"They think they know police work"

[@robbiewoods6285]

"You might think it'll be different when you sit here. But it won't. You will eat their shit. Daniels too, when he gets here." That's the thesis statement of the whole show. The real characters in The Wire are the institutions, not the people who merely pass through them. It doesn't matter how good an apple you are when the barrel itself is rotten.

[@letsgetcancer7265]

You are a wise man. Great quote!

[@mrjooxmanallah]

Best analysis of the show I’ve read. People tend to focus on the cycle without realizing the ugly, flawed machine which slowly, but gradually turns us all around.

[@mrbobtehbuildah]

You want it to be one way, but it's the other way.

[@metodoinstinto]

But you CAN make a difference, for the good or the bad. Carver learns that at the end of season 4 and he tells Herc that. I get what you're saying, but I disagree. The game is rigged like Bodie says, but there are people on this world making it better, everyday and everywhere. Too bad politicians (Royce) and big businessmen (Clay Davis) want to keep their power and screw us while we're at it. But people do matter and they do make a difference. What you wrote sounds like an excuse not to give a damn and try.

[@robbiewoods6285]

​@@metodoinstinto The Wire isn't completely divorced from the idea of personal improvement. Carver is redeemed. Pryzbylewski is redeemed. Bubbles is redeemed. But the fact that Carver becomes a decent cop doesn't make the BPD a force for good. Pryzbylewski's devotion doesn't mean the school system works. Bubbles overcomes his past just as Dukie steps right into his place. Despite everything that happens in five seasons, we end up exactly where we started. Sydnor becomes McNulty. Mike Lee becomes Omar. The people change, but the roles they play remain the same, and that's the larger point. That doesn't mean we should lay down and die. It means the real solutions to social problems are systemic, not individualistic.

[@Emil.Emil99]

Burrell gets fired for giving false stats but Daniels gets fired for giving the true stats, by the same guy

[@SuperImmunologist]

So which one is it😂

[@vesuvyan]

@@SuperImmunologist That is Burrel's point here. There are no right answers; it isn't incompetence but the nature of the system. All you do is eat shit.

[@Delightfully_Witchy]

*^Yes.*

[@hailacrunch4937]

Holy shi I never realized that. Carcretti is such a hypocrite

[@jamespatillo3742]

Daniels wasn’t fired he resigned

[@stevecrumpton9643]

Some years back, I met Mr. Faison in front of a small theater in West Orange, NJ, where he was to be performing. I told him that I was a retired police officer, and commended him on how incredibly well "The Wire" completely nails urban policing. I also told him how much I hated his character because, that was also, true to life. We both laughed when he said, "then I must be doing my job right." Absolute getleman.

[@yomoms16]

Some years He lived in West Orange . Dont know if he still does , Ive seen in several time times in west orange . Until one time i asked him . Lol .. pretty chill guy . He said this is his town . I live here😂

[@K4PO]

🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥

[@mikem591]

Mr. Faison seems like a great guy. Probably what made his character so compelling. You could sense Burrell had the potential to be a decent guy and cop, but he chose the dark side.

[@tommyodonovan3883]

@@mikem591 when push comes to shove... all choose the DS.

[@romancandle416]

Cool story. And it's been my experience that most actors prefer to play "bad guys" anyway...especially when they are three-dimensional characters like Chief Burrell.

[@F0Exception]

"Daniels too, when he gets here." One last parting shot at Rawls before he rolled off into resignation and he hit him where it hurt too.

[@KFire]

Great catch. Explains rawls' reaction to his comment.

[@ShadowSonic2]

@stirange It was also because Rawls is white, and the politics of Baltimore mean that you can have a white Mayor and a black commissioner, a black mayor and a black commissioner...but not a white mayor and white commissioner.

[@ShadowSonic2]

@stirange When Rawls and Valchek discussed Daniels being groomed to take over, Valchek said the odds of Rawls ever being Commissioner were slim due to him not being a "Native" (Black) and Carcetti realizing he needed a black Commissioner because he was white came up in S4.

[@spearofconquest]

@Johnny S Not really. Baltimore is a black city, just like ATL. Is it an issue where a white city in Vermont or Utah, where it's understand a white man will hold the position of Mayor or Police Commissioner? The police commission for Baltimore right now is a black man. The mayor in ATL is a black woman. There are currently no white mayors or police commissions in Vermont or Utah. However, Mia Love, was the first black person ever to become a mayor in Utah and the first ever black republican to ever be elected to Congress.....IN 2010. Is that racist? No. It's just politics and how the world works. Do you expect the next PM for the UK to be an Indian or Asian man? Nope. Same principal.

[@spencer9093]

@stirange you nailed it!

[@theryanbard]

For all his faults, I always respected Burrell for this scene and the scene in season 1 at the hospital where he takes it upon himself to go explain Kima's condition to her girlfriend after the gutless commissioner refuses to do so.

[@bullmilk]

theryanbard He was a monster of the system’s making. Burrell and Rawls were just playing the game by the rules they were given.

[@RamKumar-yi6wn]

Nope both Rawls and Burrel were hacks. They don't deserve respect. It's men like these who act as glue for the corrupt system to stay the same. Daniels now,he deserves our respect.

[@EMCF_]

@@RamKumar-yi6wn You're both right.

[@MRIDDLE72]

theryanbard you give a man props for doing the right thing? Rawls and Burrell were both scumbags. Doing what suits their own best interests over the greater good. Choosing yourself over a million lives is fuck shit!

[@McKurdi]

Ram Kumar Colvin was #1 no doubt, Daniels would do just about anything his bosses told him to do.

[@Jaycee37]

That was the realest he ever got on the show as a character. It showed that he understood who he was and who he was not.

[@ShadowSonic2]

It's just too bad they had to wait until his very last scene to show us this.

[@nicorsar]

Classic joke: Newly elected Chief has 3 letters on his desk. Former chief has left a note, "open in order of major catastrophe." Few months goes along, major event (e.g., unlawful police shooting), chief opens letter #1, which says "Blame Me." He does. Smooths things over for a while. A year later, major event #2 happens (e.g., police corruption case), letter says "reorganize the department." Chief reorders. All is well. 6 months later another major event happens, letter #3 reads "write three letters."

[@Kira1Lawliet]

I like to imagine that Burrell kicked someone else out of that seat many years ago and got this exact same advice from that person, and now he's just passing his wisdom down to the next guy.

[@ShadowSonic2]

There was another Commissioner in S1, but he seemed even worse than Burrell.

[@justinbriley2531]

"When Nikita Khrushchev was forced out as leader of the Soviet Union, he sat down and wrote two letters to his successor Leonid Brezhnev. He said, “When you get yourself into a situation you can’t get out of, open the first letter, and you’ll be safe. When you get yourself into another situation you can’t get out of, open the second letter”. Brezhnev soon found himself in a difficult situation, so he opened the first letter. It said, “Blame everything on me”. So he blamed Khrushchev for everything, and it worked. Eventually, he got himself into a second difficult situation he couldn’t get out of, so he opened the second letter. It said, “Sit down, and write two letters”."

[@Delightfully_Witchy]

@Justin_Briley I wish I had a name for this emotion I'm feeling after hearing that...

[@Angelpic83]

@@justinbriley2531 Traffic

[@Proph3t3N]

All these stories with Nikita Khrushchev are very interesting, like with speech he gave after Stalin's death. But, let's not forget that he was a monster in human skin, like all these soviet high ranking scum. So I'd say these are pure fiction stories made to humanize him. Nice anegdote nevertheless.

[@thestranger4812]

I love how every single character in The Wire turns out to be three-dimensional, even the bureaucratic assholes you hated in S1.

[@sprint3587]

He's still a hack, but he was due for one humanising moment.

[@drtony1000]

@@sprint3587 Yea and that scene where he comforted kima's partner.

[@AdanBean]

This is what made S5 the weakest. It was the first time they broke this rule. Gus was never tainted and Scott was never virtuous. Going from 12/13 eps to 10 for that last season was brutal to development

[@madgavin7568]

@@AdanBean It was pretty clear David Simon had an axe to grind with The Baltimore Sun as he depicted them in S5, no doubt based on his own personal experiences working for them. In a way its somewhat truthful, but at the same time also quite selfish and bitter. Its strange how though that despite being the 'worst' Season of The Wire, S5 still has some of the best writing of any TV show I can think of. I guess it speaks to how highly we think of the earlier Seasons of the show when S5 is criticized for not being up to standards of the earlier seasons. Ergo, if you rated Seasons 1-4 a 10/10, S5 would be a 9/10.

[@PCarDriver87]

I like how Burrell made Rawls laugh and then scare the shit out of him without even trying. Best acting ever.

[@811chelseafc]

Amazing how in a 1 minute scene, a pretty despicable character is made sympathetic. Incredible show.

[@marks_sparks1]

Most tv series through history have 1 or 2 memorable fleshed out characters that you'll know by name instantly. The Wire has at least 30 memorable characters that you remember by name and action. This is what put this series on a pedestal compared to the other formulaic cops vs robber stories on both small and big screen

[@ShadowSonic2]

Well, we saw he was a human in S1 when he comforted Kima's girlfriend.

[@molasorrosalom4846]

Wouldn't say he was despicable, truth of the matter is, when you reach a certain rank on the job, you become more of a politician than a police officer.

[@davidmalik9821]

Wait a minute ... which one are you talking about ...?

[@wiiplayxbox360]

He’s talking about Burrell.

[@DaleRobby]

He is hurt so badly he can't even share a moment with Rawls. He reminds him at the end that he is only acting Commissioner. Occupying space until the black man takes the job. It's a comment that says "we are not friends, get off my desk".

[@prolifik5]

Can't blame him after how Rawls tried to backstab him in Season 4.

[@aaronbradley3232]

Because Rawls fucked him over

[@KK-pm7ud]

Why would he care about Rawls? Burrell set up that whole conversation to twist the knife in at the end. Shut him up real quick.

[@imminentrueage6400]

What cemented my hate for Burrell and Rawls was the way they blackmailed and demoted Colvin by threatening his officers, and the way he went out of his way to ruin his post-police career.

[@Taospark]

As much as we cheer on Colvin, he did basically break about twenty different laws so he got off easy considering.

[@imminentrueage6400]

Nah, I think going out of your way to ruin someone's retirement after firing them already is beyond a line IMO.

[@andrew7taylor]

He may have broken twenty laws, but the "quality of life" of the drug dealers, the junkies and those out of the game all improved. And that's what matters, right? ;)

[@Taospark]

andrew7taylor The reason Colvin did that is because it helped the quality of life of EVERYONE in the neighborhood so the violence and other suffering would decrease. A city in upstate New York is trying just that.

[@andrew7taylor]

+Plowbeast - That's what I'm talking about! By the way, which city is that? So I could read up on it and shit...

[@tperri123]

Lmao, Burrell seriously sticks it to Rawls when he mentions Daniels. And Rawls knows he's right too.

[@paulwartenberg8479]

Irony: when Daniels DID get that chair, when they came to Daniels to juke the stats, he refused and quit. That was the difference, Erv.

[@CurtisBond]

Brilliant scene in a series full of them. The wire really illustrated how there is so much gray area within an institution. We always want to assign labels to people and/or things. We always want things to be black and white, good or bad. But with so many strands in a web, that's rarely ever the case.

[@Kruppt808]

Curtis Bond , so well put, in many shows they make it simple, black and white, protagonist/antagonist, Timmy trapped in a well, Lassie call for help, Timmy saved. The Wire finds you changing your mind from scene to episode, season to season on certain characters and events.

[@charlesmaynard2236]

Intelligent observation!

[@mrross1606]

Curtis Bond well said

[@mrross1606]

Charles Maynard indeed

[@cgat5]

Very well said. It’s not just Baltimore gentleman, it’s life!

[@tudorgrigoriu7335]

Somebody should answer that god damn phone. Every police station clip has that phone ringing and ringing and ringing

[@eightysbaby8798]

@Richard Kelbe hahahaha

[@KV9599]

Now you know why they show up hours late to a call

[@cdubbau135]

I think that was the point. The eternal ringing of the phone showing that cops, for all the "good" they do,or try to do, are fighting a war they are losing, but the battle must rage on.

[@Activated_Complex]

“It’s just gonna be that Smollett kid, like it always is. We wasted four patrol units last week searching Druid Hill Park for a damn wolf. Again.”

[@leonbrooks2107]

Ever phoned the police for information... you are on hold for ages 🤷‍♂️🤣

[@mikem591]

You can tell Franky Faison had theatre acting training. He brought a lot of skill and depth to his role as Burrell. It also added to that Shakespearean element of the Wire.

[@emmanuela7528]

Was about to type this when I read your comment. His acting is very theatre-like. Himself and Wood Harris; you can see their theatre training coming through.

[@milesmcstylez]

Is it a Shakespearean element, or is it the Dickensian aspect?

[@butchmagnus1699]

I can kind of relate to this. I was up for promotion and they made me an acting team leader of a production shift (I work in manufacturing). The upper management pulled 3 of my resources because of temp budget constraints for the remainder of the year. So I had no guys to relieve the others while they are on their lunch breaks, so I every time one had to go to lunch, the line would eventually stop and that dropped our efficiency. The upper management then threatened me to pass me over for the promotion if I don't make do with what I had (meaning I had to force the guys not to take their lunch breaks). I obliged and this caused a problem with the union because, understandably, the guys got pissed. The upper management tried to throw me under the bus but luckily I had everything on record. But they said they don't remember telling me to deny the guys their lunch break, they just told me to make do with resources I have. But, since I'm also part of a union, my rep asked them what they expected to do? That is how I got off the hook. I got the promotion, but not in the same department, I guess the HOD saw me as a problem. I'm happy at my current position though. It is less stressful.

[@swampfoxx81]

I’ve been in LE for 9 years. I don’t know who the writers are of this show, but they nailed the politics of law enforcement. Absolutely nailed it.

[@wonderwondertwins]

One of the co-creators of the show, David Simon, was a journalist covering crime on the streets of Baltimore before creating a mini-series before The Wire called The Corner and writing a book about the Baltimore police, drug, and gang issues. He was knee-deep in the inner workings of the facets of the 'drug war' and how Baltimore faced that issue.

[@ShadowSonic2]

David Simon's partner was a former Baltimore Detective as well. He brought 20 years of real Police Experience to their work.

[@budders9958]

"you will eat their shit," so true in all work places.

[@anthonygerace332]

Yup. And if you're a REALLY good employee, you will tell them how tasty it is!

[@JimmySteller]

Burrell was wrong about Daniels. He refused to take a bite of shit and chose to step down instead.

[@madgavin7568]

Burrell didn't know it at the time because was used to dealing with careerists his whole life, as they're the ones who usually ascend to the top job while the ones who aren't become Unit or District Commanders at the very most due to their unwillingness to 'play the game' and prefer to instead do Police work. Daniels was probably the first Baltimore Police Commissioner in decades who had an any ounce of integrity, too bad his tenure was brief.

[@asavelakuse6865]

​@@madgavin7568 it's always the brightest flowers that get plucked quick

[@madgavin7568]

@@asavelakuse6865 The tragic thing is Daniels could have stayed on for a long time and enacted real change in the BPD had he had a good Mayor to work with who wasn't interested in stat juking; a bit like Carcetti before he became corrupted by the system.

[@dc4296]

I think Burrell was one of the more despicable people in the show. His schemes against the Major Crimes officers and the Department in the general may have caused more harm than most of the drug dealers themselves. But he did make his point, the fault wasn't his alone, in fact he was actually following public policy most of the time.

[@FrankRiverfr]

He did fucked when he pulled the investigation on the witness murder, but other then that he was following orders

[@spinmaster0]

@@FrankRiverfr To be fair, Mayor Royce was not explicit on what he wanted. Even Odell pointed that out to him afterwards ("I was at that damn meeting when you told him 'Slow the case down'!") before he broke rank and left him.

[@iDropPhats]

Such a good scene here, Rawls was so caught up in getting the title that he had no idea what kind of baggage came with it. This was the scene where he realized as you move up, all you do is eat shit from people with more power than you, and it continues all the way to the top and beyond. The irony of the scene is that Rawls not only realizes that Daniels has more momentum and will be commissioner eventually, but also that the job he so desperately wanted really amounts to nothing more than a glorified slave to politicians and the others playing the game. The position he coveted so dearly is now damn near worthless because he now knows he’ll just be doing the same thing everyone else does… eating shit, just with a higher title.

[@carlweston4808]

All very true but let’s not forget about the pay bump 😂

[@jlking8724]

@@carlweston4808 is more steak dinners and a nicer car worth it for the headache and stress that comes with that level of leadership?

[@M.L.official]

Eating shit doesn't really stop unless you're deep state level

[@rivahkillah]

Sure he'll be eating shit, but people forget that you're eating shit at every level, and as you move up you're eating shit from less people. If those danger people want to make Rawls eat shit before he's commissioner, he'll have to do it. If Burrell wants to make him eat shit, Rawls will have to do it. As you move up, less people can make you eat shit.

[@Onigirli]

@@jlking8724 M-maybe. I mean why do people stick around with it?

[@mikem591]

Burrell was perfectly cast. Great acting.

[@majedeeh]

Carcetti fooled us all!

[@majedeeh]

@Masster Gunnz I understand that. But he didn't have to fuck Colvin over or blackmail Daniels into juking the stats.

[@KK-pm7ud]

Well, part of it was Carcetti. Part of it was Carcetti's people doing it

[@argylemanni280]

@@KK-pm7ud Listening to advisers instead of going with their instincts has undone many a politician. He wasn't tempted by the governor position until his underlings dangled it so they could ride his coattails another step up the ladder.

[@wittylibrarian]

When Daniels did get there, and the moment came for Daniels to eat Carcetti's shit... Daniels refused and walked away. Burrell never understood Daniels, always thought Daniels was angling for promotions, never believed it when Daniels told him he didn't sabotage or push Burrell into retirement. This was Burrell's flaw: He got compromised by the political corruption and didn't care about it until it was too late.

[@brohan914]

Love how nobody in this show is beyond redemption. This scene shows how Burell was as much a creature of the system as a reason for how fucked up it was.

[@photonoasis664]

Marlo and Valchek though?

[@ShadowSonic2]

Valchek was explained, he was a jackass kid who wanted the badge because he thought it would give him power over everyone around him. He was a bully who never grew out of it. Herc too, basically.

[@photonoasis664]

What I meant was, Valchek is beyond redemption. David Simon, in interviews, is recurringly perplexed when people come up to him and say, "aww gee, everyone has good and bad qualities." and his usual retort is, "Even Valchek?"

[@prolifik5]

@@photonoasis664 Yeah I always find it funny too. Like, what are Marlo's redeeming qualities? His love of pigeons? What the show does is make even the most awful people believable and not just cackling maniacs who are evil just for the sake of it - but they're still awful people!

[@brohan914]

@@photonoasis664 that's a really good point. Marlo too. A lot of sociopaths have a strange soft spot for animals.

[@jasona8964]

This is the second time Rawls is told Daniels will be getting his job lol.

[@madgavin7568]

Goes to show that for all of Rawl's deft political manoeuvring within the Department, the job he coveted the most; the top job (Commissioner), was essentially worthless once he finally got to it. But it perhaps wasn't all for naught as Rawls was eventually placed as Superintendent of the Maryland State Police.

[@coulsdonalevelfilmandmedia6070]

love Rawls inching his way onto the desk

[@spicypickle889]

"Daniels too, when he gets here." *Headshot.*

[@zulusmith]

So many top-tier performances by so many actors on the same show.

[@kylenielsen5341]

This is an absolutely perfect summation of why Burrell and Rawls are the way that they are. It's the system and the expectations that make the people like this.

[@CurtisBond]

This scene reminds me of a scene from season 4 when the newly-elected Carcetti is chatting up with a former Baltimore Mayor. Carcetti, fresh off his election victory, is obviously exuberant, but the former Mayor provides him with a word of caution: "you will eat everyone's shit". It's so remarkable how everything comes full circle in this show, even without direct reference. Simply amazing.

[@iandhr1]

+Curtis Bond Great scene. I also like the scene when Carcetti is talking to Norman about the ministers wrongful arrest by Herc. If he boots Herc off the force every cop in town would hate him. If he doesn't the African Americans you just voted for him would hate him. Carcetti said "yummy my first bowl of shit"

[@NYCentralSpotter1070]

And then Burrell literally saved Carcetti's ass by finding a new way to resolve the problem with Herc.

[@iandhr1]

Yup. That enabled Burrell to keep the top job for longer,

[@samuelmuiruri4704]

this is a political problem but the wire is trully a masterpiece and you see bureaucratic paralysis / poverty as the call it. you go in hopeful you leave sadder and wiser. daniels , colvin were realistic so they did as they could but the game was the game so they washed their hands of it

[@mikem591]

Burrell had a warm side that he used to draw a person in to let down their guard, then he would go in for the attack. He did that deftly with Rawls. He started by telling his sob story about carrying the mayors water. Rawl sits on his desk thinking they are having a warm moment together. Then with Rawls guard down he gets bold and says Rawls will eat their shit and same with Daniels once he replaces Rawls. He knew the issue of Daniels replacing was a vulnerable point with Rawls and Burrell gladly pushed that button. Burrell was very good in the manipulation business and better then Rawls at it. Rawls was awful but generally a person knew where you stood with him when they walked in his office. With Burrell they would leave with a sick feeling they had been played and he represented the ugly, corrupt side of the power structure - even as he was heading out the door.

[@vdubmerc3]

One of the few times Rawls was speechless.

[@DaveMiller2]

The caliber of writing and acting on this show is astounding. And it never wavered.

[@billybatts8283]

Burrell was once real police I believe, we don't see it much but in season 1 when deputy of Ops he flat out sees where the investigation is heading in the first episode and talks with some knowledge of policing, he knows what to avoid to keep it going above the streets. Rawls runs circles round him in terms of police work, proven throughout but then Daniels in a lower position knows more than Rawls. The higher you go, the further away from police you become until one day you're a political punching bag. But, Burrell leaves office in dignity with the public and in a position far greater than what he had, respect.

[@madgavin7568]

Wouldn't say 'real Police'. Burrell wasn't the smartest cop nor was he ever the most competent. Its shown through the show that Rawls is both smarter than Burrell and has better Police instincts. At best, I'd say Burrell was once an average cop who made the right friends with higher ups and did the 'right' deeds for his superiors (including throwing colleagues under the bus) which enabled him to climb the ladder and eventually get the top job.

[@Mrius86]

3 whores from Patterson Park disliked this video.

[@raoulhery]

The real Iron throne and Valchek ends up being the KING

[@Elamdri]

Valcheck was a sycophant, he'd do well.

[@englandgoals9672]

Salvador Allende Nah, the commisioner is a pawn of the Mayor. Burrell was pocketed by Royce and Campbell tried to do the same to Daniels.

[@lakerfan3118]

He had the best story

[@sethzwicker3631]

Yep, Valchek had a great deal of influence as we saw. Think about how he got into Burell's face in season 2, "You gave me humps!" and the way he mocked Rawls in season 4 for being white, "You ain't one of the natives! Haha!". He was powerful enough to become Chief as an old white guy.

[@illegalewahrheiten2911]

@@englandgoals9672 Valchek don't give a fuck. He rose as high as a police could. Higher than a white man should expect.

[@Eplayerj]

This is what’s so real about this show. The creators didn’t fabricate real life stories they lived it. Burrell said you will eat shit too. The former mayor told Carcetti he will eat the shit also from all his supporters. This is what’s so real and compelling about this show. The best damn show ever.

[@voss134]

1:02 mayors/city govt does this all the time too lol

[@UptownNYC]

The Wire's writing was soo good... as much as I ABSOLUTELY HATED Burrell and his corrupt ways I still couldn't help feel sorry for him in this one instance. Seeing his face and body slumped over his desk as Rawls walked out the door I could almost imagine the position he was put in and why he acted the way he always did.

[@rings-cn1yn]

A great example of the "Greek tragedy" aspect of the Wire, Burrell and and the other decent cops are helpless against the system, which doesn't want them to make real progress.

[@dd.4910]

Well said and depressingly correct.

[@JustSomeCanadianGuy]

If they did a Wire prequel.... I think they should make Burrell like Freamon, just to show he HAD to be good police to get where he is.

[@shinlanten]

That would be great! Show him starting off as *_"good, natural poh-lice"_* , then his ambition and the system slowly turning him into the bureaucrat we see.

[@jayteegamble]

He's more like the black Valchek. He gets where he is because he has friends and he knows how to horse trade.

[@cowzze923]

Prop joe said stone stupid was this guy

[@paracovo]

Burrell explicitly says he isn't good poe-lice, doesn't know much about investigation, etc. in another scene. That he's an asset in political matters. I think a prequel with him would have us following a black Valchek.

[@foreignofficeclub5815]

"Daniels too, when he gets here...."

[@nateo200]

This is why you want to be a deputy or an assistant to whatever job you think will be amazing, you get most of the benefits of being the leader without having to eat the shit

[@NYCentralSpotter1070]

It's better to be someone like Rawls than to be someone like Burrell.

[@Whatisright]

Assistant Manager at my job. Like within the first week I knew that I did not want to be fully in charge of shit. Not unless it was mine.

[@nateo200]

I had a similar experience when I was a police explorer with my police department. We had ranks, basically like ROTC. Anyways, I was a Sergeant and much as I wanted to be a Lieutenant I had other things going on and I learned that upon promotion to Sergeant, I was eating the shit that rolled down from the Chief of Police, down to the Captain for Ops, down to the Officer in charge of the explorer program down to the Captain of the explorers, down to one or all of the Lieutenants (who I knew well but during explorer work we put that aside) and finally down to me. And when one of my 6-8 Explorers fucked up, guess who took the brunt of the force? Me! Which I didn't mind, there were 1 or 2 I was willing to go to bat for but the rest were new and would screw up their uniforms or say something to a cop on a ride along that hurt his feelings or whatever and I'd get summoned by the post advisor. After the departments Captain of Ops retired, the department got a real politically correct by the book Captain and suddenly for my last 1.5years everything was super strict. Not allowed to take statements from witnesses or even get out of the car. Leadership is a funny thing. I think working with the public teaches you a lot I worked at a grocery store and had opportunities to get promoted but I didn't want to eat the shit, especially since a lot of the people around the manager were sloppy at times, many were on top of things but company policy just wasn't right. Someone miscounted $23,000 once and man that was a shit show. Anyways, I sort of became de facto quasi-leader when other managers were not around because the cashiers knew me and I had experience working all areas of the store, I got a minor bump in pay though and a lot more leeway with my manager than others but I never really abused it. For example I often had to volunteer with the police and I had to change into my uniform there or I'd show up in uniform and have to change or my work uniform wouldn't be 100% compliant we needed a red shirt with a name tag and one day I showed up after church in a dark orange polo, and Khaki's, my manager didn't mind because I looked like an assistant manager and for the rest of the day customers kept treating me as such. But I got the leeway for how I treated customers and how I quite frankly was charismatic even when I was very tired, like sports practice, school, police explorers and work all in a row. It really pays to smile I found. A little off topic but something that I remembered from your post.

[@j2times2006]

Man everybody has to eat shit from somebody when you have this type of chain of command. But the bigger the institution the longer the chain and the more nonsensical the decisions that come from it are.

[@mards2479]

Rawls is just like “yeah? What of it”

[@Natedawg38]

People always say how evil rawls was but burell was much much worse. Just totally incompetent and high up enough to get away with it for way too long.

[@brianellinger6622]

He actually said welcome to Baltimore gentleman🙂

[@mirrta4598]

i always thought as my country being a helpless corrupt place. then i saw this and don't know where to go

[@GamerscoreOfThrones]

It’s a drama

[@eliteultra9]

@@GamerscoreOfThrones it isnt, it just real life. although I have to admit that real life is pretty dramatic, Simon describes the typical life of an American as a *Horror show*.

[@bokbok501]

this is what being a Product Manager is

[@dankestranch8738]

One of the best shows I've watched. Top 3 for sure

[@oscar_jjuarez5266]

Man the level of emotions i get from this scene wow

[@iandhr1]

That the point of the show. Most things are not black and white.

[@martino5742]

1:23 the "awww, Valchek wasn't bullshitting me?" look

[@Zambicus]

Rawls walking out like he got slapped in the balls when Daniels was mentioned lmao

[@aa-.-477]

something to think on, broke it right down for him

[@lucasrackley250]

I guess Burrell thought he would be different to.

[@PierreDennis]

I always felt bad for Burrell. He was always on the shit end of the stick. Taking crap from the mayor and city council because he was fallowing orders from the Mayor. He had pride fallowing chain of command. Given half the chance, if the mayor would allow him to run the department the way he wanted, he would have done a good job....

[@Adam-qf2ub]

Dennis Pierre

[@idicula1979]

Well we always fall in love to the perfection in our heads, to put of the reality all around us. The irony being the more you put of a reality the more it fights, in the end it all ends up fighting back.

[@calvinwong365]

Yo fuck these politicians,

[@tommyodonovan3883]

I forgot how good he has, there were so many great performances/actors.

[@MrKingNidge]

The game is the game...only the players change, true for the streets and true for the police.

[@bantehayes9973]

This show is brilliant.

[@54blewis]

Burrell’s statement about Daniels means that no matter how much you covet the top position there’s always someone else who can replace you….and at anytime!!

[@amandygirl78]

Clay Davis was the exception.

[@erics362]

He was wrong about Daniels.

[@Nerd1090]

0:56 lol the mayor absolutely tells the schools how to teach kids, this whole season was about that.

[@Setsotama]

That and its more of an inside look on how the city got to where it is with it's citizens, politicians and fluffing up numbers as a front while never addressing the problems which causes the cycle to continue

[@eaanyills]

@@Setsotama Generally speaking, city hall stays out of day to day school affairs. The state drives schools by pushing test scores that affect school funding.

[@movieshortssociety]

To me, being a european and all, the police chain of command in American cities is insane, how the hell are you going to intrust police command to the politicians, to the mayor's office? Where i come from the police force is run by the interior minister and has nothing to do with politics, and thus is not politically influenced.

[@balaclavacotidiano4727]

You think the interior ministry has nothing to do with politics? Who appoints the interior minister?

[@stephenblacks2876]

Carcetti always seemed to be a selfish trap! Although my boy Frankie been playing a dangerous game, i felt sorry for him during this fiasco.

[@gyronutz3043]

Rawls laughs when he thinks Burrell is lamenting his time on the job. He quickly stops when he realises that it's a warning, and that the position he sought after is just a front.

[@wdynpn]

This daniels would be if he became police commissioner

[@alonreid]

You will eat everyone's shit is literally the definition of being the main guy in a business.

[@DeadBoy665]

The truth hurts.

[@JustSomeCanadianGuy]

Burrell was an ass. But he’s not a bad guy.

[@datapatch7381]

He was pretty bad...

[@geoffedwards-tb4kp]

Mummy knows best. Love these types of things. They are used sometimes to give the alert a look inside of how things work. And when trust in the messenger is established they give a false set of breadcrumbs to follow. Subtle ingenuous method of planting seeds

[@JAHamilton77]

Think the staining line for Rawls wasn’t that he’d have to eat the politicians shit, but that Daniels would be replacing him in short order

[@mikem591]

That’s what got him. Burrell knew it would push Rawls button as well.

[@wavealip8059]

Burrell giving Rawls his Bowls of shit speech.

[@dabearcub]

I could have watched a whole season of just these two actors.

[@chrisg9703]

Great Quotes.

[@deltabilly1]

All in the game

[@mark-A-antonius]

its easy to hate Burrell until you learn in latter seasons that he is simply answering to people even more corrupt than him.

[@geraldwestphipps764]

Kind of like Tommy Carcetti sitting down with the old Mayor who explains to him the many bowls of excrement he would have to eat as the new Mayor. kzbin.info/www/bejne/jJvdooJsirSDfLM

[@jdterrell]

Loved this scene!

[@ej6385]

I watch this scene and wonder is Burrell was once someone like Daniels. I only use Daniels because Daniels makes it to the top so I wondered if Ervin had a similar path/career.The difference is Cedric would not play the game and had to step aside. Which then I wonder since Carver is the new Daniels at the end, will he make it to the top? And if so will he play the game as others did before him?

[@bs20sanders]

so funny how shit rolls and ppl treat eachother from the way jay treated the detectives, the way rawls treated jay, the way burrell treated rawls, the way carcetti/royce treated burrell, and finally the way the govnor treated baltimore/carcetti lmfao

[@geoffdaly8481]

Lord knows the politicians weren't good guys (Royce and Carcetti) nor were some of the side guys such as Valchek and Rawls but Burrell was right there with Clay Davis in terms of among the most unethical people on the show. He was not some "loyal police chief", he was only good at using politics to his advantage until the last season. Sure he thinks he was the "victim" of political bullshit but that's not even one percent true. He thought he could do what he wanted because he'd use the political machine around him to cover his ass if anybody confronted him about his tactics. A shitty police chief ONLY surpassed by how shitty a person he was.

[@TheCmascagni]

Maybe I was a hack…..

[@joesliva3772]

Burrell never had the makings of a varsity athlete

[@EzraSchwartz1]

Life imitates art.

[@thomasbrown3356]

Well Daniels might have been there if McNulty didn't derail his trajectory. Rawls made sure the scandal didn't travel up the chain.

[@kamiioo3289]

Interesting that Carcetti was going to do right by Burrell in his "retirement," though he shit-canned both Daniels and Bunny Colvin by personally stopping their future plans. Why would he, personally, call Johns Hopkins just to put in a bad word on Colvin to cost him a job that he actually deserved? For the same reason why he handed Daniels' file to Nereese Campbell. He's nothing to me

[@ShadowSonic2]

I think he was scared that if Colvin got to work at John Hopkins and became popular there he'd tell people about Hamsterdam.

[@justinpigg1694]

he's right he was in a impossible position he could please clay or Royce never mind what they wanted it changed by the hour

[@Whatisright]

No one was stupid or incompetent (can be argued) they all in the department were good police. Politics fucked it up. The good police work causes chaos in the streets because the bosses and hitmen are getting locked up, looking weak, and warring with crews who see an opportunity. The politics comes in because of the money and that causes all kinds of shit for everyone because everyone is on the payroll of the game.

[@SittingBull99]

Heavy lies the head that wears the crown ...

[@simonphoenix3789]

The tie between politicians and police is really disturbing. It shouldn't exist. Police work should be independent of political considerations.

[@tyslims2805]

FBI Field Reports?!

[@getreadytotube]

does Burrell really want people to feel sorry for him? That's what's wrong with the system. Everyone thinks they are the victim when they are really the perp.

[@patgogan7324]

The point was shit rolls downhill even on these two

[@Orf]

1:05

[@ScreamBloodyMetal]

It's Baltimore, gentlemen. The gods will not save you.

[@tonybalsamo8673]

This echoes the scene where Carcetti is talking to the former white mayor of Baltimore over lunch and asked him why he didn’t run for reelection.

[@davidnicholson6680]

Rawls is all chummy when Burrell is being self-deprecating, but the second Burrell pointedly mentions Daniels the smile on Rawls' face disappears. I can appreciate Burrell's enjoyment of pissing off Rawls, even if I think Burrell is pretty terrible as a person. Burrell winds up with a cushy retirement, Rawls winds up head of the State Police, Daniels winds up being forced out and becoming a lawyer. At the end of the day, snakes like Rawls and Burrell wind up winning while good people like Daniels wind up losing.

[@ShadowSonic2]

I mean, after how Rawls backstabbed Burrell you can't blame him for wanting to deflate Rawls a bit.