Monday; August 26
I have
been hanging around the police for over twenty years now and I have made a few
observations. The first one is that when people deal with the police it
typically causes stress. Even something as simple as being pulled over
for a relatively minor traffic offense tends to elevate the blood pressure and
heart rate. The second thing I have noticed is that when people are under
stress, they don’t function as well as they do when they are relaxed.
Articulate people tend to stutter or misspeak when they are asked simple
questions. People even have trouble reading things – like seeing the word
“Chaplain” written on my shirt and calling me “Captain”. Simply, stress
does not typically bring out the best in us. The
reason I bring up this topic is not to address citizen-police encounters,
rather it is encourage us to think about the decisions we make under stressful
situations. If something as simple as a traffic stop can derail us
imagine the impact a life-altering situation can have…