Sponsoring police -- a contest
I'm being assured that the new corporate sponsor of Baltimore Police horse Slurpee (yes, 7-Eleven) won't mean that the police cars will soon be adorned with ads for bails bondsmen and TV dramas about law enforcement.
But the idea that a convenience store chain can buy a police horse and get the naming rights seems both odd and innovative. So, as the city cops raise money to save the threatened Mounted Unit, the horse Blackie suddenly becamed the horse Slurpee.
At left, is police horse Barney, in a photo by The Sun's Kenneth K. Lam. For some reason, we don't have a pic in our files of Blackie, a.k.a. Slurpee.
The newly named horse will participate in a ribbon cutting Friday at 11 a.m. at a new 7-Eleven opening in Market Place downtown. First the horse can run down a few criminals, then has to go to a ribbon cutting. Such is the life. It's a find partnership between police and business (7-Eleven's already have police substations, and as long as they don't get preferential treatment and extra protection on the public dime, it should be OK).
So send me your ideas for other ways Baltimore Police can take advantage of corporate sponsors:
The Mounted Unit's Sgt. John Ambrose already came up with one: "This car chase brought to you by Nabisco."
How about a bar sponsoring the commissioner's campaign to padlock troubled taverns? Or Bad Guys with Guns brought to you by Glock? Bail bonds promoting themselves on the backs of squad cars?
Comments
As a member of the Baltimore Police Mounted Unit from 1976 until 1994, I applaud the Southland Corp. for donating a horse to the unit. This is not the first time this has happened. The old Roy Rogers restaurant chain donated a horse to the unit some years ago. Roy Rogers himself made the presentation. The horse's name was, of course, R.C. !!! The horse's photo along with Roy Rogers is in the Mounted Unit office.
Posted by: Dave | January 14, 2010 10:16 AM
I want to add that the horse sponsored by the Roy Rogers chain was named R.C......"Roy's Choice". He was all black with a white star on his forehead. He was assigned to an office who called himself "The Concrete Cowboy"
Posted by: Dave | January 14, 2010 10:22 AM
I have no problem if area businesses like 7-eleven or Taco Bell are encouraged to allow the police to set up substations because they will see a greater police presence at that substation. The presence of an officer, even if they are only there to use the facility offered to them, should make all of us feel safer there.
Other naming? Police foot patrols by REI.
Police foot chase by Under Armor.
3pm patrols by Emerald Nuts.
Posted by: Dan Hogan | January 14, 2010 10:44 AM
Can communities also sponsor foot patrols? Everyone who grew up here tells me about the good ol' days when everyone knew their local cop and respected them. I think my neighborhood would be willing to sponsor a foot patrolman. The already neighborhood sponsors local schools and sports teams. I am sure, even though we are highly taxed we will pay extra to get cops out of cars.
BTW: Are the hoof Police just symbolic? I only see them and the dung in Fells Point.
In DC the Federal Park Police are big because they break up large gatherings after they have gone too far, what do the few do here?
Posted by: Dunn | January 14, 2010 12:41 PM
Gee, the city taxed businesses to the point that they are leaving the city and not looking back, we've taxed the daylights out of those who call themselves city residents,we've spent our way into oblivion on feel good, but do nothing projects....so lets see how can we fix it??? Hmmm I know lets tax the daylights out of the people some more!
And now heeeeers our new mayor stephanie rawlings-blake(riding on the coat tails of her relatives, hence the hyphened last name)I mean really, how far would she have made it just using her last name blake? And with the city circling the drain, her first priority is to, wait, wait, wait for it, push for tougher gun control laws! And to prove she is nothing but more of the same, she immediately steps into the federal welfare line and she turns to two proven fiscal failures as noted in this excerpt from the Baltimore Sun:
"City Council President Stephanie C. Rawlings-Blake will replace Dixon.
Rawlings-Blake said she also spoke Wednesday night with Gov. Martin O'Malley, and that she's working to improve the city's relationship with the Obama administration." Cut spending? NO! lower taxes? NO! Stick her hand out and beg for Obama money? Hell yes! Now theres quality leadership...And somehow you're worried about a horse....
Posted by: joe | January 15, 2010 10:15 AM