Why doesn't he retire ??

[Sgt. Geezer]

I forgot to ask the most important question. Is this guy doing a good job? Is he dragging the department down with him while he sinks, or is he swimming with the ebb and flow of the community he serves, and moving the department forward, developing the members of his department to be able to function without him?

I could generate a response that would wear out my fingers.
99.9% of the LEO community consider him to be a cartoon that's no longer funny. He used to have the nickname of Bufford but that transitioned over to Jabba.... because of physical appearance...literally.
He's usually covered with dirt and cat hair on his dark uniform and his knit tie contains much of what he has eaten for several months. He misses a high percentage of his radio calls until someone tips him off via cellphone because he forgets to turn his radio up. The dispatchers are amongst many who wish he would just go away. On a personal level he's attained the reputation of being a beggar and a user... the prior because he hits the restaurant everyday at the same time to "bag the lunch special leftovers". The inside windshield of the patrol usually has snotballs from his sneezes and the unit has a very special smell.
I could elaborate for an hour but the quick answer is "He would not be missed a second". Actually he was involved in a car accident a couple years ago and was out 6 months. Things got better while he was gone.

AND... I think your earlier response was the most insightful.

[holfo000]

I worked with a sergeant that had over 30 years of service, his house was paid for, and the difference between his take-home and what he would have made from his pension made it so he was working for about $0.75 per hour. But he believed that if he retired, he would die. Eventually, he did retire. He was dead 45 days later.

To off set that sad story...

One of my co-worker's dad retired from the job just shy of twenty years ago. He is doing great. Just got back from a cross country road trip to visit relatives all over the country including Alaska.

[Tim Dees]

First you have to realize that you are not indispensable.

That was one area where I had no false notions. I spent the last six years of my "regular" police career (the part that didn't involve being a court officer or a reserve) on the graveyard shift, and I was the 2nd or 3rd most senior officer on the shift. I had been an FTO for maybe a third of the guys there, so I was kind of a mentor from their perspective (the advice was free, and worth at least twice that). As I got close to leaving, one officer told me, "It won't be the same without you here." I replied, "Go into the men's room, fill the sink with water, and stick your fist into it. Pull your hand out, and notice the hole that remains. That's what it will be like three days after I'm gone. Maybe less."

I still tell stories about them, and they about me, but life and the job goes on.

[Dinosaur32]

As a "Dinosaur", I try to impart some wisdom of my age to the younger officers. As others have stated, we must realize there is a life beyond the job. There are a myriad of educational and occupational opportunities out there. You've got time use it to plan your futeure go back to school, take up a trade (even if it starts as a hobby). While there's nothing wrong with building friendships with your co-workers, we all do, you want to develop other friendships and interests.