Illustration of a highway leading into the distance with a desert landscape, a black and white police car, a man in a suit, and a bird, with a circular inset depicting a landscape with a sky, hills, and a bird. Text reads '52 Brothers in Blue' and a Route 66 shield.

52     BROTHERS IN BLUE  

 KEY CONCEPTS:  loyalty, authority, protection, support, enforcement, order, integrity, brotherhood, standing up for your truth, bullying

MESSAGE:  Uh-oh, it’s the five-oh!  You may not like it but it’s time to reap what you sow, forthwith.  Gumballs flash in the rear-view and you panic, hoping to evade the cuff and stuff.  You’re ready to ditch the Fuzz…tickets, arrest, fines or even jail time??? What a soup sandwich.  Are you forgetting that Smokey Bear’s a peacekeeper, too?  He’s law’s loyal defender; he enforces rules society agreed upon in the first place.   When you draw Brothers in Blue, cut through the barricade tape.  Speak your truth in a full, no-nonsense tone. 

Have you railed against feedback from authority?  Back your Brothers in Blue.  Constant criticism starts to feel like a personal affront.  Police offer unwavering support to communities, aiding both people they like and those they really, really dislike.  We count on their reliability for our safety, and their work shift is rarely an easy one. 

The dark side of the badge reveals arrogance. No one wants a cop to over-utilize force.  Do you swagger around, demanding recognition just for doing your job? Expecting all your donuts on the house leans opportunistic. Remember, with great power comes great responsibility.  Has your authority crossed over into bullying? Earning the badge means arrests ensue, but swinging your nightstick without integrity constitutes abuse.  Manipulating, shaming or excessively controlling fellow citizens reveals you as a Barney, sniffing and posturing to hide scrawny insecurities. When you’ve stooped low enough to strike a cuffed suspect with your fist, all five of your fingers point at the problem. Small injuries repeated over time form calluses; while these develop to protect you, they also numb your feeling.  Let your hands grow callused, but never your heart.  Have you walled off your conscience to avoid pain? Acknowledge the problem and make corrections.

Bluejays can fly in two directions, like the law.  In his rounds as harbinger he’s an auspicious omen of faith, but when he waxes arrogant, he gathers up twigs to stoke the fires of hell.  His loyalty rightly belongs not to badge, brotherhood or government but solely to his conscience.  He knows the time for civil disobedience arrives when human laws contradict Divine Law.  Before you protest, take accountability for your choices.  Ignorance is the only sin, but it’s no excuse.  Look at the citation…whose name is printed on top?  Render payment unto them.

RELATED SITES:   LOS ANGELES POLICE MUSEUM, LOS ANGELES, CA; MOTORCYCLE PATROL SILHOUETTE NEAR FORMER SITE OF ILLINOIS STATE POLICE DISTRICT 6 HEADQUARTERS, PONTIAC, IL; POLICE CRUISER, SELIGMAN, AZ; POLICE CRUISER IN FRONT OF BOOTS COURT, CARTHAGE MO; VINTAGE POLICE CAR, GALENA, KS; JAKE AND ELWOOD BLUES STATUES, JOLIET AREA HISTORICAL MUSEUM, JOLIET, IL; BLUESMOBILE ON POLE, JOLIET, IL.