The Man Will Get You

[Irving Patrick Freleigh]

Apparently I am 'The Man'. Or at least one of 'The Man'. I keep everybody down..apparently. Following procedures, wearing a 'uniform', and 'busting people' makes me 'The Man'.

Irving Da Clown
Don't Mess Around
Even Though The Man
Try To Keep Him Down....

I can't help but think of a religious analogy: "You'd better be good, or The Devil will get you."

What if I want the devil to get me because he has all the cool people?

[Ironclad Alibi]

"If you don't behave Santa won't get you anything but coal."

Make it a piece of coal that has been under a lot of pressure and heat, and I'll be very happy with it. Actually, Mrs. IA will be happy with it, but if she's happy, I'm happy.

[RecoveringKinkoid]

I used to date a cop. I wish I had a nickle for every time I met him for lunch while he was in uniform and had to listen to some stupid, short sighted idiot tell her kid "That policeman will put you in jail if you don't behave."

First off, way to make sure your kid runs from cops instead of to them if they need help sometime.

Second, the guy just wants to eat his lunch with his lady friend in peace, how about not include him in your family disfunction?

Third, are you really so ineffectual you have to invoke a total stranger to get control of your kid?

Gah.

[ShadowBall]

Aw hell, it's better than what I got told. Starting when I was about four, my mother and grandmother both told me that if I talked to any stranger whatsoever, they'll "take ya and rape ya." Now, being four, I had no idea what that word meant, so what effect they assumed it would have on me was probably lost.

What they neglected to mention was that some strangers - teachers, cashiers, police officers, nurses, etc. - were okay to talk to, especially if I happened to get lost. Then both of them were surprised when I was afraid of going to kindergarten every day and Mom had to come home and coax me out from under the kitchen table. Okay, not quite the same as trying to scare a kid into behaving, but still...why can't parents just be honest with their kids? If they do it right, punishment should put the fear of deities into a kid more than the Man or a policeman would.

[C. Cecil Ivanish]

Make it a piece of coal that has been under a lot of pressure and heat, and I'll be very happy with it. Actually, Mrs. IA will be happy with it, but if she's happy, I'm happy.

Hmm. Good point... would have been vaguely lost on the 5-year-old me, but now... well, Mrs. Ivanish is not a fan of jewellery, but I guess she wouldn't refuse it.

I used to date a cop. I wish I had a nickle for every time I met him for lunch while he was in uniform and had to listen to some stupid, short sighted idiot tell her kid "That policeman will put you in jail if you don't behave."
First off, way to make sure your kid runs from cops instead of to them if they need help sometime.

Aaaagh, I feel his pain!
I got it sometimes myself, just because I am a big person (not in terms of circumference - OK, not *only* in terms of circumference).
Thankfully my parents always taught me that the Police are "the good guys", that they are there to make sure that really bad guys are not allowed on the streets and so on... unfortunately I had an absolute terror of firearms, and in Italy all Policemen carry - and I knew that...