Can you trust this man? Absolutely. He’s one of Idaho Falls’ finest.
On a trial basis, I’m allowing tightly trimmed goatees for our police officers. This is an action I’ve been contemplating for several years.
Wearing a goatee 30 years ago was considered a bad-boy counter-culture statement dating back to the beatniks in the 1950s and hippies of the 1960s. The meaning of the style has changed, but those of us in the older generation may not perceive it that way. Go way back and goatees were worn by respected leaders such as Abraham Lincoln.
Professional people of all walks of life – doctors, judges, school teachers, etc. often times wear goatees. In fact, many police departments across the nation are open to them and even the FBI now allows them on their agents.
From my perspective, they don’t represent the bad-boy look of the past generation, but they might to some people. I don’t want facial hair on a police officer to be a distraction for the public – even a minority of the public, unless it is a small minority.
Up until now, I’ve believed it was a matter of time before facial hair wasn’t equated with a bad-guy look. Has that time arrived? In four months, I'm going to reevaluate. In the meantime, let me know what you think.
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