PAX Centurion - Spring 2019

www.bppa.org PAX CENTURION • Spring 2019 • Page 51 How come no one OK-R’s details? H H H H H H H H H H H H H H H Whenever there is a Mass Shooting the Dems immediately call for more Gun Control, but if Law Enforcement calls for Death Penalty when a cop is killed we’re accused of “knee-jerk” reactions. #executecopkillers. H H H H H H H H H H H H H H H Cops and politicians are generally held to a higher standard when charged with crimes. The prevailing thought is: “they should know better” OK stipulated, so if you deal drugs or rob people and get charged 2,3,5,11 times shouldn’t you be held to that standard?After the first few arrests you definitely know better… H H H H H H H H H H H H H H H If the Titanic sunk today, it would go down with all hands…women and children first would spark a riot among the 87 genders crowd onboard. H H H H H H H H H H H H H H H Deanne Carson, a “sexuality educator” claims parents should ask permission before changing a dirty diaper. Now I’m not one to poo poo an expert but this idea really stinks. H H H H H H H H H H H H H H H At least two cities in California have suggested jail time for dispensing plastic straws. This is a real thing. In California. Where they provide sanctuary to illegal alien felons, they are willing to jail you for a straw. I’m sure this will all change when Hollywood coke heads protest too much product sticks to the paper ones. H H H H H H H H H H H H H H H I had some guys working on my house. I offered to get them some cold drinks. When I said I was just going to grab ice they all took off… H H H H H H H H H H H H H H H No less an authority than the Times of London recently reported that, “TV kills your sex life.” With typical English aplomb they stated that and I quote here: “people who own TV sets are six percent less likely in any given week to ‘sweep the special chimney’” Mary Poppins has fainted dead away, and Dick Van Dyke refuses to comment. H H H H H H H H H H H H H H H Spotted on a milk carton: Boston Municipal Research Bureau. You remember those guys, Sam Tyler et al who always complained that we cops work too many hours and make too much money. I hope they are found, I could use a weekend off this Summer. H H H H H H H H H H H H H H H The Department plans to implement Body Cameras (BWC) for all Patrol Officers. After a Pilot program showed a “small but meaningful” benefit (a dubious claim at best which I totally do not believe based on their biased report) Not to mention the dangers of radioactivity associated with small electronics. The BPPA has entered into bargaining, which is ongoing – I won’t comment further on this…however let’s look at some facts. With CAD, GPS and BWC the Department is trying to solve manpower shortages with technology. A noble endeavor, but nothing can or will beat actual boots on the ground. The price tag of $8 million is understated at best. Considering the support staff needed to process, store and disseminate the BWC data, a more appropriate figure for the cost lies in the $12-$14 million dollar range. That cost is per annum. And while data storage may go down over time as technology advances, the support cost of salaries and benefits will increase as an offset. Now why is the cost so important? Well nationwide departments are scrapping BWC programs because of the money. Some facts to consider-it costs about $1m to train and equip 100 cops, the cost is about the same for 100 Firemen, with EMS just slightly lower. We could use all three! Over the last several years the population of Boston has gone up about 11%. Our call volume – BPD calls for service dispatched is up about 50% all while our numbers (Patrolmen) have dwindled during that same time frame. Factor in failing infrastructure, crumbling/crowded school buildings aging DPW-BTD fleets, EMS operates at a 2006 staffing level with a 30% increase in calls for service. Shouldn’t the priority be to increase our ranks? Wouldn’t the citizens be better served with more Officers on the street, along with more firemen, EMT’s, better roads and schools, etc.? This money could surely be better spent on all these things. After school programs for at risk youth, Senior services, opioid interdiction, homeless outreach could all be better funded with this money, and that would be more than a “small but meaningful” benefit. File under: Bodies before body cameras. H H H H H H H H H H H H H H H As long as I’m on my high horse…nationwide there is a problem with recruitment and retention in Law Enforcement. No one wants “the job” anymore. Massachusetts Civil Service has been forced to lower the age of eligibility to 19 for the Civil Service Police Exam, and (although my email has gone unanswered for an exact figure) it looks like the numbers of those taking the test remain similar to the last testing cycle. We are losing this battle on both fronts. It’s time for us to think outside our parochial box, and make an effort to recruit outside the confines of Boston for qualified candidates. The most obvious choice is the U.S. Military – I don’t want to take credit for this other BPPAmembers have suggested it as a possibility. As far as retention goes, the Department and the City are going to have to deal with an aging patrol force, and will need to find some creative ways to entice veteran officers to stay just a bit longer until they figure out a way to replenish our ranks. Ordering Officers in every day off or weekend, and forcing them to work long hours is not the way to do this. Some suggestions-with buybacks currently unavailable, maybe a sixth week vacation for 25+ years like all other (civilian) City Unions, maybe a rank “Senior Field Officer” or something like that which would provide a pensionable longevity bonus to veteran cops which would cover the lost buybacks, or we could lose a bunch of seasoned, veteran officer and all their street saavy institutional knowledge who may be unwilling to risk their pension under such scrutiny. H H H H H H H H H H H H H H H At the Patriots’ Super Bowl Victory Parade, there was a little scuffle near my post. A drunken teen got shoved to the ground and knocked out while breaking up a fight between two other drunken teens. The fighters fled into the crowd, but a do-gooder gave me a description of one of them. He said “it was the kid in the Brady jersey.” I asked him to be more specific, he said “the white one,” Thank you citizen, I’ll go look among the 500 Brady Jersey clad drunkards on this block.... H H H H H H H H H H H H H H H The City is floating a “congestion tax” or toll on people coming into the city for work or play. How about instead surcharge UBER, LYFT, Uber Eats, etc. who cause a majority of our traffic. Boylston St. is routinely down to one lane because of these clowns. I never thought I’d say it, but I miss cabbies!! H H H H H H H H H H H H H H H If you wear camo underwear, is that considered going commando?