Too Many Heroes Dying

I took a couple of days off to go to a family function out of town. The drive wasn't long, only a couple of hours, just enough to stare off and ponder about life, about mortality. Nothing like a unexpected fright to give a guy a reality check. The scrapes and sore muscles are a painful reminder of how quickly life could end so I relish being alive.

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I arrive home. I go to my favorite sites to see how every one is doing and I find an excellent, heartfelt article posted by the Texas Ghostrider. It's about a comrade who has ended his own life.

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What! Again?

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What is it about coppers and eating bullets? Yes, that is a crude way of describing it but killing one's self is an ugly thing. There is no dignity in death. We, who see it all the time know this. It hurts everybody. Family, friends , comrades, all of us.

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Too many of us have chosen that route. Yes, I realize they are not thinking straight when they make that decision so I agree with Ghostrider. We as fellow officers have to catch the signs. We are so watchful of our backs and environment for "the bad guys" that we fail so see our close friends or loved ones suffering. Some one saw a signal. Something wasn't right about how he was acting. Were you embarrassed to say something?

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Statistically, police officers are way up there on the suicide list. Most of us have known one or more officers that have died this way. That's not right.

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Most, if not all, departments have some kind of employee assistance program. Reach out. Call someone . Be anonymous if you must, but do something. You might embarrass your self if you are wrong but you also may save a family from being torn apart. It's worth it!

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It is too painful to read about yet another police officer committing suicide.