NYC doesn't give arrest power to it volunteers. NYPD Auxiliary Police Officers serve more as eyes and ears, as well as a visible deterrent to crime. Their job is probably more thankless then mine. Later tonight I need to pick my son up from the Police Academy... he's taking his first class to be an Auxiliary Police Officer. God bless him.
I got into this line of work partially because I was taking every civil service / utility company test I could find. I wanted a union job, just like my father. I was also looking for something a bit more rewarding, emotionally and economically, then retail sales. I was tired of being inside 8 hrs a day. I wanted to be outside and get paid for it.
I was also the geek that tended towards playing Paladins in his early AD&D days. Being a cop kinda puts you in that Paladin / Knight in Shining Armor role - at least until you put the domestic abuser in cuffs and now his girlfriend is attacking you because, despite the black eye and loose teeth, you weren't supposed to do that.
It plays out like a great roleplaying game, with twists and turns and the need for creative solutions thought up on the spur of the moment.
If someone wants to do my job, or aspects of my job, for free, God bless them and keep them safe. There's more then enough crime and abuse and problems to go around.
One day I'll have to relate some stories about how my experience playing D&D helped me solve problems on the streets of the South Bronx ;)
I am a fan of the police. I can't imagine being put in the type of stressful and dangerous situations that you could find yourself in on any given day.
ReplyDeleteWhen people bash the cops, they're blaming all for a few bad apples, and that kind of sucks.
God bless you and may He have your back...especially on the streets of the South Bronx!
Thanks, I owe God a lot. I figure if I was a cat I'd have burned 3 or 4 lives off already since I got on the job :)
ReplyDeleteI left the South Bronx when I got promoted... for Harlem... doh!
These days I mostly ride a desk. Come to think of it, I miss the South Bronx days. Late 90's, lines for crack longer then those for government cheese... as Archie Bunker would sing: "Those were the days!"
I was a bit of an adrenaline junkie back then I think ;)