Paul Harvey said it best:
"A Policeman is a composite of what all men are, mingling of a saint and sinner, dust and deity...The policeman must be a minister, a social worker, a diplomat, a tough guy and a gentleman..."
Paul's tribute to his father was written over forty years ago and it still rings true, although now one might be tempted to change "policeman" to "police officer" to account for our sisters in blue.
The Modern Cop must embody the old phrase "the Jack of All Trades is a Master of None, but is still better than a Master of One." Except society expects you to be Master of All Trades. The one thing every cop can agree on is that the rest of society does not understand what being a cop is all about. Every day that you lace up your boots and put on your vest, you are expected to be a crisis negotiator and CIT whiz, a marriage counselor, a parent to other people's children, a marksman, a BJJ black belt, a crash reconstruction expert, and a lawyer.
All before you take your thirty minute lunch break that seems to only ever last fifteen minutes.
Tucked in and amongst these job requirements, The Modern Cop will also need to be a thorough investigator, a CQB expert, a teacher, an intelligence operative and a medic. The Modern Cop knows what society refuses to recognize: "Mayberry is a myth."
Truly, modern police patrol teams look more and more like special operations units - you've got the one who used to be an infantry medic or an EMT. Then there's the other one who is a computer and electronics nerd. You've probably got one or two who either are on the SWAT team, or will be on the SWAT team. There's the one who has the uncanny ability to find anyone in the history of ever. Then you've got the sergeant who has more gray hairs than they care to admit and just wants to make it through the year with everyone still vertical.
The Modern Cop is becoming more machine than man. Radios are augmented with PTTs and ear pieces. Your handgun has an optic and a weapon light. The shotgun was replaced by a rifle and now your rifle also has an optic and a weapon light, and let us not forget the magical sparkle gun that is supposed to be the solution to everything. It also has a flashlight on it.
You've got a body camera, a dash camera, and before too long, I'm sure we'll all have our own drones which launch from the roofs of our all-electric patrol cars to follow us around and document everything. You have two cellphones. You have a laptop, GPS tracking, and more OSINT capabilities at your fingertips than any CIA operative did in the opening days of the war in Afghanistan.
The Modern Cop can succeed at their career, but at what cost? You've missed birthdays and holidays and recitals and soccer games. You've told yourself or have been told by other officers that "it's just another day" or "we celebrate Christmas the next morning." You may go along with it, but I know it still stings a little to leave your four year old at home on Christmas morning, staring at presents while you go to work, passing all of the other kids who got to open their gifts that day.
The Modern Cop looks for that magical private sector job with a six-figure salary where you have Margarita Fridays, unlimited PTO, and no one is trying to stab you with a flat head screwdriver.
Oh, the money.
The Modern Cop is told about the benefits of a pension from people who have to work 20 years instead of 25. The Modern Cop knows that the statistic that says we die seven years after retirement was created when people worked their twenty year careers and retired at 48. The Modern Cop retires at an average age of 50, and cannot draw from their pension until they are 52 1/2. They can then enjoy that wonderful pension for an average of two and a half years before kicking the bucket due to shift work, poor health, and severe levels of stress that would cripple most stock brokers. Those same stock brokers will balk at you complaining about retiring at 52 1/2 because they have to go to 60 or 65.
You're right, Brad. I should have to go forty years of seeing dead people, sexually abused children and a society who finds it easier to vilify me for Instagram likes than help me when someone is trying to smash my head in with a rock.
The Modern Cop knows this statistic, and The Modern Cop knows that long term survival rests on the decisions made today.
Meal prep or a cheeseburger?
Gym or video games?
Vacation or OT shifts?
The Modern Cop will meal prep like crazy, go to the gym four days per week, and still enjoy a delicious cheeseburger and sit down to lose themselves in a digital world for a while on whatever their weekend day may be. The Modern Cop will go on more vacations and get shit on by some of their co-workers for it. The Modern Cop knows that unplugging and de-stressing are just as important as wearing your vest and your seatbelt, but The Modern Cop will work that OT shift to help pay for their vacation.
I changed BlueLineMillennial to The Modern Cop because the aforementioned statements will fit every generation to come with a few exceptions. When the next group comes up, they'll look at the Millennial generation as The Old Breed. They'll probably have to work 30 years instead of 25, and Elon's brain will be hiring for laterals to come to Mars. Society still will refuse to say exactly what they want from its police. The Rolling Stones will still publish articles about abolishing the police. Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream will still want to defund the police.
Despite everything negative facing them, The Modern Cop will still lace up their boots and put their vest on, because The Modern Cop is, above all else, a bastion of safety and sanity in an otherwise chaotic world.
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