18 June 2013 (Tuesday) - I Told You So...

A bit of a rant today, I'm afraid. But it does lead on from yesterday's witterings...

Yesterday I whinged that no one was at all interested in dealing with the feral horse that savagely attacked me the other day. There are those who mock my being savagely attacked by a feral horse; but what do they know? It's something I wouldn't wish on my worst enemy.... I've spent forty years mocking the equinophobic but now I'm conceding that they might possibly have a point, but I digress. Again.
Amongst those who couldn't give a stuff about feral horses are Kent Police. I shall rant about them (again) today...

Being able to say "I told you so" might be satisfying to the person saying it; but it is always something of a pyrrhic victory. Regular readers of this drivel may have worked out that I am not a fan of the local police force. Over the years they have made all sorts of blunders to which I can personally testify. They have wrongly arrested people dear to me; and then (having released them with no apology) made it clear that that wronged individual is not to make a complaint. They have refused to charge security staff at Ashford International Station who were recorded on closed circuit TV assaulting a member of my family. They have refused to investigate a break-in to a family friend's car, saying that CSI-style investigations is something they only do when they aren't busy elsewhere. They have cautioned people for trivial offences despite those people having plenty of witnesses to testify that they were miles away at the time of the alleged incident. They refuse to go take a look at a dangerous horse in a field near Biggin Hill (!)
When I have sent written complaints to the Chief Constable about these and other incidents I have had phone calls from the police telling me that they are the police, and I should learn my place and not complain.

For years I've publically run down the Boys in Blue, and now it seems I was right all along. They *are* rubbish. I heard on the radio this morning that finally their failings have been recognised publically.

H.M. Inspectorate of Constabulary has found that Kent Police wrongly classified a quarter of the crimes recorded on their books; among these mis-classified crimes being rapes and robberies.

This is terrible, but in Kent Police's defence (and it pains me to defend the 'bules) it would seem that they have been running an "institutional bias towards chasing numerical targets for solving crime". The media reported this as though it was some sort of revelation. This is the cause of the sorry state of our police force; needless paperwork.
It is far easier for a copper to nick a tramp for vagrancy or to nick some dopey students smoking kippers in the park than it is for them to catch burglars hours after the event. Because an easy nick is a quick nick and it looks better when counting the nicks. And in this age of league tables of course the police are going to go for the easy option to get to the top of the pile.

As a society we should realise that it is time to abandon scoring policing on crimes solved in this way. That way the police can stop fannying about on trivial incidents that don't warrant investigating (like formally investigating an allegation that I murdered someone's wife ten years before I ever met that person). The police might then be able to concentrate on the important stuff.
However I doubt this will happen. League tables are politically correct at the moment. Schools have been playing silly beggars to score well in league tables for years; even though everyone thinks they are a bad idea.

Meanwhile in more trivial circles my neck still hurts. Too much rounders I expect. Mind you the aching leg is getting better.
Not that I will be shutting up about that horse any time soon...


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