To Serve and Protect ?

“Evening All”

There is a popular myth that you know you are getting old when policemen look young. For those of us....lets just say of a certain “vintage”..... recognising the words “Evening All” from the iconic TV series Dixon of Dock Green, merely serve to underline that we are, at the very least, in the autumn of our lifetime and negates the need to study the faces of our bobbies on the beat for confirmation.

Just what PC Dixon would make of modern day Policing is another matter entirely of course. DNA , close circuit television, not to mention forensics for example, have completely changed the science of policing and the ever popular police TV dramas have sought to reflect this – The popularity of the Crime Scene Investigation series merely emphasizes this.

Amidst all this change however the popularity of the old fashioned copper remains – the hard nosed sleuth with almost a sixth sense for sniffing out the bad guys. Hence the surprising popularity of DCI Gene Hunt in the BBC drama Life on Mars. As his character bio says of him......

'It's all black and white with Gene; there's no grey area with him. With that style of policing it was much more intuitive and not as scientific as it is nowadays; back then they had to be more instinctive with their approach'

What a pity they aren't a few Gene Hunts serving in Central Scotland Police.

Perhaps then the people of Alloa would be spared the forthcoming Shamrock festival and all that goes with it.

Now I am no Gene Hunt of course but instinct tells me that when an event is organised to celebrate a group of people who can list indiscriminate as well as sectarian murder, torture, punishment beatings and extortion on their curriculum vitae....then well something is amiss. And no....Im not talking about Colonel Mustard in the conservatory with the lead piping.

As if that wasn't enough of a clue to bring the old Jack Regan out in all of us...perhaps a little look at the musical entertainment provided for the evening would suggest to us that something is rotten in the state of Alloa.

The Sean Mcllvenna Republican Flute Band (named to honour an IRA terrorist who was killed after attempting to blow up an RUC patrol in County Armagh) along with a whole host of others described as “rebel bands and performers” will be taking the stage at this festival. Makes you wonder what Central Scotland Police Special Branch are doing – or perhaps they are all to busy attending the latest in house “Diversity Course”.

“Together for safer communities” is the Central Scotland Police logo...perhaps they ought to try listening to those communities, as a number of them have already pointed out to them that these bands sing little ditties which offer praise, support and are sympathetic to terrorist organisations.

For those of you have been following all this perhaps you, like me, are thinking more Clouseau than Gene Hunt.

Perhaps Central Scotland Police missed Gerry Adam's warning that “the IRA have not gone away.” In fact only this year dissident republicans murdered a young Roman Catholic Policeman as he stepped into his car to go to work to protect the community he served. One of the alleged perpretators was arrested in Scotland.

And what would PC George Dixon of Dock Green make of all this ?

The smart money suggests he will be spinning in his grave.