TRUST

"Every kind of peaceful cooperation among men is primarily based on mutual trust and only secondarily on institutions such as courts of justice and police." Albert Einstein

Understanding the veracity of Albert Einstein's wise assertion is foundational to police training.

When honorable young men and women decide to devote their careers to the branch of local government that is dedicated to protecting citizens and enforcing law, they must also be taught this paramount concept; if they are not, the community they serve will not see them as their protectors and defenders but as antagonists who must be avoided at all cost.

And TRUST is something that must be earned. Certainly, all law-abiding citizens owe their police officers respect and should show them deference, for the reality is that on any given day, those who wear the blue uniform can be confronted with the person or the circumstances that will effect their demise. But TRUST is something that officers of the law must earn.

Just as any relationship is rooted in TRUST -- children must trust their parents. If youngsters are not reared by loving parents who recognize the genuine desire of their father and mother to assure their well-being, the offspring will rebel against the authority of their parents.

A marriage must be established upon TRUST. If a potential spouse cannot be expected to do the honorable thing in every situation, a life-long commitment will not be the outcome of the relationship.

Our clergy must be people of not only moral integrity but of spiritual power whose relationship with our LORD and SAVIOR JESUS CHRIST is strong or they will not command the confidence of their parishioners.

Teachers are required to spend countless hours in preparation for their assumption of their classroom duties. Not only are they required to go through stringent academic preparation for their role to have the academic well-being of their students at the fore of all they do, but they are also trusted to prepare the emotional, physical, financial and spiritual atmosphere of their classroom toward the preparation of their charges as viable citizens of a peaceful and successful community.

Banking institutions must maintain the TRUST of their depositors if they are to be successful. Everyone knows that at the onset of the Great Depression, banks failed because investors no longer believed their life's savings to be secure within them.

Grocery stores are expected to offer whole, healthy foods to their customers. Canned goods are expected to be undamaged and processed according to safety standards. Meats are expected to bear the U. S. Government's stamp of approval.

All human interaction must be established on the concept of TRUST. This TRUST is nowhere more needed at this juncture in time than in the relationship between a community's citizens and the officers who are hired to protect them and to enforce their laws.