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Tuesday, October 28, 2008

Cops Are Human Too

Well, Mr. Citizen, it seems you've figured me out. I fit neatly into the category where you've placed me. I'm stereotyped, standardized, characterized, classified, grouped, and always typical. Unfortunately, the reverse is true. I can never figure you out.

From birth, you teach your children that I'm the bogeyman, if they do anything bad I'll take them away. Then you're shocked when they identify/associate with my traditional enemy... the criminal! You accuse me of going too easy on criminals until I catch your kids doing wrong. You may take an hour for lunch and several coffee breaks each day, but point me out as lazy for having one cup. You pride yourself on your manners, but think nothing of disrupting my meals with your troubles.

You go mental with the guy who cuts you off in traffic, but let me catch you doing the same thing and I'm picking on you. You know all the traffic laws...but you've never gotten a single ticket you deserve. You shout "IDIOT" if you observe me driving fast to a call, but raise the roof if I take more than ten seconds to respond to your complaint.

You call it part of my job if someone strikes me, but call it police brutality if I strike back. You wouldn't think of telling your dentist how to pull a tooth or your doctor how to take out an appendix, yet you are always willing to give me pointers on the law and telling me how to do my job.

You talk to me in a manner that would get you a bloody nose from anyone else, but expect me to take it without batting an eye.

You yell that something's got to be done to fight crime, but you can't be bothered to get involved.

You have no use for me at all, but of course it's OK if I change a flat for your wife, deliver your child in the back of the patrol car, or perhaps save your son's life with mouth to mouth breathing, or work many hours overtime looking for your lost daughter.

So Mr. Citizen, you can stand there on your soapbox and rant and rave about the way I do my work, calling me every name in the book, but never stop to think that your property, family, or maybe even your life depends on me or one of my buddies.

Yes, Mr. Citizen, it's me the cop!

The Author of this article was Trooper Mitchell Brown of the Virginia State Police. He was killed in the line of duty two months after writing the article......

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

This is one of my favorites. The other is "When God Created Peace Officers".

Thanks Joe !!

Anonymous said...

"Mirror of life time", way deep.

Anonymous said...

MR. BOB CALDWELL FORMER CITY COUNCIL PRES.AFTER THE MAJOR PRESENTED A CERT. TO HER LACKY WEBSTER MADE A PUBLIC COMMENT AT THE MEETING AFTER THE YOUNG PERSON BLASTED THE MAYOR FOR FAILING TO RUN A SOLID CITY.MR CALDWELL WAS THERE WHEN THE LATE CHIEF DYKES BEGAN THIS PROCESS AND BROUGHT THE SPD TO WHERE IT IS TODAY.THE CURRENT STAFF WERE TRAINED BY HIM [NOT]WEBSTER.THATS WHY IT IS STILL GOING ON.

Mardela said...

Awesome! Just like we thank our soldiers for the job they do abroad, we should thank our peace officers for the hard work they do at home.

Our world is going to get more and more dangerous. I'm glad we have the excellent officers on patrol that we do. They all work hard to help give us peace.

I just wish Salisbury could get a police chief who actually lived in the city and cared about where he lived. Maybe then he would be more concerned and hands on like our wonderful sherrif is.

God bless you all!

Anonymous said...

Thanks for posting this Joe

Anonymous said...

the perts these law officers far out way the duty they supposedly perform.I have first handedly seen their human side in action.They are but people , yet act as if they are GODS. Of course there are a few who take their duty to heart. But this is one job that has the strange ability to corrupt even the best person. If a officer has become so much above everyone else that they don't think that the general public could posibly know the law , then they have lost their ability to remain unbiased and open minded. I would hope that the police stations would instill a mandated psyc. reveiw so to maybe remind officers that they are people to and not to decide over instances what is right and what is wrong. They are not Judges. And more times than not i feel they act out as if they were. Using their own predjudices to decide what is a crime and if a criminal is in fact one or not. I for one know that they are human and perhaps a review of what their job description is would be very positive for most. They arn't Sly Stalone playing in a movie as if they were "Judge Dred". Thinking that they arn't above the law but that they are the law. They are neither of these. They are suppose to up hold the law. If they spent more time doing their job perhaps there would be less conflict with the general public. More than less abuse their " POWER " that has been assumed by them selves. This has just been my experience with several policemen out which only one had truly performed his job well. Maybe a little more concern with their oath they took upon becoming a officer and less time being influenced with all the power they recieved would better the pubplic opinion in general.

Anonymous said...

9:50... You stated "of all the times you have come in contact with the law"...Hmmmmmm, is that why you have such a negative feeling towards cops? Some cops are arrogant, most don't feel they are gods! And FYI, most of the general public doesn't know the law! Most who are breaking the law think they know more, thats half the problem! And EVERY officer goes through a psych evaluation before being hired!

Anonymous said...

9:50, one of the things I think you need to consider is that what the police officer has to deal with, their departments. We are constantly lied to by the citizens we serve; we understand we are in a job that most people do not like us to be involved in their life. The added comment like “if you don’t do your homework he’s going to come get you” doesn’t help at all, and then if that child runs away then won’t come to me because they are scared of me. How does that us, teach children to be afraid of us. You get stopped for something you did, you don’t like it, you lie, you omit. So teach the child to hate us, treat us like fools, then the department. A perfect example here in this county; the local sheriff’s office petitioned the citizens to allow them to have a say of what they need. It overwhelmingly passed. The council rejected it. Just another example where the people you work for and protect do not take care of you. So you see you get negative from the kids that you taught to fear us, negative from the people you deal with then negative from the government and citizens you protect. Then YOU expect me to be happy and excited to do my job. Imagine your job, every turn negative, every turn something that most people will never see, the constant dislike and hate projected to you, then the company you work for leaves you out in the dark, pushes you aside when you ask for something you need (that is if you are aloud to ask, we are not) The officer is already so full of negative before you begin to work. So think about all that before you bash how police handle you. Yes, I agree we all should be professional and do not agree with the way some police deal with people. It just gets real old not being supported in any area or your job and so frustrated dealing with this system. No excuse just explaining.