Opinion

Extraordinary people win over things

Saturday, September 21, 2013

Elbert Hubbard once said "One machine can do the work of fifty ordinary men. No machine can do the work of one extraordinary man."

Some of the technology and machines we have today are almost unbelievable. It was not until I lost my phone for a short time recently that I realized how much I depend on just that single device! In fact, I realized I use my "smart phone" for other tasks more than I do for talking. I receive and send faxes on my phone, check email, news, weather, take photos, and yes, I can even check my pulse after exercising! My phone has a flashlight, calculator, GPS, compass, walkie-talkie, and police scanner. It seems that what you can accomplish with a smart phone is endless, and it, along with other technology, plays a large role in law enforcement today.

Devices have just been made available to law enforcement that allow deputies to check a finger print on scene and get an instant return on who the print belongs to, we have a chemical that allows us to pull finger prints off of a car in the rain if we need to, and agencies are starting to use iris scanning devices to scan the iris of someone's eye to identify them. We have all this technology to help with whatever task is at hand, but that technology only goes so far.

It takes the dedication and hard work of the men and women in law enforcement who are willing to stand as a guard between those who wish to harm others and the innocent, and every day someone, somewhere, gives more than what they are expected and becomes that "extraordinary person."

On Friday, Sept. 20, Officer Rod Bradway, of the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department, was shot and killed while responding to a domestic dispute call in a northwest Indianapolis apartment complex. The officer heard someone crying for help, and when he entered the apartment he was fired upon. Although Officer Bradway had been shot, he was still able to return fire on the gunman and save the victim. Officer Bradway died a few hours later in the hospital, leaving a wife without a husband and two children without a father.

Every time I hear of stories like this, I remember how much our deputies and officers are risking when they respond to someone's call for help. The Sheriff's Office and Nevada Police Department respond to hundreds of domestic related calls per year and each time our men and women respond, they are risking everything to protect the citizens of Vernon County. And when it comes down to life and death, all the technology in the world cannot replace what one extraordinary person can do. I would like to say thank you to all of our law enforcement officers in Vernon County as well as others across the country that are willing to put their lives on the line.