Frank Borelli
Editor-in-Chief
Officer.com
I have to give credit where credit is due. I'd LIKE to be able to say that I came up with the idea for this blog all on my own, but that wouldn't be the truth. The idea for this blog - that our attitude and how we display / reinforce it matters a great deal - came from a gentleman I met at Police Week working in the "
Never Tap Out" booth. Then and there I knew this blog would get written.
NEVER TAP OUT. It's kinda like JUST DON'T QUIT. Fight back. Never say die. Never Surrender.
NEVER TAP OUT.
I like it. It was displayed on a t-shirt that I had to have for my daughter who is in the Army. It made me think about all the other apparel items we see that have cool sayings on them that we smile about but don't really give much thought to beyond that. Shouldn't we? Let's look at some of them and what they mean. Many say the same thing a different way:
Never Tap out.
Just don't quit. It's something I told both my oldest children as they packed their things and headed off to basic training. One went into the Marine Corps; the other went into the Army. I did my best to explain to them that only one person in the world could make them quit and that person was who they saw in the mirror. Think about that as we go through some of these slogans and the various things they mean.
Let's start with the
Never Tap Out. In wrestling and many other martial combat arenas, "tapping out" occurs when one fighter recognizes the superiority or simply superior position of the other fighter. Usually this occurs when the first fighter is in a bad spot, in an unescapable hold, etc and chooses to end the fight before going unconscious or having something broken. To "tap out" they smack the mat three times. Before their hand smacks that mat even the first time they have made a conscious decision to GIVE UP; to QUIT; to accept defeat and end the fight. That may be acceptable in a competitive world where money or trophies are the prizes awarded. However, in the world where you fight for your life - the world of soldiers, police officers, deputy sheriffs, crime victims, etc - tapping out means (potentially) accepting your death. It means surrendering your being to the will of that bad guy. It is accepting a life on your knees instead of a death on your feet. If the bad guy ONLY wants your submission then this may not be a bad thing. However, if the bad guy is willing to kill you and holds that as his goal, then the moment you submit he has succeeded in finding a willing victim.
NEVER TAP OUT.
One of my favorites and quite often my signature line:
Cogito, Ergo Armatum Sum - which translated means, "
I think, therefore I am armed." In light of the recent Supreme Court recognition that the 2nd Amendment is indeed an individual right documented in our Bill of Rights and forever a part of our Constitution, I believe this outlook is of value. If you're an American citizen, or if you simply live in this country, you need to understand that the courts have declared that the police DO NOT have a duty to defend every person all the time. If someone breaks into your home and commits a crime therein, it's up to YOU to stop them. DO NOT be a willing victim.
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For those who fight for it, life has a flavor the protected will never know." This quote is attributed to an anonymous author who wrote it on a bunker wall in Vietnam during that war. Think about it for a few minutes. Those who take life for granted will never appreciate the value and "flavor" of it as much as those who have risked losing it. Some of those who fight for it do it in defense of those who won't or can't. I imagine this is something like being so overfed that food loses its flavor or value. I can't imagine having SO MUCH food that I eat it without any appreciation at all. Can you imagine living life without any appreciation for it? There are those who do. They seek to destroy themselves by ingesting drugs, consuming huge quantities of alcohol or taking ridiculously foolish risks. They will maintain that all these activities help them to appreciate life even more because they risk it so often. But they risk it for an adrenaline rush that serves no purpose other than providing them a different high. For those who fight for it - no matter their motivation be it self-preservation or protection of innocents or defending a way of life - life has a flavor the protected will never know. Appreciate it.
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The only easy day was yesterday." I'm not a Navy SEAL. I have never claimed to be and I certainly never will. I've known quite q few and although I might aspire to be as good as they are (or were), I'm so far beyond the age cut off that the Navy would ever even consider letting me give it a shot. But think about the slogan. The only easy day was yesterday. The only easy day was the one you already lived through. No matter how bad it was; no matter how rough or difficult the day was, you survived. You made it through. And your reward? Perhaps an even more difficult day today. And some of them do it with a smile because it's their idea of fun!
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What doesn't kill you only makes you stronger." To me this one goes hand in hand with, "
Pain is weakness leaving the body." Of course this applies as we exercise and hone our finest weapon: our body. The muscle pain you feel in the following days does represent weakness leaving your body as you grow stronger. However, the pain you experience is wasted if you don't maintain the regimen and keep yourself fit. Further, if you never do anything new then you'll never experience the meaning of the first slogan: What doesn't kill you only makes you stronger. Have you ever been rappelling? Have you ever been scuba diving? Have you ever run a marathon? Challenges are those things in our lives that we face and overcome - or are defeated by. If the challenge is particularly difficult then you gain strength and experience by overcoming it. The good news is that the next challenge that comes along may not seem as difficult because of the strength you've gained.
What do you think? Which are your favorites? I know I've left more than a few out. Which ones do you teach your children? Which ones did you learn from YOUR parents?
