Thai Cops Forced To Wear "Hello Kitty" As Punishment

[KittyWampus]

Thai officials hope Hello Kitty can shame errant cops


BANGKOK, Thailand (AP) -- Thai policemen who break rules will be forced to wear hot pink armbands featuring "Hello Kitty," the Japanese icon of cute, as a mark of shame, a senior officer said Monday.


Hello Kitty is not something "macho police officers want covering their biceps," a Thai police chief says.

Police officers caught littering, parking in a prohibited area, or arriving late -- among other misdemeanors -- will be forced to stay in the division office and wear the armband all day, said Police Col. Pongpat Chayaphan. The officers won't wear the armband in public.

The striking armband features Hello Kitty sitting atop two hearts.

"Simple warnings no longer work. This new twist is expected to make them feel guilt and shame and prevent them from repeating the offense, no matter how minor," said Pongpat, acting chief of the Crime Suppression Division in Bangkok.

"(Hello) Kitty is a cute icon for young girls. It's not something macho police officers want covering their biceps," Pongpat said.

He said police caught breaking the law will be subject the same fines and penalties as any other members of the public.

"We want to make sure that we do not condone small offenses," Pongpat said, adding that the CSD believed that getting tough on petty misdemeanors would lead to fewer cases of more serious offenses including abuse of power and mistreatment of the public by police officers.

Hello Kitty, invented by Sanrio Co. in 1974, has been popular for years with children and young women. The celebrity cat adorns everything from diamond-studded jewelry, Fender guitars and digital cameras to lunch boxes, T-shirts and stationery.

http://www.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/asiapcf/08/06/thai.hello.kitty.ap/index.html

[YOY]

The CNN person also forgot the "Hello Kitty Massager"

Search for it yourself...yes it's a vibrator.

[YOY]

1. Dupe

n/t

[BlooInBloo]

2. lol! Macho *Thai* police? What are they - 115 lbs? lol!

[Bobbieo]

3. Do they know Joe Arapaio - the Az Sheriff who also favors pink?

[BlooInBloo]

4. Heh! I wasn't familiar with Arpaio - thanks!

[Richard Steele]

5. A very powerful Emperor used to do the same thing to punish his lackeys:

[NewJeffCT]

6. LOL - you just ruined Darth Vader forever

One of the all-time great movie villains, now a pink Hello Kitty wimp.

I guess that happened after the Death Star got blown up the first time?

http://nosheep.net/story/emperor-and-darth-vader-phone-call/

[Richard Steele]

8. Nah, George Lucas was YEARS ahead of everyone on that front.

But whoever put that costume together is a god-blessed GENIUS,
and that's a fact!

[KittyWampus]

7. that pink helmet looks too much like a dick-head

[ceile]

9. LOL!

:rofl: