ATF SAC
06-05-2002, 19:32
A
> This was sent to me, and worth the read.
>
> As I'm was getting my leather gear cleaned up for the funeral of LASD
> Deputy David March being held
> tomorrow, I thought of the following exerpt from an article I read
> several years ago. And I thought I
> would share it with some of friends.
>
> The author talks about how after a peace officer is murdered in the line
> of duty, varying reactions are
> felt by different officers/deputies. Basically, some guys make sure
> they find what the dead cop did
> wrong in a tactical sense (and often this is a worthwhile thing to look
> for), but then others simply
> realize the greater truth-and that is that regardless of how well we
> perform our duties in a tactical
> sense, cops will continue to be killed in the line of duty.
>
> The following is an exerpt from his article:
>
> [T]here are some things that you just can't do without suffering-very
> literally and
> profoundly-casualties; and our job is one of them.
>
> You can't race cars without crashes, you can't dig mines without
> cave-ins, and you sure as hell can't send
> cops out into the streets of a violent society without violent deaths.
> Our fallen brothers knew that and
> did it anyway-as we all do or have done. ........Their friends will
> tell you they did the job because they
> loved it, and any of us who can't say that should envy them for it. At
> least they died as rare and
> precious people: doing what they loved to do, and doing it for the
> noblest of reasons. That is something
> we can never explain outside of our profession.
>
> You see, you can't be a good cop simply because you couldn't get another
> job. You can only be a good
> cop because you want it. And there is an answer as to why they died,
> something I learned half a world
> away many years ago as a young Marine, preparing to face an enemy in
> combat for the first time. It
> was then that my sergeant explained that, like it or not, there are only
> three rules in war:
>
> Rule Number One is "YOUNG MEN DIE"
> Rule Number Two is "YOU CAN'T CHANGE RULE #1"
> Rule Number Three is "SOMEBODY HAS TO WALK THE POINT"
>
> You see, when soldiers advance, knowing the enemy is near, there is
> always one man way out in front of
> everyone else. His duty is to look and listen and sense that first
> contact; to spot the enemy, pinpoint the
> ambush, fire that first shot, and as a consequence, take those first
> shots.
>
> It offends the logical mind and denies the instinct for survival. It
> ages and saddens and wizens, and
> frequently kills those who take their turn "Walking the Point". But it
> must be done, or there would be
> no protection for the rest, just more bloodshed, and more grief. For
> the "Point Man" is there to save
> lives, even if he gives his own in the process.
>
> Society may not be a company of soldiers, but it certainly has (and
> needs) somebody walking the point.
> Every time you go out the station door, every time you answer the radio
> call, every time you stop to
> check out something suspicious. AND YOU CAN'T CHANGE RULE NUMBER ONE.
>
> If I could say something directly to the people in our society, it would
> be this. I know some of you will
> remember our brothers, but that's not good enough. I want you to honor
> them for what they did for
> you-that which they needn't have done. I'm not just talking about what
> they did on the day that
> "routine" call or stop that went horribly bad. I mean what they did for
> you day after day, in darkness
> and light, rain or shine, on holidays and on their loved ones'
> birthdays, without ever expecting even a
> "thank you" in return. They volunteered to "Walk the Point".
> This was sent to me, and worth the read.
>
> As I'm was getting my leather gear cleaned up for the funeral of LASD
> Deputy David March being held
> tomorrow, I thought of the following exerpt from an article I read
> several years ago. And I thought I
> would share it with some of friends.
>
> The author talks about how after a peace officer is murdered in the line
> of duty, varying reactions are
> felt by different officers/deputies. Basically, some guys make sure
> they find what the dead cop did
> wrong in a tactical sense (and often this is a worthwhile thing to look
> for), but then others simply
> realize the greater truth-and that is that regardless of how well we
> perform our duties in a tactical
> sense, cops will continue to be killed in the line of duty.
>
> The following is an exerpt from his article:
>
> [T]here are some things that you just can't do without suffering-very
> literally and
> profoundly-casualties; and our job is one of them.
>
> You can't race cars without crashes, you can't dig mines without
> cave-ins, and you sure as hell can't send
> cops out into the streets of a violent society without violent deaths.
> Our fallen brothers knew that and
> did it anyway-as we all do or have done. ........Their friends will
> tell you they did the job because they
> loved it, and any of us who can't say that should envy them for it. At
> least they died as rare and
> precious people: doing what they loved to do, and doing it for the
> noblest of reasons. That is something
> we can never explain outside of our profession.
>
> You see, you can't be a good cop simply because you couldn't get another
> job. You can only be a good
> cop because you want it. And there is an answer as to why they died,
> something I learned half a world
> away many years ago as a young Marine, preparing to face an enemy in
> combat for the first time. It
> was then that my sergeant explained that, like it or not, there are only
> three rules in war:
>
> Rule Number One is "YOUNG MEN DIE"
> Rule Number Two is "YOU CAN'T CHANGE RULE #1"
> Rule Number Three is "SOMEBODY HAS TO WALK THE POINT"
>
> You see, when soldiers advance, knowing the enemy is near, there is
> always one man way out in front of
> everyone else. His duty is to look and listen and sense that first
> contact; to spot the enemy, pinpoint the
> ambush, fire that first shot, and as a consequence, take those first
> shots.
>
> It offends the logical mind and denies the instinct for survival. It
> ages and saddens and wizens, and
> frequently kills those who take their turn "Walking the Point". But it
> must be done, or there would be
> no protection for the rest, just more bloodshed, and more grief. For
> the "Point Man" is there to save
> lives, even if he gives his own in the process.
>
> Society may not be a company of soldiers, but it certainly has (and
> needs) somebody walking the point.
> Every time you go out the station door, every time you answer the radio
> call, every time you stop to
> check out something suspicious. AND YOU CAN'T CHANGE RULE NUMBER ONE.
>
> If I could say something directly to the people in our society, it would
> be this. I know some of you will
> remember our brothers, but that's not good enough. I want you to honor
> them for what they did for
> you-that which they needn't have done. I'm not just talking about what
> they did on the day that
> "routine" call or stop that went horribly bad. I mean what they did for
> you day after day, in darkness
> and light, rain or shine, on holidays and on their loved ones'
> birthdays, without ever expecting even a
> "thank you" in return. They volunteered to "Walk the Point".