A slight diversion from meandering around the sheep dog trials in the autumn sunshine, excuse me whilst I step up on to my soap box, not the promised post, but I need to get this one off my chest.
I posted last week that I had at last got my hands on a copy of Inspector Gadgets book, I’ve been reading Gadgets blog for well over a year now so I was keen to see how many more tales he had to tell, that and how his ‘voice’ sounded making the leap from blog to book. I can report that it was compulsive and disturbing reading.
I’m not sure how our police service has managed to get itself tied up in knots that it has, maybe its because it has (at the governments behest) taken it’s eye off the ball and tried to be,or worse still, tried to appear to be, all thing to all people, without delivering the goods. I’ve certainly seen that happen in business, where a company has expanded its ‘range’ so much it just becomes rubbish at everything and it’s customers desert their loyalty to the brand in droves, because they don’t really know what it does any more, other than nothing very well and something’s appallingly; or maybe as a society we get what we deserve (just like we have with our banking and financial institutions?) or it is just the pomposity and incompetence, by senior management and politicians alike? I wish I knew the answer or had confidence in a government or political party that did
Gadget could be forgiven for chewing his own hand off at the wrist in sheer frustration, at the pointless bureaucracy and stonewalling that makes up a large chunk of his working day (or night) and that’s not just within the police, but from social services, mental health, the courts and Crown Prosecution Service. The levels of violence that he and his response colleagues face is shocking enough but the lack of resources and support they get, both at the incident and in the courts is noting short of obscene (if you suffer from high blood pressure, please take medication before reading the book) I have no doubt there will be enough material for a second book.
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Whilst I have some sympathy for ordinary coppers my opinion of the police in general has sadly reached rock bottom. As with the NHS I blame government bureaucracy for the present situation which I can’t see improving much if at all.
The police do a good job , its the rules they work too which are the problem. politicians should stick to what they know best , NAFF ALL.
While I will by his book eventually )I’m still wading through the last few tomes I bought at Waterstones cf Wasting Police Time, Cold Granite by Stuart MacBride and another of Jeremy Clarkson’s offerings) I know what I’ll read all too well in advance. I live it! Meanwhile I just look at things like this, which ‘cos they’re on Telly, let folk understand just what the Polis have to deal with live into their cosseted living rooms. Sometimes it really is a thankless job, but I love it, despite all the hoops we have to jump through.
ooops… the linky!
Most depressing book I’ve read for a long time:-(
Don’t get me wrong; its very well written but I had no idea how bad things had got with the bureaucracy, time wasting and targets.
I wonder if my MP has read it; maybe I should send him a copy!
McNoddy, it must be a bit of a ‘bus man’s’ holiday for you reading a book like this.
Thanks for that link, I got home late last night and Mr Uhdd and Tom had watched the programme,they were both seething at the paltry sentencing.
Thanks for the comments and for letting me use your wonderful photo of the book on my own Blog!
I read it some time ago, and as Flighty says, the general opinion of the Police, NHS et al, is low and getting lower. But as Gadget points out, it is not the actual troops to blame. They do a very good job in extremely difficult circumstances.