Policing

A sign in Amherst warns non-existent students to behave themselves.

The view from a street corner in the Florence section of Northampton.

Have you ever been to see the historic Turtle Boy statue in downtown Worcester? One of the creators was someone who worked on the Lincoln Memorial.

The statue is of a nude teen doing, well, something with a turtle. Whatever it is, the turtle doesn't look too happy about it.

The official name of the sculpture and surrounding area is The Burnside Fountain. Wikipedia has this to say about it:

The Burnside Fountain is a non-functioning drinking fountain at the southeast corner of Worcester Common in Worcester, Massachusetts. It consists of two parts, a pink granite basin, and a bronze statue of a nude teenaged boy riding a sea turtle. The basin was designed by architect Henry Bacon, who later designed the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., and the figure was created by sculptor Charles Y. Harvey. The Burnside Fountain was commissioned in 1905 by the city of Worcester and installed in 1912.

The bronze is officially named "Boy with a Turtle" but is known to locals as Turtle Boy, and has become an unofficial mascot for Worcester. The Burnside Fountain's popularity is derived partly from viewers' risqué misinterpretation of the statue. Over its 108 year existence, Turtle Boy has been referenced in stories and songs, as well as having a music contest and a microbrew named after it.


Wikipedia fails to mention, however, that a controversial blog is also named after the reptile riding kid. Turtleboy Sports is a political and cultural blog specializing in exposing under-reported or ignored stories dealing primarily with the Worcester area, but also dabbles in stories relating to other parts of the state, including the Pioneer Valley. Last week the site featured two jaw-dropping videos that will make you never want to work as a police officer in Northampton. The pay can't possibly be high enough to put up with this shit:





In passing, I should note that I have my own history with the Northampton Police Department, having been arrested by the NPD at least two or three times back in the day when I needed to do what I needed to do to get what I needed. Despite smoking craters where some memories should be, I would have to say that as far as I can recall they were completely professional in my interactions with them.

Hey everybody, have a great 4th of July weekend!