Soylent BLUE!Originally Posted by blues
Soylent BLUE!
My first thought when I read the title.Soylent BLUE!
There's nothing civil about this war.
Once again, we're showing our age...
Almost to a one, this was how each of the agencies/departments that I worked for operated.
Avoiding the appearance of impropriety, no matter the actual intent (most of the time it is innocent enough by such businesses, I think) is terribly important, especially in this day and age.
Last edited by the Schwartz; 04-28-2019 at 02:32 PM.
''Politics is for the present, but an equation is for eternity.'' ―Albert Einstein
Full disclosure per the Pistol-Forum CoC: I am the author of Quantitative Ammunition Selection.
Neither of the agencies I worked for outright prohibited them, and when I was young cop with a family making $11.20 an hour it was welcome. Even when the food was free, I tipped well, except for Whataburger. When I was charged full price, I never complained, and I never ordered more than I had the cash to pay for...never hinted that the bill was wrong. Just as importantly I made a mental note of who did and only invited them to full price places, knowing they were too cheap to come along. I did not want to be embarrassed by their hustling, and usually paid for their meal, too, just to shut them up.
At my first agency it was less of an issue, as we could go home for chow. Did that regularly until the first kid was born. It only took a couple of times having a crying infant on a lunch break with an exhausted wife to send me to Whattaburger. At that agency I only ate out with the squad once a pay period or so, to avoid being "that guy" that didn't socialize, kinda the same reason quarterly choir practice was a must attend, even if only for an hour or so.
Whataburger and Villiage Inn and IHOP were the only 24 hour joints at the time and their managers wanted units in the lots, so discounted and free were the norm. Whataburger closed their dining room and started giving away free chow at midnight. Cut their issues quickly. But it was kind of comical to be driving by on the way to a call and see three city units, a couple of SO units and a couple of Border Patrol units parked a block away, or orbiting the block at 2355 waiting for 2400 to roll around.
My current agency asked during my oral board about my position on gratuities. It was just after 9/11 and every one wanted to show their support for cops and Fire/EMS. My answer was simple. I have no business asking for special treatment, and have no business ordering anything I cannot pay for full price immediately. But I am also not going to rudely make a scene when offered a gratuity. I also tried to make a point of only visiting those places once a week or so, to avoid the appearance of impropriety, and to avoid getting dragged into dramas that were outside my jurisdiction but in my presence. My soon to be new agency gave us a geographical boundary that that we could travel within that was outside of our primary jurisdiction. Unless your residence was in that area, you could not go home for chow. I also took a pay cut to about $10.75/hr, so discounts were welcome, but not to be relied upon.
Just yesterday the I was working shift OT and the squad gathered for their weekly brunch. Five of us went, and the food was free. My glass of ice water and cup of coffee cost me $4 in tip to the attentive waitress...all told there was nearly $50 on the table in cash when we left. And including two of us that left twice during the hour of brunch to handle calls for service.
Policies also change. The nearby 7-11 changed ownership, and kept a tally by agency of what they gave away, as hotdogs, nachos, sodas and coffee were free. Then they sent a bill covering several months to each of the agencies demanding payment for what their officers consumed. They were told to pound sand, so they sent the bill to the IA of the largest agency in the area, but had no specific officers to accuse. Everyone quit going there. I understand they are back to handing out free beverages again, but I will never experience it.
During the fall we would run call to call for most of the night, and if I didn't pack my lunch then it was the 24 hour McDonalds drive up for me. Sign the ticket, and it was free. One time it came to light that no one had eaten there during an extremely busy weekend, and the Shift Commander had eaten there almost a dozen times in two days, sometimes minutes apart. They kept the free food, but only if you ate in, and they close their dining room at 2200, before we hit the streets. And, when I can't pack a lunch (more and more frequently lately, with all the OT) when I am hungry I hit the drive through and pay full price, although now it is a salad and iced tea, and not a quarter pounder, fries, and Dr. Pepper.
Before I got hired in this metro area there was a local BBQ joint that fed cops for free. What started out as a very nice gesture became ugly. Entire squads (about 12 cops) would go there for "field briefings", (there were five area commands with 3-5 squads working daily, not counting Motors, who loved the place, detectives, SWAT etc.) and eventually brothers, wives, and girlfriends were showing up. Guys would eat in, and then order platters to go to feed their family at home. The owner changed the policy when for an entire quarter he was losing $40k a month. It is now half price, and my agency uses them to cater appreciation days and the like, but the tab is always paid for in advance with a .gov p-card, or else the Chief or DC goes in plain clothes personally pick stuff up. I still eat there about once a month or so because they open at 0600, and their breakfast tacos are THAT good.
Only a couple of the places whose food I really like offer discounted/free food. I find, in a month's time I eat at the full price ones WAAAAAY more often than the discounted/free ones, by food selection and preference.
pat
Last edited by UNM1136; 04-29-2019 at 09:14 AM.
In my last job, EMS, we were strictly prohibited from accepting cash. No problem with getting half-off or free food.....indeed, we were encouraged to take advantage of such.
In my current job we're allowed to accept gifts from foreign dignitaries when on protection details up to $390 in value (no cash). I also don't recall any rules about having to refuse free meals or discounts from the public/restaurants, and when dealing with foreign digs it's quite normal to be fed as a courtesy (you'd be surprised which countries treat us the best). I also don't usually ask for discounts, and I don't use one of the badge wallet/personal wallet combos....so if I get it, it's usually by surprise if they catch a glimpse of my belt badge.
Last edited by TGS; 04-29-2019 at 09:51 AM.
"Are you ready? Okay. Let's roll."- Last words of Todd Beamer
When I worked in uniform I paid what I was asked to pay. If I was presented with a bill I paid it. I made sure I always had $$ in my pocket for anything I needed to buy. There were certain restaurants where if you were in uniform and dining in they never presented you with a bill. My units never abused this we might eat there once a week (sometimes once every couple of weeks). Mostly we paid.
Should this be a standard practice? I leave that to the staff people and policy makers. If you go prepared to pay and no check is presented; so be it.
I pay what I'm billed and tip, or tip heavily. It isn't worth upsetting people, having it become a scene, etc. If the business makes it obvious to others they aren't charging me, I try not to go back.
It is allowed by my Dept. Sometimes a new Chief will come along and want to change it. Our Union points out that is fine but also should apply to all of the free meals and tickets to events that Chiefs get sent on a regular basis. For some reason they change their mind when they think it might apply to them and all of their freebies.
Well put.
pat
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