Be vigilant and be aware. Never take things for granted, and never let yourself believe that “It can’t happen to us”.

We will NEVER forget.

Let’s start of by acknowledging that inner child in all of us that wanted to be a policeman or fireman when we were little. That is exactly what the Kids Firefighter blog is. It is a blog by a child that absolutely loves everything having to do with fire service or firemen.

I really liked this blog from the first time I visited, and have gone back many times to see what 5 year old Mathew was up to. Now obviously Mathew gets help writing his blog, but hey, the thought is there and I think that a blog for kids is an awesome idea.

Examples of some things written in Mathew’s blog are a Donald Duck Fireman Video, which really is fun to watch as an adult too, and Fire truck pictures. The Kid’s Fire Fighter blog even takes the time to publish reminders of upcoming events and fire recognitions. As a parent, I really respect the parent/s of this young blogger, and I wish more families would be this involved in what their kids do and view on the net. Kudos!

Up next, we get a bit more serious with The Average Jake Firefighter blog. Though this blog is not a very “old” blog, I like to read the updates because the writer incorporates a lot of fire fighting and training tips. He also adds in a few fire fighting related product reviews and even a few personal opinions. As long as this blogger can keep finding things to post about, I believe he will be a great resource and interesting read.

And now, we get into a bit more “hard core” fire fighting blogs. The Kitchen Table takes business serious, and it is one of those blogs that you could lose a lot of time in and before you know it, you have been there for hours. Put together by several writers, this blog has pretty much everything you could want. From tactical information, to standards and regulations, to articles of inspiration, I think anyone interested in fire service would like this blog.

Anyone that reads the blog here at publicsafetydegrees.com, should also know how much I appreciate good stories and accounts of real life incidents. In fact, I think I would have to say that personal blogs are my favorite, especially if I can read and identify with the story being told. So, blogs like Into the Fire are definitely blogs I frequent a lot. Although there are posts extending back a few years, I actually wish there were more. There are stories about electrical fires and even a post about a fellow firefighter death. Blogs like this actually inspire me to keep on writing my own stories.

I saved my favorite for last. The Fire Critic is my favorite fire related blog, and I know I am not alone in this thinking. The Fire Critic’s blog is way too in-depth for me to just single out a couple of posts, and say, this is what the blog is about. The blog covers everything, and I really mean everything. However, a couple posts that ring out in my mind are a topic about tunnel vision, which we can all associate with. The top ten lists, featuring this firefighter dance video, and some very personal topics covering fallen fire fighters, memorials, and even discussions about aging, in the Line of Duty category. The Fire Critic is a “must read” for anyone seriously interested in fire/ems, and I highly recommend it.

So, those are some of my favorites. I could only hope to put out the quality of content that many of you do. I do try, but I must also give recognition to those that inspire me, such as the ones I have mentioned here. Keep up the good work fellas!

Murder, robbery, sexual assault, kidnappings, and the seemingly never-ending flow of illegal drugs into our culture are just a small tip of some of the burdens that we ask our law enforcement to save us from on a daily basis. We ask them to do it for what many consider to be a shameful salary in comparison to the work they do, and all the while, we ask them to do it in the face of constant criticism.

Why do police officers do their jobs?

As many of us sit in the comfort of our home, we have to realize that out on the streets, police officers are there watching over us and making sure we are safe. Knowing what could lie in wait for them, we have to ask ourselves “Why do they do it?” They cannot possibly do it for the pay. Law Enforcement officers in the USA are among some of the lowest paid public servants in the country. In many areas, their income levels remain below the national poverty levels. Surely it is not for recognition. The news reports over the last few years are filled with slanderous allegations of corruption and threats against all of our police officers. It isn’t just for self fulfillment. While the job certainly entitles an officer to be very proud of what they do, it just can’t be the sole reason one would endure the hazardous environment they work in each day.

If you ask most any officer, they will tell you very plainly why they continue to do the job they do. They do it because of a desire they have had since they were young to help society and to help put a stop to the pain, suffering, and grief that engulfs many Americans every day. They do it because there are people in trouble, and they want nothing more than to help relieve them of their problems. Officers will tell you that despite the dangers of their jobs, the low pay rates, and the constant complaints of criminals and criminal proponents of our culture, they still feel as though they have the best jobs in the world. They are proud of the work they do, and proud of having the ability to make a difference in the lives of fellow citizens. They will tell you that the satisfaction of taking another criminal off our streets can be unmatched by anything else, and as long as crime continues to be a problem in our world, they will continue to wake up every morning and anxiously return to work the streets to ensure our safety.

Are law enforcement officers making a difference?

Crime in the USA seems nearly out of control. With the constant barrage of reports from our media, it seems as though our police are fighting a losing battle. But, is it really a losing battle?

Each year, the Federal Bureau of Investigations publishes the reports from a Uniform Crime Reporting Program that was first established in 1929. These publications provide an in-depth look at the effectiveness of how well our society is being policed.

According to the Uniform Crime Report of 2009, the latest publication, our law enforcement officers are not only doing their job well, but they are succeeding in reducing crime at nearly every level. According to this most recent report, violent crimes were reduced by 5.5%. Also in this publication, property crimes were reduced by 4.9% and arson saw a downtrend of over 10%! One disturbing trend seen in recent publications is a significant rise in the number of crimes committed in association with illicit drug abuse and sales. This data implies that while the overall fight against crime has been a substantial success, police are now fighting a losing battle against the sale and use of illegal drugs that overshadow the real effectiveness of our law enforcement. If we as a nation could somehow get a firm control over drug abuse in the USA, the hard work that police have put into their jobs would be brought clearly into light. This would cast undeniable evidence that our police are effective and the training and hard work they have gone through for so many years is paying off.

Recognition for our public servants

Each day, our police officers step onto the street with the threat of violence and assault against them. Aside from this, new threats have been publicized against our law enforcement officers by drug cartels based outside of our own country. There is a very telling tale in these threats. Our law enforcement officials are now seemingly doing their job well enough that the criminals responsible for passing illegal drugs into our country are scared, and they are scared enough that they are forced to threaten violence against our officers, in order to continue their criminal activities.

We as citizens of the USA have a lot to be thankful for. Our law enforcement is among the very best in the world, and despite what it appears on the surface, they are doing their job effectively and with proficiency. It is time we put a halt to narrow-minded thinking that we will never get a grasp on crime. Over the years they have proven that they can do the jobs we ask, and as long as they can receive the support needed from the very citizens they risk their lives for, they will continue the uphill climb in reducing crime and making our country a safer place for us to carry on our daily lives.

Today would be a great day to thank an officer that you know. Just let them know that they are appreciated, and that they still have our support.

If you or someone you know is thinking of entering a career in law enforcement, consider some of the online schools that offer law enforcement degrees. Options are available, and those that have always wanted to step up and help prevent crime, can take advantage of those options.

Later that evening while sitting with my 5 year old niece, who I adore, she asked me what my website was about, and so I told her I write stories about heroes. Her little face lit up as she replied, “You mean like superman?” I laughed a bit, shook my head and replied, no honey, I write stories about, real heroes, not make believe ones. She looked puzzled, so I tried to explain.

I started by asking her if she knew what a hero was. Tilting her head while grinning up at me as if I was an idiot, she responded by telling me “Heroes are people like Spiderman that are real strong and can fly. They save people and dogs.” Her answer was about what I expected, and, while it did make me chuckle, it also made me wonder about a few things, so I decided to pursue the subject a bit further. “Not those kinds of heroes, I said, but real heroes – people who do good things like saving people’s lives. Don’t you think those are heroes too?” “Stop being a silly Uncle Jamey”, she giggled, “Those are just regular people doing great things, not real heroes like Spiderman! “This is what pushed me to wonder about a few things I had believed in, but never really given a lot of thought to.

Would I Have Done What The Man At The River Did?

Are heroes born or are they created? Is it something that is just inherently inside a person, or is it possible that someone who has no intentions of ever doing something heroic could simply just end up in a situation that turns them into a hero? I started to think back to the river incident, and asked myself- “Would I have jumped into the raging flood water to save that woman?”

I know with certainty that I have saved the lives of many people throughout my years as a Paramedic, and I recall many a time when a victim would have surely died had I not been there to provide treatment. Looking back though, it occurred to me that I’d never been involved in a situation that involved heroism. I was only doing what I was trained to do, and it was my job to do it.

One of the most important things Public Safety responders are taught is to always watch out for the safety of yourself and your crew first, and then take care of those you are trying to rescue. We are taught to never put the life of our patients or others before our own. What this means is that we are to always make sure the scene is safe, and if not, our first goal is to make the scene safe.

Police officers are trained to secure and neutralize unsafe situations in the safest manner possible and to always weigh the consequences of a situation by the benefits. In other words, an officer is taught to use every safety precaution available and to use forethought before making a move.

Firemen, being trained along the same lines, always use safety precautions before entering burning buildings. Fire retardant clothing, breathing apparatus, tools, and knowledge are only a part of what they have to arm themselves with. When they go into a burning building, they know that they, and their crew, have taken every available measure to ensure their own safety first.

Every branch of Public Safety is trained to put safety first. It’s what ensures that they are able to do their job and live to be able to do it again the next time as well.

So What Makes Someone Become A Hero?

After talking to my niece, I had to ask myself a question. What if a trained rescue diver had witnessed the woman’s car going into the river? What would he have done, and would the outcome be the same or different? Would the rescue diver have taken the time for precautionary measures they are trained to take before diving into the flooded river? I believe he/she would have. Here’s what I think may have happened in that case:

The diver sees the accident. They pull over to help, but not before contacting local 911 or dispatch. Next, they would have put on any safety equipment they happened to have with them, perhaps even grabbing ropes and life preservers. Before entering the river they would use precious moments to think through the situation, tie themselves off to a tree, and take every other possible safety precaution in order to help ensure their own survival first. It’s just what they are trained to do, and it is what everyone else in Public Safety is trained to do as well.

So, does it make a difference in whether or not a person should be considered a hero if they utilize their training to ensure their own safety before they rescue someone? What if both results were the same? The untrained man simply jumped into the water without thought for his own safety, yet was still able to save the woman, while the trained professional would have taken the time to set up safety procedures before doing the same. Does that mean they are both heroes, even though the trained person used a few “cheats”? Does that make him less of a hero?

Now let’s think back again. Would the trained diver have gone in to rescue the woman if he had no training to do so? If not, then I think it may define what a hero really is. Could it be that a hero is someone who risks their own life in order to save another’s? Someone who acts on sheer instinct and goes in regardless of the outcome to their own wellbeing?

Is it possible to create a hero by giving them the training, tools, and knowledge needed to perform a rescue and still insure their own safety? Or, is a real hero one who would run into a burning building with the odds of returning stacked highly against them. Is the real hero one who would have performed the rescue with or without training? If so, that means that a real hero is one who would risk their own life to save another without regard to their own safety.

September 11, 2001

Heroes arose and tragically, many heroes surrendered their lives on that tragic September morning. Office workers, cooks, and passers-by went into the chaos and smoke alongside the brave police and firefighters that day, as they risked their lives, and in many cases gave their lives in order to save others. Trained rescuer workers by the score marched into the buildings to try to save the lives of those still inside – despite knowing that the buildings could very likely collapse. Many of those rescuers gave their lives that day doing the job they were trained to do.

What Defines A Hero?

After giving that question a great deal of thought, I think a hero is best defined as a person that, in a time of crisis, has an overwhelming urge to save the life of another. Whether trained or not, a true hero will see a situation and every ounce of their being tells them to go and help. Perhaps training can offer tools to be a hero more safely, but I do not think it takes away from the basic instinct a hero has to save the life of another.

In the World Trade Center tragedy, we saw trained rescuers put themselves into a situation where the odds of surviving were enormously stacked against them. I believe these people would have done the same, with or without any professional training. Although their training gave them the ability to save even more lives that day, it was not that training that made them run into a situation of almost certain death. It was something deep within themselves that they would not have been able to resist. It was the hero inside them that walked them up to those buildings, and despite any fears they had, it pushed them further and forced them to give whatever it took to save the life of another.

Heroism is something inside a person that takes over in a time of crisis. In an emergency situation, it dampens fear’s ability to deter them and it pushes them to give anything and everything to see another survive.

My niece was right in her answer. Heroes are regular people that do great things.