[quote=sdrealtor]As if on cue when we are hearing yet another rationalization about the quality of the individuals needed to serve as firefighters we run into 3 who are dare I say human.
From the comments section (I have no idea whether or not it’s true…and neither do you, but would disagree with the poster WRT jail time. Stealing should be punishable by jail time, IMHO.):
“Shame on Pauline Repard for not stating all facts of altercation. Witnesses say said “victims” taunted FF in bar and followed them out and a few blocks enticing FF for a fight. robbery of DL and change is hardly a deserving crime of jail or prison. Has anyone else thought to think of the other side of the story before hanging them high? smh… If your always picking a fight, eventually your going to get a good one and its not going to go as you envisioned in your karate mma movie brain. UT is not very good on allowing both sides of the story to be told. Very one sided and poor reporting. Obviously the “crime ” doesn’t warrant ‘leave with out pay” Did anyone think of that? hmmmm…”
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This news story really makes my point. If a realtor gets into a drunken brawl in a large city, does the newpaper print a story about it and make a point of mentioning his/her profession? Do people demand that the realtor lose his/her job over it? What about a techie at one of the local cell phone companies? Do they never get in fights or engage in petty theft, or does the media not think the story worthy enough to report on because their profession isn’t “sensational” enough?
Remember the story about the SD cop who trashed his foreclosed house? We saw headlines like this:
“Cop Allegedly Trashes Million-Dollar Home”
Source: Cop Allegedly Trashes Million-Dollar Home | NBC San Diego
… “In what could be a first in Riverside County, a former homeowner is charged with a crime in connection with damage to a property in foreclosure.
A San Diego police officer and his wife have been charged with a felony in the trashing of their six-bedroom tract home, which was in foreclosure, in the French Valley area of southwest Riverside County.”
Also interesting is the fact that this cop was the first person who was charged with this crime, at a time when it was a regular occurrence. IMHO, he was charged **because he was a cop,** and the headlines always mentioned his profession, while simply referring to the wife as “the cop’s wife” (instead of “cop and realtor”) **because he was a cop.**
That’s exactly one of my points. Public sector workers (especially cops, firefighters, and teachers) are held to a higher standard and are scrutinized in a way most private sector employees will never understand.
