This one will probably not be too popular!

[pumba]

I have a rant of my own. Now keep in mind that I have a slightly bias openion considering I am a Police Officer.

WHat in the world is up with the folks in L.A. I am referring to the horribly unfortunate event that happened with the L.A.P.D. officer, that accidently shot a very small child that was being used by a gunman as a shield.

Now I see all kinds of folks pointing the finger at the cop. It is all his fault according to them... What about the Dirt Bag that was using the child as a shield while popping off rounds at the Police and people. I mean, Dang. No one is getting mad at him and trying to riot because of his actions. I don't see anyone threatoning his family. What is this world comming to?

Lets put things into perspective. But first, let me say that my thaughts and prayers are out to the family and all involved in this truly horiffic thing.

1. None of this is helping the surviving family members, I mean come on. Lets have some respect and not drag them through the news.
2. Now there are folks at these demonstrations holding up children screeming "do you want to shoot this one too" and crap like that. Maby I am diferent but seems to me that is not exactly a healthy enviroment for the poor child. Not to mention,one day he/she may need the police for something and be too afraid to call.
3. Lets think about the officer for a moment. From someone who knows from personal experience with an accidental shooting (that didn't have anthing to do with a child or death, However close to death for my partner). ( by the way before I go any further, I do not know that officer or the family, nore do I work for the L.A.P.D. this is just a vewpoint)That man is probably sitting in a dark room with a large bottle of something that is not helping his attitude and contemplating eating a bullet himself. He has to live with what has happened. He had a split second to decide on going home to his family, or doing what he had to do. For weeks, months, or years to come, at night when he tries to go to sleep, he will see that entire scene over and over again. At best the guy will never be the same again.

When are we as a society going to stand up and make he who causes a bad situation be accountable? This is just like saying a rape victim was "asking for it" by the way she was dressed. It makes no sence. No one is willing to stand up and say the man was doing what he is paid to do. What we as a society ask of him to allow us to be able to go to sleep tonight without needing land mines in our yards. (again, I am not downplaying the suprime tragicness of this situation) ANd by the way, He is not paid enough to do the job he does. What is wrong with this picture. A bad situation comes along and you have to decide wether to take the shot and go home to your family, or don't, (And wait, that can be a simple one,) You also have to think about your fellow officers being able to go home, and you people that are walking down the street, if he don't take the shot you may not make it either. Not to mention , the other 17 year old girl that was being held hostage, she may not have made it home. You have all these things to think about in about 1/1000th of a second then "Bang" it is now over and the world has the rest of your life to pick it apart, and degrade you, threaten your family, criticize your decision, tell you that you are paid to get killed, (All though I do not remember that being in the job description). Not to mention the toughest thing to live with,,,,,Yourself, and the memory.

Lets start showing our support for the Guys and Gals in blue, You know, the people that will take a bullet for you while you talk trash about him/her even though he dosn't even know you! The one that is driving around in a huricane trying to help people he has never met, while his family is having to fend for their own. The guy that lives with the ghosts of his past experiences from bloody children in car crashes, burnt bodies in houses, Shooting victims, and the sobbing faces of the rape victim every night when he goes to sleep.

People are quick to say that Police officers are human and they can make mistakes when they are explaining to a judge that the officer was wrong when issuing a citation; at the same time, we are expected to be robots and oblivious to the carnage we see every day, and do our job without notice. When I see things like this it makes me want to quit my job. Why would anyone want to have to live with all that,,,,,right,,,, then you think about the one person that may be still living because of the C.P.R. you gave them or the ticket you wrote them, or maby the face of the child that hugged your neck when you pulled her from a burning car.

I tell my guys, If in an entire career, you make a difference in just one person's life, it is a career well spent. One saved life is worth the trouble. I don't just say that, I live it! Good day and God bless!!!

Sorry that got a bit long, sometimes I can't help myself.

[Strider]

I agree on the part of not taking it out on the cop under that kinda pressure i would have probly done the same thing and would have really regreted it you guys are humanand i respect you.

[MARCUS ANTONIUS]

I completely agree with you, Ray. I'm not in law enforcement myself, but I do have friends who are and I have taken college law enforcement courses when I thought I wanted to be an officer, and I can relate with you about the memories that you can't get rid of. There are some pictures I saw in class that I won't forget, and my friends are remembering images that they saw first-hand... I can't imagine what that's like... I've only seen one person die and it was an elderly lady that some friends of mine and I got out of a burning house. Her husband made it out, but he couldn't go back in for her because of his age and her failing health. We managed to get her out but due to her health problems she died soon after because of smoke inhalation. I will never forget that night. And as far as the people who are ridiculing this poor officer, I can't see how they have any right to accuse him of anything without being put in that position themselves. I also don't see how they don't realize that (and please don't take this the wrong way) maybe it was for the best in the situation. The man was stopped and like you said the 17 year old girl was released. It's a shame that it happened the way it did, but at least some good has come from it. I can't help thinking that that little girl's death may have, at the very least, allowed the other girl a chance at a fuller life. And who knows, that girl may grow up to be our first female president or hold some other important position. IMO, things don't just happen for no reason. It may seem horrible now, but there can be good to come of it in the future. Plus if it weren't for the gun-weilding, kidnapping nut this wouldn't have happened in the first place. I would say that is where the blame needs to be placed, not on a police officer trying to do his best to protect the people of Los Angeles.

[Shelby]

I also agree.. people's perspectives are all wrong on many things these days.

[gncz73]

i also agree to me it comes down to kill or be killed. that my sound cold or uncareing but when you deal with crazy people that are out here and that will kill you in a flash you have to look at it that way. he did what needed to be done at that time its just to bad that little girl had to die, but it was never his fault it was the gun mans actions that let it go that route.

[frankykeno]

Ray, I used to be a police dispatcher many years ago, though in a medium sized community force, but what I remember so vividly from those years was this.....cops are human beings with all that goes with that. The uniform doesn't change that and the society that these brave men and women have to work in often forgets that fact of humanity and just sees the blue and the badge.

It's terribly easy to judge an officer's actions and yes, sometimes an officer abuses his power and responsibility, but moreoften they do what the rest of us cannot imagine doing or living through, make decisions none of us can fathom having to make and do so in a split second, then live with that decision the rest of their lives....while their superiors and their community sit back in safety and talk for hours and days about how they would have done it "better".

As a dispatcher I watched the officers I worked with deal with the absolute horror of a teen suicide, help a young mother find a missing child, deal with the daily silliness of barking dog complaints, walk into situations of domestic abuse that sent an officer to hospital and every other reality of law enforcement. I dispatched calls that still affect me today so many years later, that I will never forget but I only heard the voices of pain and fear. Those officers walked into it, saw the sights, smelled the smells and DID THEIR JOB. Some handled it wonderfully well, some didn't do the best they could.....they are human beings that mostly try their best because folks, they care.

As their dispatcher, I saw the officers I sent out to calls afterwards. I saw their eyes reflect the pain in their souls, I made them coffee and sometimes I called their wives for a quiet word, but whatever they'd just dealt with I saw the bravery and the committment. I saw them brace themselves and go right back out on the next call and deal with whatever their community needed done. How many of us can be that brave, care that much, be that committed to our "job"?

You might not like the cop that stops you for speeding but remember this is the very same cop that you will depend on if, god forbid, tragedy walks into your life.

One last small point in this rather long post. Do our society a favor and teach your children a little respect for law enforcement. It's awfully sad to see small kids openly disrespectful and rude to police officers or too scared by media to ask a cop for help if they need it. If they grow up with no respect or confidence in those that enforce our laws.....just how much respect will they ever have for the law itself.

So Ray, on a personal note...thank you for deciding to do a job that is often tough and some days just not worth it...thanks to your family for the worry they face until you are home safe each day and being brave enough too that they face this every day you are on the job...thank you for putting up with the idiots of our society who think you and your family are targets for every bad cop joke or armchair quarterback comment...thank you for caring enough about the world you live in that you chose a career that helps make today and tomorrow just that bit safer for the rest of us.


~~Joanna~~

[wendyhoo9]

Joanna, you have said very eloquently what I was thinking. My husband is a police officer in the VA, MD, DC area and everyday he goes to work I simply don't think about what it is he has to do until he comes home (anywhere from 2 - 6 AM). I have two young children and wonder what life will hold for our family if something happens to him. He's only been on the force for a year and yet he's done more things than I ever even wanted to hear about in my lifetime. And I can't even count the times he has been accused of lying or that those suspects he arrested were "set up."

Doing the job of a police officer is a calling and I am thankful there are those people who choose to do it and do it well. Those people who deconstruct a single episode are doing so from the safety of their office or home and will never put themselves in the types of situations these men and women see everyday. Who are they to ridicule their actions when it is cleared as a "good shoot".

The events with the little girl were tragic, but IMO it would be more productive to figure out how to more stiffly punish offenders and keep people like that off the street...I wonder if anyone mentioned if this man had already been through the system.

Thank you to all who serve in uniform for their service!

[tigerlily]

You guys are WAY more eloquent than I could hope to be, but I just wanted to add my agreement to your statements. People need to hold those predators responsible, not those who protect us everyday.

[pumba]

Greetings All:

I wake up this morning pleasantly supprised. I guessed that at the very least, my first two or three replies to my rant would have called for me to be kicked out of here, and my house burnt down..lol.... I do greatly appreciate the kind remarks you all have made, It is nice to know that there are people out there that appreciate and understand what we do.

As for you Wendyhoo9, just a small bit of sound advice. Never let your husband go to work without telling him you love him. Never end a day on a bad note, if there is a problem (and everyone gets into a spat or two) work it out before he goes to work. He don't need to be worried about that as well as everything else. And what ever you do, please never give him grief about getting called in or his job. (Not saying that you are, just sound advice!!!)

Remember, the most stressfull thing about being a police officer is putting on that uniform, getting into that car, and leaving home. When you stop and think about it, it may be the last chance to see the ones you love. Don't get me wrong, I love my job, and I do not believe I was built for anything else. But these are just facts of that life.

It is often said that behind every good cop is a great wife. That statement is moor true that anyone can realize. I would have lost my mind long ago if it were not for my wife, she is the bomb. And I know what it is like having one that is less than kind, especially right before work. I lived that with my first wife. But my loving bride now is nothing less that a remarkable, reliable, wonderfull, loving, positive person. I do not know what I would do without her! Heck, she even let me have a snake. lol {figured I would at least mention a snake in this thread...lol...lmao..}

Thanks again to all that have kind things to say, and thanks for the understanding. Thanks also for listening to my lengthy rant without sending me hate mail.. May you all have a wonderfull day.

Ray

[wendyhoo9]

As for you Wendyhoo9, just a small bit of sound advice. Never let your husband go to work without telling him you love him. Never end a day on a bad note, if there is a problem (and everyone gets into a spat or two) work it out before he goes to work.

My husband and I dated when I was a teenager and he was in the Marine Corps, and when we met again 7 years later he was very upfront about persuing a job with the PD. I told him I would worry, but that I wouldn't stand in his way (how would I feel if he told me not to do something I loved??).

I appreciate the advice and viewpoint, and even if he has ever walked out the door upset, we always call each other before he hits the station. I try not to think that he may not come back, but I guess it's there in the back of my mind because I have never liked to leave things strained.

Thanks again for all you do!