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Kudos to Telegram scribe Gerald Russell for today's story on "Thin Blue Line" license plates -- and, really, certain local police departments' practice of putting unofficial plates on their front bumpers, instead of the state-issued tags with numbers and letters on them.

God knows what brought this up, and it's certainly not the most pressing issue facing the region today, but ... if it's illegal to use a Red Sox "license plate," or one of those great fake Pennsylvania "You've Got a Friend In ... JESUS" tags, why shouldn't it be illegal for police to mount their own phony plates?

And what to make of this?

... In this case, the man marketing the plates told a reporter recently he wants to keep the meaning of the plate a secret, known only to police and law enforcement officers

Kind of like the speed limit on I-290, right? And it goes on, past the jump:

He said he is a law enforcement officer, but declined to say what kind of officer or where he works. ... Mr. Medeiros would not reveal how many plates have been sold. He also indicated he did not wish to have the existence of the plates, nor the meaning of them, to be the subject of a news article.

So why have the plates at all, if they're not meant to raise awareness, like a metallic bumper sticker?

Mr. Medeiros, who lives in a Boston suburb and asked that the name of his town not be published, said the plates are helpful to police officers, should they pull over a vehicle displaying the Thin Blue Line plate. He said an officer making the stop would be less anxious knowing that the driver of the private vehicle was a fellow law enforcement officer or a family member.

Bullcrap.

What David Medeiros really means, and this is why he doesn't want us to know where he lives or works, is that this license plate is intended, on private vehicles, to be a souped-up version of the old Fraternal Order of Police sticker ... a "get out of jail free" (or "no ticket," actually) pass. That's why you have to show police ID to buy one, to avoid "abuse."

At first -- I've noticed these plates for a year now, and I've noted that they always seem to be on policemen's cars -- I thought this was a campaign to show support for the police, like the yellow ribbons for troops. I thought it was a great idea. But if that were the case, Medeiros would want everyone to have one. It's not. This is policemen trying to be above the law.

I sympathise with a traffic cop sitting on a lonely highway at 11 p.m. -- despite the fact that I think I've met every speed trap operator in Central Massachusetts. But these guys are paid for their trouble; and they should be setting an example. Putting a special badge on their cars, apart from sometimes being illegal (the article focuses on the fact that cars with the "Spirit of America" plates are supposed to display front and rear tags, which many of the Blue Line plateholders don't), is wrong.

So it's been almost a year, and you haven't missed me (no -- admit it, you haven't). So what's been on my mind? A few quick hits, as they occur to me on a Friday night:

1. In this week's Worcesteria, it develops that Sheriff Guy Glodis won't be invited back to Southie's St. Patrick's Day breakfast after his performance this year. OK, so the jokes bombed. I didn't have the heart to tell it to the Glodis aide I spoke with earlier this month, but there was better stuff from Mitt Romney and Deval Patrick, for chrissakes. But ... Glodis was the only real reason to keep watching the breakfast once all the heavy hitters had said their piece, and repeated the same jokes over and over (I get it -- Tom Reilly has egg on his face! Ha-ha! Did nothing else happen in Massachusetts this year?).

2. The Globe never fails to disappoint. Its coverage of Reed Hillman's selection as lieutenant governor candidate-apparent by Kerry Healey was atrocious. Not that I don't think a candidate whose credentials have to do with law and order shouldn't have his background checked; but El Globo's first article after the selection was made -- first -- trashed him for his "role" in the sexual harrassment troubles the State Police faced several years ago, while ignoring just about every other aspect of his candidacy -- the geographic balance he provides the ticket; the personal testimonials offered by other legislators in the Central Mass. delegation; his record as an independent Republican (would have made a nice tie-in with Healey's efforts to distance herself from Mitt). It'd be refreshing if the state's largest newspaper engaged in this sort of character assassination for incumbent Democrats. Think of how they could spice up any story on Teddy K running for reeleection.

3. So the Sox didn't win the World Series; or at least, the correct Sox didn't. Well, maybe a few more years of this and I'll finally be able to get tickets to Fenway again.

4. Worcester is looking to close four schools ($). Parents, predictably, are protesting. This breeds stories with the same quote, over and over: "Neighborhood schools are good!" Well, what's the alternative? Having class sizes under 40 is good, too. And if neighborhood schools are so great, why isn't there a schoolhouse on every corner? ... because we have to pay for it, people.

5. It really is fun watching Tom Reilly squirm.

6. Raising the driving age to 17 1/2 ... just what we need ... high school grads driving to work every day, with only half a year's driving experience .... who are the ad wizards?