![]() As a warrior, he excelled at the hardest military training in the world and teamed up with fellow SEALs to hunt al Qaeda terrorists in Iraq.” The two concepts are not mutually exclusive. And there is a warrior quality we should never forget: compassion.Īuthor Eric Greitens wrote a book titled, “ The Warrior’s Heart: Becoming a Man of Compassion and Courage.” The foreword begins, “As a humanitarian, he helped aid workers heal orphaned children in Rwanda and lived in camps alongside Bosnian refugees. Also, as warriors, they can handle physical situations much more efficient and quickly, which means less chance of negative consequences. Mentally focused and physically capable are two hallmarks of a warrior. The more mentally focused and confident in their physical capabilities officers are, the better able they are to deal with stressful situations. Well, just in case, is similar to a cop being a warrior as well as a “guardian of democracy” (I prefer guardian of liberty, but I get the point). Officers’ firearms are their insurance policies for just in case. ![]() So, if we can’t agree on what a warrior is, and how well-rounded a person a warrior can be, and that being a warrior is just one facet of being a police officer, again, we cannot have a rational discussion.īelieve me, if you’re in your home with your children on the other side of a door that’s only seconds away from being kicked in by an armed attacker, you’ll need a guardian, but you’ll want him or her to be a warrior.įor police officers, firing their guns is a last resort, and no serious person would suggest we take guns away from American cops. I replied to the Linkedin post, “The two concepts, guardians… and warriors are not mutually exclusive.” The problem even well-intended folks have is they caricature a “warrior” cop as a violence-seeking Robocop compared with the ideal guardian (angel) cop. ![]() Oh, did I mention the suspect had a razor box cutter and was striding toward her with no apparent intentions of stopping? Incidentally, she’d yelled for him to stop or drop the knife several times before she fired. Currently, there is a young LAPD officer being sued, in part, accused of not “deescalating” before she shot a suspect. Some suspects don’t give you time for de-escalation. However, with others, you can’t get a word out before the suspect attacks you. For example, even with criminals, some you treat with respect, and the respect is returned. Instructors taught the importance of balancing how we treated people with officer safety. Shouldn’t police officers be both guardians and warriors? Why is this so hard to understand? It’s more than semantics and depends on how each concept is defined.Įven when I was in the academy some 28 years ago, we were taught to treat everyone with respect, if they let us. She wrote about her interest in a current law enforcement training concept being taught at police academies, especially in liberal areas: Training cops as “guardians” and not as “warriors. The only “proof” offered is from loud radicals, anarchists, and Marxists, spouting lies. That kind of thinking is not rational because there is no evidence that is happening. ![]() However, if you characterize police abusing and killing presumably innocent people, as something police routinely do, then I’m out. When a police officer uses force up to and including shooting and killing a suspect, you not liking it does not make it a crime. If a police officer truly abuses or unlawfully kills a person, that cop has committed a crime, is a criminal, and should be prosecuted. She said she’s working on a project concerning how to stop police from abusing, even killing “people they’re sworn to protect.” First, I reject her premise. I think it does a disservice to treat the terms as opposites. She brought up the topic of whether police officers should be viewed and trained as guardians of democracy or as warriors. I know her a little from when I was still an active cop, and I like and respect her. I recently read a former local TV news reporter’s post on Linkedin.
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