# How could a police officer be this wrong? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [June 30, 2012, 12:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-could-a-police-officer-be-this-wrong/626759 "2012-06-30T00:54:33Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 17
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2012, 3:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-could-a-police-officer-be-this-wrong/626759/321 "2012-07-29T03:19:24Z")
> [@Magiver](#): > > you did this before and finds you doing it again. See this is what I’m saying; doing _what_ again; being in the same vicinity as illegally parked cars? Well, yeah, that’s sort of the issue; I find myself in the vicinity quite often and it’s just through the normal course of my day. Because _that_ is the only similarity between the two incidents. ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2012, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-could-a-police-officer-be-this-wrong/626759/322 "2012-07-29T03:20:24Z")
> [@Kobalt](#): > > I’ve lost track. Is this the third or the fourth gym that Jamie’s joined since he started posting here? Third (bried stint at PlanetFitness) :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2012, 3:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-could-a-police-officer-be-this-wrong/626759/323 "2012-07-29T03:26:31Z")
> [@Acsenray](#): > > No, not “even if” you have a reputation; “because” you have a reputation. A reputation results in observers adding context, assumptions, coloring to your actions, whether or not it might be deserved in any particular situation. Ok, so you’d agree that it wasn’t deserved in this particular situation? ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2012, 3:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-could-a-police-officer-be-this-wrong/626759/324 "2012-07-29T03:30:00Z")
> [@Ambivalid](#): > > See this is what I’m saying; doing _what_ again; making illegal parking your business. ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2012, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-could-a-police-officer-be-this-wrong/626759/325 "2012-07-29T03:48:10Z")
> [@Magiver](#): > > making illegal parking your business. It’s a part of my life. I can’t _not_ “make it my business”. And this is what I mean: I am being told to ignore the issue when I see it. Anything more than ignoring illegal parking when I see it is “busybody” “vigilante parking lot police man” douchebaggery that no one is going to tolerate. Geez, there _used_ to be a time when the decent, peaceful law-breakers around here could violate their hearts-out and no one would give 'em a hard time." “Til that _asshole_ in the wheelchair came to town and started asking mean questions to those nice people like about why they’re taking “_their_” spots and junk.” “Stupid cripple.” ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2012, 4:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-could-a-police-officer-be-this-wrong/626759/326 "2012-07-29T04:16:34Z")
> [@Ambivalid](#): > > It’s a part of my life. I can’t _not_ “make it my business”. OK. and… what exactly? If it’s part of your life then accept the consequences. > [@Ambivalid](#): > > And this is what I mean: I am being told to ignore the issue when I see it. It’s been suggested you ignore it because you seem bothered by the reaction you get from people as the result of the fact that you can’t _not_ make it your business. ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2012, 5:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-could-a-police-officer-be-this-wrong/626759/327 "2012-07-29T05:51:21Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > Threatening to sue a gym for doing nothing wrong even after we explained that they weren’t in violation of any laws. > > Considering that you’ve been literally thrown out of your wheelchair by someone, it seems pretty clear to me that playing parking lot cop puts your safety in danger. Um, yeeeaah, and you-internet stranger-are a better judge of what happened at my gym than _ **I** _ am. Just because I haven’t been able to fully convey what had gone down at that gym, the totality of the circumstances and the personalities involved, doesn’t mean that the conclusions reached by some here are valid. I am not trying to re-hash that bullshit but suffice to say it was _not_ a black-and-white case (I basically am arguing that the manager at my former gym used the incident in the parking lot as a _pretext_ for getting rid of me; me being a highly-functioning paraplegic athlete who presented vexing accessibility, equipment and opportunity challenges that she could not meet as a professional). THAT is what I am basing my suit (non-monetarily based) on. And that second quote, “Considering that you’ve been…”, what are you talking about, specifically? 😕 When did “playing parking lot cop” get me thrown out of my wheelchair? 😕 I honestly do not know what you are referring to. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2012, 6:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-could-a-police-officer-be-this-wrong/626759/328 "2012-07-29T06:41:12Z")
> [@billfish678](#): > > Jamie getting pissed at a cop that was actually trying to enforce handicapped parking laws because the cop didn’t think he looked handicapped at first glance was also a classic. Heck, you’d think Jamie would have been in heaven that somebody in power finally gave a shit, but no he was pissed and thought about complaining to the cops about it. Dayum. > > Personally, thats when Jamie jumped the shark for me. That was my all time favorite. > [@Ambivalid](#): > > Um, yeeeaah, and you-internet stranger-are a better judge of what happened at my gym than _ **I** _ am. Just because I haven’t been able to fully convey what had gone down at that gym, the totality of the circumstances and the personalities involved, doesn’t mean that the conclusions reached by some here are valid. I am not trying to re-hash that bullshit but suffice to say it was _not_ a black-and-white case (I basically am arguing that the manager at my former gym used the incident in the parking lot as a _pretext_ for getting rid of me; me being a highly-functioning paraplegic athlete who presented vexing accessibility, equipment and opportunity challenges that she could not meet as a professional). THAT is what I am basing my suit (non-monetarily based) on. > > And that second quote, “Considering that you’ve been…”, what are you talking about, specifically? 😕 When did “playing parking lot cop” get me thrown out of my wheelchair? 😕 I honestly do not know what you are referring to. We only know what you told us. That’s all we can judge from. I also remember you complaining that this so-called equipment that was simply something extra that the gym didn’t have, and weren’t required to purchase. Or was that the time they asked you NOT to misuse certain equipment with your wheelchair push-ups? We can only judge you by what you told us, so if we have the “wrong idea”, the problem isn’t on our end. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2012, 1:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-could-a-police-officer-be-this-wrong/626759/329 "2012-07-29T13:05:37Z")
> [@Ambivalid](#): > > Ok, so you’d agree that it wasn’t deserved in this particular situation? Why would I judge this situation from the blinders-on perspective that you insist on? Maybe you were being dickish, maybe you weren’t. Maybe this was just one more datum in a pattern of dickishness. This is the way I look at it. A guy came out of the gym and saw you doing something that seemed remarkable enough for him to ask whether there was a problem. At that point you asked him if that was his car. I can easily see how this kind of an interaction can seem aggressive, intrusive, and dickish. You’re basically asking a stranger if he’s breaking the law, when he has nothing to do with the situation; it’s not even his car. So it very well might have seemed dickish. The guy in that situation has a better perspective to judge than we on this board do. ---
**Author:** ![Shirley\_Ujest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@Shirley\_Ujest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shirley_Ujest)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2012, 1:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-could-a-police-officer-be-this-wrong/626759/330 "2012-07-29T13:20:05Z")
Take pictures of the offending car(s) and create a fb page. Is this in Grand Blanc? ---
**Author:** ![alice\_in\_wonderland](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alice_in_wonderland/32/176_2.png) [@alice\_in\_wonderland](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alice_in_wonderland)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2012, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-could-a-police-officer-be-this-wrong/626759/331 "2012-07-29T14:34:50Z")
> [@Ambivalid](#): > > While I appreciate your other words in your post, **this** is not for you to say. Bodybuilding, and working out in general, has done more positive good for my life than anything else I have involved myself in, in any capacity, in my life as a paraplegic. I don’t understand why you feel qualified to say such a thing regarding my life. You know very little about either my life or bodybuilding. Of course it’s not for me to say - none of the crap on here is for any poster to say - we’ve never met you before. 🙂 I do get that body building has improved your confidence, and provided a positive experience for you. I just think, In My Humble Opinion, that athletics would do as well, and to a greater degree. Well, maybe not to a greater degree, but in a different way. There are aspects of athletics that I think you would enjoy and be good at, based only on your posts on this board. Of course, I’m pulling it out of my ass - for all I know you’re a dog that learned to type. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![tapu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/49beb7/32.png) [@tapu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tapu)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2012, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-could-a-police-officer-be-this-wrong/626759/332 "2012-07-29T15:45:29Z")
> [@Magiver](#): > > OK. and… what exactly? If it’s part of your life then accept the consequences. > > It’s been suggested you ignore it because you seem bothered by the reaction you get from people as the result of the fact that you can’t _not_ make it your business. That’s a pretty astonishing–and depressing–pair of statements. I can believe those opinions are, however, widely held. You see evidence of it in other kinds of examples all the time. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2012, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-could-a-police-officer-be-this-wrong/626759/333 "2012-07-29T15:53:08Z")
> [@tapu](#): > > That’s a pretty astonishing–and depressing–pair of statements. So is this: > [@tapu](#): > > I think reading old threads is one of the stupidest things I’ve ever heard > > Being on different sides of an issue doesn’t have to lead to putting the other person down. ---
**Author:** ![tapu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/49beb7/32.png) [@tapu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tapu)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2012, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-could-a-police-officer-be-this-wrong/626759/334 "2012-07-29T16:26:06Z")
I was calling the idea stupid, not you. The idea had been suggested ad nauseum by several posters. They’re not stupid–I just judge that idea to be stupid. I didn’t mean to hurt your feelings so deeply. I hope you’ll accept my explanation above and not carry the sting in your heart anymore. – tapu ---
**Author:** ![LurkerInNJ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ed655f/32.png) [@LurkerInNJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LurkerInNJ)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2012, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-could-a-police-officer-be-this-wrong/626759/335 "2012-07-29T17:25:53Z")
Jamie, have you ever considered getting a job with parking enforcement? It would be perfect for you. ---
**Author:** ![MeanOldLady](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/meanoldlady/32/10737_2.png) [@MeanOldLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MeanOldLady)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2012, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-could-a-police-officer-be-this-wrong/626759/336 "2012-07-29T17:37:46Z")
Brilliant! ---
**Author:** ![Labrador\_Deceiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7c8e57/32.png) [@Labrador\_Deceiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labrador_Deceiver)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2012, 6:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-could-a-police-officer-be-this-wrong/626759/337 "2012-07-29T18:24:08Z")
> [@tapu](#): > > I didn’t mean to hurt your feelings so deeply. I hope you’ll accept my explanation above and not carry the sting in your heart anymore. > > – tapu Are you trying to blow the cover off the irony meter today? ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2012, 6:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-could-a-police-officer-be-this-wrong/626759/338 "2012-07-29T18:24:22Z")
> [@tapu](#): > > That’s a pretty astonishing–and depressing–pair of statements. I can believe those opinions are, however, widely held. You see evidence of it in other kinds of examples all the time. I’m not sure what you think is astonishing about the statements. Ambivalid said that it’s impossible for him to resist the behavior. There are consequences associated with it. The consequences are predictable. There appears to be a mental disconnect between the idea that it’s legal/moral to engage in the activity and any negative reactions to it. ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2012, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-could-a-police-officer-be-this-wrong/626759/339 "2012-07-29T19:12:13Z")
> [@Acsenray](#): > > Why would I judge this situation from the blinders-on perspective that you insist on? Maybe you were being dickish, maybe you weren’t. Maybe this was just one more datum in a pattern of dickishness. > > This is the way I look at it. A guy came out of the gym and saw you doing something that seemed remarkable enough for him to ask whether there was a problem. At that point you asked him if that was his car. I can easily see how this kind of an interaction can seem aggressive, intrusive, and dickish. You’re basically asking a stranger if he’s breaking the law, when he has nothing to do with the situation; it’s not even his car. So it very well might have seemed dickish. The guy in that situation has a better perspective to judge than we on this board do. Except you are taking the sequence of occurences out of their proper placement here: This guy didn’t “come out and see me doing something that seemed remarkable enough for him to ask whether there was a problem”, that **didn’t** happen. This guy simply approached me and I _asked him_ if it was his car, to which he answered “no” _and then_ asked me “what the problem was”. So he didn’t see something occurring that seemed “remarkable enough” to spark that question. ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2012, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-could-a-police-officer-be-this-wrong/626759/340 "2012-07-29T19:27:10Z")
> [@Ambivalid](#): > > Except you are taking the sequence of occurences out of their proper placement here: > > This guy didn’t “come out and see me doing something that seemed remarkable enough for him to ask whether there was a problem”, that **didn’t** happen. This guy simply approached me and I _asked him_ if it was his car, to which he answered “no” _and then_ asked me “what the problem was”. So he didn’t see something occurring that seemed “remarkable enough” to spark that question. and you feel this clarification means… what? what is it about your busybody activity that you feel doesn’t deserve the reaction you’re getting? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-could-a-police-officer-be-this-wrong/626759.md?page=16) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-could-a-police-officer-be-this-wrong/626759.md?page=18)