Thinking Man's Corner

Article By: Leo H.

They call the lawman a warrior. When people hear the word, they see a knight in steel or a samurai with two swords. In modern times they picture a soldier in Kevlar, moving toward the fight. It is a fine thing, to be called a warrior. It is worth trying to live up to.

An officer steps out each day into a world that can turn hard and violent without warning. He stands his post for people who may never know his name. He holds the line because someone must. He is the paladin in a time when fewer men wish to stand firm. So, yes—today’s peace officer carries the same mission as the warriors who came before him. And because he carries it, he must live clean, and strong, and beyond reproach.

Men who face danger have always kept a code. Sometimes it was written. Often it was not. But they knew what was right, and they knew what was wrong, and that knowledge guided their hands. The knights had chivalry. The samurai had Bushido. If we are to call ourselves warriors, then we must have a code of our own.

The old codes were simple, built from the things that keep a man straight. The knights spoke of prowess, justice, loyalty, defense, courage, faith, humility, largesse, nobility and franchise. They believed a man should master his craft and live without bias. They believed loyalty meant standing with those you swore to protect, even when the choice was hard. They believed a man must defend others, even at cost to himself. They believed courage meant walking the road everyone else avoided.

They believed in faith—because a man without something to guide him cannot stand steady long. They believed a man should speak less of himself and let his actions tell the truth. They believed in giving when he could. They believed a man should strive for excellence in his duty, so others might follow him. And they believed privilege belonged only to those who earned it.

The samurai walked another land, but their hearts beat the same way. Their code—Bushido—carried seven virtues: justice, politeness, courage, benevolence, veracity, honor and loyalty. Much like the knight’s code, but sharper in its edges.

Justice meant knowing right from wrong and acting with no wavering.

Politeness meant understanding a man’s feelings and granting him dignity.

Courage meant fighting, even when the odds were poor, and meeting hardship with steady hands.

Benevolence meant using your strength to lift another man from suffering.

Veracity meant speaking truth, even when it was costly. To lie was weakness.

Honor meant knowing your worth and guarding it through right action.

Loyalty held the whole system upright. Without it, the warrior was nothing.

Long ago, knights stood above the common crowd. Samurai did the same. But today’s warrior lives among the very people he protects. There is no nobility of birth—only duty freely chosen. The thin blue line stands inside a society that often questions it. So the modern warrior must carry both strength and empathy. He must know when to hold firm and when to understand.

So what will your creed be?

The American officer can be called upon at any hour, by any person, for any reason. He must answer that call with the same resolve each time. Pride is good for a man. Arrogance ruins him. We cannot allow ourselves to become a tribe apart from the people we guard.

We have chosen the warrior’s path. The old virtues still matter. Those who wear the shield today shape the warriors of tomorrow. A supervisor, a trainer, a partner—each carries the weight of example.

If you teach, teach honestly. Teach only what is proven. Keep the tactics sharp and real. There are too many who repeat things learned in comfort, things that have never been tested in the heat of work. Know a skill before you pass it on. Master it, or leave it alone.

Hold your people accountable. Responsibility must be learned. When you accept mediocrity, you breed laziness. Laziness becomes sloppiness. And sloppiness is a kind of dishonor.

No man is born a warrior now. The world no longer makes them that way. Skill and judgment must be forged. Knowledge must be hammered into habit. Even bright armor will dull if left untouched. So it is with the warrior spirit.

It is your job, as a leader or trainer, to keep that spirit alive—to polish it, to strengthen it, and to pass it on.

“Leaders are visionaries with a poorly developed sense of fear and no concept of the odds against them. They make the impossible happen.”  Dr. Robert Jarvik, 20th-century American heart surgeon

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