A few years ago I wrote a column giving advice to my son using prescient quotes from famous people coupled with a few musings of my own. Since then, another boy has been welcomed into the family, and it’s become obvious that he will play second fiddle to no one. This letter, like the first, is directed towards both boys with baby brother getting top billing this time. Some may find this letter a bit tough, but the world is a tough place. You boys will never be forced to live in my echo chamber, so take from it what you will.  

Immerse yourself in education and remember that genuine teachers are not those who indoctrinate but those who inspire. Higher learning does not guarantee higher intelligence. The follies of the foolish are the opportunities of the wise. Your ignorance will be your rival’s strength. Seek answers long after your last class. 

The founding of America was a noble endeavor but it came at a costly price. “And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.” Of the 56 signers of our Declaration of Independence in 1776: 17 lost their fortunes, 12 had their homes destroyed, 5 became prisoners of war, and 9 died during the revolution. Benjamin Franklin advised at the time, “We must hang together, or most assuredly we shall all hang separately.”

Four boxes guarantee our freedom: the soap box, the ballot box, the jury box, and the cartridge box.   

“The world is a dangerous place to live; not because of the people who are evil, but because of the people who don’t do anything about it.”—Albert Einstein

But on September 11, 2001, passengers aboard United Flight 93 were not the people Einstein was referring to. These everyday Americans forced down their hijacked plane and turned terror back onto their attackers. These brave souls literally affirmed what Dorothy Bernard once said, “Courage is fear that has said its prayers.” 

America has a storied history of confronting tyrants and despots, often when our allies either couldn’t or wouldn’t. Our dominance in world affairs has not come without critics. But as the famous Roman Quintus Fabius Maximus advised: “It is better that a wise enemy should fear you than that foolish friends should praise.” “An appeaser is one who feeds a crocodile hoping it will eat him last.”—Winston Churchill

“Here in America we are descended in blood and spirit from revolutionists and rebels—men and women who dare to dissent from accepted doctrine. As their heirs, may we never confuse honest dissent with disloyal subversion.”—Dwight D. Eisenhower

At times, the world will resemble the Mad Hatters Tea Party. Navigate your life with a moral compass and your integrity should never be questioned. “Character is doing what’s right when nobody’s looking.”—J.C. Watts 

As someone who engaged with people having trouble staying within the rules, I regularly came across four types of malefactors—the thirsty, the shady, the crazy and the lazy. People who misbehave should not be coddled by society unless it desires more of this behavior. “Good people do not need laws to tell them to act responsibly, while bad people will find a way around the laws.”—Plato

America affords everyone equal opportunity to succeed and incentive is the driving force behind this success. Adam Smith wrote in 1776, “It is not from benevolence of the butcher, the brewer or the baker that we can expect our dinner, but from their regard to their own interest.” Remember, no one washes a rental car.

We Americans may have come here on different ships, but we’re in the same boat now. Our republic flourishes only when ordinary citizens become involved and take control of public affairs. Show me a man who has never been criticized, and I’ll show you a man who has never succeeded. Spend little time concerned about the opinion of those who spend their lives on the sidelines. Choose your own path but live amid the conversation. 

Your darkest days will be followed by the dawn. Hope springs eternal. Confucius said, “The greatest glory is not in never falling but in rising up every time we fall.” And if you ever have trouble getting up after a fall, I’ll come get you!

Dear Jake and Jack,

You both are several years away from reading this letter, but life moves quick, so I wanted to spend a moment to share with you some famous words of wisdom mixed in with your old man’s advice.     

Let’s start off with probably the most important lesson in life—wisdom begins with awe of God. It is a common mistake these days for people of faith to shun public acknowledgment of their core beliefs. But this great country was founded on Judeo-Christian principals. “In God We Trust” is engrained on the coins in your piggy bank and “God Bless America” is still the national favorite. 

You come from good blood lines and family will undoubtedly be a meaningful part of your life. I never spent a wasted moment with my grandparents and neither will you. You’re lucky to have caring and decent people ready to share every special event that will come to pass. Your aunts, uncles, and cousins will share in your finest moments as well. Along with your mom, these are the people to turn to when your dad is long on mouth and short on ears.

You’ll go to many parades but none will be more important than Veteran’s Day. All gave some; some gave all for us to live free. From Bunker Hill to the beaches of Normandy, America’s bravest fought for and defended our freedoms. I expect you to honor and respect them.

Firefighters rush into burning buildings as people run out. Cops will show up for just about every other problem you may encounter. Support their raises and benefits—it may even help with your college expenses.

Unless you can paint the corners of the strike zone with a 95-mph fastball or run the 40-yard dash in 4.5 seconds, education is the only sure ticket to success. Your best teachers will inspire and challenge you. Every subject in school is important but I recommend a heavy dose of history. Confucius said, “Being fond of the truth, I am an admirer of antiquity.” Will Rogers best explained the learning curve in this way: “There are three kinds of men: the ones that learn by reading, the few who learn by observation, the rest of them have to pee on an electric fence and find out for themselves.” Don’t be one of the latter. 

During recess in the play yard, stand up for the kid whom the bully picks on. He’ll remember you when he becomes a big CEO. If anyone picks on you, remember the words of Eleanor Roosevelt: “No one can make you feel inferior without your consent.” Here’s a little secret—bullies really aren’t that tough, and they cry themselves to sleep.

Sports are not only fun but provide important lessons in teamwork, sportsmanship, and commitment. Passion for the game is passion for life and you’ll feel that passion long after your last touchdown. Although losing may dampen your spirit, it will test your mettle. Since we’re talking about sports, I would be remiss not to mention a thought from the great John Wooden: “Reputation is what you are perceived to be. Character is what you are.”

I look forward to spending time with you at the ballpark. I can’t promise that I’ll catch a fly ball but you can bet we’ll be on time for the National Anthem. I hope that moment is on par with Barry Bonds staring at a payoff pitch.     

When you find people less fortunate than you, offer a hand up not a hand out. Compassion cannot be measured by dollars and cents. America affords everyone equal opportunity to succeed or to fail. Nobody owes us anything; we owe it to ourselves to be the best that we can be. You may lack silver spoons but you’ll always have plenty of love.    

Sometimes we get too big for our own britches and we need to be reminded of yet another line from Will Rogers: “If you get to thinking you’re a person of some influence, try ordering somebody else’s dog around.”     

Life is known to throw some curveballs and the ride will feel bumpy at times. Your mom and I will be there to lend a helping hand. Martin Luther King, Jr. explained, “The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.” Don’t be afraid to stand up for your beliefs in spite of the criticism that might come your way. Mark Twain said, “Courage is not the lack of fear. It is acting in spite of it.” 

Finally, singer Lee Ann Womack sums it up quite nicely and I couldn’t agree more: “Give the heavens above more than just a passing glance, and when you get the choice to sit it out or dance—I hope you dance.”

     Undoubtedly, America has had to come to terms with her own mea culpa regarding inequality and racial bigotry. But even decades after the civil rights movement, American police officers have been left holding the bag. The fact that police departments around the country have gone to great lengths to hire and promote based on diversity is of no consequence. A charge of racism against the police is all one needs to get the attention of the ACLU, the Justice Department, or the editors of major newspapers. 

     A few years back, the term racial profiling was devised to describe the practice where race is used as the primary factor in targeting criminal behavior. Racial profiling became the watchword of the day and a national phenomenon. Conspiracy theorists could not have dreamed up a more widespread pandemic as police critics from coast to coast complained of this deplorable plot. The political implications were staggering, and very few political leaders are willing to question it today. Bill Clinton, Janet Reno, George W. Bush, and John Ashcroft have at least one thing in common—all enthusiastically joined the crusade against racial profiling. This has been very troubling to the law enforcement profession as there is no empirical research to prove that racial profiling even exists to the extent that it has been reported.

     Police officers have an indispensable ally in their effort to spread the truth and repudiate the myth of racial profiling—Heather Mac Donald of the Manhattan Institute. As the author of Are Cops Racist? How the War Against the Police Harms Black Americans, Mac Donald explains how the junk science, first used to declare New Jersey State Troopers guilty of racial profiling, has been debunked. According to Mac Donald, the 1999 study that ignited the controversy had major flaws and failed to establish a violator benchmark—i.e. the rate of lawbreaking among a particular group. A subsequent study exonerated the troopers when it found that black drivers were stopped less than their speeding behavior would warrant. 

     But the demoralizing effect on the troopers continued to linger on. Mac Donald cites the following statistics: “At the height of the drug war in 1988, the [New Jersey] troopers filed 7,400 drug charges from the turnpike, most of those from consent searches; in 2000, they filed 370 drug charges…Murder jumped 65 percent in Newark, a major destination of drug traffickers, between 2000 and 2001.”[1]   

     Facts can get in the way of a good news story. The firestorm, fueled by media hype and politics, has yet to be doused by the truth. The California Penal Code now defines racial profiling as “the practice of detaining a suspect based on a broad set of criteria which casts suspicion on an entire class of people without any individualized suspicion of the particular person being stopped.”[2] Officers are mandated by state law in California and other states to participate in expanded training. They are prohibited from using race and/or ethnicity as a “predictor” of crime, only a “descriptor.” Fair enough. But an officer without a racist bone in his body sits in a classroom feeling like a guy who never drank attending an AA meeting. It may be the classic example of a solution looking for a problem. In my opinion, based on actual experience, the overwhelming majority of men and women entering law enforcement intend to harass criminals, not minorities.     

     Sergeant Carl Fabbri has worked in one of the Bay Area's toughest neighborhoods. Sgt. Fabbri knows the “players,” and the “players” know him. I asked him to weigh in on the matter, and here’s what he had to say: “Police officers have a unique instinct, sometimes called a ‘sixth sense,’ that alerts us to danger.  We rely on it to keep us alive.  This ‘sixth sense’ is developed from years of experience dealing with thieves, drug dealers, parolees, and gang members. We frequently ask questions like ‘Do you have any weapons on you?’  We know the answer will be ‘no’ almost every time but that's not why we ask. We ask because it gives us an opportunity to see how they react to the question—to see their body language, to study their eyes.  More often than not, our instincts are right on.

     “Our profession is under intense scrutiny from coast to coast. Some cops are ignoring the warning signs, the ‘sixth sense,’ because they fear citizen complaints and lawsuits. Worse yet, some cops have taken the ‘do nothing/do nothing wrong’ attitude. Given the political climate we’re working in, can you blame them?  Criminals terrorizing the neighborhoods love to see the ‘do nothing wrong’ cops patrolling the neighborhoods. It doesn't take a criminologist to realize how the extreme scrutiny we're currently experiencing will result in increased crime rates and put officer safety in jeopardy. 

     “Since we hold the power to use deadly force and deprive people of their freedom, the work of police officers has to be scrutinized. There is no valid argument against police accountability. Unfortunately, the pendulum continues to swing too far to the left, and there's no sign of it swinging back anytime soon.” 

     The collateral damage associated with the anti-racial profiling campaigns can be found in communities that can least afford it. Inner city, law-abiding citizens suffer when false information and racially charged rhetoric become the order of the day. Conspiracy theorists who came up empty trying to prove the racial profiling hypothesis may want to turn their focus toward those who profit from “de-policing” in America. Police officers and honest citizens could use the reprieve.

     And as Sgt. Fabbri concludes, “The solution is unclear at this point. Restoring the public's confidence in our profession is our best option.  This will only be accomplished by educating the public, political leaders, and the media on what's really going on in the trenches of the war on crime.”

Having recently fought and beat kidney cancer, I can tell you that I have a new lease on life. I’m confident that American medicine saved my life. A few prayers didn’t hurt either.

It appears, however, that patients in the U.K. don’t have it as good as we do acrosss the pond. I thought national health care was the answer to the health care "crisis"? Maybe not.

Check out this article in the Kidney Cancer Association newsletter.

"We pay a percentage of our earnings into a National Health Service that we are told is 'free at the point of need'.  Yet, at the point you need it, a group of unelected bureaucrats tell you that facing death doesn't make you an exceptional enough case to warrant funding the drugs you need." 

I won’t soon forget the chaos that ensued on June 28, 2003 shortly after beginning my shift and hitting the streets. And I don’t suppose any other first responder that day will forget it either. A 53-year-old man with a history of mental illness went on a shooting rampage in the lobby of the Dalt Hotel at 34 Turk Street before retreating to his room. The killer was described in the San Francisco Chronicle as “a ticking time bomb” who on that day was responsible for killing three and critically wounding another. I can recall stepping over bodies lying in the lobby as we searched for the gunman. He was later found deceased in his fourth-floor room from a self-inflicted gunshot wound, but not until his carnage had left its imprint on a neighborhood unaccustomed to being shocked by violence.

The Virginia Tech massacre will leave an indelible mark on American history. The deadliest shooting in modern U.S. history claimed the lives of 32 innocent souls with scores more injured. The 23-year-old mass murderer was a disturbed loner who stalked women and authoring violent plays. He was declared mentally ill in 2005 and ordered to seek treatment. Unfortunately, after a short stay in the hospital the psychopath returned to society and was back on campus where he would eventually plan and prepare for his day of infamy.

Deadly incidents involving deranged individuals are always succeeded by calls for action to prevent the next rampage killing. Not only is it reasonable to assess such events but it is prudent to thoroughly evaluate after-action reports.

While media outlets often lead the charge for change to law or policy, they are not exempt from critique. In the case of the Virginia Tech rampage, NBC News found itself embroiled in controversy. During the time between the two shooting events, the killer took time to mail his media “manifesto” to NBC News in New York. After copying the evidence prior to delivering it to law enforcement, NBC decided to broadcast the killer’s video message in prime time. But not everyone was pleased by the decision. Some of the victims’ family members cancelled appearances on The Today Show in protest while law enforcement officials were incensed. Dr. Michael Welner, a forensic psychiatrist, called the decision a “social catastrophe.” Welner implored, “I promise you the disaffected will watch him the way they watched ‘Natural Born Killers.’ I know. I examine these people. I’ve examined mass shooters who have told me they’ve watched it 20 times. You cannot saturate the American public with this kind of message.” Allowing the Virginia Tech killer to fulfill his fantasy from the grave with his demented message will prove a disastrous decision. Others who live a similar pathetic existence will seek the same immortality.

Law enforcement response to rampage killings is bound to undergo scrutiny, and perhaps none more critical than internal probes. While tactics need to be rehearsed in order to plan for gaining control quickly, the best one can hope for during the real deal is some kind of organized chaos. An active shooter requires that police officers attempt to put themselves between the killer and his intended victims. As a clever sergeant recently reminded me, “We don’t get paid for what we do—we get paid for what we might have to do.” The sad fact is that by the time a truly depraved individual crosses the Rubicon, limiting the damage becomes the most desirable outcome.

Some will go down the road most traveled and make the predictable calls for stricter gun-control measures. They may also want to consider sword-control. The day after the Virginia Tech massacre, a 33-year-old Northern California man was arrested for stabbing his mother multiple times with a rapier. When cops arrived they found the paranoid schizophrenic still holding the deadly weapon. It should be obvious that a determined individual will always find some way to launch a brutal attack on society. Lethal force must be met by lethal force pure and simple. Laws won’t help unarmed victims when a rampage killer is bearing down on them even when they happen to be in a gun-free “safe zone.”

The mental health profession will also be taken to task for what they did, or in many cases didn’t do, with a rampage killer preceding a deadly event. With strict confidentiality laws and even tougher requirements for involuntary commitment, it’s hard to envy the job of those tasked with treating people living off the edge. It’s a balancing act between patient’s rights and public safety, but it has been tipping in favor of the former for many years. Something may have to give. It’s worth noting that millions of Americans suffering from mental illness are able to lead productive lives.

After-action review must focus on myriad responses leading up to, during, and after a rampage killing event. But it should also take into account something that I believe I have witnessed up close—pure evil. Evil has existed since Lucifer was cast from Heaven. Bad men will do bad things. We can’t regulate it and we certainly can’t cure it. We should recognize it and, if need be, confront it. But we should never be naive enough to ignore it. Virginia Tech Professor Liviu Librescu didn’t ignore it. As a 76-year-old Holocaust survivor, Librescu knew the face of evil, and when he saw it once again he blocked the killer’s entrance into his classroom costing him his life but allowing his students to escape through a window. Librescu’s courage is worthy of this nation’s highest honor, and his name has earned a reverent place in our history.

Michael Nevin, Jr. receives e-mail at nevin166@comcast.net.