Many in society have become numb when it comes to a tragedy like this involving a police officer and there are huge consequences when that happens.  I guess it’s “no big thing anymore” to many people and it’s just taken with a shrug of the shoulders as the person is more concerned about “more pressing issues” like, “What team did Lebron James choose?”

In Chicago, there have been several police officers shot in the last thirteen months.  Besides Soderberq, who was also a US Army veteran:  Thomas Wortham IV, also a two-tour veteran of Iraq, was killed off duty by four men as they tried to steal his motorcycle.  And Alejandro Valadez, on duty in the middle of a drive-by retaliation.

All were special, not only to their families, but to the community they served.

These people are the last line of defense between you and crime.  You should care.  A blog comment:

“This is just another needless death in a city where needless death is common.”

THERE IS A CHANGE IN SOCIETY - FOR THE WORSE

It used to be a big thing if someone would kill someone.  That was shocking.  It was reprehensible.  Today?  Life is cheap.

Part of society doesn’t care anymore.  Their attitude: Get on with what’s really important to me.  Who is on the All Star team?  Did the Bulls get Lebron James?  What are the toys being handed out in Happy Meals?  They better not run out this time!!!  Is there an App for that?

They are distracted and impressed by “bigger issues” that are incessantly hyped, like who is left on American Idol, Dancing with the Stars or who will get fired by Donald Trump?  It is really sad when the journalistic leadership of major television stations think that other stories should be the lead story and oh, by the way, a police officer just got shot.

Are they trying to distract our attention on what is really happening?  Are they afraid to comment on the downward vortex of society?  Is it like the fall of the Roman Empire where the citizens were more concerned about who was fighting in the Coliseum rather than issues being fought in the political Forum?

THERE IS A CHANGE IN SOCIETY – FOR THE BETTER

There was a very dark anonymous statement on the Chicago Police Department’s unofficial blog (http://www.secondcitycop.blogspot.com/) that I thought was a call to arms:

“No longer can we afford to be the shepherds of society.  We must don the hide of the wolf.  The flock has become unmanageable and the shepherd lacks teeth.  The wolf commands respect and instills fear.  Too many shepherds have fallen to the flock.  The wolf must even the field.”

Reading this reflects a feeling that the pendulum is about to swing the other way.  Did we hit a peak of aggravation erupting in a churning sea of apathy?  It’s like someone saying, “you want to play Dodge City?”  Let’s play.

The average citizen is getting more concerned about their personal safety and fed up with what they see.

If an armed police officer can get shot in broad daylight right at a police facility, what chance do I have walking out of the train station?  Am I a target at an ATM as I pull $200 out?

Some do not want you asking yourself those questions, but unfortunately we have crossed that line.  We are living in difficult times and some leaders just offer Hopium.  When the economy goes down, crime goes up and whether or not the mainstream media devotes the right amount of coverage to it, the fact is, it’s the REAL reality TV.

One of my readers commented on the draft of this article:

"We have become totally numb to violence.  When someone is being assaulted on the street rather than anyone helping the victim, the public watches or takes pictures.  They want to record it for their friends, who will be happy to look at it.  We, as individuals when it comes to violent crime, are on our own.”

MAINSTREAM MEDIA HAS LOST ITS IMPORTANCE

In the last several years, many alternative news sources have sprung up to the distain of the established mainstream media.  What they don’t understand is that many people are thirsting for real news and are tired of the slanted stories they have been fed by out-of-touch journalists.  They are also tired of what’s become important to the news media to pump up while real issues are either relegated to a short sound bite or not even mentioned at all.

First, a sports story or any other news should not take precedence over a police officer getting shot in the head - ever.  I guess it was determined by some news executive that more people want to know all the details of what team Lebron James choose or the latest on Drew Peterson, than to know that a serious incident happened to a police officer.

Second, thousands of blogs and alternative news sites have popped up.  Granted, some are not good, some are mediocre, but some have already made a big dent in the readership and viewership of the mainstream media.

It serves the media right.  They lost the confidence of their audience to provide an objective view or not prioritizing the killing of a police officer over other stories.

That is so wrong on so many levels, but it appears to be the latest in inept journalism. 

CARLINI-ISM :  When you get thrown to the wolves, you either become one, or are eaten.