Sometimes the world can be an ugly place to live, and that time seems to be increasing. We find ourselves searching for a place or space where we can feel safe and secure and enjoy a moment of peace and quiet as chaos seems to surround us. The news on television and social media platforms is alarming and filled with escalating conflict, violence, and death. Our guards are up, alert, and more hypersensitive as this chaos has spread to previously seldom-touched places. Its prevalence in schools, churches, theaters, parks, and on our playgrounds has increased and its presence on the streets in broad daylight is alarming. The frequency and brutality of these disturbing trends have numbed us to the point of denial or acceptance as normal. These troubling and escalating conditions demand that we come together and change our current direction or this peaceful life and democracy as we know it may cease to exist. A dire statement indeed but worthy of consideration.
As an elder, there is no greater responsibility than the one we owe to our children and their future. No matter your historical perspective, prior generations sacrificed for us so that we could live in a peaceful society. I believe we must do all that we can to make this world a better place and pay it forward for our children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. Focusing on their future and their opportunity to enjoy a peaceful and prosperous society hopefully will assuage some of the systemic, personal, and societal conflicts driving us apart. While we have always struggled with race, equality, and fairness, our children and their progeny deserve the same predominantly peaceful existence we've enjoyed and it's our responsibility to maintain the foundation that provides it.
Respecting and embracing our collective humanity and appreciating every individual's life is a start. Our established system of law, order, and accountability should then be equally applied to make the necessary judgments and decisions that produce the best and most appropriate outcomes for our daily interactions. Our good and bad actions and behaviors have consequences and accordingly, the outcomes should match the input. Because of the untenable position we find ourselves in, many lives are being lost, destroyed, or horribly altered because of our diminished compassion and empathy for each other as human beings. It would seem our shared humanity has never been fully embraced and at the current time is in danger of being abandoned altogether. We must find a way to unite for our common good or face the dire consequences of our failure and the dreadful effect it can have on our children's future.
The current state of our society has had a profound and negative impact on the criminal justice system, law enforcement agencies and interactions between these professionals and the public. These officers are often responsible for impossible decisions, made in a split-second that can have a devastating impact and sometimes tragically cost the lives of those citizen they protect and serve. Consequently, many of these officers are left with the heavy emotional burden of those decisions that on many occasions horribly alter or cost them their lives as well. My career, experience, expertise, and passion are in the field of law enforcement and human interaction. Therefore, I will continue my work through LOAC and examining the historical culture of law enforcement, its influence on today's issues and critically analyze the current training, accountability, and transparency measures to create transformative change that can improve the outcomes of police and civilian interactions and make this a better and safer world for all of us.
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