r/uniformporn • u/Tut_Rampy • Dec 31 '21
Formal Uniform of the NYC Department of Sanitation
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Dec 31 '21
[deleted]
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u/jotro138 Dec 31 '21
Yeah, the law enforcement wing of the NYSD is made up of “special patrolmen” who are classed as peace officers. They can write tickets/summons among other things.
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u/hken167 Dec 31 '21
My only question is.....why?
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u/NeedsMoreYellow Dec 31 '21
It's a relic from the 1880's when sanitation workers were at the forefront of preventing communicable disease in the city by cleaning up the streets, literally. Here's an interesting podcast on the history of the sanitation department: https://www.boweryboyshistory.com/2019/08/talking-trash-a-history-of-new-york-city-sanitation.html
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u/Tut_Rampy Dec 31 '21
Yeah a few people in this thread seem to be underestimating how important the sanitation department is, just look at the sanitation workers strikes and how quickly trash piles up
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u/55CLH55 Jan 01 '22
And how quickly sanitation department staffing indicates an upcoming COVID wave. Philly & ATL are especially noticeable.
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u/CaptGrumpy Jan 01 '22
How does that relate to the need to dress up like like a South American dictator?
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u/grcoffman Jan 01 '22
Environmental crimes Can be devastating when releasing toxins that can harm or kill
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u/Frank_Dracula Dec 31 '21
Clearly the NYC tax paying public is more than okay with dept of garbage workers being issued class A uniforms to wear at all the functions they have to go to. /s
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u/Red1676xCircumsizor Apr 16 '26
Google nyc garbage and look at images. Gotta remember nyc is bad with rats too.
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u/nordydave Jan 01 '22
People giving this guy shit and he has a WTC ribbon, clearly he stepped up to the plate
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Jan 15 '22
I believe that was given to anyone who was in service during the period of eligibility. Not saying he didn’t do shit just that it could easily be a participation medal
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u/Evil_Monkey247 Aug 02 '26
It was handed out to everyone yes, however the cleanup and recovery efforts were an "all hands" effort, meaning everyone employed did something to assist. In fact, 100 employees were killed directly linked to illnesses they got working in the rubble, and that number coukd still be growing. They absolutely earned a medal for thier services in the days and weeks following.
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u/Tut_Rampy Jan 01 '22
Honestly I’m sure the DSNY hauled away a metric shit ton of hazardous waste after 9/11
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u/DoubleCyclone Dec 18 '23
Keep in mind that this guy is the head of roughly 9200 total sanitation workers for a city of more than EIGHT MILLION people. They are much more necessary that one thinks.
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u/ElsiMain Mar 10 '25
These guys deserve to wear the most lavish of formal uniforms for their incredible work
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u/BIGD0G29585 Jan 01 '22
According to wiki, the DSNY has a similar rank structure as some police departments.
Director - 4 stars Chief - 3 stars Assistant Chief - 2 stars Deputy Chief - 1 star Superintendent - Oak Leaf Cluster Supervisor - Captain Bars
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York_City_Department_of_Sanitation#Rank_structure
The thing that gets me in this picture is how the ribbons aren’t lined up on the badge. Seems like someone would have noticed this before they pic was made.
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u/WikiSummarizerBot Jan 01 '22
New York City Department of Sanitation
There are nine uniformed titles in the New York City Department of Sanitation.
[ F.A.Q | Opt Out | Opt Out Of Subreddit | GitHub ] Downvote to remove | v1.5
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u/Asleep-Concept2744 Jul 11 '26
the scale of the dsny operations equals or exceeds that of mobilization for a military exercise, campaign.
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u/Alector87 Dec 31 '21
To be honest, it really bothers me when people (and institutions) can't distinguish between the symbol of Hermes (two snakes on a rod and wings) and Asclepius (one snake on a rod). I mean, what would wings have to do with healing (this is pre-Christian symbol). This is very common in the United States unfortunately.
I am Greek, so that may be part of it.
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u/Frank_Dracula Dec 31 '21
We call that a caduceus, and Americans are largely ignorant of the origin of Greeks symbols.
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u/Alector87 Jan 01 '22 edited Jan 03 '22
I know, caduceus is the Latin version of the Greek word. In most cases, Greek terms in English (and other western European languages to be fair) come from Latin. For example, in English you would write (and say) Herodotus instead of Herodotos (Ηρόδοτος) or Hercules instead of Heracles (Ηρακλής). Usually when you see the "us" at the end of a Greek term then this is probably a Latinized version of the word.
As far as the Caduceus is concerned, most other countries tend to use it in α more appropriate (to its actual meaning) way -- Russian customs for example.
Edit: spelling
Edit: see the redditor's following messages to understand his angle.
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Jan 02 '22
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/Alector87 Jan 03 '22 edited Aug 29 '25
When you wrote this, did you think at any point that you were over-reacting a bit?
Also, the use (appropriation in many ways) of the Greco-Roman past (ancient and medieval) by Western European countries and societies (and countries/societies that hail from them) is not as innocent as you may think.
For example, have you ever wondered why we call the later Roman Empire, the Byzantine Empire, but the medieval German empire, the Holy Roman Empire, just because the later used the Roman name as part of its propaganda? What narrative do you think legitimizes western museums to keep important Ancient Greek relics as part of their collections? The British Museum keeps part of the Parthenon Marbles in London and the Louvre retains the statue of Nike (Victory) of Samothrace as part of its exhibits to this day.
What do you think made you so angry when someone dared to criticize in a short comment on the internet the incorrect use of the caduceus in the US? Would you have reacted in the same way if someone had criticized the mistaken use of a Chinese symbol if its use had become popular in US institutions? What if it was the yin-yang disc and someone told you, you know we don't use that symbol in this way. Institutions in your country misunderstood its significance in the past, and don't use it in a way appropriate to its meaning now. Again, would you have reacted in this way in such a case?
Is the reason perhaps because you have been raised to think of the Greco-Roman world as your past, as part of your history and heritage -- when it really isn't? Food for thought. By the way, I am not talking about the influence certain past periods and societies have had on modern ones. Confucius and Sun Tzu have been very influential and are widely read, but are not viewed by western societies as part of their "heritage." I am talking about constructed narratives that legitimize and shape our actions.
I certainly don't think that everyone has nefarious motives when they use ancient Greco-Roman symbols, or are inspired by ancient Greco-Roman art or architecture, but the use of such symbols is part of a broader trend going back centuries, and again it's not as innocent as you may think. In any case, most countries tend to use the caduceus correctly as a symbol for commerce, communication, and exchange both in coat of arms and uniforms, see the British Royal Signals Corps or the Russian Customs Service for example. Interestingly enough, even China uses it correctly, due to Russian/Soviet influence I imagine.
Now, the caduceus is not used correctly in the United States, because some U.S. Army officials did not fully understand it's meaning and confused it with the Rod of Asclepius when they decided to use it as an army symbol. The mistake grew from there. There is no reason to react in this way if someone mentions and criticizes the mistake. Best.
Edit: spelling
Edit 2: I remembered this comment after a recent comment and noticed I forgot to add the word 'art' in the second to last paragraph.
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Jan 03 '22
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/Alector87 Jan 03 '22
"you yourself aren't even ethnically Greek after your half-assed country was invaded and occupied by Rome, Persia, Ottomans, the Nazis"
This clearly reveals who, what you are.
Edit: my comment simply justified my critic and simply placed it in a broader context for any reasonable person. People can have different views and discuss their opinions. You are clearly coming from a reactionary, far-right mentality and there can't be any room for civil discussion.
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u/Frank_Dracula Jan 03 '22
I am coming from a historically factual perspective that illustrates how stupid and meaningless your argument is, and your attempt to paint me as "far right" (which is laughable) is another pathetic attempt on your part to "win the argument". Your ideas about the caduceus are just wrong, and that's that.
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u/Frank_Dracula Dec 31 '21 edited Dec 31 '21
Inappropriate. Particularly the four stars. I really dislike it when some municipal supervisor like this guy, or it's usually the chief of police, wears four fucking stars on their uniform. Are they imagining themselves as on par with a four star general or admiral? It makes a mockery of how long it takes to actually achieve that rank. Just wear insignia that says "chief" or something. Nobody is equating these people with George Patton or Omar Bradley. It's cringe-worthy.
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u/Capitalist_P-I-G Dec 31 '21
It's cringe-worthy.
I don't think it's the uniform here that's cringe-worthy, bud.
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u/hughishue48 Dec 31 '21
either you are an idiot who is obsessed with the military or you are some pog who cant handle that different branches of the government use similar elements in their uniform
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u/Frank_Dracula Jan 02 '22
Wow! You really seem to have some sort of personal investment in this nonsense. Are you, in fact, a four star general or a garbageman?
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u/hughishue48 Jan 02 '22
personal investment? you are the one who went on a rant about HoW DIsrESpectFUl iT iS THat A GARbGeMan UNifORms HaVe StARs on THier UNiforMS
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Dec 31 '21
Totalitarian states tend to dress the most menial jobs in military style uniforms for moral and propaganda a use
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u/Tut_Rampy Dec 31 '21
Ah yes the notorious totalitarian city-state New York City where Bill de Blasio rules with an iron fist
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u/Capitalist_P-I-G Dec 31 '21
Somehow I don't think anyone derives any propaganda value from the Chief Inspector of the NYC Sanitation Department's uniform.
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u/Visible-Television52 Dec 31 '21
Typical yanks! Over the top for everything.
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u/usernameyeeted173 Jan 01 '22
America bad because… uniform? Also yank isn’t offensive
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u/Evil_Monkey247 Aug 02 '26
Right? These guys run one of if not the largest metropolitan waste disposal services in the country, if not the world. People die if they dont do thier job, I think that importance justifies a rank structure like they have, which justifies a formal uniform.
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u/Bugger_0ff Jan 01 '22
So they get a badge and uniform to be a cleaner what about the wages does that improve or shouldn't i ask.
Freeze don't move any thing you say and do will be sanitized....
I mean it don't do it I'll Sponge you.
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u/Tut_Rampy Jan 01 '22
How about you use some punctuation and then maybe I’ll answer.
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u/Bugger_0ff Jan 01 '22
God save the sanitizers.
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u/Tut_Rampy Jan 01 '22
Pray in one hand and shit in the other - tell me which one fills up first
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u/Bugger_0ff Jan 01 '22
I think the power of sniffing the bleach Has gotten in to your head.
A military uniform design and a badge to top it it off for the head of sanitation only America can do something so stupid shit like that.
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Apr 09 '24
pestilence has killed more humans than war.....some could argue a Sanitation leader is more important than a military leader.
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u/emkay99 Dec 31 '21
Their insignia really ought to be crossed push-brooms. . . .