Our Men in Blue...

[racine]

I would prefer not to mention a lot of sordid news of everyday living but recently there was a mass shooting in a dance hall in California. A seasoned officer close to retiring threw himself in the line of fire in hopes to stop the chaos within. It was sad to lose a fellow citizen, LEO, to the craziness of our complex and cruel world. He is deserving of all commendations, honors and tributes of a man who sacrificed ALL to serve his fellow man & woman. Where is this going? One of the pictures shared with the public of this man was him on a trail with his arm around, perhaps his friend or his son. What caught my eye was his fishing rod and waders-a fellow fly fisherman who like many of us seeking the solace, peace and solitude of the great rivers and streams to drown out the madding noise of our complicated lives or cities we populate. Ladies and gentlemen, I would implore you all to say a brief prayer for him and his family and thank him for his service and sacrifice. A brief silence for those secular... He is now casting in those great streams above.

 

[JoJer]

The above is a fine tribute to those who "run to the guns". The shooter was also deserving of consideration: An ex-Marine (actually no such thing) in need of help for PTSD acquired in the service of his country. There's an interesting PBS documentary I caught (the night before this shooting) about the VA. Fixing the VA is an incredibly complex (and expensive) problem. We will continue to see their inability to properly treat those who "run to the guns" on the news.

 

[darkshadow]

Read in the details after the fact that he was a fellow fly fisherman, getting started but loving the sport he was getting into.

And the fact finding out it was friendly fire that killed this brave Sheriff was even more bad news.