by Aaron Hanson, President

"All you have to do is follow three simple rules. One, never underestimate your opponent. Expect the unexpected. Two, take it outside. Never start anything inside the bar unless it's absolutely necessary. And three, be nice. If somebody gets in your face and calls you a %$@!@&$@, I want you to be nice. Ask him to walk. Be nice. If he won't walk, walk him. But be nice. If you can't walk him, one of the others will help you, and you'll both be nice. I want you to remember that it's a job. It's nothing personal. I want you to be nice until it's time to not be nice."

Isn’t it odd how some hokey dialogue uttered by an actor sporting a sweet mullet in a corny 1980s film can contain so much insight into our job as police officers? (Aside from the "never start anything inside the bar" part…but that’s probably sage advice as well.)

As police officers in a big city, you all have a tough job. Our community demands that you actively seek out the most dangerous individuals in the city on their behalf. Every day our community calls upon you to run headfirst into precarious, emotionally charged and rapidly evolving situations that would make the average person spin on their heels and run. In the vast majority of such cases, everything turns out okay. Other times, usually as a direct result of poor decision-making skills on a suspect’s part, things rapidly go south. Now the reasonable minded citizen understands that things "going south" are a natural byproduct of the necessary interaction between the poor decision makers of the world and those sworn to deal with said poor decision makers. A small vocal faction of our community however, perceives such instances rather only as evidence of a police department run amuck.

As frustrating as this entire media-fueled political labyrinth may be to the average copper, you have to hearken back to the wise words of Patrick Swayze "...it’s a job. It’s nothing personal."

Now don’t get me wrong. I get just as infuriated, and probably more so, than the next cop while I watch some "community activist" second-guess and disparage the actions of the brave officers that I am proud to call my brothers and sisters. But the sooner we all realize that just as it is "our job" to protect the innocent and capture the guilty it is "their job" to be shrill, unreasonable anti-police activists, the better off you will be. The sooner you understand that nothing you do or say – even if you perform your job flawlessly – will ever prevent them from acting the way they do, the sooner your ulcer will begin to shrink and your outlook on your profession will rapidly become increasingly more rosy.

Other than our safety, our professionalism is one of the most valuable intangibles that we as police officers possess. Your level of professionalism will almost always serve you well at the end of the day. Part of professionalism is "being nice" which should not be confused with being weak, being a coward or being excessively lenient. "Being nice" is simply a level of professionalism that helps us to avoid unnecessary strife between the good people in our community and us, and allows us to better differentiate between the poor decision makers that need to simply be sent on their way and the ones that need to be immediately culled from the herd. "Being nice" is a level of professionalism that allows us to make fair and objective enforcement decisions about individuals who may have just levied threats, rudeness, obscenities and personal insults against us. Sometimes it’s easier said than done. I personally struggle with it every day both as a cop and a union leader, but we have to do it.

As police officers, the following philosophy will rarely lead us astray: do the right thing at the right time for the right reasons, be professional, be patient, be prepared, be a peer leader, be honest…and be nice…until it’s time not to be nice.

As we wrap up the issues of 2007, and brace for the challenges we will face in 2008, I want to make sure I let you know how proud I truly am to work with each and every one of you. Your daily professionalism, dedication and brave actions never cease to amaze and awe me. Keep up the hard work, keep up a positive attitude, wait for your back up, ask for your attorney, and watch each other’s backs.

Happy Holidays and stay safe.

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