Tribute to Officer Chief Riner Sir

I prepared this for delivery at the 25 June 1999 installation banquet for Winfield's Chief of Police, Doug Riner, as president of the DuPage County Chiefs of Police Association. I had planned this as a surprise to The Chief. By prearrangement with the folks running the program I would appear from the doorway dressed in an orange prisoner uniform and go to the microphone, introduced as "387420, known to most of us already." When I learned that the Governor was scheduled to speak, I decided that would be enough entertainment so I didn't pursue this speech any further.

Copyright 1999 by Stan Zegel, All Rights Reserved


I'd like to say a few words in honor of Officer Chief Riner Sir from of those of us who ain't got such a pre-ju-diced view on crime as you-all do, us who are the true majority of the law enforcement community that ain't here tonight because these is our working hours. I'm so glad to see so many of you in here tonight instead out wandering the streets.

You-all have a social or telephone relationship with Officer Chief Riner Sir, but I am proud to say I have a pro-fess-ion-al one. Its not like we see each other every day or nothin', but its regular-like.

Now don't get me wrong, he's never had me in his home, or anything. Well, he's never invited me into his home, although I must confess I've been there a couple of times, but there wasn't no one home at the time.

In fact Officer Chief Riner Sir and me, we goes back a long ways to army days when he was an MP and always took a real interest in what I was doing.

And we have taken parallel but different paths since then, even different kinds of discharges from the army.

I started my career in Dolton, just like Officer Chief Riner Sir did, back in the days when we both had flat bellies. He was a rookie patrolman, and I couldn't even open the padlock on a tool shed. He was always real helpful, like when he saw me lugging something that fell off the back of a truck, he was always real good about helping me lift it back onto that truck. Back in those days I never even seen a color tel-e-vision set, now I sell several of them every week.

We've both come a long way.

As my professional skills increased, I moved to Winfield where I could do the same dollar-volume with half the labor. And a few years later, Officer Chief Riner Sir followed. It was like old times, what with him interfering with my professional career again and all. Its hard to make a good dishonest living with Officer Chief Riner Sir in town.

Now I gotta tell you, that even though we've worked in the same areas for years, Officer Chief Riner Sir and me, that we have different political beliefs.

I, for instance, am for the redistribution of wealth. Officer Chief Riner Sir believes in leaving the wealth with those who had it before I redistributed it.

I am for the open shop. Officer Chief Riner Sir believes that shops should remain closed after the owners have locked them for the night.

Even though we have different beliefs -and I do have to say I am much more open minded to alternative definitions of morality than is Officer Chief Riner Sir-- we are both parts of that great sym-bi-otic relationship that keeps both of our families fed at the taxpayer's expense: Officer Chief Riner Sir's at the expense of all the taxpayers at once; me, one taxpayer family at a time, two on a good night. He even has given me a nickname over the years, "JJ", which he says stands for "job justification."

And Officer Chief Riner Sir, he treats us residents right. Why, many's the time he's arranged a ride for me, sitting in the back seat of this big official car with a uniformed driver up front, lights flashing like we was real important like and folks looking to see who was getting such special treatment and me waving to them as we passed. He'd have 'em drive me right up to this government building, and the big doors would roll up and we'd drive right on inside just like we owned the place, and the driver, he'd take me inside and see that I got a room for the night, or even longer. So we both dine on meals financed by the taxpayers: his cooked by Mrs. Officer Chief Riner Sir, and mine cooked by Chef Butch at the Hotel Zaruba. And I must say about this here meal tonight, it was nice to eat with something besides a rubber spoon.

Anyways, I want to tell you that you done real good by promoting Officer Chief Riner Sir, and I hope he'll work real hard for you-all instead of having time to keep snooping in my business.


--Stan Zegel
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