Police Chief Loses Job by trying to promote fitness
WINTER HAVEN, Fla. (Nov. 2) - Police Chief Paul Goward was tired of looking around his department and seeing blubber hanging over the belts of some of his officers. So he sent out a memo exhorting the "jelly bellies" to shape up.
In the end, the department lost 190 pounds - all of them belonging to Goward. He was forced out as chief because some of his officers took offense at the memo.
The Oct. 11 memo bruised feelings on the 80-member force, drew at least one anonymous letter of complaint from officers about the chief's management style and made his department the butt of jokes about fat cops and doughnuts.
"If they got their feelings hurt to the extent of 'Do something about it,' then I did what I was intending to do," said an unapologetic Goward, a trim 6-footer who was forced to resign his $92,000-a-year post last week.
__________________ In Fitness & Friendship, MAHLER
______________________________ __________________________ There is no light at the end of the tunnel. You carry the light with you.
I thought it sucked too. Later in the article the city manager is quoted as saying that there has been bad morale in the department for a couple of years and a lot of anonymous complaints. Still, the whole article makes it sound like he was ousted just because he challenged his officers to get into better shape! WTF?
__________________ “I have always done my duty. I am ready to die. My only regret is for the friends I leave behind me.”
-- Zachary Taylor, 12th U.S. President, 1849-1850
Does anyone have a link to the full article? Yeah, it sucked that he lost his job by trying to promote fitness, but maybe he could have done it in a different manner rather than calling them "jelly bellies" and cracking jokes about his department. Does anyone here agree or disagree that he could/should have taken a different approach?
Sometimes a little straight talk is what it takes to motivate a population. They need to get over their thin skinned selves. There may be more to the story. Chances are they were just looking for a reason to can him.
I am sick of seeing fat cops though. A couple of years ago I got into an altercation with a couple of drunk speeders driving down my street like it was a drag strip (I may have thrown something at their car ), and the cop they sent out came 45 minutes too late (they re-assessed their situation when they got out of the car and thought better of it and decided to scoot), and the cop that actually showed up wouldn't have been able to even run 20 yards without having a heart attack. His belly literally rested on his thighs and his chin on his chest, and I was wondering what would have happened if he had been needed to actually get into a scuffle. I doubt he would have been much help. So much for "protecting and serving." They only thing he was serving was doughnuts! Like the military, it should be selective service. For those who are required to protect the populace, I want out of shape slobs to be discriminated against!
Does anyone have a link to the full article? Yeah, it sucked that he lost his job by trying to promote fitness, but maybe he could have done it in a different manner rather than calling them "jelly bellies" and cracking jokes about his department. Does anyone here agree or disagree that he could/should have taken a different approach?
Sometimes you just have to tell it like it is, and he did.
A lot of departments have weight/height qualifications and some of the people who complained might be in the unemployment line if they were instituted instead of just sending out a memo trying to get the guys to shape up.
My take? If someone says you are fat and you are offended, chances are what they said was true. Don't blast the messenger. Look in the mirror for the problem.
__________________ In Fitness & Friendship, MAHLER
______________________________ __________________________ There is no light at the end of the tunnel. You carry the light with you.
It is easy to call someone fat and as a former Fat Bastard myself I can say that being called fat rarely inspires you to do anything except become defensive. Inspiring someone to make important changes in their lifestyle that is the tricky part. The City around my helth club launched an incentive program for their staffs to lose weight which included discount gym memberships, nutrition counseling and personal training. They just completed the first 2 months of the challenge and the winner lost 30# and the last person on the chart lost 12#. You can only help those that want to be helped and insuluting the others is not going to make the others get on board.
__________________ -50# by 4/1/10 2 down 48 to go.
Yeah, I pretty much agree that he shouldn't have lost his job and that you do at times have to tell it like it is. Personally, I wouldn't have had a problem with him stating that his department as a whole was fat and out of shape which would be a fact for the most part. I just didn't think it was too keen for him to call names and crack jokes...kinda lost cool points there.
I also think the police dept should have a mandatory physical fitness program. It just gets discouraging seeing out of shape police officers around..makes me feel safe
I don't think he made the jokes. When the memo got out, others were making jokes about the department and about police officers and doughnuts. His only reference was that he was tired of the "jelly bellies" in the department. Also, he walked the walk and stayed trim, even though, as chief, he was probably the most desk bound of any of the force. I, personally consider being in shape a prerequisite for being a police officer, and if these guys have bruised feelings, they need to get into another line of work where weight is not an issue. Then they can be all upset if their boss at Wal-Mart says they are fat.
__________________ In Fitness & Friendship, MAHLER
______________________________ __________________________ There is no light at the end of the tunnel. You carry the light with you.
Being in the Mall business I see my share of Rent a Cops that go from overweight to morbidly obese and I definetly agree with you that they don't inspire much confidence. How are these guys going to protect you if they can hardly walk at a good pace. I agree in professions of a physical nature their should be standard requirements.
__________________ -50# by 4/1/10 2 down 48 to go.
Ok. Gotcha. It just seemed like in what you had posted that he did make the jokes. Who knows, maybe something positive can come out of this and inspire other departments around the country to implement a fitness program. I believe you do have to pass some type of physical fitness testing to even get into the police academy. If it's such a mandatory process to get into the academy, then why isn't it important enough to maintain once they graduate and become officers? Makes you ask yourself "why even have it in the first place".
I agree that the cops should be in some sort of required minimum condition and the chief should not have lost his job for this. In fact, I think he should be commended. The problem is that most cities probably doesn't have the funding to pay for cops to get in shape on company time. Therefore, training is a voluntary thing, which most people decline.
I agree that the cops should be in some sort of required minimum condition and the chief should not have lost his job for this. In fact, I think he should be commended. The problem is that most cities probably doesn't have the funding to pay for cops to get in shape on company time. Therefore, training is a voluntary thing, which most people decline.
which sucks. Doesnt make you feel safe when the people who are suppose to protect you from criminals are in bad shape, and you could do a better job yourself.
I saw that article earlier this morning. It is a shame that he would lose his job for making this comment. Police Officers should be forbidden to be out of shape. It should be a requirement of all officers to be able to pass a yearly physical test in order to maintain employment. I am glad he said what he said.
__________________
"On the road to success you can be sure of one thing...there is never a crowd on the extra mile."
Being in the Navy, I can tell you right now that our physical fitness requirements are a joke.
I'd say a good 60% of everyone I work with is overweight, 20% obviously obese.
It's really not that difficult to maintain a somewhat healthy lifestyle, it's just that no one attempts to even eat anything other than pizza and/or taco bell.
It's a good thing all of the big guys I work with are stuck under the ocean... not sure I'd be able to take our enemies pointing and laughing at the fatties.
Some communities don't place a proper value on a police department. If officers are not paid and treated in a proper manner by the community that employs them, the community cannot expect much in return. In the communities where I practiced law there was a tremendous variety in the quality of the police departments. The chief differences came down to pay and training opprtunities. If officers were properly paid and were encouraged to continue their training, the quality of the police department was higher. Police departments that did not pay officers much and did not foster and encourage training usually got the department they paid for.
I don't know anything about this department. I do know the chief probably had an employment contract and could not be forced out unless he violated some provision of that contract. If the community forced him out and he did not violate his contract, they would have either had to pay him for the length of the contract or an amount in liquid damages specified in the contract.
ours are pretty lax. You don't have to be in good shape, just not "heart attack from walking to the donut counter. HOWEVER we're overmanned enough that they seem to be sticking to them. Every opprotunity to succeed and kick their fat asses out.
anyway. I'm assuming he used the "tough love" entirely too often. It's one thing to shoot strait, it's another to be a dick every waking moment. You want to make a difference, do manditory fitness screenings. You fail, you get a new job. Don't give someone a heap of shit every time they eat a snickers.
My experience is some years ago, but the people in the worst shape in the military seemed to be the Navy and non combat Army specialties. The Navy was understandable because on a lot of the ships exercise was not practical while at sea. Maybe its different now.
My experience is some years ago, but the people in the worst shape in the military seemed to be the Navy and non combat Army specialties. The Navy was understandable because on a lot of the ships exercise was not practical while at sea. Maybe its different now.
Most of the army folk around here are in pretty decent shape. Surprising as it may be, most airforce personnel here on base are in much better shape than the navy and army guys.
Most marines I've seen lately have been a little on the chunky side too.
Not sure why the chairforce guys have such better self control, but good on 'um.
Most of the army folk around here are in pretty decent shape. Surprising as it may be, most airforce personnel here on base are in much better shape than the navy and army guys.
Most marines I've seen lately have been a little on the chunky side too.
Not sure why the chairforce guys have such better self control, but good on 'um.
there's been a big push that started about 2 years ago for a "fitter force"...my last base gave out up to 90min a day of excersise time. 2 gyms on base. 1 400m track, 1 6 mile track. And the base was tiny...meant a pretty fit gobbla Probibly has to do a lot with the lack of real organized PT and a lot of time to persue individual fitness goals. group PT is a waste of time for about 75% of the people forced to do it.
I was just joking yesterday. The army fellas may be fat but every one of them can run. It's crazy watching the bastards get up bright and early to do "whatever they do".
this is absolute bull shit! I know in milwaukee probably one out of two cops aren't just overweight, they're fat as hell!! more cops should be willing to take care of themselves and stand up for it...
__________________
"Nothing tastes as good as being lean feels."
Another example of why people need to arm and protect themselves--police aren't capable of doing much more than marking your outline on the ground, taking some statements, and perhaps scraping your brains off the pavement. Forget about a cop actually preventing a crime--it's not their fault (lots of frustrated good cops out there), but it's just not in the job description anymore. What's next? Firemen won't be expected to stay fit?
Another example of why people need to arm and protect themselves--police aren't capable of doing much more than marking your outline on the ground, taking some statements, and perhaps scraping your brains off the pavement. Forget about a cop actually preventing a crime--it's not their fault (lots of frustrated good cops out there), but it's just not in the job description anymore. What's next? Firemen won't be expected to stay fit?
I agree that the cops should be in some sort of required minimum condition and the chief should not have lost his job for this. In fact, I think he should be commended. The problem is that most cities probably doesn't have the funding to pay for cops to get in shape on company time. Therefore, training is a voluntary thing, which most people decline.
I agree as well. It should be a requirement for cops to be in shape, or at least somewhat in shape. It really isnt safe for them, or the public for a cop to be a fat ass.
Police Chief Loses Job by trying to promote fitness
), and the cop they sent out came 45 minutes too late (they re-assessed their situation when they got out of the car and thought better of it and decided to scoot), and the cop that actually showed up wouldn't have been able to even run 20 yards without having a heart attack. His belly literally rested on his thighs and his chin on his chest, and I was wondering what would have happened if he had been needed to actually get into a scuffle. I doubt he would have been much help. So much for "protecting and serving." They only thing he was serving was doughnuts! Like the military, it should be selective service. For those who are required to protect the populace, I want out of shape slobs to be discriminated against!
Probibly has to do a lot with the lack of real organized PT and a lot of time to persue individual fitness goals. group PT is a waste of time for about 75% of the people forced to do it.
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