In this day of social media and everyone having an opinion, it’s very hard to go through every day life without being sucked into the drama of it all. Mainstream media is shoving a million different things in our faces and before we know it, without taking the time to gather facts, we form opinions about situations and people by what we see or read on the internet.

Now, this isn’t something that has just started to happen. Before the internet made information readily available and easily obtained, gossip was our form of social media. It might not have been as clichéd as ladies gossiping in the beauty parlor or men gathering for brandy and cigars, but nevertheless, people would gossip about the daily activities of those around them. It is simply more pronounced now that everyone has taken it upon themselves to gossip publicly on social media.

First of all, how rude! At least when the men and women would have their confidential conversations, they had the tact to keep it within their own circle. Not that anything about gossip is tactful but, I digress. The fact that we as a society in this modern age have lost respect for not only other people, but ourselves, is quite saddening.

One subject in particular that infuriates me in terms of these opinions and taking sides, is the fact that the media and sometimes the general public have begun to demonize law enforcement. No matter what you see, read, or hear there are always two sides to every encounter with law enforcement.

For starters, these men and women are trained to handle a myriad of situations that a regular civilian would not know how to handle. They are trained to disarm, neutralize confrontations, protect our children and our towns, as well as a number of other tasks that they encounter on a daily basis. They do not go running, guns blazing, into situations. They are logical, calculative, and careful. At the end of the day, these men and women are mothers, fathers, sons, daughters, brothers, and sisters. They want to get home safe and alive to their families, just like everyone else.

These individuals make sure that you get home safe before they do. They put the lives and wellbeing of entire communities before their own. How dare we paint the picture of them being villains! They apprehend people who could be incredibly dangerous. They put their lives on the line doing so. They are humans with aspirations, feelings, and families. They have training that we don’t have to be able to handle situations in a better way. That is the only difference between them and us.

Sometimes, bad things happen because of choices individuals make. And sometimes it’s easier to cast blame on law enforcement, but that doesn’t make it right. As I said above, they are humans just like you and me with families and lives of their own. Choices made in the line of duty affect them just like it would affect us. They are not heartless or wreckless.

I ask all of you to take the time to thank law enforcement for all that they do. I also ask that you all participate in random acts of kindness, that you find compassion and empathy for those around you, and think very hard before you post an unkind statement on social media. We cannot continue to pull each other down. This world has enough nastiness as it is. We must teach our youth by setting an example of what it means to be a decent human being. We are all entitled to our opinions, and our emotions; however there are better ways to debate your stance than bashing people, law enforcement or civilians, on the internet. Be kind, be compassionate, be a decent human being. God bless.