Mike Burns sounds like a dick. If they were off duty, who cares? Does he do their laundry and is pissed at the dirt or whatever?

At least it was real football and not soccer. USA! USA! USA!

Every minute a cop spends playing football is a minute he's not kicking somebody's door down or tazing people.

All crime solved!
Looks like I'll be moving THERE.

FTA: "One photo shows six parked police cruisers; another shows five officers playing football."

I think they should be more concerned with the missing police officer and the fact his fellow officers used his remains for a football.

I think I'd rather them take out aggression in football than take out aggression on their next victim suspect

Let them play football, then maybe we get a hilarious story where one gets tackled and his gun goes off and shoots one and his tazer goes off and hits another. That's the kind of article I want to see!

Of all the things cops could be doing, in uniform or not, this worries me the least

Playing football on wet concrete sounds like punishment enough.

Firemen shouldn't be allowed to do anything while waiting on calls either.

Why on earth do we want to bother these officers about this. All the things police officers are out there doing that we have so many reasons to be outraged about, and some jerk wants to complain about this? Obviously someone needs to sit this guy down and have a talk about the boy who cried wolf.

IamPatSajak: Playing football on wet concrete sounds like punishment enough.

Yeah, couldn't they find a field to conquer?

How many people thought this was going to be a story of police taking turns kicking some guy in the head?

Better playing football than writing bullshiat tickets all day.

I don't have a problem with cops playing football in a parking lot (assuming they were off-duty). It burns off the donuts, does that team-building thing. It's the ones drinking, doping and farking in/on cruisers that I'd worry about.

I'm too lazy to make a flow chart, but it'd go something like this.

1) Were they on duty? Yes = termination, No = proceed to 2
2) Are they monetarily responsible for the upkeep and repair of their own uniforms? No = disciplinary action + proceed to 3, Yes = no disciplinary action + proceed to 3
3) Did they post the picutres on Facebok? No = investigaton complete, no further action, Yes = termination (they are too stupid to be cops)

"This is not acceptable, even if they were off duty."

If they're off-duty, what's the problem? There used to be a time when people around the neighborhood knew the cops on their beat.

Now that they have female officers on the force, playing shirts and skins is a bit tricky.

imprimere: I'm too lazy to make a flow chart, but it'd go something like this.

I'd also add a step in there to ask if they were on a meal break or similar. Maybe they decided it was too nice a day to sit around in a restaurant.

Off duty or on duty who cares? Who here does nothing but work 100% of their 8-10 hour day?

I'm just glad they were doing something other than generating revenue for the city to squander.

/I really don't know how much of that's sarcasm...

imontheinternet: Every minute a cop spends playing football is a minute he's not kicking somebody's door down or tazing people.

IamPatSajak: Playing football on wet concrete sounds like punishment enough.

Kit Fister: using some off-time to get out of the cruiser? better than roughing up the locals for chump change.

I really don't care for police nowadays. Something just seems to have gone septic in the way they view/treat non-law enforcement people. But even I can't seem to find a reason to be particularly upset with this. Even if they were on duty, frankly. I've never been one of those 'you must work every second you are being paid for, here sweep this floor again' people. If they were on patrol and had finished the most recent run of their routes, and could still hear their radio, why not?

CrispFlows: Why would anyone even have a problem with this?

I'm willing to bet the family of someone getting murdered down the street would have a big problem with these upstanding guardians of society playing a game when they should be working.

CrispFlows: Oh, it's the cops, anyone with an axe to grind would love to get any in trouble.

It's almost like they wrong people and create ill will on a daily basis!

What was that store employee doing taking pictures of police on company time?

Thanks a lot Obooger.

M-G: imprimere: I'm too lazy to make a flow chart, but it'd go something like this.

I'd also add a step in there to ask if they were on a meal break or similar. Maybe they decided it was too nice a day to sit around in a restaurant.

this. or they had been sitting in the cars for 4 hours straight and just wanted to stretch for a few minutes to relieve some tension?
frick. I am one of the first ones to attack cops for shiat and even I see this as a nothing event.

I understand Goodyear covered the game

The flow chart sums it up best, but the issue here seems to be they're in uniform. Military doesn't get to fark around in uniform either unless they're in a combat zone, even have issued fitness clothes. If these cops ARE on duty, I can see the beef in a heartbeat. If they're not, then why the hell don't they at least change into some sneakers and civilian clothes?

True, they're not pepper spraying pregnant teenagers or beating the hell out of a minority they don't like; but even if you don't work 100% of your 8-10 hour (ha) work day, you don't exactly step out back and start playing football either. You play solitaire or fark with your Facebook or something you can hide when snitches or the boss come walking around.

Also, this isn't taking place in some small town; it's in Macon, which isn't a metropolis but is still a significant enough size that a police presence (even one sitting in a car on a side street eating doughnuts) can make a difference in petty crimes.

Six cruisers and five cops. I'm betting that the cops regularly meet up at this strip mall or whatever on their break for coffee, a snack or whatever and that day 5 of them happened to play a little football on break. Be interesting to see what the followup finds.

Assuming the officers had their radios set loud enough they could be heard and were on their break (or off duty) I see no issue. Although if you're off duty, it wouldn't kill you to change. I'm also assuming they were not wearing radios, guns, or anything else while playing on duty.

Sure, let's punish police officers for doing something besides eating donuts or beating/tasing/shooting innocent citizens. That's reasonable.

I hate cops as much as the next cannabis user, but I say let them play football all they want. Less time out there harassing citizens, oops I mean perpetrators.

No "pigskin" jokes yet?

/slackers

scottydoesntknow: Cheesus: FTA: "One photo shows six parked police cruisers; another shows five officers playing football."

I think they should be more concerned with the missing police officer and the fact his fellow officers used his remains for a football.

[Insert obvious joke about pig's skin here]

MBooda: No "pigskin" jokes yet?

/slackers

imprimere: I'm too lazy to make a flow chart, but it'd go something like this.

1) Were they on duty? Yes = termination, No = proceed to 2
2) Are they monetarily responsible for the upkeep and repair of their own uniforms? No = disciplinary action + proceed to 3, Yes = no disciplinary action + proceed to 3
3) Did they post the picutres on Facebok? No = investigaton complete, no further action, Yes = termination (they are too stupid to be cops)

Oh, I see the thread is pretty much over.

To play devil's advocate (not that I agree but....).

1. If the cops are on duty but on break: They're playing football on wet concrete. This has decent odds for injury and could be meaningful in terms of removing a first responder from duty when he cracks his skull open (plus tying up an ambulance).

2. They could damage equipment (if they're wearing any as they play) or tear uniforms that would be replaced at tax pay expense. Also if equipment was damaged that would mean the officer has to go replace it instead of returning to duty post break. This is one less officer on hand to respond to emergencies.

Honestly if I was the chief I'd just tell them: Guys do it on grass, it's safer and suggest they change in to jeans for the game.

ha-ha-guy: I'm also assuming they were not wearing radios, guns, or anything else while playing on duty.

See now... this is the problem. If they did have their sidearms on while playing football... well that's dangerous. If they left them in their cars... that's dangerous too because someone could potentially swipe one from their cruiser. If they locked them in the trunk then they are in uniform without their sidearm and if something happened that required a weapon... well that's a problem too.

When under the color of law you are supposed to follow a very strict code of conduct. It's part of the job and they agreed to follow that code.

It's not the WORST thing they could have been doing but it sure isn't the best thing they could be doing either.

Cheesus: FTA: "One photo shows six parked police cruisers; another shows five officers playing football."

I think they should be more concerned with the missing police officer and the fact his fellow officers used his remains for a football.

You were favorited for that.

Fat Gandhi: The flow chart sums it up best, but the issue here seems to be they're in uniform. Military doesn't get to fark around in uniform either unless they're in a combat zone, even have issued fitness clothes

Cops aren't military. Nor should they ever be compared to military. They are domestic public servants not agents of war.

Also, this isn't taking place in some small town; it's in Macon, which isn't a metropolis but is still a significant enough size that a police presence (even one sitting in a car on a side street eating doughnuts) can make a difference in petty crimes.

95% of Macon is a ghetto or one block from ghetto so your probably right.

Fett56: I hate cops as much as the next cannabis user, but I say let them play football all they want. Less time out there harassing citizens, oops I mean perpetrators.

Huh? I've never heard that. Actually, I've heard (from the police themselves; at least here in San Diego) that they hate getting pot calls because they don't think it's a big deal. They campaigned to legalize it a couple/few years ago even. Police want it legalized.

Politicians, drug dealers and pharmaceutical companies, however...

/Legal daily user for two years now.
//Consume; only smoke once in a blue moon

kvinesknows: this. or they had been sitting in the cars for 4 hours straight and just wanted to stretch for a few minutes to relieve some tension?
frick. I am one of the first ones to attack cops for shiat and even I see this as a nothing event.

Before YouTube and Facebook, this is something which would have been handled by some sargent putting the word out in the locker room, not by the police chief in public with official disciplinary actions.

I'm in favor of citizens armed with cameras and communications keeping an eye on law enforcement, but this is a cheap shot rather than some Rodney King.

I'm not a fan of cops, but give me a break. Tell them not to do it anymore.

scottydoesntknow: mdeesnuts: Fat Gandhi: The flow chart sums it up best, but the issue here seems to be they're in uniform. Military doesn't get to fark around in uniform either unless they're in a combat zone, even have issued fitness clothes

Cops aren't military. Nor should they ever be compared to military. They are domestic public servants not agents of war.

Hi! Welcome to the USA. Where our cops say they don't have near-limitless power, yet there's examples of it every day.

They're pretty much no longer civil servants as they are now under Homeland Security and their focus has changed. Here's an excerpt and below that, the link. There's more to it than that but it gets you started. They can even enforce the law outside their jurisdictions now because jurisdictions (as we knew them) are no longer in effect. My cousin is an OKC Seargant but now he can bring his weapon into California and still has his police powers for enforcement. It's sick.

"As a result of implementations proposed by the 9/11 Commission Report, state and local police agencies have found increased demands on their training facilities. Local police are asking for increased training in emergency response, special weapons, explosives detection, and crime lab techniques, which places a greater financial burden on state agencies responsible for providing the training.

Local law enforcement agencies report that implementing 9/11 requirements means that officers have to maintain a greater awareness of "suspicious activities" than ever before, placing an increased burden on patrol duties. Officers also must receive more thorough preparation for responding to potential biological, chemical, and radiological attacks.

Both state and city police departments report that shifting funding and enforcement priority to national security has weakened their efforts to patrol community crime and maintain drug enforcement operations."

http://www.policeemployment.com/resources/articles/homeland-security- l aw