Why the Net has the advantage in the ‘Undies world’
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New look for region’s police on the beat
Friday 19th March 2010, 11:30AM GMT.
It is a far cry from Dixon of Dock Green – the traditional shirt, tie and blazer replaced by sporty polo tops.
But this more casual attire is the new look West Midlands police officers will be sporting on the streets of the region within weeks.
The ‘boys in blue’ will become the ‘boys in black’ as white shirts are swapped for black zip-up ones, which bobbies have said are more practical.
Police community support officers will have dark blue shirts, while officers based in stations will keep the white button-up shirt.
West Midlands Police chief constable Chris Sims said today: “The general view from staff was that, although the classic white shirt looks professional businesslike, they can be restrictive and uncomfortable when worn under the protective vests when out on patrol.
“This is about modernising our range of uniform to make sure it suits the demanding role officers have in policing their communties.”
Andy Gilbert, chairman of the West Midlands Police Federation, said: “We suggested the new uniforms to the force and we think they are smart, practical and comfortable. Most other forces are wearing these now.”
Former police chief John Mellor, aged 81, of Wolverhampton, said he was concerned that the police service was “Americanising” itself.
Mr Mellor, who was a superintendent for West Bromwich and spent 34 years in the police force, said: “I personally would rather see the police officer looking as he did in order that the public may recognise him.”
The change comes as West Midlands Police, which has more than 8,700 officers, prepares for a huge shake-up.
The project, codenamed Paragon, will see the number of policing divisions across the region reduce from 21 to 10.
Detectives will be based at hubs to deal with serious and organised crime. Senior officers say the move will free-up neighbourhood officers to deal with more anti-social behaviour and other types of crime.
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Wow love the new look
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Why are we worrying about their shirts when the money would be better spent on footwear, hardly a fair race when we expect coppers wearing boots to catch youths whose footwear would not be out of place in an Olympics 100 metres final!!
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First person to spot one WALKING the streets of Wolverhampton gets a prize…….
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The two key problems with the Police Force/Service nowadays is the type of recruit(standard of education and stature) and government bureaucracy imposed on the job.
In the 1950′s and 60′s many ex army people went into the Police when demobbed. They were fit and of muscular build. This enabled them to cope with most incidents alone. Look at the picture of the male officer. His arms are like pipestems. imagine him being sent into a pub at 11.00pm to confront a man over 6 ft with bicepts the size of Birmingham. The offender would make mincemeat of him. This is why many officers prefer to take the easy jobs (motorists) rather than tackle the heavy stuff in case they get hurt.
Then you have the college courses for potential recruits to the police. The applicants are the dross of society. Ill-mannered, thick as a brick with no school qualifications. The majority of incidents at college where the security are called is due to students on public service courses.
Finally you have the form filling which takes officers off the beat for hours on end. In addition you have these Community Officers who have no real powers and are merely glorified security lookouts.
The whole police service now is generally an inefficient waste of money
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haven’t seen one walking the streets for the 8 years I’ve been living in wolverhampton, come to think of it haven’t seen our MP at all during that time either. Do either of them actually exist these days
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I think it’s far too casual, the whole shirt and tie thing looks a lot more authoritive, you can get shirts with a bit of stretch to them which would be very comfortable. These combo makes them look like thugs.
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At least it won’t break the bank for the six officers we have in Wolverhampton
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Number 4.
The cops sadly have no authority anymore thanks to todays government and modern society so why bother with the shirt and tie combos anymore?
i personally like the new uniform but then i also think that the cops should carry guns and actually be allowed to arrest people and beat filthy little “gangster” street urchins once in a while, that would soon sort the groups of wannabes out
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What on earth are you talking about? The police are getting more and more power all the time, a few years ago they didn’t even have cs gas, ANPR, cameras etc. look at them now.
Another point you seem to be unaware of, there are already firearms police in this country.
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leftie, the reason society is the way it is is because the police cant do their job properly.
i say arm them, let them knock seven bells out of criminals if youve done nothing wrong youve got nothing to worry about have you???
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“If youve done nothing wrong youve got nothing to worry about have you”?
Have you not heard of Jean Charles Demenzes? Shot 6 times in the head at point blank range, it later turned Demenzes was entitrely innocent of any crime.
Have you not heard of Ian Tomlinson? The list is endless, many innocent people have been killed by vicious thugs in uniform, kind of throws your argument out of the window!
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I’m a police officer. I’m not a vicious thug. I’ve been assaulted, kicked, hit, punched, spat on, threatened with baseball bats and knives by vicious thugs, though. I’ve dealt with victims of vulnerable crimes and helped arrest those involved and brought them to justice. I certainly don’t ago around killing people or abusing my power. Nor do any of my colleagues.
How about you stop with your generalisations and stereotypes? Not all of us, in fact, the vast majority of us don’t fit them, which kind of throws your argument out of the window! You can pick a few examples and tar all 150,000 of us with the same brush if you like, but I’m not going to let it get in the way of me serving the public and helping make the West Midlands a safer place.
Walk a mile in their shoes, and all that…
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You are not turning the west midlands into a safer place, you are turning it into a police state, a big brother state.
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I prefer the old white shirt look. These new uniforms make them look less approachable and less friendly, I’m no fan of this all in black look.
Mr Mellor is pretty spot on, the police in this country are becoming Americanised, turning into brute savages, attack first and ask questions 3 years later, they seem to get pleasure from hurting people, they are using their weapons of torture more often, they are using any excuse they can get to take people into the police cells, strip them naked and look up peoples exit holes, this is what 21st century policing is about, they are not interested in the bad guys anymore, it’s the average hardworking folk that police now target as they are easy targets.
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Come and do my job then, Ernie. Believe that if you really want to though.
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Wolves I already have a job, what’s your idea of a safer place? Pulling innocent motorists over and fining them for no seatbelt or going 5mph over the limit? It would be more accurate to call you a revenue collections officer than a police officer.
Josie great comments, glad there’s more people out there that can see the system for what it is.
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Josie, it appears you are quite uneducated in what the role of a police officer entails and what equipment they carry and not understanding this has made you sound like a troll.
There is no such thing as cs gas as it is a spray, which contains crystals, which react with water and is an extremely useful tool when subduing a violent aggressive offender.
I suggest you use the internet to educate yourself in things before commenting on what you clearly have no knowledge of.It is also clear that you have had previous experiences with the police.
I suggest you go and find a tree to hug and make the suggestion that instead of prison the offenders come and stay with you, lets see if your attitude changes then.
However i do like the look of the new uniforms, thank for keeping the streets safe.
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Errr read the article numb nuts
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I think you will find that most police are approachable and do a fantastic job. The weapons of torture you mention are there to keep us and them safe from the idiots that are willing to fight and do anything to get away after committing a crime. If you havent done anything wrong you have nothing to worry about. Clearly by your comments I would imagine that you got caught out doing something that you shouldnt have been doing and feel that the police were out to get you. unlucky!!!!
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the new look is both smart and modern, inkeeping with the modern day police service.
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Josie, just how would you subdue a violent and aggressive person? Talk to them nicely? Offer them a cup of tea?
Are you speaking from personal experience or are you stereotyping for the sake of?
Oh and for the record, I’ve yet to see a police officer in the UK carrying CS gas.
Comfy uniforms – all for it. I for one would not walk the streets being spat at, punched, kicked, bitten, stabbed or shot at for merely “doing my job”.
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My point is nothing to do with arresting violent and aggressive persons, my point is to do with entirely innocent people being killed by trigger happy, violent and aggressive thugs in uniform.
If you have yet to see a police officer in this country carrying cs gas, the answer is simple, try getting out more.
Please try reading the comment carefully in future if you wish to respond to it, otherwise it just makes you look like a troll.
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if GHOST thinks of himself as a law abiding citizen then he will be a GHOST cos he will be the easy meat the cops will shoot
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they dont look as hot as they used to!sorry! prefer the white shirts and ties, or black t’s!!!! HOT!!!! suppose its better they are more comfortable.
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Is this new uniform going to make them any better at their job? My neigbour was conned when buying a car, he actually ended up purchasing a stolen car on false registration plates at a cost of over 10 grand.
He reported this to the police however they were unable to find the conman, so my neighbour decided to do a little investigative work himself and he managed to find the conmans home address in under a week.
The police have been exposed time and time again, finishing off their dinner is more important to them than responding to emergency calls – anyone remember the documentary undercover copper?
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And the wheel goes around once more…..
More OCUs for local policing – then less OCUs for efficiency – back to more OCUs for grass roots neighbourhood policing – then less OCUs again for efficeiency or whatever the flavour of the month is……
And all the management will say every time is that this is the way forward. This obviously depens upon which way the current chief constable of the day swings. This week anyway.
Boring.
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