Just when you thought the British police might stand a chance of shedding that “keystone kops” reputation… (ok, so some of us didn’t actually think so, but it makes a good hook).
A police-sponsored British magazine (pseudo-appropriately titled, “Safe”) apparently ran a story recommending that women should make sure they wear nice underpants when heading out to get drunk. The variation on the old ‘in case you get hit by a bus’ line seems to be ‘in case you pass out and some nice police-officer-or-other-third-party gets a look at your knickers while you’re incapable of requesting your pants be left on.’
(For the record, I never quite understood the whole “wear nice underpants in case you get hit by a bus” philosophy – but then, I’ve never seen a bus knock someone’s pants off, either).
Although police spokesmen claim the publication was designed as “a spoof” and the advice tongue-in-cheek, the British police should probably learn a few important lessons from the recent public response:
1. Most people don’t read police-sponsored magazines for humor value.
2. In fact, most people don’t appreciate humor even in humor magazines – to say nothing of police publications.
3. Even the Keystone Kops might have paused momentarily before telling young women “if you’re going to get drunk, make sure to wear clean undies.”
And most important of all…
4. If you’re going to give advice about ladies’ undergarments, don’t be surprised if someone gets her knickers in a twist.
“2. In fact, most people don?t appreciate humor even in humor magazines – to say nothing of police publications.”
It’s not that so much as that most people just don’t “get” lil things like “words,” “concepts” and “processes”?in short, surprisingly more folks than half the population of English-speaking Americans are too stupid to think their way out of a wet paper bag (hence, Congress, the IRS and TSA, among other abominations afflicting subjects of the political elite. And that’s just dealing with the political products of American stupidity).
And I suspect the generalization holds for British folk, too.