Frank Borelli
Editor-in-Chief
Officer.com
So I was sitting in a hotel room in New York waiting to attend a law enforcement expo, and
The Last Samurai was on television. One line made me think about the current state of affairs in our country, and I felt compelled to start typing about it. The line was, "The way of the samurai is no longer necessary." Just moments before the "way of the Samurai" had been described as, "...a life of service, discipline, compassion." No one can ever doubt or question that the Samurai were warriors. The term
compassionate warrior has been one of my favorites for a long time.
These few lines got me to thinking and, as I am wont to do, considering the value today of those men and women who choose to live a life of service; a life of discipline; a life of compassion. In my (perhaps) overly romanticized way, I visualized Americans in uniform - military, law enforcement, fire fighters and more. Are they not compassionate warriors?
In my mind, anyone who enters our armed forces is a warrior and most assuredly lives at least some time in "a life of service". (S)He will certainly learn more discipline than the large majority of those who never serve. And even the hardest most violence-capable among them have a complete understanding of and capacity for compassion. I don't believe a person can fight, or be prepared to fight, for a cause without experiencing a passion for that cause. And having experienced a passion themselves, they become capable of understanding the passion of others. They come to understand the needs, feelings and desires of others. What else is this if not compassion?
In my mind, anyone who enters into a career in the law enforcement profession lives a generation in "a life of service". (S)He will certainly learn more discipline than the large majority of those who never experience such a career. Every law enforcement professional who has worked for more than a year on any street has seen and experienced things that have taught them compassion.
In my mind, anyone who enters into a career in fire fighting (including EMS or Rescue work) lives "a life of service." To survive in the environments in which they must work, function and succeed, they must learn a level of discipline the large majority of our population will never know. To do the things they do... living every day potentialy risking their lives to save and or benefit others is surely a sign of the greatest compassion.
These values; this drive to serve; this willingness to live a structured life in a disciplined fashion; this necessary ability to perform in a compassionate manner... these qualities and values are more necessary today than they have been in the past 232 years of our country's history.
As we grow into the future, it is imperative that we ask what type of future we want for our children. Those among us who have lived in service; with discipline and compassion know how important it is that our children understand these values. The founders of our country, I would venture to guess, were all too aware of these values as they fought and suffered to secure this land and build a documented foundation of liberties we can
never afford to willingly surrender.
While many in our society would compromise away all of their liberties and freedoms to preserve their mistaken belief that PEACE is of greater value than anything else, others fully understand - and are willing to fight for - the belief that PEACE cannot exist or be enjoyed without full liberty.
In another movie I enjoy(ed) the statement was made that, "Peace is not just the absence of conflict, but also the presence of justice." A life without liberty is unjust. Our forefathers recognized this and did their level best to insure that liberty would be preserved for all time for the United States of America. The only way those liberties can be lost is if we become unwilling to fight to defend them; if we fail to produce citizens willing to serve; if we glorify a society without discipline; if we lose any value of compassion.
Don't misunderstand. Compassion is not simply feeling sorry for others or sympathizing with them or empathizing with their plight. It is also a willingness to take the necessary action to help them overcome their condition or challenge. It is not our job to "fix their problem". It is our job to serve in a displined fashion with compassion for their challenges. We must support them as we can as
they grow and improve to overcome their challenges. In doing so we provide an example for the growing generation... and generations to come.
THIS is the example we must set. THESE are the values we must demonstrate, model and pass on. For generations to come, if our way of life is to not just survive but to thrive, we can afford to teach our children no less.
That all said, if you've read this and think I've lost my mind, please leave a polite comment indicating why you feel that way. If you've read this and you agree, leave a comment articulating why.
