They got a rain delay

[Bubbler]

When I worked at a video store in the 90s, a fireman came in and quite brazenly wanted to rent his videos for free.

Being a dutiful employee, as well as believing no profession should rise above any other, but more so just being naive about how these relationships work with businesses, I had no idea what he was talking about and I refused to do it.

Incredulous, he made a few threats, including the speed at which his station house might respond if there was a fire at the store. I said something along the lines of "you're going to threaten us with slow response over a free video rental? Don't think I'm not calling your HQ over that." He huffed and puffed and finally paid. I was pissed and did call HQ. I'm sure they got right on it.

A larger part of me is glad I stood up to that kind of corrupt entitlement. The cynical part of me is also like, "why did you give a **** about the video store losing $2" or whatever it was.

Flooding a LL field is next-level horse****, though.

Also, to the comment about veterans, the deification of vets is definitely pushed by some. Not working sports anymore, but I did a story on a moribund military museum, and I visited the place and the two people responsible for trying to re-open it.

One of them asked if I had served. I said I hadn't, but my late grandfather had and had fought in Europe in World War II.

The older woman said he must have been proud of his service. I said that I'm sure he was in his own way, but he didn't wear it on his sleeve. In fact, he only spoke to his history-obsessed grandson once about his war service … and it was an apocryphal story at that. He was one of many vets who didn't think he was special just because he was in the military.

To which she said, "But he should feel special!" I didn't say anything, but inside I was like, "**** you for trying to tell someone how they should feel about their military service." Not everyone who served wants to treat it as some sort of lifetime entitlement.

 

[Inky_Wretch]

When I worked at a video store in the 90s, a fireman came in and quite brazenly wanted to rent his videos for free.

Being a dutiful employee, as well as believing no profession should rise above any other, but more so just being naive about how these relationships work with businesses, I had no idea what he was talking about and I refused to do it.

Incredulous, he made a few threats, including the speed at which his station house might respond if there was a fire at the store. I said something along the lines of "you're going to threaten us with slow response over a free video rental? Don't think I'm not calling your HQ over that." He huffed and puffed and finally paid. I was pissed and did call HQ. I'm sure they got right on it.

A larger part of me is glad I stood up to that kind of corrupt entitlement. The cynical part of me is also like, "why did you give a **** about the video store losing $2" or whatever it was.

Flooding a LL field is next-level horse****, though.

Also, to the comment about veterans, the deification of vets is definitely pushed by some. Not working sports anymore, but I did a story on a moribund military museum, and I visited the place and the two people responsible for trying to re-open it.

One of them asked if I had served. I said I hadn't, but my late grandfather had and had fought in Europe in World War II.

The older woman said he must have been proud of his service. I said that I'm sure he was in his own way, but he didn't wear it on his sleeve. In fact, he only spoke to his history-obsessed grandson once about his war service … and it was an apocryphal story at that. He was one of many vets who didn't think he was special just because he was in the military.

To which she said, "But he should feel special!" I didn't say anything, but inside I was like, "**** you for trying to tell someone how they should feel about their military service." Not everyone who served wants to treat it as some sort of lifetime entitlement.

Sebastian Junger wrote a book called "Tribe" that touched upon the differences between veterans of WWII and now. Back then, something like 10-12 percent of the US population served in the armed forces in some capacity. So the veterans of WWII didn't roll back into town and ask for discounts at restaurants and hardware stores and damn near everywhere because the person they were talking to might have also served. But now that only 1% of the population serves, there's a collective guilt (and patriotic virtue signaling) that spurs those discounts. Junger writes about how doing that continually "others" members of the military and hinders their reentry to the general public.

That said, I've known a few veterans over the years. The guys who saw and did some **** in Iraq/Afghanistan aren't hitting people up for military discounts. The dude who was a peacetime private who never deployed overseas in his one hitch? They're all about it.

 

[BYH 2: Electric Boogaloo]

Talk about leaving the park!!!

Once in a while I belt a ****-high fastball! :D

FWIW, I feel like I'm one of many people who knows someone who knows someone who swears that happened (the Cal-Costner thing, not the Cal Jr-Costner Jr thing).

 

[WolvEagle]

Well, not before now.

We had two high schools in our district, and both were really good at baseball. The varsity coach at our school taught at one of the middle schools, which used to be the district's only high school. So, he would hold some practices on the middle school field.

Well, just beyond the left field foul pole was the other head coach's backyard with a pool. The guys on our school's team would aim for the pool in batting practice. :)

And, I'm the son of a retired firefighter. The firefighter who flooded the field should be disciplined, including demotion. That was a BS thing to do.

I agree with a previous comment that a really tall net would solve the problem.

 

[Driftwood]

I have said this in other threads over the years:
I totally appreciate my veterans discount at Lowe's, but I don't need to be thanked for my service. I'll happily take my 10% off and go on about my business.
Under no circumstances will I park in one the "Reserved for Veteran" parking spots. I am healthy and fully capable of walking across a parking lot. Save that for an older person who might actually need it.

 

[justgladtobehere]

In a bit of poetic justice, a county fire truck drove into a flooded road and had to be towed. May be a total loss. And an employee wrote something inappropriate on the county social media.

https://wtop.com/montgomery-county/...three-cases-of-employee-actions-under-review/

On Saturday, July 19, a firetruck had to be towed from floodwaters in Silver Spring after being driven into the flooded roadway.

On Monday, July 21, the MCFRS posted that it was launching an investigation into an "inappropriate comment" made on a Montgomery County Police Department social media post. The statement from the department said the employee was "in non-operational status" while the case is under review

 

[UPChip]

Those professions draw an outsized portion of men who make testosterone their whole personality.

Has anyone considered that maybe this was all a convenient excuse to rain out a Cal Ripken game because one of the players had a long consecutive games streak but came home to find his girlfriend ****ing Kevin Costner's daughter and thus was in no condition to play said scheduled game?

My hypothesis: Due to the whole "thank you for your service" generation and a slew of procedurals with a tenuous basis in reality, the military and/or being a first responder is one of an increasingly limited number of professions that allow men of either modest background or intelligence to rise above their station. These are jobs that confer respect and deference in the community and they aren't going to get moved to Mexico. Obviously, as you said, many people get into it for the right reasons and are justifiable community pillars. But if you want someone to respect you for more than just scoring three touchdowns in that playoff game and you weren't smart enough or well-to-do enough to get an MD or even a BS, well that's one way to get back to the front of the line.

The Costner/Ripken thing was discussed in the cold open of the Shutdown Fullcast a couple weeks ago and it was the first time I'd ever heard it. Rolling on the floor, then devolves into other 90s action heroes being caught in flagrante delicto with your wife, such as Jean Claude van Damme and Jason Statham.

(Starts at about 11:45)

https://rss.com/podcasts/shutdown-fullcast/2107079/

 

[dixiehack]

My dad doesn’t stick his chest out a ton about serving in the Air Force, but if he thinks there’s even a remote chance of a veterans’ discount he will ask about it. Nov. 11 is his favorite day of the year, when he has all of his stops plotted out for Veterans Day freebies.

 

[TigerVols]

Busted!

 

[Neutral Corner]

Steroids. Don't discount those, which are pretty rampant in police forces. And in the military special forces.

Fire Departments too. Lots of those guys are very jacked up. It may just be lifting, it's a very physical profession sometimes, but I worked with a bunch of firemen and there were several that I thought were probably doing steroids, testosterone, or both.