The war against the police
Andy11M sends us a link to an article about an off-duty policeman who was refused service at an Olive Garden restaurant because he was carrying his weapon while celebrating his birthday;
Officer Michael Holsworth was visiting the Olive Garden on 40 Highway and Noland Road in Independence for a birthday lunch with his family.
Holsworth was dressed in a full police uniform and was waiting for his family to arrive when an employee allegedly told him that it does not allow guns inside the restaurant.
The officer asked the employee if she was serious, and she told him she was.
“Well, I can leave, I guess,” Holsworth replied.
The employee replied back, “Yes, please leave.”
According to the article, the President of Olive Garden apologized to the officer. I’m not aware of any policy at Olive garden forbidding weapons. I’ve been in the OG in Winchester, VA a few times and I haven’t seen a sign.
If anyone wonders why a police officer should carry his gun, there’s the story from Cordova, Tennessee about Memphis PD’s Terence Olridge who was on his way to work when he was shot multiple times by a neighbor while wearing his uniform.
Olridge had been on the force for slightly more than a year and had a fiancee who is four months pregnant, authorities said.
Dozens of people posted condolences for the slain cop on Facebook. Posts to the Blue Lives Matter Memphis page also called for support for the Memphis Police Department; Olridge is its second officer to be killed in just over two months.
Category: Police
I’ll say this. If the eatery’s policy is that guns are not permitted, then guns are not permitted and the officer was smart to leave. Now, let me explain. The policy spotlights the stupid in any establishment’s gun ban and the fact that some Olive Garden employee did or did not misconstrue a policy that may or may not exist by inviting a uniformed officer to leave the restaurant is just too damn perfect. I’m sorry the officer and his family had to make other plans suddenly but, nevertheless, I love the stupid illustrated by this incident.
I wonder if she would tell an armed robber the same thing. Better yet, tell the police they are not allowed to set foot inside the building, regardless of the situation. That will protect the patrons from any wrong-doers with guns.
i like the idea of the police not being allowed on the premises, at all, even if a crime is being committed on the property. They should stand just off of the property until it’s over, then let the victims come to the property line to file a report (I mean, since they don’t allow guns on their property)
BUT, that will never happen becaus of the way sheepdogs conduct themselves, and that is lucky for all of the Sheeple out there.
You nailed it
If the SHTF, this pathetic little brainwashed liberal bimbo would be the first one hollering “where were you”…if this is Olive Gardens corporate policy, then I am done with OG!!
Can you say, “backlash”?
Sure, there are bad cops. But they are far outweighed by the good ones, and most rational people know this.
It’s not just the cops that are getting tired of this shit. Keep that in mind next time you want to screw with the folks tasked with keeping you safe.
“Keep that in mind next time you want to screw with the folks tasked with keeping you safe.”
You write that is if the police have a constitutional duty to protect any of us.
Here in Dallas, it seems the DPD has a responsibility to fill out the report. I do not blame them one bit.
I do not eat in these restaurants that ban guns because I never want to put myself in the position of accidentally being in the same dining room with Robert Bateman.
Agree. Police don’t have a duty to protect.
That’s right. Castle Rock vs. Gonzales spelled that out. SCOTUS upheld a lower court ruling that said the police do not have a Constituional obligation to protect the individual. They carry guns to protect themselves, not you.
As for this incident; he should have asked for the manager to get clarification on the rule, or at least looked at the outside of the door for a sign stating such.
Legally, but they have a moral duty and they know it! spoken as a former police officer!
A Constitutional duty no, but a duty yes. That’s why LEOs exist. I know I used to be one.
According to Darden Restaurants, there is no corporate policy banning guns- in fact, all restaurants owned by Darden are forbidden by corporate policy to put anything banning people from carrying in states where carry is legal
Some idiot employee tells a Policeman in uniform to take off, and WHO will they call on when they have say a robbery or break-in?
The STUPID, IT HURTS!!!
I’m curious as to who the restaurant would have called had the officer refused – the police?
Rev. Al, the ACLU, etc.
I’m going to go out on a limb here, and guess that this particular employee would probably have called #BlackLivesMatter. Just a hunch.
Naw. They would have called Cop Watch…Wait, he’s in jail I think.
Kinda makes you hope that if the OG is ever robbed, they dispatcher can respond “I’m sorry, our officers are not allowed to carry guns on your property – you’re on your own.”
A few days back, Drudge had another story of a police officer picking up a cup of coffee from Starbucks, only to find “BlackLivesMatter” written on the cup. If these minimum wage-minimum skills employees have an issue with serving people who pose a threat to young African American lives, maybe they should stop serving young African American makes. It’s not the cops that are running up the meter in Chicago, Detroit, Baltimore, DC and Philly.
Stop buying overpriced crap at Olive Garden and Starbucks. Patronize Dunkin Donuts and McD’s and Cracker Barrel, instead.
Better yet, quit eating out entirely. Patronize Costco, Giant, and CVS/pharmacy instead. ;o)
Um, most COSTCO’s have a no-guns policy and sign out front…
Problem is, there’s a DD in CT that pulled that shit the other day.
http://fox43.com/2015/10/06/cop-refused-service-at-dunkin-donuts-store-owner-meets-with-police-chief/
To hell with cracker barrel…they fired an employee for given a homeless man a cup of tea! a “stinking cup of tea”
Even better, support your local Mom and Pop Italian place (if you’re lucky enough to have one in spite of OG)…and your local coffee shop (which probably doesn’t burn the ever-living shit out of their beans).
For that kind of a comment written on “my” cuppa, I’d leave the cup and refuse to pay for it. And tell the overpaid “barista” just WHY I’m not buying. Out loud. Embarrassingly out loud. If I’m buying coffee from anywhere, I’m buying the COFFEE, not a political statement. Especially one that offends me personally (see, more than one side can play that game, too).
As a former beat cop, I can tell you that we just expected people to dislike us. When I went into a fast food joint, I always made sure I kept my eyes on the preparer. You never know when they’re going to hack up a little “secret sauce” for you.
I was an EMT for a while and I was struck at how happy everyone was with us. People just LOVE firefighters. Definitely not so with the Po Po. Guess it might have something to do with, at least in the neighborhoods I patrolled, our customers were the victim one day and the perp the next. LOL!
Olive Garden is overpriced and has a not very exciting menu. I go to Cracker Barrel, instead.
Guess it’s tough all over.
“Guess it’s tough all over.” yes because we don’t have Cracker Barrel here 🙁
‘Craker’ Barrel!!! I am OFFENDED and DEMAND that they change their name immediately to Anglo-American Barrel!!!!
And then go home and play the game; “Call of Duty: African American OPs 2”?
😉
By posting on this blog you are preaching to the choir. Take a moment, go on line to,https://www.olivegarden.com/contact-us and fill out the comment card telling corporate how badly they such, how you will boycott their chain nationwide (since many of us are in fact nationwide) and the recourse is to fire the employee and manager and invite the entire police force in for a comp dinner with their families. This is the only way these national chains will get the message.
Thanks for the link, you saved me from looking it up.
They got one from me. OG’s parent company owns a lot of places we frequent. Reckon they’re off the menu until that employee is publicly gone.
See my comment above
I’m guessing this is an isolated incident. I would bet this employee was an 18-19 yr old female with screaming liberal parents who went to a school where they expelled kids for a piece of bread shaped like a gun. I’m sure it’s not any type of corporate policy, just an idiot employee and a manager’s worst nightmare.
I agree. As long as the cop is fired too. The employee made a mistake. We don’t know why the mistake was made as she could have come from another establishment that had a no gun policy. But the cop made an error here as well. He should have gone to the manager and instead whined like a 16 year old on Facebook. “Share this” he said in order to shame the restaurant instead of addressing the issue in a professional manner. He even could have gone to his superiors and said “I was told to leave Olive Garden because I had a gun on while I was in uniform” and then have the superior call the restaurant. Instead, the little snowflake went off on Facebook. As for firing the manager, I can be down with that as well as long as we apply the same standards to the police. For example, in another part of Kansas a cop beat a person, lied about it in court, and filed a false report resulting in the arrest of the person. The City paid the victim to settle a lawsuit. Surely the cop should be fired and his supervisor fired as well, right? After all, the Olive Garden employee got a rule wrong. Isn’t breaking the law worse? In my county, a sheriff’s deputy was shot in a raid on a prostitution ring. The Sheriff came out and rightfully praised the officer. A few days later it came to light that 2 other deputies had been clients of the prostitute. One had warned her of the impending raid and another had been giving her help in avoiding the police. They were allowed to resign (not be fired) thus keeping their retirement bennies in tact. The Sheriff is still on the job as well. In the town in which I live, an officer was illegally using the DMV to track an ex-lover and people she was having fights with in her private life. She wasn’t fired but suspended 40 hours. Her immediate superior and the Chief of Police are still on the job.… Read more »
So because he put it on Facebook and with that let his friends know that Olive Garden sucks he should be fired?
Have you never told anyone about shitty service you received? I know I have, and it had a lot better effect that privately talking to the manager and hoping he might do something.
The cop should go to his supervisor? What the fuck for? Where does his supervisor have authority to go to Olive Garden and complain? THAT would be the epitome of ‘whining like a 16 year old’!
Your argument is so much suck and fail.
I have told people about bad service. I have never told people about bad service invoking name of my company or profession in making the complaint. I never would tell my friends to “share this with all your friends.”
That’s just unprofessional on so many levels.
And yes, the right and professional thing to do is to talk to the manager or supervisor. Most managers know the procedures better than employees and if the employee acted improperly, they address the situation.
As for telling his supervisor, there are two things of note here. First, if Olive Garden had a policy dealing with weapons and specifically with weapons on police officers, the supervisor would want to know so he can perhaps address the situation with his counterpart at Olive Garden or to tell his charges not to bother going to Olive Garden with a weapon because if they are on duty, it will waste their allotted break / lunch time. Once again, the cop’s Facebook post was based on his position as a member of the department. I have never worked for any place where if you are speaking and bring up where you are employed, that someone in the chain of command does not want to know about it so they aren’t caught unawares by others asking question.
You also say that that going to a supervisor would be acting like a prissy 16 year old. I disagree, but we agree that the guy acted like a prissy teenager because AFTER his Facebook post, he told his supervisor. Therefore, according to your own standards, the guy acted like a teenager.
He was unprofessional. If we demand that the employee be fired for a mistake or acting unprofessionally, then he has to go as well.
Fair is fair.
Ahem, He was denied service because he was in uniform with a gun on his hip. That is the purpose for mentioning the outrageousness of the situation since even places that have legally posted that guns are not allowed are by statute not allowed to apply that to uniform or plain clothes Police.
It is inappropriate to “report it to his supervisor” in that it is not a PD matter, did not involve rules and procedures, nor will there be a prosecution for stupidity. The supervisor has no authority over OG or it’s employees so has nothing to do to remedy the situation. The Officer does still have his freedom to publically comment on the situation and did so. Trying to complain to his supervisor would indeed constitute “whining”. The Officers facebook is not based on his employment as he is not required to be an Officer to be on facebook. Quite a few folks indicate their profession on facebook as facebook asks that you do so as part of your background for everyone, not just LEOs. Perhaps he couild have asked to see the manager but then again if the “hostess” was “ramping up” might have caused a disturbance because of her irrational fear and that would have been unprofessional and reflected poorly on the Officer. We don’t know if that was the case ands you certainly don’t know.
I also don’t try to tell my friends not to share something. If it shouldn’t be shared, ie, a security matter, they wouldn’t hear about it from me anyhow. But I won’t try to micromanage their affairs or tell them what to do.
Bringing up what other officers or agencies did has no relevance. I think if we look at this with a small amount of (SHOCK) common sense and see that a uniformed police officer was asked to leave his weapon outside we can all see the stupidity in the employees actions. I don’t care what the experience level or age of the employee is that’s stupid on it’s face. All of the other incidents you cite are nothing more than smoke and mirrors.
I fail to see where the LEO broke the law… He may or may not have known about not being able to carry, yet when he was confronted, he simply replied, “Are you Serious?” Then when it was confirmed by the young lady he complied by leaving the establishment.
Again that’s called compliance…
#Blackliesmatter
If we allow stupid people to get away with it, if it doesn’t cost anything, then they will breed. Stupid should hurt, make them cold hungry poor friendless and left out. Stupid should have a price.
Always remember, that are about 155,000,000 Americans who are below average.
Does the media even know how to do journalism anymore? Here’s a story based on Holsworth’s account on Facebook followed by a corporate tweet from Olive Garden.
Back in the day, particularly if I was peckish, I would have probably called up the restaurant to get the name of the employee. If the restaurant refused the name, that would have been a fact that would have gone into the story. If the name was revealed, that person would have been contacted and given an opportunity to comment.
The world is filled with petty tyrants, including some in the law enforcement community, who go through life trying to make the rest of us miserable. They need to be held to account.
Are you trying to say the LEO lied in your opinion? Because it must have been a heck of a lie for the OG CEO to personally call Officer Holsworth and apologize according to the news report.
You missed my point, Pete. I have no reason at all to doubt Holsworth’s account of what happened. What I’m saying is that petty tyrants exist. They exist in the restaurant business, they exist in law enforcement, they exist in every other situation where humans deal with other humans.
The bigger problem here is that the restaurant employee, by being granted anonymity, is getting sheltered from the consequences of piss-poor decision making.
Okay. Thanks for the clarification.
The bigger problem here is that the restaurant employee, by being granted anonymity, is getting sheltered from the consequences of piss-poor decision making.
So the name of every employee of a private company who makes a mistake or has bad judgement must be publicized? Under what theory are you basing that upon?
Whatever discipline or the name of the employee is between the company and the employee.
But if you want to talk about a lack of disclosure of names, go ahead and Google the shooting of John Greer in Fairfax County, VA. Greer was shot by a unnamed policeman. According to statements of 4 other officers on the scene, Greer’s hands were raised and he presented no threat to anyone.
After being killed, the police refused to release the name of the shooter for over a year.
A YEAR.
It took a lawsuit and a judge’s order to get the authorities to release the name of the shooter who was on paid administrative desk work the entire time.
Can you think of another case where someone was shot in front of lots of witnesses including 4 cops and the shooter’s name was not released much less a determination on charges was still pending over a year after the incident? I can’t think of a single one.
You can also take a look at the state of Arizona whose governor this year vetoed a bill that would have prevented the name of a cop who shot someone from being released for 60 days.
Excuse me for having problems understanding why the names of public servants who shoot and kill people are shrouded in secrecy but the name of a person who breaks a private company rule and or exhibits horrible judgement must be “exposed.”
Why is it that regular Joe’s off the street do a “perp walk” in front of cameras immediately while officers accused of crimes are allowed to sneak in and out of the back door?
If we want people to somehow “be exposed,” then lets at least apply that principle to all people.
Gitar, while I can absolutely agree that sauce for the goose should be sauce for the gander, it seems to me you’ve got a logical fallacy going on of false equivalence. If a LEO is involved in a suspect shooting, there are potentially millions of dollars at stake in the form of taxpayer liability. This is true both from the standpoint of the shooting victim, and from the standpoint of the LEO who is granted certain rights pending the outcome of an investigation.
I’m also not talking about having “the name of every employee of a private company who makes a mistake or has bad judgement” publicized, and making them do a perp walk. The Olive Garden incident was not a mistake; a mistake is when a restaurant gets your order of eggs wrong. This was about an OG employee making, as it turns out, an arbitrary decision to publicly embarrass and humiliate a customer because he happened to be a cop carrying a weapon.
We also have no way of knowing if the OG incident was an error in judgment because the only one who can ultimately decide that is the OG employee. Would the employee now change the original decision to toss Holsworth, or leave it stand?
My main point, again, is that if somebody chooses to get in somebody’s face in a public setting, the default should not be an automatic cloak of anonymity. I have no problem with people during the normal course of things being granted the right of privacy, but can’t agree with the idea that it’s okay for the right of privacy to be used as a tool to avoid retribution when somebody is playing stupid little power games.
Perry, I would argue that police who break the law (or any public employee for that matter) have more of a duty to be disclosed to the public than a person working for a private firm. As for the “mistake,” you somewhat make my point for me. We don’t know what happened other than the cop’s version and other than the corporation admitting an employee was wrong. (There is no indication that the employee got in the officer’s “face.” Let’s not add to the incident unless we know facts.) This appears to be a hostess at Olive Garden and not a server as the officer says he was waiting to be seated. Usually hostesses are hired from other companies as it is an upgrade in position from server or hired from within. As there are other restaurants in the area that don’t allow weapons on their premises, the hostess could be coming from that environment and never told of the OG policy. She could be new on the job and doing what she thought was the right thing. The point is that we don’t know why the employee acted as they did. There are very few people amongst us who have not gone from one job to another and made a decision based upon what they knew at their previous job. There are very few people who have not heard the words “we don’t do that here.” There is no one who has not made a mistake in judgement on the job. No one. The difference here is that this employee screwed up in dealing with the public. Instead of her error taking place in a cubical, it took place “in front of God and everyone.” The CEO called the officer and said “we messed up.” Isn’t that good enough for public consumption? Why is it that we demand that others forgive us for our errors and demand a pound of flesh from everyone else who screws up? The bottom line is that OG admitted the mistake, says it won’t happen again and appears to have addressed the incident internally… Read more »
You are incorrect concerning an employee being sheltered from his/her consequence’s.
Corporate retains majority interest in any dealership/restaurant franchise. In the franchising contract with whomever acquires
said franchise in their locality, Corporate specifies guidelines for employee/employer relationship and code of conduct. Anything that puts Olive Garden or any other Corporation in a dim view of public, will be dealt with swiftly. Branding costs them major bucks, they won’t let a franchise employee tarnish the branding.
Street, Olive Garden didn’t throw Holsworth out on his ass, an employee working for Olive Garden did. Corporate can do all the damage control for the brand it wants, but it’s still a matter of putting the toothpaste back in the tube. The damage has already been done.
Then too, the employee indeed faces the indirect consequence of getting fired, but ask yourself this: Is the employee getting fired for what happened to Holsworth, or because what happened to Holsworth damaged the Olive Garden brand?
Street….perhaps there are exceptions to your assertion that “Corporations retain majority interest in any dealership/restaurant franchise” Case in point to absolute contradiction. That being none other than IHOP. In a particularly crappy setting, I walked out before my wife and I ate. Paid for the food, kept the receipt, and complained to Corporate. They showed absolutely NO, Nadda, Zero, Zilch, even remote interest in settling the bill and refunding my money as asked. No, they put it directly on the franchise owner and made it PERFECTLY CLEAR they were not the least interested in making good on a bad experience. A supposedly new franchise owner called me and offered a litany of excuses, but no refund. Told me we could get a free meal next time we were in the area, which happens to be nearly 300 miles north of our home. Maybe IHOP is the exception, I’d surely hope so. When your rest room has NO SOAP in either dispenser, how do you suppose cooks wash their hands?
When I used to work part-time at a McDonalds (where my daughter was one of the shift managers) we were more than happy to see one of the local officers or State Troopers come into our restaurant, especially when their mere presence would make the group of rowdy teens that had been hanging out in our lobby for an hour simply get up and leave. LEOs were always welcome at our restaurant.
A brand spanking new deputy came out yesterday to file a report. I asked if he had a permit for his sidearm and got the funniest damn look from him, then he busted out laughing. Handed him a cup of coffee, too. lol.