Amid the cries of injustice and obstinate behavior towards the police these days exists a reality not popular among the high brows of academia, the Political Elite, Race Hustlers, Info-tainers and Celeb-utants, being a cop these days isn’t easy or even appreciated. Long gone are the days when we celebrated the heroes who were first on the scene, first through the door, first to give their life so that you could live yours. Instead we turn on the TV and under the guise of News and Journalism we are manipulated and twisted to believe those sworn to protect us, sworn to serve us are nothing more than boot jacked thugs hell bent on racially motivated acts of aggression with the goal of creating a police state.
So what is the truth? Who is telling the truth? For me it’s never as easy as turning on the TV and listening to the groomed, coifed idiots that read words from a teleprompter or listening to the agenda driven narcisists that pollute the airways. I see a problem and I dig in, I try to understand mindsets and motivations. There is no shortage of coverage or platforms for those protesting the “Police” however there is a massive blackout when it comes to understanding the challenges faced by those who put on the badge. That is where I decided to focus my attention and here is just a taste of what I found. It is a dose of perspective and the lens through which an officer approaches their days with.
1 police officer dies in the line of duty every 58 hours. According to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Funds recently released numbers for the period of 8-1-2013 to 6-1-3024 fatalities for officers rose an astonishing 14%. Looking back at available statistics show that since 2004 there have been 58,261 assaults resulting in 15,658 serious injuries. Records show that more than 20,000 U.S. Law Enforcement Officers have made the ultimate sacrifice. The sad truth is that this number is since the first “Recorded” in the line of duty death. There are more statistics, stats on life expectancy, number of encounters with situations none of us could comprehend or even want to carry with us as a memory but I will be lucky if most people have read even this far.
I would encourage you however, if you have made it this far, to not just stop here, open a browser and read for yourself, learn about this topic and the impact it has for both the civilian and law enforcement communities. Don't limit yourself to thinking or believing that you know everything leaving yourself to stand in a stagnate pond of ignorance. Be part of the solution, work to elect people that will address the real root causes that are sewing the seeds of discontent.
For me I believe it is important to put a human face on those who have died in the line of duty. There are two sides to every story, and two realities for us to consider as we move to better our society and way of life. In the end there can only be one solution and that solution can only be realized when we come together, when we are unified in purpose and when we display empathy to the struggles and challenges that we all face. The day of picking sides and becoming willfully blind must come to an end because if we allow the Race Hustlers, Info-tainers, Celeb-utants or highbrow academics to convince us that the police are our problem, we lose and our representative republic moves away from a democracy and ever closer to an Idiocracy. Of course that is just my take