Hopefully - the publishing of the report into the circumstances of Chief Constable Michael Todd's private life will draw a line under the whole sad, sorry story.
Needless to say, the Daily Mail covered the story in lurid detail, and the fact remains, the whole matter was a tragedy for his family and friends, as well as deeply embarassing I guess, for his wife and children.
That said, the point remains that as a leader of a large UK force, a Chief Constable no less, he really ought to have been beyond reproach.
I am seriously in danger of sounding like a reactionary, dyed-in-the-wool Daily Mailite, but after nearly 14 years of policing the (mainly)underclass, and their disputes and domestics and fall-outs has left me with a few very firm beliefs on how people should behave - as opposed to how they actually do.
To simplify my views on personal morality (yes, I know how that sounds...) it goes something like this:
1. Affairs lead to family breakdowns (Nothing too contraversial here?)
2. Broken families lead to chaotic child rearing (Think custody battles - absent parents, children growing up without boundaries, role models, adequate supervision, care and love...)
3. Children brought up in chaotic environments are at risk of offending (and at risk of being exploited, victimised, bullied and so on... and I don't remember dealing with many juvenile offenders where child, mother and father all shared the same surname - even when a full family group was present.)
4. Children who have had a bad upbringing make for awful role models for their children... (Because - yes - it does run in families - many of my older colleagues remember the 'appropriate adults' of today who attend with juvenile offenders (i.e. their offsprong) were themselves regular visitors to the cells in their younger days.)
and on it goes. Like a dreary cycle.
Simple - yes - too simple, maybe. But a report by the Children's Society - namely a Good Childhood bemoans the selfish attitudes of adults (for which read parents...) and how this leads to the outcomes I've mentioned above.
Just think 'Mummy needs some space dear, that's why I'm leaving to be with Roger... don't worry, I'll send money... and we'll go skiing next spring...' Because when middle class people behave like that, it's OK - it's fine - it's normal - it does no harm. Yet the chattering classes are quite happy to leap on Karen Matthews as being a piss-poor mother, with children to different fathers - and no doubt a string of ex's and a complicated family tree. Is it just me, or does that smack of eye-watering hypocrisy?
The author of the Children's Society report is a Labour life peer - so Richard Layard is hardly a swivel-eyed right wing nutter, which perhaps put my views and observations somewhere in the political centre (but not necessarily on a fence).
Which makes me feel better.
So, I am saying in a roundabout way that there is a chain of infidelity in relationships with the former Chief Constable Michael Todd (or Robin Cook, David Blunkett, Archer, Parkinson et al) at one end, and Wayne MacSlapper shagging Tracy Giro round the back of the community centre at the other end of the social spectrum.
And as a leader of men (including women, trans people, and everyone else who wants their own category to celebrate their individual brand of diversity), a Chief Constable who behaves like a [ insert your own euphemism or term here - I prefer 'dog with two dicks'] really does let the side down, and despite the glowing praise for his achievements, as a role model - which surely is part of such a high profile job - he was sorely lacking.
As a final note, having served in quite a few police stations, I can tell you that the common or garden Bobby loves nothing more than a bit of gossip. As a result, 'office' or workplace affairs stay secret for a very short space of time - some become legendary - others the source of scandal and gossip - but they are often very disruptive - breaking up teams, squads, units, shifts, blocks, scales, reliefs, groups - call them what you will. Staff are moved under a cloud - lockers are emptied, desks are cleared. Tolerance is pretty low - so if it's not OK for a PC, Sergeant or the Inspector - does that mean it's OK for higher ranks?
Course not.
Sgt Grumpy.
Your post serves common agreement yet it remains a pity that you recall nothing specific in the work of the late Mr Todd for which he was admired.
ReplyDeleteI met an old colleague recently, and his first question was, "are you still giving one to *****, the Supts clerk. What. I never had nor did I want to, not what I heard says he. Just goes to show, I was a rabbit and did not know it. Rumour control 0/10.
ReplyDeleteExpecting people to be 100% "beyond reproach" is an impossible ideal and very unrealistic, because people are only human, not divine and flawless. The press are a pain in the ass and stir up a great deal of trouble when they find a "victim" who is less than perfect, who they can then rip to bits, verbally, to humiliate them. It's very "Roman", and rather than become their sacrifice, poor old Mike Todd fell on his sword, so to speak, on Snowdon.
ReplyDeleteBut there is far more to his tragic end than has been told to the public. Real scandal, about which Mike Todd was deeply ashamed and wanted to do the right thing, as a cop and a human being who had "fallen" into a trap. He left letters of confession and apology, to put the matter right, in a final act of integrity, but they were covered up, lied about and some were destroyed. YES, evidence of crimes were destroyed in an act of cowardice and betrayal of Mike Todd, who wanted to redeem his soul in the afterlife. He was dishonoured in that final act, and the truth was swept under the carpet, to "save face" and guilty corrupted men. And YES, all the smearing of and laying the blame upon Karen Matthews WAS the most disgusting act of hypocrisy, ever, considering.
Had the truth come out last year, it probably would have been embarrassing for GMP, and others involved in wrong doing, and especially for Mike Todd's wife and family. But making a scapegoat out of Shannon's terrified mother is the greater sin, for which, those who really should know better, should feel deeply ashamed of themselves.
There is a Lord God Almighty, who watches over us and knows ALL our thoughts, words and deeds. Those who have done wrong and tried to cover it all up and escape justice have incurred very bad karma, for which they will eventually pay, by means of spiritual justice. No one ever escapes it. Hence the spiritual teaching, of "Do as you would have done unto you".
Fee,fi,fo,fum. A whiff of Rogerborg here.
ReplyDeleteAlways difficult to set up a new blog and get a regular following so well done for trying and keep going. Obviously I am not the author of the previous posts .
ReplyDeleteAnonymous who posted on 24 Feb 2009. Your comments are good, there is much too much of the Michael Todd story left unsaid, things that would have painted a whole different story. Was the search for him commenced soon enough with enough men or was it delayed by Todd's old colleague from the MET Ian Blair a man who had tried to sell Todd out once before. I believe that Michael did leave letters but what was said in some of these was maybe not beneficial to some people, Michael knew a lot of 'influential' people and knew things about them that they would not want spread across the tabloid front pages, there has always been more to this than Michael’s affairs, did GMP let him down in his hours of need, yes, I think they did and they know that.
ReplyDeleteHow come the media never got near the main named woman in this case Angie Robinson, what was done to ensure nothing ever really appeared about her, is it true that Michael threatened her and her rat like husband, good for him if he did, but this would be covered up to save face for Michael, but he would realise that by doing this he had destroyed his career the one thing that mean so much to him, the one steady thing in his life and had been since he was 16.
Why was he living alone for so long, 6 yrs in Manchester then another 4 yrs in London, who wouldn’t be having affairs under those circumstances. This fact of course was mostly discarded by the press mainly because a headline similar to ‘Chief who lives alone has affairs’, just would not sell papers would it.
Why wasn’t the press coverage moderated as it should have been to protect at least his children, his wife not really sure what went on there. She claims that he badly needed help but seemed to be ok letting him live alone for most of the time, not a good mix with depression is loneliness. But she has her reasons no doubt. But maybe not quite the innocent victim in all of this as she has been made out to be. The poor cheated on wife act seemed too convenient. Sorry if this seems cruel and ill informed but not fair that Michael should have all the blame laid at his feet when he could not defend himself, maybe his letters had given a very good defence but would sink others. Michael was a very intelligent man, I can’t see that he would not have left letters at least to his children, he would know how devastated they would be. I think he would want to say something to them.
Why hasn’t anyone ever really defended him, his brother hasn’t said a word in his favour in fact he hasn’t said a word at all, his wife I can understand not saying too much but were they ‘silenced’.
Michael in spite of his infidelities was worthy of a better final send off than a secret funeral, the media had put paid to that with their disgusting behaviour.
A public and fitting funeral would have helped to give vital closure to those who loved Michael and not just in the romantic sense of the word.
It has all been too convenient to lay it all on him, the searching of suicide websites, depression etc. Why would he search websites he had been a street cop he would know how to commit suicide as do most people, there have been reports in the great News of The World speaking of porn and sex toys found hidden in his office, why would a man with a flat of his own where he would not be disturbed not much more than 10 minutes away from his office hide things like that in his office?
Michael was sold out after his death for the benefit of others well I hope they can live with themselves. For those who knew him the pain still goes on, no closure has been achieved
Rest in Peace Michael you are missed.