Keeping Homeland Security in Perspective
Olivia’s Example
As a manager in a law enforcement agency with approximately 2,000 sworn officers, I spend a great deal of time reviewing plans for and overseeing security details for public events—especially in the spring. In the midst of working on preparing for the fifth major event in two weeks, I got an email that originated from a West Virginia State Police captain requesting assistance with yet another event last Saturday, May 17th.
My initial thoughts about this request turned to how times have changed regarding the level of security for public events since 9/11 and, more recently, the Boston Marathon bombing as the logistical requirements and expectations of law enforcement have increased substantially. I thought maybe the request would be for one of our explosive detection canines or motorcade support. However, once I opened it, I realized this request was different. It was for 4 year old Olivia Alexander. Olivia is a bright eyed and happy young lady who has been fighting a rare form of Leukemia for nearly a year.
Olivia is looking for a suitable bone marrow donor to help her whip Leukemia. This event is a drive to register willing bone marrow donors to help her—and others like her—find a suitable donor. It turns out Olivia really likes the police, and the West Virginia State Police was looking to expand law enforcement participation in this bone marrow donor drive by inviting representatives from other nearby states. Certainly a worthwhile cause to invest a couple of hours in—and who could turn down a cute face like Olivia’s anyway! (http://www.hlntv.com/slideshow/2014/04/01/girl-cancer-wish-state-trooper-west-virginia-olivia-alexander)
According to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, approximately 24,090 people are expected to die in the United States from Leukemia in 2014, with the five year survival rate at an all time high of 59 percent.[i] Compare that to the fact that you are more likely to die from a lightning strike than be killed in a terrorist attack in an average year.[ii] To be clear I am not saying we should quit employing law enforcement resources for public events to counter terrorism here. To the contrary, maybe that is part of the reason the terrorism fatality statistics for terrorism attacks are still so low, and the total consequences of some low probability events are just too great not to take preventative measures (think TSA).
What I am proposing is that the job stresses we all feel in the realm of homeland security—and the life stresses of those we serve—need to be kept in the proper perspective. We all should know there is no such thing as being 100 percent safe. Olivia, despite her tender age, shows all of us the proper attitude with which to manage risk. Know it is there, deal with it when it happens, help others, and smile.
