freebie they get and from whom, and that information should be a public record.

1/28/2010 06:36:00 AM
Don said...

amen grits. and declare it on income tax like servers have to do with tips

1/28/2010 07:29:00 AM
Anonymous said...

Scott..........

I know how you feel about all of the laws we have here in Texas and that we need to do away with some of these laws. I agree with you, however, do we need a law that makes it a criminal offense for a person, business owner, etc to offer a gratuity to a peace officer and should it be a criminal offense for an officer to accept a gratuity?

Course many don't see a police officer accepting a gratuity any different than they do a politician accepting a campaign contribution. Or do they?

Maybe a good poll question.

1/28/2010 10:43:00 AM
Anonymous said...

"I SERIOUSLY doubt your supervisor will be unhappy that you DIDN'T take freebies, even if all the other cops in your sector do."

Neither did Frank Serpico.

1/28/2010 10:46:00 AM
Anonymous said...

10:43 suggested a new criminal offense. My question is, who would you expect to enforce that? Fact is, many police department have policies in place to prevent officers from accepted free or discounted items, even when it' a discounted meal offered by the management, not requested. The problem is, most of those places still have officers accepting freebies, taking big discounts, and acting like they are entitled to them. They could face disciplinary action from reprimand, to days off without pay, all the way to termination, but nobody wants to enforce it. Officers don't rat on other officers.

1/28/2010 01:33:00 PM
Charlie O said...

You don't need to create a new criminal offense. What you need are honest police officers with integrity and ethics. Unfortunately, people who have those qualities generally find other lines of employment. Ethical people generally are not interested in harassing, beating, and killing their fellow citizens.

1/28/2010 04:23:00 PM
Anonymous said...

Best gratuity I ever got cuz of the badge was free cover charge and drinks at a topless bar.

Such a bunch of jealous whiners!

Don't go away mad...just go away.

1/29/2010 01:40:00 AM
Anonymous said...

Years ago (50's 60's and 70's)law enforcement folks didn't make a lot of money (Heck most "county mounties" still do not make much). Business owners would give them free coffee and free or discounted meals in some cases. Coffe cost a nickel, dime or quarter back then. The business owner appreciated the "uniform" in his establishment and the cop appreciated the free coffee/meal. In most cases there was no overtime pay; if you worked past your shift that was just part of the job.

Today, except for small departments, the paycheck is as good or better than what the average worker makes. Officers should pay their own way with one exception; If a business provides discounts for certain folks without expecting anything in return.

Examples are Senior Citizen discounts, military discounts, AARP discounts. Law enforcement discounts, State Employee discounts.

In my opinion NO officer should expect or demand a free handout. nor should anybody give something to an officer for "ticket insurance".

Know the difference from a discount, gratuity or a bribe.

Retired 2004

1/29/2010 10:49:00 AM
Anonymous said...

The LE atsmophere has good and bad people just like any other organizations. The problem in LE is there are far more bad folks than decent people. Fact.

1/29/2010 11:24:00 AM
Anonymous said...

The LE atsmophere has good and bad people just like any other organizations. The problem in LE is there are far more bad folks than decent people. Fact.

1/29/2010 11:24:00 AM


Where is your fact?

1/30/2010 04:27:00 PM
Anonymous said...

Been on both sides of the argument.I was a manger for a fast food rest. We had police in all the times,we comped all of them. One time I had two idiots that were acting funny, my cop friends come in, the idiots, leave go down the street and rob McDonalds!I work for TDCJ now, belive me we don't get comp meals!

1/30/2010 04:30:00 PM
Anonymous said...

It's a shame but present day cops are generally uneducated second third class citizens. The government will take anyone now to be cops. SAD...because the public pays for their contacts with us.

1/30/2010 10:20:00 PM
R. Shackelford said...

Annie 1:40 just further illustrates why hiring under educated elitist jackasses to police us is a foolish move. That kind of attitude is one of the reasons that leos are viewed with increasing animosity.

1/31/2010 11:01:00 AM

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