In appreciation of law enforcement

Some of the men and women in law enforcement, should never have put on a uniform. Some of them don't know how to play by the rules and some of them have caused serious abuses, and have even taken lives. Please note that I say some of them, not all. Certainly the vast majority of police do a tremendous job of protecting us and out property. While the bad seeds got an awful lot of attention last year, how about the good one? How about all of those cops who truly make a difference for the better?

Saturday was National Law Enforcement Appreciation Day, but I happen to think that every day should be a time to show our support for our nation’s approximately 780,000 police officers who carry a badge each day, knowing they may face extremely dangerous situations while carrying out their duties. Men and women doing good things to help others are certainly the majority of those in law enforcement, and it would be wonderful if more attention were paid to the positive things they do. I'm not just talking about those who follow their job description, but the ones who do that extra. In 2016, I intend to write about more of those instances here, and I also invite you to share your own first-hand accounts in the comments below.

In addition to the sworn officers, I would like to think for a moment about all who work with them - the civilian staff in police departments, the police auxiliaries, the neighborhood patrol groups. Think of all the good. Think of the crimes prevented and the crimes solved. Think of the sacrifices made by so many women and men and the risks they take, just to do good. Yes there are bad apples, but today, let's focus on the good.

Friday I wrote about San Francisco's new sheriff, and you might notice from the picture here that these are also from the San Francisco Sheriff's Department.  Tomorrow I will write here about some other folks who patrol.  I would love it if every single day we could recognize that there are good men and women out there in police work. When you see someone in law enforcement today, tell them thank you!