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Old 01-30-2008, 08:37 PM   #98
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Re: Is Aikido effective for police?

Hi Dan,

I'm sorry it has taken me this long to reply to your post. Please forgive.

In the time that has passed, I've been thinking about what you have written. My first impulse was just to correct the misunderstanding - which I will do now...

I wasn't referring to a particular person (i.e. a guy who is fixing his house instead of training) when I was using the phrases, "idiot" or "lazy-ass-guys," etc. Or, if I was, I was not referring to those folks that do not train. These phrases were being critical of folks, especially folks in law enforcement, that want the short-cut, the quick-fix, etc., to becoming skilled at Arrest and Control and/or Defensive Tactics.

Again, I was referring to folks that train but that train under the delusion that less is more, easy is good, and quickly is better. My experience lends itself not just to the fact that there are cops that don't train, but, rather that the more dangerous aspect of this all is that cops that do train are ignorant to the fact that less is not more, that no real skill comes easy, and that anything that is obtained quickly is more than likely not worth having.

That said, and reading Kevin's post, the other thing I wanted to say is that I do believe what he (Kevin) was saying. For me, in this day, of post-Columbine active shooter policies, assault rifles, gang-warfare, bipolar disorder, and methamphetamine, the average cop can no longer afford to be an average cop. Too much is at stake to operate at the level of mediocrity, whether it is by choice or forced upon us because the house has to be repaired, the kids need to be picked up from school, and the spouse needs some quality time, etc. In my experience, we can always do more than we are doing. When you combine that with "we should be doing more than we are doing," a level of self-responsibility comes into play when we are less than the profession requires of us.

Either way, I'm sorry if I offended you.

d

David M. Valadez
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