I thought it was a little bit strange, after I first moved to Ohio, when gas pumps were labeled with a tag that read …
Yup, the stickers have his picture. In other places, there might be a sticker ffrom a local bureau of weights and measures, or Department of Agriculture, or something similar, but not … well, a sticker of a guy.
Orange County, Florida, doesn’t have a “Tax Collection Department.” No, it’s Earl K Wood Tax Collector, with no “department” or “agency” or other such suffix, because the head tax collector is … well, Earl K. Wood.
So, what’s the deal with civil servants that have big egos? Should they do their jobs, or are they entitled to prominently display their name in every possible way?
In a refreshing display of the opposite of this phenomenon, the latest governor of Massachusetts did this shortly after taking office…
IIRC, it saves only about $400,000 every time the office changes hands, but I still like it. FTR, it’s one of the very few things I like about the guy, but IANA Massachusetts Resident.
In the case of gas pumps, at least in Ohio, you would be correct. Gas pumps (as well as all other weights and measures) are sealed by county auditors, an elected position in Ohio. I’m betting it’s been a long time since the OP saw one of these stickers with a picture though. IIRC, this practice was disallowed, since it was thought to provide free advertising and hence an unfair advantage in campaigns. It’s possible that’s just a rule in my neck of the woods, and not statewide though.
Some of us don’t even put our names on staff reports. On actual plans, I tuck my name in below local elected officials and planning commissioners. In correspondence, I don’t include “AICP” after my name; that’s a bit pretentious.
AH! Finally, a chance to bitch about RICHARD M. DALEY, MAYOR. Hey, hey, you know who the mayor of Chicago is? Why, it’s RICHARD M. DALEY, MAYOR. I know this because RICHARD M. DALEY, MAYOR has kindly gone to the trouble of having RICHARD M. DALEY, MAYOR inscribed on every available space in Chicago. It’s creepy. It’s Orwellian. RICHARD M. DALEY, MAYOR is watching you!
You want a real Civil Servant with a big ego, instead of pissant elected
officials?
VunderBob Electronics Engineer, National Aeronautics and Space Administration
“We’re sorry. The vBulletin software has determined that your attempt at displaying Big!Ego cannot be completed at this time. Please try again when you’ve done something worth shouting about. - the Management”
I thought for sure I was going to get to gripe about all the fuckin’ flack I get at the DMV from people who seem to believe it’s part of thier job description to make the process as painful as possible.
