Recently, the media reignited the debate of racial profiling and police brutality, and lately, I have become friends with an ex-policeman who has shared his stories with me. Thanks to him, I have gained some of his wisdom. It is here I would like to share some of that. However, I would like to warrant that he is a white male ex-policeman who retired in the 70s, I would also like to warrant against the generalization of all white policemen being racial profilers - generalizing and stereotyping is a fallacy in many situations. Furthermore, my warrants are not purposed to diminish any situation which has involved racial profiling and police brutality, it is not purposed to ignore any victims voice who has been wronged, because many many of our friends and family from other races have been unjustly and violently treated due to the fear and ignorance from the white race. Therefore, this article is not about the race issue, it is not even about "us vs them", but is simply meant to give us some historical perspective from my friend's experience in the force and what he learned, because knowledge and wisdom surpasses the separating boundaries of society. So, enjoy:

1. Training is Everything

During my interview, I asked my friend two questions which received the same answer, "How has the police force changed since you retired in the 70s, and what is the most important thing you want my readers to know?" His answer? Training. My friend went through basic training and 16 weeks of specialized training for each position he took, and every month he did even more training. He said the most valuable training he received was stress training, because it taught him self-control, which he said is an extremely important trait to build when dealing with antagonists and emergency situations. Self-control means not pulling your gun on every antagonist, not raising your voice as if you've lost control of the situation, and making sure you mean what you say. To this my friend remarked, "There is no satisfaction in seeing people killed." And I would further say, if there is satisfaction in seeing that, someone needs to see a therapist.

2. Always Do The Right Thing

As a policeman you have procedures, requirements and protocols. It's part of your job to do things the right way, but if one hasn't been trained well enough, then those skills will not be helpful. One example my friend shared with me was crowd control. As we watched the news, paraphrasing here, he said, "look at all those people; and the policemen are just standing around. They should be controlling the crowd and dismissing them, but those people are standing around thinking they're doing something important." It is a fact that witness accounts are less than accurate, and never help a high stress situation. Crowds make those involved feel insecure, unsafe, claustrophobic and above all annoyed. Respect the situation and give the professionals space and privacy to do their work since the situation does not involve you. It is not our responsibility to monitor the situation, it is the professional's.

3. Honesty is Also Everything

My friend knew many a policeman who would incorrectly record their mileage because they were sleeping around. My friend was married to his wife who was also in the force, and both of them valued honesty as their number one priority, especially in their reports and communication. Honesty is a matter of accountability so as not to be wrongfully accused, or caught in a compromising dilemma.

4. It isn't About the Antagonists, It's About Helping the Victims

In principle, there will always be antagonists, therefore taking care of the victims and getting them to safety should be a policeman's number one motivation. If the antagonist has become unstable, then obviously to protect the innocent s/he must be contained.

5. Violence is Sometimes Necessary, However Being Trained to Use Appropriate Violence is More Important

This piece of advice confused me at first, but now I understand that in order to contain a violent antagonist, the quickest and easiest way is to use wise violence. In certain cases antagonists believe that they can do whatever they want, and in that case negotiation will not convince them to stop. In one situation, my friend was called in to contain an angry and violent protest because it was taking the sheriffs two days to contain the area. The sheriffs were dragging protesters out one by one by their arms and legs to jail. My friend, with LA-SEB, cleared the park in 20 minutes using tear gas. It was still violence, but it was more effective and less violating. Remember that mob mentality is out of control, violent and full of emotional people who have lost control of their cause, which creates a dangerous environment for the public. The point is: if one must use violence, use it wisely. Here my friend remarked, "I hate violence, but I'm very f*****g good at it!"

6. Sex is a Terrible Motivator

In many cases the antagonist is motivated to do evil because s/he gets sex out of it. Evil only has a few motivations, and it usually has to do with the individuals desire of money, sex, or power. Many crimes are committed because someone gets sex out of it. This is not to say sex is bad, but it is to say that there are some very wrong avenues which people take to get it, and those avenues are a crime against the innocent.

7. Never Yell "Freeze!"

Honestly, this is a joke, my friend said if you yell freeze it gives the antagonist an opportunity to run because that is what they see in the movies. Instead, say something they will believe like, "stop or I will shoot" firmly, or say, "what" or "really" like a sassy mother about to beat your butt. I think this is an important matter of the policeman's approach, presence and believability. You cannot just say what you mean, you have to show it in a manner worthy of being believed, and if necessary you must follow through.

8. Understand That Everyone is Human

To this my friend said, "understand that people generally lie...you can know they're lying because of the questions you ask." It is part of being trained to tell when someone is lying. The important thing my friend advised was to never get upset when the antagonist was lying. Losing your wits over a lie is foolish and means you probably need more self-control. Further, some humans will be good and others will be bad. The policeman is human, the antagonist is human, and the victim is human. There is no us vs them, at least there shouldn't be, but titles are important symbols which tell us who is who, and who is doing what and why.

9. Nothing is Easy

The hardest thing my friend witnessed was receiving an emergency call, then showing up to witness a baby who swallowed turpentine and morbidly died before the ambulance arrived. And that was coming from a policeman who was involved in the physical arrest of Charlie Manson. Everything we do in life will test us, and we need to be ready, but there are some things we will never be ready for.

10. The Media is Biased and it Exploits

The last thing he shared with me was how the media is a corrupted business. In my own opinion, the media lies and exploits in order to sell their stories and it only winds people up for mostly the wrong reasons. The media does not give every perspective, and it in no way can be fair. They always miss important parts of the stories, and they are definitely more focused on what's trending than your stereotypical millennial is. With that being said, it is important to be aware of how manipulation works, because one of the easiest ways to persuade people is to put a little bit of truth into a lie.

In conclusion, every perspective is important, and I believe that my friend has some solid wisdom to share. I wanted his voice to be heard, so that he could continue to help people even though he is retired and unable to help anyone anymore due to injury and illness. Thank you for your service and your advice my friend. I wish you well.